Eastern Partnership Regional Conference on Dual Education

Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport, Irina Abuladze, hosted a three-day Eastern Partnership Regional Conference, which aimed to bring participants together to share experience on issues of dual education among partner countries. A dual education system combines an apprenticeship in a company with vocational education at a vocational institute in one course. This system is practiced in several countries, notably Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. South Korea has also recently adopted the model.

The conference was organized by the European Training Foundation (ETF) and was attended by 50 delegates from 6 countries – Ukraine, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Moldova, Kazakhstan.

Deputy Minister Abuladze introduced the new vision of the Ministry on dual education and the results of recent reforms. She stressed the importance of continuity throughout all stages of education and noted that vocational education is one of the priority directions of the system.

The main aspects of the vocational education system reform are: increased access to the vocational education system, development of the adult education system, and increasing dual education opportunities, which should ultimately be linked to an increase in the employment rate of the population.

In the course of the conference, each country gave presentations that shared the experience and progress of the partner countries, implemented in terms of dual education. Future plans for cooperation between the countries were also determined.

By Samantha Guthrie

Photo: Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sport