This paper is divided in two sections, Section I Europe and Section II Spain. Its section has three major parts which examine the current situation of TT and TT-TVET in Europe and Spain. The analysis is done through competencies and conditions lenses.

1. Asia-Link Project
Scientific Report about Standards
Current Situation of Competencies on Teacher Training and
Teacher Training of Vocational Education Teachers
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

2. 2
Summary
Scientific Report
Introduction 3
Section I Europe
1. Framework 4
2. Teacher Training in Europe 9
3. Teacher training-Trainers of Vocational Education Teachers in Europe 10
Section II Spain
1. Framework 14
2. Teacher Training in Spain 17
3. Teacher Training-Trainers of Vocational Education Teachers in Spain 20
Bibliography 24

3. 3
Scientific Report
Literature Review
INTRODUCTION
Beginning from general to particular, the aim of this paper is to:
• provide a framework
• illustrate teacher training (TT) and,
• depict teacher training of vocational education teachers (TT-TVET),
TT- TVET
TT
FRAMEWORK
This paper is divided in two sections, Section I Europe and Section II Spain. Its section
has three major parts which examine the current situation of TT and TT-TVET in
Europe and Spain. The analysis is done through competencies and conditions lenses.
In Section I Europe, we begin by describing the current situation of university in
Europe. We introduce the “Dublin Descriptors” followed by the European Association
for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA) report on Standards and Guidelines
for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area. The second part
examines teacher training through Steve’s perspective (2006) and the Eurydice report.
Finally, the third part illustrates the profile of teacher training of vocational education
teachers using the study of Bünning and Shilela (2006) and the Progress Report (2004).
In Section II Spain, we introduce the framework that depicts the situation in Spain
through the article “The Integration of the Spanish University System in the European
Higher Education Space” (2003) and the University Report 2000 so called “Bricall
Report”. The second part, examines teacher training in Spain based on The III
Education Deans and Directors Conference of November 2005 and the I ANECA
Forum of University Professors of 17 December 2004. We then present a review of two
studies from Navio and the Cifo group devoted to acquire deeper knowledge of TT-
TVET.

4. 4
Section I
Europe
1. FRAMEWORK
1.1 University in Europe
1.1.1 Competencies: ‘DUBLIN’ DESCRIPTORS
The complete set of ‘Dublin descriptors’ is set out below:
Bachelor’s degrees are awarded to students who:
Qualifications that signify completion of the higher education short cycle (within the
first cycle) are awarded to students who:
• have demonstrated knowledge and understanding in a field of study that builds
upon general secondary education and is typically at a level supported by
advanced textbooks; such knowledge provides an underpinning for a field of
work or vocation, personal development, and further studies to complete the
first cycle;
• can apply their knowledge and understanding in occupational contexts;
• have the ability to identify and use data to formulate responses to well-defined
concrete and abstract problems;
• can communicate about their understanding, skills and activities, with peers,
supervisors and clients;
• have the learning skills to undertake further studies with some autonomy.
Qualifications that signify completion of the first cycle are awarded to students who:
• have demonstrated knowledge and understanding in a field of study that builds
upon and their general secondary education, and is typically at a level that,
whilst supported by advanced textbooks, includes some aspects that will be
informed by knowledge of the forefront of their field of study;
• can apply their knowledge and understanding in a manner that indicates a
professional approach to their work or vocation, and have competences
• typically demonstrated through devising and sustaining arguments and solving
problems within their field of study;
• have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data (usually within their field
of study) to inform judgements that include reflection on relevant social,
scientific or ethical issues;
• can communicate information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialist
and non-specialist audiences;
• have developed those learning skills that are necessary for them to continue to
undertake further study with a high degree of autonomy.

