Integration of Technology Education in Basic and General Education Curriculum in Asia-Pacific Countries.

Overview & Synopsis

Despite the expansion of technical-vocational education and training (TVET) in nearly all Asia-Pacific countries during the past 10-15 years, many of the region's policymakers have called for greater and more effective integration of technical-vocational components in basic and general education curricula. The idea that technology education should be part of the general education curriculum is not totally new to Asia-Pacific countries. Technology education was introduced into the curricula of some Asian countries after World War II. In Australia, the National Training Reform Agenda, which sought to strengthen the links between senior secondary schooling, general education, TVET, and postschool options, emerged in the early 1990s. The Korean government decided to provide technology education for all secondary school students in 1989 and revised its curricula to include the following competencies: working with others in teams; communicating ideas/information effectively; solving problems and thinking creatively and critically; and using office technology. Increased attention toward curriculum integration has been increasingly evident in the United States, India (where efforts to vocationalize secondary education were initiated in 1986), the Philippines (where an entrepreneurship development was introduced in schools), and Japan (where technology education has been expanded to reflect environmental awareness and global considerations). (MN)