NVQ Project Enters New Phase

September 19, 2003

The establishment of National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) in Barbados enters the penultimate phase with the arrival of Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) consultant, Dr. Iain Anderson. He will be here for a ten-day consultancy with the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council, commencing Monday, September 22, 2003. 

During his visit, Dr. Anderson will meet with Government officials, business leaders, trade union leaders and heads of tertiary education institutions; as well as participate in a National Consultation on a Quality Assurance System for NVQs. The meetings and the national consultation are all aimed at identifying a realistic and credible quality assurance strategy for local NVQs. 

The NVQ project, which commenced in 1998, will move into the final phase of development by year-end with the launch of a pilot project in which approximately ten companies will participate in a test-run of the NVQs, following which an NVQ Awarding Body will be established under the direction of project consultants, the SQA. 

NVQs are work-based qualifications that are developed from occupational standards of competence. As a result they provide better preparation for the world of work, offer a guarantee of a job candidate's capability, respond to changing needs in business and industry and promote a culture of life-long learning which is at the centre of any economy's competitiveness. 

Occupational standards are the benchmarks against which occupational competence is measured and occupational certification granted.  They are defined by standards-setting bodies referred to as Industry Lead Bodies in Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, or, as National Training Organisations in the United Kingdom. 

These bodies generally comprise employers, education and training providers and employee representatives.  The TVET Council has already established three (3) Industry Lead Bodies in the economic/occupational sectors of Tourism and Hospitality, Information Technology and Customer Service. 

These three Industry Lead Bodies have been evaluating occupational standards from the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Jamaica as part of the process of formulating our own standards, in the respective sectors, which reflect internationally recognised standards. 

The TVET Council has validated and approved occupational standards of competence for Barbados in the following eight (8) occupational areas. 

In the Tourism and Hospitality Sector; Food Preparation and Cooking Levels 1 & 2, Food and Beverage Service Levels 1 & 2, Front Office Levels 1 & 2 and Housekeeping Levels 1 & 2. In the Customer Service Sector; Delivering and Continuously Improving Service to the Customer Level 2, Establishing and Maintaining the Conditions for Customer Service Levels 3 & 4, and Developing and Improving a Strategy for Customer Service Levels 4 & 5. And in the Information Technology Sector; Using Information Technology Levels 1 - 3.