Project to Establish a Vocational Qualification Testing and Certification Center for the Textile

Sector

The Turkish Textile Employers’ Association, one of the most prominent civil society organizations in the textile industry was authorized to develop standards for 31 textile occupations in 2009 as part of the protocol concluded with the VQA.

25 occupations (5 in yarn, 10 in finishing, 3 in knitting, 2 in nonwoven surface and 5 in weaving) have been published in the Official Gazette so far.

Our association has been authorized to develop the qualifications of the textile occupations published in the Official Gazette. Qualifications for five yarn related occupations have so far been accepted by VQA as national vocational qualifications.

TURKISH TEXTILE EMPLOYERS’ ASSOCIATION –OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS / VOCATIONAL

QUALIFICATIONS

THE PROCESS AND METHODOLOGY OF DEVELOPING OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS AND QUALIFICATIONSWorking Team

Occupational Tree

Field VisitsCompanies of varying scales identified; interviews, observations, questionnaires, analysis form..

Workshops

Sectoral consultation (over 150 organizations for each occupation)

VQA Process (Sector Committee and Executive Board approval)

Our association submitted a proposal entitled “Project to Establish a Vocational Qualification Testing and Certification Center for the Textile Sector” and was awarded on 22 March 2011.

A testing and certification center will be established in İstanbul under the 24-month project.

Practical and theoretical tests will be implemented in öz konusu merkeze paralel olarak Adana, Kayseri and Çerkezköy units which will be set up parallel to the center in İstanbul.

Qualifications for 10 finishing occupations will be developed under the project. Moreover, testing and certification processes for 5 yarn and 6 finishing occupationswill be completed.

Within this scope, a minimum of 440 people will be tested and successful individuals will be certified.

Project to Establish a Vocational Qualification Testing and Certification Center for the Textile Sector

Project PartnersSustainability and potential contribution to the planned Testing and Certificastion

Center were the main criteria in partner and stakeholder selection.

Project Partner: Turkish Textile Foundation - TTV

Project stakeholders:

- Kayseri : Turkish Textile Employers’ Association – Vocational Education and Training Center

- Adana: Sarıçam Turkish Textile Foundation and Girls’ VET High School- Turkish Textile Foundation, Çerkezköy VET Center

PLANNED ACTIVITIESFINALIZE QUALIFICATIONS FOR 10 FINISHING OCCUPATIONSCARRY IUT TESTING AND CERTIFICATION FOR 11 YARN AND FINISHING OCCUPATIONSDEVELOP EXAMINATION SOFTWAREDEVELOP DATABANKSDEVELOP PSYCHO-TECHNICAL TESTSDEVELOP A PRACTICAL EXAMINATION SYSTEMPILOTINGSET UP IT INFRASTRUCTURESET UP PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE FOR TESTING CENTERSCOMPLETE TÜRKAK ACCREDITATIONCARRY OUT PROMOTION ACTIVITIESDEVELOP A DOCUMENTARY VIDEO

- Project Staff- Project Center (Project Coordinator, Project Assistant (2 people), Project Secretary, Project

Administrative Coordinator)- Adana and Kayseri Project Assistants

- Occupational Standards and Qualifications Development Team- Association Staff,- University- Consultants (Psycholgist, Sociologist, IT Expert, Measurement and Evaluation Expert)

- Field Experts- Trainers- Master Trainers- Workers- Employers- HR Experts- Training Department Managers- Professional Organizations

WORKING TEAMS CREATED UNDER THE PROJECT

TEXTILE SECTOR TESTING AND EXAMINTAION CENTER – ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND MAIN

PRINCIPLESİstanbul will be the coordination center,Testing centers will be established in Kayseri, Adana and Çerkezköy in addition to İstanbul,İstanbul center will perform theoretical and psycho-technical tests and Kayseri, Adana and Çerkezköy centers will perform theoretical, psycho-technical and practical examinations,All testing related matters including the examinations, questions, candidates and assessors will be managed by İstanbul center,Maximum use of IT will be observed in the whole process including theoretical, practical and psycho-technical examinations and results,The portal to be created will provide the candidates online access to examination registration, content of examination, success criteria, certification process and all other information related to the examination process,The organizational structure of the certification center will include various units such as the Testing Committee, Program Committee, Question Development Committee and Quality Assurance Unit