5. 5
Master’s degrees are awarded to students who:
Qualifications that signify completion of the second cycle are awarded to students who:
• have demonstrated knowledge and understanding that is founded upon and
extends and/or enhances that typically associated with Bachelor’s level, and
that provides a basis or opportunity for originality in developing and/or
applying ideas, often within a research context;
• can apply their knowledge and understanding, and problem solving abilities in
new or unfamiliar environments within broader (or multidisciplinary) contexts
related to their field of study;
• have the ability to integrate knowledge and handle complexity, and formulate
judgements with incomplete or limited information, but that include reflecting
on social and ethical responsibilities linked to the application of their
knowledge and judgements;
• can communicate their conclusions, and the knowledge and rationale
underpinning these, to specialist and non-specialist audiences clearly and
unambiguously;
• have the learning skills to allow them to continue to study in a manner that
may be largely self-directed or autonomous.
Doctoral degrees are awarded to students who:
Qualifications that signify completion of the third cycle are awarded to students who:
• have demonstrated a systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery
of the skills and methods of research associated with that field;
• have demonstrated the ability to conceive, design, implement and adapt a
substantial process of research with scholarly integrity;
• have made a contribution through original research that extends the frontier of
knowledge by developing a substantial body of work, some of which merits
national or international refereed publication;
• are capable of critical analysis, evaluation and synthesis of new and complex
ideas;
• can communicate with their peers, the larger scholarly community and with
society in general about their areas of expertise;
• can be expected to be able to promote, within academic and professional
contexts, technological, social or cultural advancement in a knowledge based
society.

6. 6
Differentiating between cycles
Cycle Knowledge and understanding:
1st
Bachelor
Is supported by advanced text books with some aspects informed by
knowledge at the forefront of their field of study.
2nd
Master
Provides a basis or opportunity for originality in developing or
applying ideas often in a research context.
3rd
Doctorate
Includes a systematic understanding of their field of study and
mastery of the methods of research associated with that field.
Cycle Applying knowledge and understanding:
1st
Bachelor
Through devising and sustaining arguments
2nd
Master
Through problem solving abilities applied in new or unfamiliar
environments within broader or multidisciplinary contexts.
3rd
Doctorate
Is demonstrated by the ability to conceive, design, implement and
adapt a substantial process of research with scholarly integrity.
Is in the context of a contribution that extends the frontier of
knowledge by developing a substantial body of work some of which
merits national or international refereed publication.
Cycle Making judgments:
1st
Bachelor
Involves gathering and interpreting relevant data.
2nd
Master
Demonstrates the ability to integrate knowledge and handle
complexity, and formulate judgments with incomplete data.
3rd
Doctorate
Requires being capable of critical analysis, evaluation and synthesis
of new and complex ideas.
Cycle Communication:
1st
Bachelor
Of information, ideas, problems and solutions.
2nd
Master
Of their conclusions and the underpinning knowledge and rationale
restricted scope to specialist and non-specialist audiences.
3rd
Doctorate With their peers, the larger scholarly community and with society in
general dialogue about their areas of expertise.
Cycle Learning skills:
1st
Bachelor
Have developed those skills needed to study further with a high level
of autonomy.
2nd
Master
Study in a manner that may be largely self-directed or autonomous.
3rd
Doctorate
Expected to be able to promote, within academic and professional
contexts, technological, social or cultural advancement.

7. 7
1.1.2 Conditions: EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION
European standards for internal quality
assurance within higher education institutions
European standards for the external quality
assurance of higher education
European standards for external quality
assurance agencies
• Policy and procedures for quality assurance
Institutions should have a policy and associated
procedures for the assurance of the quality and
standards of their programmes and awards. They
should also commit themselves explicitly to the
development of a culture which recognises the
importance of quality, and quality assurance, in
their work. To achieve this, institutions should
develop and implement a strategy for the
continuous enhancement of quality. The strategy,
policy and procedures should have a formal status
and be publicly available. They should also include
a role for students and other stakeholders.
• Approval, monitoring and periodic review
of programmes and awards
Institutions should have formal mechanisms for the
approval, periodic review and monitoring of their
programmes and awards.
• Assessment of students
Students should be assessed using published
criteria, regulations and procedures applied
consistently.
• Quality assurance of teaching staff
Institutions should have ways of verifying that staff
• Use of internal quality assurance
procedures
External quality assurance procedures should take
into account the effectiveness of the internal quality
assurance processes described in Part 1 of the
European Standards and Guidelines.
• Development of external quality assurance
processes
The aims and objectives of quality assurance
processes should be determined before the
processes themselves are developed, by all those
responsible (including higher education
institutions) and should be published with a
description of the procedures to be used.
• Criteria for decisions
Any formal decisions made as a result of an
external quality assurance activity should be based
on explicit published criteria that are applied
consistently.
• Processes fit for purpose
All external quality assurance processes should be
designed specifically to ensure their fitness to
achieve the aims and objectives set for them.
• Use of external quality assurance
procedures for higher education
The external quality assurance of agencies should
take into account the presence and effectiveness of
the external quality assurance processes described
in Part 2 of the European Standards and Guidelines.
• Official status
Agencies should be formally recognised by
competent public authorities in the European Higher
Education Area as agencies with responsibilities for
external quality assurance and should have an
established legal basis. They should comply with
any requirements of the legislative jurisdictions
within which they operate.
• Activities
Agencies should undertake external quality
assurance activities (at institutional or programme
level) on a regular basis.
• Resources
Agencies should have adequate and proportional
resources, both human and financial, to enable them
to organise and run their external quality assurance
process(es) in an effective and efficient manner,
with appropriate provision for the development of
their processes and procedures.

