Skills delivery

The employment impact of lifelong learning programmes not only depends on their relevance to labour market needs and learners’ aspirations, but largely to the quality of the training delivery.

International Labour Standards focus on these aspects, including through the ILO UNESCO Recommendation on the Status of Teachers, 1966, and the Quality Apprenticeship Recommendation, 2023 (No. 208).

Quality apprenticeships are prioritised by member states and social partners as a key component of successful skills delivery that allows learners to acquire competencies on the job and in training centres, with adequate remuneration and protection, leading to a qualification.

Quality apprenticeships can facilitate successful transitions to and within the labour market as part of a lifelong learning approach; they contribute to productivity; they also deliver the competencies required for transitions to formal, digital and green economies. The upgrading of traditional apprenticeships in the informal economy also allows to structure the training contents, add some theoretical contents to it, reduce the risks the learners are exposed to, and link them with certification processes.

The digitalisation of skills delivery has been one of the major shift that the COVID19 crisis brought forward. When tailored to specific contexts and learners, blended training and assessments that involves a mix of synchronous and asynchronous learning, can be a powerful tool to increase outreach and reduce cost. 

Core skills that are relevant to all occupations are increasingly perceived as crucial for employability and for a right fit of workers in enterprises.  They can include cognitive and meta-cognitive skills, social and communication skills, digital skills, and skills for green economy. Core skills also impact didactic approaches, with a renewed focus on participative and learner centred approach. Core skills may not only be the subject of separate sessions, but need to be mainstreamed in all training modules, and all assessments.