TEXTILE SECTOR TESTING AND EXAMINTAION CENTER – ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND MAIN

PRINCIPLESContribute to employability and personal development of individuals,A reference for the training system,Transparent, reliable and accountable operations based on established & published standards,Dynamiz and attentive to needs and expectations of the industry and developments in industry and technology,An information portal which will keep track of sectoral statistics and developments,Easy to access and use, economic,Objective evaluation criteria,A robust database, feedback and reporting capability,Independent and institutionalized.

- Computerized certification process comprising 3 phases,- Easy to apply and comparable; performance measurement capability,- Evidence based, tested, reliable, recognized and reported,- Development, application and evaluation manuals and instructions on

measurement and evaluation tools, question databanks, psycho-technical tests and practical examinations,

- Effective and efficient use of technology,- Based on objective criteria; no room for subjective interpretation of assessors,- Objective guidance for assessors and developers,- A sustainbable testing and certification system

PLANNED TESTING SYSTEM AND MAIN PRINCIPLES

TEXTILE SECTOR TESTING AND CERTIFICATION CENTRAL EXAMINATION SYSTEM

The certification process comprises three phases:

Theoretical examination

Psycho-technical tests

Practical examination (applied testing)

Theoretical examinationTheoretical examinations will be implemented electronically. Multiple choice testing approach.The databank will be activated after validation and reliability testing.An theoretical examination software will be developed.Three centers under the project will be able to perform different examinations at the same time using the central server in İstanbul center.The candidates will access the examination using the user ID and password assigned and they will be able to track results and other information after the examination.It will be possible to track examination results on unit basis. A candidate failing in a specific unit for certification will be able to take the related examination again.The examinations will be applied on touchscreens and the candidates will adapt easily.The success criterion for theoretical examinations is 50%.The theoretical and psycho-technical tests serve as a threshold for the practical examination.

Question bank development processThis process is the main component of the theoretical examination.The plan is to develop 300 questions for theoretical examinations in each occupational area. A technical working group comprising experts from relevant fields are established to develop questions.

Trainers experienced in relevant occupational areas,Occupational experts from enterprises,Measurement and evaluation expert.

The technical group will develop questions and assess questions coming from various sources.Full-day workshops and training seminars with broad participation on developing questions for multiple choice tests have been organized.Nearly 2000 questions have compiled so far and the number has been reduced to 450 after assessments.The process of categorizing and evaluating questions on the basis of units is important.The workshops will be repeated.

Psycho-technical tests

Psycho-technical tests will be implemented parallel to theoretical exams in the centers for theoretical exams in order to measure basic skills of individuals.This is an efficient tool used by many institutional enterprises for in the course of recruitment.Psycho-technical tests will be implemented in two parts, i.e. Electronic and applied.Activities will be carried out to detremine sectoral norm values.The psycho-technical tests will measure, attention, perception speed, hand-eye coordination, association skill, comprehension, logic and hand dexterity, among others.

Practical examinationEligible candidates include individuals that have successfully completed the theoretical and psycho-technical tests. Practical exams will be implemented in METEMs in Adana, Kayseri and Çerkezköy.Practical exam will be applied using machinery as foreseen in the qualifications.A checklist including critical actions in machinery use will be used by the assessors.Individuals will be assessed based on the critical actions specified in the checklist.Necessary guidelines and booklets will be developed for informing candidates in detailed on assessment criteria prior to the examination.An assessor manual will be developed for assessors. The manual will describe how to assess candidates based on critical actions.A pool of assessors will be created and assessors will be trained in various topics.

