Trend of Vocational Training in Singapore. VITB Paper No. 1.

Prior to 1960 vocational and technical education in Singapore received little attention. After Singapore attained self-government in 1959, a policy of diversification to accelerate economic growth through industrialization was adopted. The emphasis then shifted to technical education and training. In 1964 there was a significant move towards the establishment of secondary vocational schools and the first vocational institute was initiated; the secondary vocational schools were later phased out in favor of vocational institutes. The Industrial Training Board (ITB) was created in 1973 to centralize, coordinate, and intensify industrial training. The ITB and the Adult Education Board established in 1960 were merged into a single national authority responsible for vocational training--the Vocational and Industrial Training Board. The significant factors that have impinged upon the trend of vocational training have been the limited human resources, the New Education System of 1980, and the strategy of high economic growth based on industrial restructuring. Recent developments and major efforts to consolidate the training system have been the expansion of training capacity, refinement of the training system, and upgrading of the existing work force. Four tables and four figures are appended that depict full- and part-time enrollment, apprentice registration, and organizational structures in the educational system. (YLB)