SIGNIFICANCE OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN INDIA

Abstract

Although the field of education has made progress in the past ten years, vocational education seems to have lost its importance. This has led to the widening gap between the supply and demand for skilled manpower across various industries. This shortage of skills has translated directly into unemployment among an increasing number of graduates who pass out every year and are forced to be retrained in order to become marketable. The lack of a formal degree and the belief that the vocational track is only suitable for people from a lesser financial background has resulted in the declining popularity of this area. While students from a middle-class background are attracted into academic pursuits and take up orthodox degrees, pursuing a vocational education has remained a less-explored field. The University Grants Commission (UGC) is also taking initiatives and has invited proposals from universities and colleges to start courses on skill development. The need of the hour is to focus upon skill based education as a part of higher education. Vocational education is education within vocational schools that prepares people for a specific trade. It directly develops expertise in techniques related to technology, skill and scientific technique to span all aspects of the trade. Vocational education can be at the secondary, post-secondary level, further education, and higher education level and can interact with the apprenticeship system. The basis of vocational education is training which is termed as internships in the academic dialect. The present paper tries to know whether the students are aware about vocational system of education and that are they ready to accept it as it is or with some changes. The results put light on several related aspects like lack of awareness about vocational education, lack of faith, need of internships as a compulsory component and many more.