PISA-VET Framework

Assessment or survey framework

Overview of areas and skills

Occupational areas

Five occupational areas have been selected for the PISA-Vet development phase:

  • Automotive technician occupations
  • Electrician occupations
  • Business and administration occupations, focused on the business and administration job family in commercial workplaces
  • Health care occupations, focused on healthcare/nursing assistants
  • Tourism and hospitality occupations, focused on hotel receptionists

 

Employability skills

The assessment of occupation-specific skills is supplemented with a broader set of cognitive as well as social and emotional competencies, referred to as “employability skills”. These are foundational competencies relevant across occupational areas for success not only in the labor market, but also in education and for leading a fulfilling civic and social life. They are highly transferable across contexts and learnable, making them responsive to policy.

The following core employability skills were selected for the development phase:

  • Collaboration, as defined by the OECD’s Survey of Social and Emotional Skills (SSES)
  • Literacy, as defined by the OECD’s Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC)
  • Problem solving, as included in the OECD’s PIAAC Cycle 2 (adaptive problem solving)
  • Task performance (responsibility, self-control, and persistence), as defined by the OECD’s SSES

 

The occupational areas and employability skills are each defined by context, processes or task areas, underlying capabilities, and content knowledge, as described below:

  • Contexts: the domain specific context or situation in which the tasks and problems arise or are set
  • Processes: the mental strategies, approaches, purposes, concepts, and reasoning that the learners are required to engage with and to employ, formulate or interpret to be successful in the domain
  • Underlying capabilities: the set of fundamental domain specific capabilities that underpins each of the processes
  • Content knowledge: the learners’ knowledge and understanding of the domain content – and the ability to apply that knowledge to contextualised tasks and problems

 

Description of the five occupational areas 

  • Automotive technicians
    • Definition: the competencies and content knowledge required to perform the duties of an automotive technician employed in a workshop, including servicing, overhauling and troubleshooting light vehicles (passenger cars, light commercial vehicles) of various manufacturers
    • Context: workshop
    • Capabilities
      • Investigation: an automotive technician’s ability to gather information about light vehicles in workshops, to draw conclusions from the information obtained, and to justify the actions taken and results achieved
      • Rectification: the ability to establish or re-establish desired states of light vehicles to remove damage, correct malfunctions, maintain functionality, meet manufacturers' specifications, or fulfil customers' wishes
    • Processes/task areas
      • Investigate: inspect and diagnose
      • Rectify: replace and (dis)assemble; restore and rebuild; adjust
    • Skills and knowledge
      • Relevant facts and concepts regarding light vehicle systems, including the drive unit, powertrain, undercarriage, assistance systems, and chassis
      • The principles that apply to these systems, as well as their combinations

 

  • Electricians 

    • Definition: the competencies and content knowledge required to perform the tasks of installing, commissioning, and maintaining and adjusting electrical systems and components in accordance with regulations and professional standards in a safe way
    • Contexts: commercial and public sector, domestic, and industrial
    • Capabilities
      • Identifying and resolving electrical problems: the ability to identify, diagnose and resolve electrical problems in dynamic situations
      • Responding to customers and colleagues: the ability to impart or exchange information with customers and colleagues, both verbally and “in writing”
      • Collaborating on electrical tasks, problems, projects: the ability to work with other professionals on electrical projects and problems
      • Using digital and communications technology for daily electrical tasks and problems: the ability to use digital technology, tools and networks within daily work routines
    • Processes/task areas
      • Assess and diagnose
      • Plan and design
      • Assemble and install
      • Repair and maintain
      • Inspect, commission, test and report
    • Skills and knowledge
      • Electrical theory and fundamentals (including mathematics and science)
      • Norms, standards, and regulations 
      • Materials, components, and tools
      • Electrical systems and applications
      • Configuration and control

     

