The meeting was organised and hosted by Cezary Przybylski, Chairman of the Convention of Districts of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, and Małgorzata Jeżewska, director of the Lower Silesian Centre for Vocational Information and Teacher Development in Wałbrzych. The aim of the conference was to develop rules and criteria for establishing a network of vocational education centres in our voivodeship. The presence of almost all representatives of district offices, as well as of the Lower Silesian Board of Education and the Lower Silesian Centre for Vocational Information and Teacher Development, clearly showed that the issue was important and urgent.
The Bolesławiec conference confirmed the thesis that the worst years for vocational education are already behind it. At the beginning of the 1990s, nearly 60% of primary-school graduates decided to continue their education at technical and vocational schools; now, fewer than 10–12% choose vocational education. Nevertheless, the shortage of skilled workers is becoming increasingly noticeable. Many of them have left the country in search of better-paid work. In Wrocław alone, there is a shortage of approximately 3,000 workers with vocational or technical education. Establishing a single class at a vocational school is currently almost a miracle due to the lack of applicants.
For years, vocational education was devalued. The prevailing opinion was that it was chosen by less capable and less ambitious students. Meanwhile, the European market is presenting us with entirely new challenges. To meet the competition, we must train skilled workers—and good ones—in many fields. By making use of European Union funds, we have an opportunity to modernise vocational education and adapt it to the requirements of the market. We can obtain EU funding, among other ways, through an education reform involving the creation of subregional vocational education centres. Each such centre would be established on the basis of existing education centres, with facilities for practical vocational training, teaching staff and social amenities.
Participants in the two-day conference discussed, among other things, opportunities and threats in implementing educational programmes, a strategy for modernising vocational education, and a modern and competitive labour market. Jan Kamiński, chairman of the Consultative Council for Vocational Education operating under the Lower Silesian Superintendent of Education, announced efforts to organise vocational education coordinated with the needs of the labour market, create a good network of vocational schools and raise the status of continuing education. Meanwhile, Stanisław Szelewa, Head of the Education Department of the District Office in Świdnica, and Bolesławiec deputy district governor Dariusz Kwaśniewski identified the weaknesses of the existing education system, mentioning, among other things, outdated facilities and the low flexibility of educational profiles and fields of study. The participants unanimously supported planning fields of study so that their offerings would meet the needs of the labour market to a greater extent than before.
(information: Jerzy Małachowski/GA)