DESIGNING QUALIFICATIONS & TRAINING FOR THE NEW MILLENNIUM

摘要

Internationally, education is one of the fastest growing and most prominent sectors in an economy. It is an asset that is also becoming increasingly pursued as the world approaches a new millennium and an imminent borderless world. To remain competitive, a significant investment in skills and knowledge is critical. Qualifications must now be designed to provide a comprehensive profile of a person's skills and knowledge. At the micro level, employers use qualifications to identify potential employees. Qualifications need to be accessible, meet labour market requirements and reflect internationally valued skills and knowledge that recognises the global economy and the accelerated pace of technological change. Recent reforms to the New Zealand qualification system were aimed at meeting these needs. The reform strategy essentially strengthened industries' participation in the design and implementation of concomitant education and training programmes. The close proximity of New Zealand to Australia provides a cooperative environment and sensible platform to benchmark qualifications in terms of skills, knowledge and quality assurance characteristics.