PLANNING FOR VOCATIONAL-EDUCATION, TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT - A MINIMALIST APPROACH

What should planners of vocational education, training and employment do? In the past the assumption has often been that they should plan, o n the basis of economy-nide forecasts, the entire provision of such ed ucation and training in every detail. Nowadays, at the other extreme, it is fashionable to suggest that almost everything can be left to the market: vocational education and training systems can become largely sell-regulating, with decisions about content and quantity in the hand s of employers. and planners playing only a facilitating role. Contend s that, while the new emphasis is sensible, the struggle to transform the real world into the ideal context for a self-regulating training s ystem may not be so easy. Planners are going to have to live with the continued existence of a fair number of government vocational/technica l schools and training institutions and to advise on the nature of the programmes that they should run. Outlines a minimalist approach to th is task.