A Study of The Current Roles and Functions of Public Vocational Training Institutes in Taiwan

[[abstract]]Abstract The purpose of this research is to investigate the roles and educational functions of public vocational training institutes as perceived by their teaching and administrative staff in a learning society. A questionnaire was designed to investigate the education attainment, position, and duty of staff in various public vocational training institutes in Taiwan. The questionnaire also examines their perception of human resources, administration, and education resource management within the institute. Moreover, this paper discusses the effect of course content, organizational structure, curriculum design, resource integration, and innovative thinking on lifelong learning. Results of this research serve as useful reference based on which vocational training programs in Taiwan can be improved. Research methods included literature analysis and questionnaire survey. Research findings are summarized as follows. Several factors were found to influence public vocational training design, including Taiwan’s shrinking job market due to the nation’s declining manufacturing sector amid general economic downturn, the aging world population, paradigm shifts in world politics, and changes in Taiwan’s industrial structure. A questionnaire was designed to investigate subjects’ degree of agreement with the eighteen roles and eighteen educational functions of vocational training institutes proposed by the researcher. Results indicate that most subjects, though to different extents, showed agreement with the roles and educational functions listed in the questionnaire. To sum up, the research findings shed light on the roles and educational functions of public vocational training institutes for lifelong learning in a learning society. Research results may serve as useful reference based on which vocational training programs in Taiwan can be improved. Key words: learning society, lifelong learning, public vocational training institute, vocational training, role, educational function