Skill Vibes: Pause..Reflect..

The effectiveness of any skill development program heavily depends on the support provided to students throughout their journey.  An integral part of this support is skill counselling, which aims to guide and assist students during the mobilization, admissions, and assessments, including Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). Unfortunately, the current state of skill counselling in India leaves much to be desired. There is a significant shortage of dedicated counselling professionals who can provide the necessary guidance and support to students as they navigate the complex skill development landscape. This shortage becomes particularly evident during the mobilization, admission, and placement phases when students require accurate information about courses, career prospects, hiring practices, and the relevance of different programs to their goals.  Some of it can be offset by technology (kiosks, websites), or through print material(brochures, leaflets) but may not be able to rep...

2005-06 were the early years when people were getting re-energized to the idea of skill development. Several platforms were getting created to bring stakeholders together to exchange views and discuss challenges and possible solutions.  It was one of these meetings where an idea was initiated to engage the senior and mid-management of the training system into taking some number of classes in the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) to make the training process more efficient. This also had some added advantages where the senior and mid-management could get a first-hand feel of the training institutes and would also keep the staff at the institute more alert. However, the response of one senior representative was alarming, as he stated that he had worked hard to advance in his career and did not want to return to the institute. The mindset and culture within the training system revealed by his statement remain unchanged even now after 18 years.  Nevertheless, there is merit in...

  T he Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) are back in news with fresh announcements in the Union Bugget 2022. " Startups will be promoted to facilitate "Drone Shakti" through varied applications and for Drone-As-A-Service (DrAAS). In select ITIs, in all states, the required courses for skilling, will be started." The ITI system ideally, needs to be flexible and nimble footed to adopt to the dynamic needs of the industry to supply skilled manpower in the normal course of functioning, rather then a push from the Union Budget. These institutes (barring a few) are plagued with inefficiency due to shortage of staff specially the Principals (it is not uncommon to find one Principal managing several ITIs, in some cases hundreds of Kms apart), ill equipped trainers, outdated tools and equipment or even shortage of outdated equipment. The silver lining is that at the top level there is willingness to change things for better, hence funds are being pumped regularly int...

  T he ‘Kaushalacharya Samadar 2020’ was organised  on the 10th September to celebrate & honour 91 trainers & gurus across 5 categories & 21 subcategories who have made an incredible difference in the entire skill ecosystem. A great way to honour the trainers of the skill ecosystem based on their hard work and dedication. Such events do raise the respect and self esteem of the trainers.  However, the point to ponder is whether the impact of such one off events is lasting? Or is there something else that needs to be done simultaneously for a  continuous and longer impact? A detailed analysis is required to find a meaningful solution.  There is no one solution that will motivate the trainers and at the same time make the profession more respectable and desirable. Training of trainers is beyond doubt most critical. There are several examples to prove that largely the trainers are technically no better than the trainees themselves. The MSDE, NSDC and SSC...

T he Skilling Ecosystem continues to struggle to develop desired competencies for their trainers & trainees the lack of  which results in unreasonable failure rates and low placement percentages. The data made public by NSDC recently shows failure rates are more in the manufacturing sector as compared to the service sector job roles. Stakeholder at all levels are making positive contribution, however we still keep missing the goal by a big margin.  What are the possible reasons? There is no one specific reason but a host of them cutting across the "Skills Value Chain". Their combined effect keeps us away from the fundamental goal of enhancing Competencies. To discuss a few: a)  Setting up an ITI / Skill development center without linking it to the local and regional labour market survey, leading to a mismatch of demand and supply in the local area. Many times the focus is on choosing job roles with minimum investment disregarding the actual local requirements.  b...

I am writing this in continuation to my previous articles, viz; Skill Development:  Lessons from Afghanistan (1) and Skill Development:  Lessons from Afghanistan (2) in case you missed them earlier: Read on further…. Another learning from the past. The India Skills centre was approved to be setup on 28 Aug 2005 through a joint statement of the two heads of the States. The entire team was overjoyed imagining what it would be like. The team made several visits to Kabul in quick succession, essentially to establish liaison with the concerned people in the Afghanistan Government, visit the training centres set up by other countries like South Korea, Japan and Iraq, visit several construction sites to understand the live issues and skill needs. These visits gave us good perspective of what must be done and what should be avoided and why. The final go ahead from the Government was received after a detailed process of budgeting and re-budgeting and responding to queries of...

A ssessments are the key to certifying competency. Contrary to a general belief that “Assessment” and taking a "Test” is similar, it is pertinent to mention that assessments are much broader.  A “Test” may check someone’s knowledge to ascertain / establish what the learner has learnt, or it may also establish the level of skill / knowledge acquired. Whereas, “Assessment” process documents skills, knowledge and attitude in a manner which can be measured. The aim of assessment is not to freeze the judgement but to open the window for improvements. The Assessments are governed by a set of principles which must be applied to make the assessments relevant. Just to recapitulate, the Assessment should be: ·          Valid ·          Reliable and Consistent ·          Transparent ·          Inclusive ·     ...

T he growth of the Indian hashtag Skills Development eco-system has been hectic. The space has swelled with people from different professions, many of them with passion for skills development and many just wanting to explore the new grounds. From Govt at all levels on one hand and Industry, Industry Associations, Sector Skill Councils, Training Centres, Trainers, Assessment Bodies, Assessors, Content writers and developers’ Educational institutes including Skill Universities on the other hand. It is natural for people to have varied understanding of fundamentals and principles. The lock-down to contain and fight hashtag COVID-19 has brought in a deliberate pause. This opportunity must be utilised to reflect on some fundamentals for a common understanding and cohesive outcomes in some taken for granted areas like:      (a) understanding the NSQF      (b) understanding and interpreting the Qualifications      (c) understanding the science...