  • Business and administration job family
    • Definition: the competencies and content knowledge required to perform typical tasks and activities related to the management and organization of business enterprises, including record, organize, store, compute and retrieve information, clerical duties in connection with money-handling operations, travel arrangements, requests for information, and appointment, financial accounting and transaction matters, selling and buying financial instruments, specialized secretarial tasks, and enforcing or applying relevant government rules
    • Contexts: operational value chains in business and administration
    • Capabilities
      • Retrieve situationally adequate knowledge stocks: retrieving business and administration data and other relevant information
      • Describe system coherences and act within them: drawing conclusions from business and administration data and other relevant information
      • Think and act purposefully in specific situations: making appropriate decisions/proposals for business and administration work products
      • Independently control processing procedures: establishing appropriate, quality-assuring working practices for business and administration workplaces as well as promoting their own professionalism
    • Processes/task areas
      • Identifying and understanding business and administration information
      • Analyzing business and administration information and situations
      • Applying business and administration knowledge and skills
      • Evaluating and reflecting on business and administration issues
    • Skills and knowledge
      • The significance of relevant operational indicators in business administration and how to interpret and present data appropriately
      • Appropriate procedures and tools for correspondence and communication, of cross-cultural differences, and of dealing with diverse customers and stakeholders

      • Methods, forms, and areas of application of project management and of the use of concrete work strategies

         

  • Healthcare/nursing assistant
    • Definition: the competencies and content knowledge needed to provide direct personal care and assistance with activities of daily living to patients and residents in a variety of healthcare settings, such as hospitals, clinics, and residential nursing care facilities together with the capacity to implement established care plans and practices under the direct supervision of medical, nursing, or other health professionals or associate professionals
    • Contexts
      • Hospitals (inpatient or outpatient facilities, specialist or general)
      • Clinics for specific purposes and conditions (e.g. psychiatric, geriatric)
      • Residential nursing care
      • Hospices for terminal care
      • Clients’ and patients’ own homes
    • Capabilities
      • Collaboration with others to achieve optimal healthcare
      • Open-mindedness throughout the healthcare process
      • Engagement with others to achieve therapeutic outcomes
      • Communication as a therapeutic instrument
      • Emotional regulation to achieve optimal healthcare
      • Access to and use of evidence and information to support healthcare solutions
      • Management of self, time, tasks, and workspace to optimize health outcomes
      • Coordination of mind, feelings, and movement for dexterous, respectful healthcare
      • Contribution to healthcare solutions
      • Reflective practice for healthcare
    • Processes/task areas
      • Working in professional teams
      • Identifying needs and collaborating in healthcare planning
      • Supporting and enhancing clients’ quality of life
      • Providing and supporting treatment and medical processes
      • Reviewing and evaluating care
    • Skills and knowledge
      • Multi-professional collaboration
      • Communication and relationship building
      • Medical and related sciences
      • Client/patient care, service, and assistance

      • Administrative and legal frameworks

         

  • Hotel receptionist
    • Definition: the competencies and content knowledge required to perform the necessary tasks and procedures related to the arrival, entry, stay, and departure of guests and customers at hospitality establishments, including the planning and organizing of hotel receptionist activities
    • Context: hotel
    • Capabilities
      • Hospitality service orientation
      • Hotel receptionist interpersonal and communication skills
      • Collaboration with other hotel staff
      • Problem solving in the context of hotel reception
      • Task performance in the context of hotel reception
      • Critical thinking in hospitality service
      • Literacy in hospitality service
      • ICT Literacy for hotel reception
    • Processes/task areas
      • Check-in and check-out
      • Reservations
      • Management of complaints
      • Touristic information
    • Skills and knowledge
      • Hotel reservation procedures
      • Checking-in procedures
      • Administration and back-office procedures
      • Checking-out procedures
      • Promotion of the local area

 

Description of the four employability skills

Two employability skills selected for PISA-VET are cognitive, namely:

