Irish Vocational Education Association

In his address to the AONTAS Conference on challenges facing the Adult Education Sector today in the Clarion Hotel, IFSC Dublin, the General Secretary of IVEA stated that that “times of greatest national need are also the greatest hour for the Adult Education Sector to prove its worth”. He deplored the fact that “at a time with ever-lengthening dole queues when workers’ skills are becoming redundant the Department of Finance embargo on recruitment was impacting on the delivery of adult and further education services”.

Mr. Moriarty continues “At a time when old jobs are migrating to places where labour is cheaper, at a time of fast technological change and when the global market is the new reality, the potential for lifelong learning is assuming even greater importance. Technological innovations are radically altering the needs of the adult working population. Adults need to access new jobs but also to cope with the existing jobs which are subject to fast technological change. Therefore, increasing skills at all levels is a challenge which must be addressed if we are to reverse the fortunes of the economy”.

In the context of new demand Mr. Moriarty states “The cutback in the Back to Education Initiative (BTEI) and the remaining cap on PLC places made no sense, particularly when the European Union has called on member states to prepare for recovery through a radical skills upgrading”.

Mr. Moriarty continues “The boom years of the Celtic Tiger were attributed to an educational miracle when Ireland created a skilled labour force arising from a strong interventionist role in education and this was the hallmark of previous governments in the 1980s an 1990s. Investment in education and training is recognized as a most important source of wealth equal to the accumulation of more traditional forms of capital. In the global economy there is an increasing recognition that human talents and skills are key resources which are the only sustainable source of competitive advantage. This must mean that investment in education and training is crucial, given the speed with which knowledge and skills are being outdated”.

In calling for greater resourcing of education Mr. Moriarty states “Access to education is a basic human right. Scarce resources must now be prioritised to ensure that those who wish to avail of adult education can do so. Education and training for all citizens and from all social cohorts is a realizable and necessary objective if Ireland is to regain its competitive status in an increasingly globalised economy where the labour force skills will be a determining factor in Ireland’s capacity to compete on the world stage. Therefore, VECs and their various education programmes, from basic education to further education, must be resourced to deliver on key government objectives. This is not the case at present”.

In calling for further investment in vocational education and training Mr. Moriarty asks, how will education and training respond to new challenges? “This will depend on how we ensure that scarce resources are prioritised in a lifelong learning agenda. The VECs and all education services are willing to serve this education and training agenda but we must be allowed to do so. We must increase the capacity of the services to deliver on basic, generic and advanced skills. This is no time for cutting access to ‘Back to Education’ schemes or capping PLCs or weakening the service through the recruitment moratorium. This government policy must be reviewed” concludes Mr. Moriarty.

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© IVEA 2012