Continuous close cooperation with education institutions, trainers and stakeholders,

Briefing meetingsAdana Kayseriİstanbul Çerkezköy

Printing Occupational StandardsBooks

Weaving (3000 copies)Yarn(2000 copies)Finishing (3000 copies)Dokusuz Yüzey (2500 copies)Knitting(2500 copies)

Promotion of VQA and the Testing and Certification System in the monthly periodical which is printed in 8000 copies.

A project website will be created:www.tekstilsertifikasyon.com

ACTIVITIES FOR PROMOTING THE VOCATIONAL QUALIFICATION SYSTEM AND CAPACITY BUILDING

SUCCESS CRITERIA• The senior management should be committed to the vocational

qualification system and provide necessary support in terms of human and financial resources.

• Support from the institutional enterprises in the sector.• Active involvement of all stakeholders including employers, workers

and educators in activities at all stages.• The need to address occupations in a holistic manner based on a

vision encompassing the present and future expectations and independent from individual companies.

• Stron cooperation with vocational high schools and universities.• Cooperation with respective institutions for developing necessary

curricula.• Close cooperation with VQA and the sector committee.

CHALLENGES AND THREATS• This is a new and different approach for Turkey; therefore, know-hown and

experience is not adequate,• The process is long and costly and requires proper planning,• It is difficult to develop standards and qualifications which will be commonly

adopted by all relevant parties,• Turkey has a peculiar vocational structure and this makes it difficult to find

suitable examples in the EU and other countries,• The education & training curricula are not compatible with the needs of the

industry,• Employers are often concerned about costs and do not use human resources

policies effectively,• The need to develop modular education programs consistent with

qualifications,• Practical exams are costly.• TÜRKAK accreditation process.

A SUSTAINABLE TESTING AND CERTIFICATION CENTER

• A transparent and reliable certification system should be established,• All stakeholders should be represented in the system,• Certification should bring added value to enterprises,• The system should be open to development, • The education sector, employers and employees should have faith in

the system and its contributions and they should provide continuous support and actively participate,

• Modular educaiton & training programs consisten with qualifications should be developed,

• Quality should not be compromised,• The focus should be placed on service rather than profits.

A SUSTAINABLE TESTING AND CERTIFICATION CENTER

WHAT SHOULD VQA AND OTHER PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS DO?

- Necessary changes should be made in the national education curricula parallel to occupational standards and vocational qualifications,

- Efforts for developing special education programs for certification should be supported,

- Occupational maps and and inventory of vocation should be developed,- A glossary and descriptions of vocations should be developed,- Cooperation among testing and certification centers should be established,- Financial support should be provided for the development of the testing and

certification centers,- The institutional structure of VQA should be strengthened, - The cost of accreditation should be reduced.

SWOT AnalysisStrengths‐Cooperation with the education sector‐Support of institutional enterprises‐Published occupational standards‐Close relations with the sector and CSOs‐Relations with the sector committee and VQA‐Visionary approach‐Institutional infrastructure‐Support of senior management‐METEMs and established machinery park‐Turkey is one of the major global textile producers‐Broad network and global and local level‐Robust financial structure

Weaknesses‐Inadequate experience in EU projects‐Low education level of workers‐High number of unqualified workers‐It is difficult to reach all textile enterprises spread broadly around the country‐Lack of sufficient experience in certification process and uncertainty‐Legal challenges‐Activities for accreditation of training and developing trainingmodules have not yet commenced

Opportunities‐High number of textile workers‐The sector wants to remain competitive and thus needs qualified manpower‐Incentives under the certification system‐Vocational education and training is considered as a priority

Threats‐Sustainability of question banks‐The machinery and equipment needed for practical exams are costly,‐Sustainability, reliability and validity of the examination testing system‐Education curricula of the Ministry of National Education‐Educators are reluctant to learn new technologies‐There is no common approach or description of occupations‐The image of testing and certification centers in the sector‐TÜRKAK accreditation process

Further information on the project:

www.tekstilsertifikasyon.com