Fewer persons choose to study at vocational schools

The number of young people who want to study at a vocational school decreases every year. The number of persons who enrolled to the 66 vocational schools of Moldova last year was by 8.7% lower than a year before. Octavian Vasilachi, head of the Education Ministry’s Vocational Education Division, has told Info-Prim Neo that demography and migration are among the causes of such a state of affairs. The Ministry worked out a strategy for 2013-2020, which is aimed at increasing the attractiveness of these schools. Among the planned measures are to outfit these institutions with modern teaching aids and equipment and to implement a new methodology for selecting students. “We want to cultivate the spirit of entrepreneurship in students and to develop their entrepreneurial skills,” said Octavian Vasilachi. According to the Ministry’s reports, the secondary vocational education is more popular with boys. They represent 68.7% of the students. Among the most popular jobs are locksmith for vehicles, waiter, barman, cook, tailor, and barber, while among the less popular ones – tractor driver, carpenter, builder, excavator machinist, and welder. As regards the vocational schools’ infrastructure, the authorities admit that most of their equipment is outdated and does not facilitate the development of professional abilities. As to the teachers, a large part of them have secondary vocational education. The assessment and certification of the graduates of secondary vocational institutions are not considered credible. The lack of appropriate instruments and methods does not enable to objectively assess the students. The Ministry says that the teachers of these schools should attend more training courses and seminars. The vocational schools are open to graduates of secondary schools and lyceums. The secondary school graduates study for three years there, while the high school graduates – one year. As many as 19,058 students study at these schools at present.