  • Literacy 
    • Definition
      • It is strongly rooted in the literacy framework of PIAAC.
      • Literacy is defined as the ability to access, understand, evaluate, and reflect on written texts to achieve one's goals, to develop one's knowledge and potential and to participate in society.
    • Contexts: Three main contexts were defined in PIAAC literacy; if feasible, units should be chosen from the context “work and occupation.”
    • Cognitive processes
      • Accessing text: identifying relevant texts and locating information within them
      • Understanding its meaning: comprehending written words, integrating text information with prior knowledge, and handling multiple texts with inconsistent or conflicting information
      • Evaluating its quality: critically assessing the accuracy, soundness, and task relevance of the information, considering both the content and the source
    • Content: Refers to the texts, tools, knowledge, and cognitive challenges that authors use to convey ideas. Texts are characterized by their
      • Type (description, narration, exposition, argumentation, instruction, transaction)
      • Format (continuous, noncontinuous, mixed)
      • Organization (the amount of information and the density of content representation and access devices)
      • Source (single vs. multiple texts)

 

  • Problem solving
    • Definition
      • Is strongly rooted in the adaptive problem solving framework of PIAAC Cycle 2.
      • It is defined as the capacity to achieve one’s goals in a dynamic situation, in which a method for solution is not immediately available. It requires engaging in cognitive and metacognitive processes to define the problem, search for information, and apply a solution in a variety of information environments and contexts.
    • Context: Three main contexts were defined in PIAAC adaptive problem solving; if feasible, units should be chosen from the context “work”.
    • Content (task) dimensions
      • Problem configuration
      • Dynamics of the situation
      • Features of the environment
      • Information environment
      • Problem contexts
    • Cognitive and meta-cognitive processes
      • Defining the problem (mental model construction)
      • Searching for a solution (identifying effective operators)
      • Applying the solution (applying plans and executing operators)

 

The following two employability skills in PISA-VET are non-cognitive; their definitions are strongly based on the OECD’s Survey on Social and Emotional Skills (SSES) framework:

Task performance

  • Definition: A range of constructs that describe the ability to be self-controlled, responsible to others, hardworking, motivated to achieve, honest, orderly, persistent and rule-abiding. In short, it refers to the skills that enable individuals to get things done, as required and on time. 
  • Task performance is divided into four dimensions
    • Self-control: The ability to resist distractions, delay gratification, and maintain concentration
    • Responsibility: The ability to honor commitments and be punctual and reliable
    • Persistence: The ability to persevere in tasks and activities until completion
    • Achievement motivation: The drive to set high standards for oneself and work hard to meet them

 

Collaboration

  • Definition: a range of constructs that describe the ability to understand, feel and express concern for others’ well-being, manage interpersonal conflict and maintain positive relationships and beliefs about others. In short, it refers to the skills that enable individuals to have a good relationship with other people and work successfully together in various contexts.
  • Collaboration is divided into three dimensions:
    • Empathy: The ability to understand and care about others and their well-being
    • Trust: The ability to assume that others generally have good intentions and forgive those who have done wrong
    • Co-operation: The ability to live in harmony with others, compromise, and value group cohesion.
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Contextual or background framework

The PISA-VET contextual assessment framework places great emphasis on equality and equity, with

  • Equality referring to differences among sub-populations in the distribution of their VET outcomes and 
  • Equity referring to differences among sub-populations in their access to the resources and VET processes that affect VET outcomes

The four questionnaires for learners, teachers, VET institutions, trainers/employers developed under this framework explore the following factors relevant to assessing equality and equity: 

Learner success outcomes

Learner success includes job-specific learning outcomes and employability skills, as described in the assessment framework section above and assessed by cognitive instruments. The contextual questionnaires focus on the following aspects:

