Investigar para Transformar // Educación Técnica con Impacto: Metodologías pedagógicas para vincular la educación con el sector productivo Research for Transformation // Impactful Technical Education: Pedagogical methodologies for linking education with the world of work
Spanish
Other sources
Experts from many international, regional and national agencies generously share their views, experiences and findings on skills, helping policy-makers among other stakeholders to understand the linkages between education, training and the world of work, and how to integrate skills into national development planning to promote employment and economic growth.
Career guidance and employment services
Career guidance and counselling, career education and lifelong development of skills for employability are key for success in learning activities, effective career transitions, livelihood planning, entrepreneurship and in increasing labour market participation. They are instrumental in promoting skills utilization, recognition (RPL), as well as in improving enterprise human resource management.
Career development activities encompass a wide variety of support activities including career information and advice, counselling, work exposure (e.g. job shadowing, work experience periods), assessment, coaching, mentoring, professional networking, advocacy, basic and employability skills training (curricular and non-curricular) and entrepreneurship training. It is often an area which is fragmented across different ministries (e.g. education, TVET, employment, youth) requiring an effort to achieve the necessary coordination to provide adequate support to individuals during learning, employment and unemployment/inactivity periods.
Monitoring and evaluation
Measuring the outcomes of skills systems, policies and targeted programmes is essential in order to monitor and improve their effectiveness and relevance. Elements of sound assessment processes include: institutions to sustain feedback from employers and trainees; mechanisms to track labour market outcomes of training and systems of accountability that use this information; and, quantitative and qualitative labour market information and its dissemination to all stakeholders.
Youth employability
Globally, nearly 68 million young women and men are looking for and available for work, and an estimated 123 million young people are working but living in poverty. The number who are not in employment, education or training (NEET) stands at 267 million, a majority of whom are young women. Significantly, young people are three times as likely as adults (25 years and older) to be unemployed.
Skills development is a primary means of enabling young people to make a smooth transition to work. A comprehensive approach is required to integrate young women and men in the labour market, including relevant and quality skills training, labour market information, career guidance and employment services, recognition of prior learning, incorporating entrepreneurship with training and effective skills forecasting. Improved basic education and core work skills are particularly important to enable youth to engage in lifelong learning as well as transition to the labour market.
This edition of “Research for Transformation” will highlight diverse ways in which evidence can be used to improve the school-to-work transitions of young people in Ecuador’s upper secondary technical education (Bachillerato Técnico).
The Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture of Ecuador and VVOB are convening two thought leaders to speak at the conference:
- Salomé Villarreal, Secundary Director, Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture (MINEDEC)
- Dr. Anthony Mann, Director General, Critical Transitions
Salomé will present findings from the second round of the tracer study carried out by the MINEDEC. In 2022, the first round collected data on 62,000+ students from the Sierra and Amazon regions of Ecuador that participated the study while in their last year of upper secondary education. Now, three years later, we find out how these graduates fared in their transition into the workforce, entrepreneurship, or higher education they look back at the education they received. The findings will open a discussion on how MINEDEC can use these data to improve school-to-work transitions in Ecuador.
Dr. Anthony Mann will make the case for employer engagement in study and career guidance as a cost-effective strategy to develop students’ motivation and social capital and to enable their progression into high priority areas of youth economic opportunity. Presenting global evidence, Dr. Mann will spotlight career talks with guest speakers from the world of work. He will pay attention to key design features for maximum impact (which speakers? which messages? structure? etc.) and will reflect on the pros and cons of different delivery modalities (in-person, video, etc.). His presentation is meant to inspire teachers, school leaders and career guidance counselors and will inform dialogue with MINEDEC on (policy) measures to ensure the scalability of career talks in Ecuador.
Target audience: Policymakers, researchers, teachers, school leaders, career guidance counselors
Languages: Spanish and English
Time: 19 November 2025 at 15:00 CET
Venue: Hilton Colon Hotel, Amazonas Ave 1914, Quito, Ecuador