  • Learners’ educational and work-related progression and plans
    • Trajectories of the learners 
    • Learners’ intentions and plans to continue and complete the VET program
    • Occupational expectations and plans for education and employment
    • Learner absenteeism and truancy
  • Learner engagement in school and at work
    • Institutional engagement
    • Learners’ general attitudes towards VET institution, workplace, and learning outcomes
    • Attitudes towards learning activities, both in the educational institution and in the workplace
  • Health and well-being
    • Learners’ general life satisfaction, including a non-clinical measure of anxiety and depression
    • Overall physical health during the past year
  • Work safety
    • Risks and exposure to hazards in the workplace and the frequency of such exposure
    • Learners’ awareness of occupational health and safety (e.g. hazards, the rights and responsibilities of both employees and employers)

 

Foundations of learner success 

  • Inclusive school and work environments
    • Learners’ sense of belonging at school
    • Learners’ feeling of safety, acceptance, and support in their VET institution and in their work-based learning environment
    • Teachers’ attitudes and practices towards teaching learners with low literacy levels
    • Institutional or program specific policies concerning admission and management of instruction for learners with different skills in VET institutions
    • Degree of diversity of the educational environment in VET institutions
  • Guidance and quality of instruction
    • Instructor collaboration and mentorship
    • Peer mentorship and support
    • Work-related and general learning tasks
    • Pedagogical methods
    • Learning venue co-operation
  • Educational institution-based and work-based learning time
    • Schedule disruptions and learning sessions interruptions
    • Classroom management
    • Learners’ and teachers’ voluntary or unplanned absenteeism 
    • Flaws in the management of work-based learning opportunities 
    • Effective usage of school-based learning (SBL) time
    • Effective access and usage of work-based learning (WBL) time
  • Material resources
    • Basic services at the VET institution: physical infrastructure, resources, and services such as potable water, water fountains, bathrooms, electricity, heating and cooling systems, and other infrastructural features
    • Didactic facilities: e.g., training rooms and laboratories/workshops, equipment rooms, simulation rooms, computer rooms, libraries, study rooms and other facilities dedicated to teaching and studying
    • Didactic: from very basic materials, such as textbooks, manuals, or whiteboards, through to computers or tablets in the VET institution, laptop computers for learners and teachers, and tools like virtual reality, simulators, and other advanced equipment
  • Human resources
    • Staffing and qualification as well as occupational specific experience of teachers and staff in VET institutions
    • Teachers’ sociodemographic characteristics
    • Trainers’ occupational profiles
  • Family, partners’, and friends’ support for learners 
    • Learners’ family structure and living arrangements
    • Support, approval, and expectations that family members offer learners during their education and work
  • Social partner engagement
    • Social partner engagement of VET institution leaders
    • Involvement of social partners in VET systems

 

Learners’ demographic factors to study equality and equity

  • Age
  • Gender
  • Socioeconomic status 
  • Family structure and living arrangements 
  • Previous education and work career
  • Language spoken at home and language of instruction
  • Urban/rural status of the VET institution
  • Immigrant status 
  • Disability 

 

Other contextual factors

  • Teachers 
    • Age and sex
    • Qualification, employment status, educational background, years of experience and professional development activities
    • Experience and training in the occupational area assessed, on their multiple teaching jobs or on their work in other jobs, related or not to the occupational area
    • Job satisfaction
    • Health and well-being

    • SES

       

  • VET institutions
    • Resources and management, including type of school (public vs. private, distinguishing between types of private schools), number of students, average class or program size
    • Management and funding
    • Number of full- and part-time teachers at the VET institution or in the program
    • Relationship with the industry and the workplace, including aspects of coordination, collaboration, and governance
    • Efforts to comply with the principles of the green transition, in both the school management and the teaching of students

 

  • System-level information
    • The place of VET in national skills systems
    • Pathways into and from VET (e.g. stratification and selection, access to higher levels)
    • Profile of VET learners
    • Delivery of VET (e.g. provider institutions, the use of work-based learning)
    • Skills targeted by VET (e.g. targeted fields of study)
    • Teachers and trainers (e.g. teacher training and salaries)
    • Financial resources
    • Outcomes of vocational programs
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Sources - Assessment Framework(s)
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Other sources
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