8. 8
involved with teaching students is qualified and
competent to do so. They should be available to
those undertaking external reviews, and
commented upon in reports.
• Learning resources and student support
Institutions should ensure that the resources
available for the support of student learning are
adequate and appropriate for each programme
offered.
• Information systems
Institutions should ensure that they collect, analyse
and use relevant information for the effective
management of their programmes of study and
other activities.
• Public information
Institutions should regularly publish up to date,
impartial and objective information, both
quantitative and qualitative, about the programmes
and awards they are offering.
• Reporting
Reports should be published and should be written
in a style which is clear and readily accessible to its
intended readership. Any decisions,
commendations or recommendations contained in
reports should be easy for a reader to find.
• Follow-up procedures
Quality assurance processes which contain
recommendations for action or which require a
subsequent action plan, should have a
predetermined follow-up procedure which is
implemented consistently.
• Periodic reviews
External quality assurance of institutions and/or
programmes should be undertaken on a cyclical
basis. The length of the cycle and the review
procedures to be used should be clearly defined and
published in advance.
• System-wide analyses
Quality assurance agencies should produce from
time to time summary reports describing and
analyzing the general findings of their reviews,
evaluations, assessments, etc
• Mission statement
Agencies should have clear and explicit goals and
objectives for their work, contained in a publicly
available statement.
• Independence
Agencies should be independent to the extent both
that they have autonomous responsibility for their
operations and that the conclusions and
recommendations made in their reports cannot be
influenced by third parties such as higher education
institutions, ministries or other stakeholders.
• External quality assurance criteria and
processes used by the agencies
The processes, criteria and procedures used by
agencies should be pre-defined and publicly
available. These processes will normally be
expected to include:
• a self-assessment or equivalent procedure by the
subject of the quality assurance process;
• an external assessment by a group of experts,
including, as appropriate, (a) student member(s),
and site visits as decided by the agency;
• publication of a report, including any decisions,
recommendations or other formal outcomes;
• a follow-up procedure to review actions taken by
the subject of the quality assurance process in the
light of any recommendations contained in the
report.
• Accountability procedures
Agencies should have in place procedures for their
own accountability.

9. 9
2. TEACHER TRAINING IN EUROPE
2.1 Competencies
With respect to curricular content of initial teacher training, many European countries
have specific training programs in which prospect teachers need to master these new
responsibilities (Esteve, 2006):
• Basic expertise in new information and communication technologies.
• Acquisition skills for educational institutions’ management and administration.
• Capacity to integrate students with special educational necessities into ordinary
institutions.
• Expertise in integrating students from diverse cultural backgrounds.
• Acquisition of social skills to successfully confront difficult coexistence
management.
2.2 Conditions
In the last thirty years, European educational systems have obtained spectacular
advances making the current educational systems one of the best that Europe has ever
had. It exists among people, however, a social image that European educational systems
are in crisis. The key to understand this apparent paradox relies in the fact that the
advances of the European educational systems have created new problems, which the
system has been unable to assimilate. This may be due to the lack of a general vision of
those advances as well as the new challenges generated by such a deep educational
change (Esteve, 2006).
The enormous acceleration of social change has rapidly modified the ways of life,
introducing new economic conceptions, new scientific and technological developments,
and new social values. Therefore, many teachers are disoriented by these new changes.
However, this is only the beginning of a period of changes where the new challenge of
integrating electronic and Internet learning will enhance the demands of changing the
European educational systems in the years to come (Esteve, 2006). And besides this,
new exigencies of adaptation will increase in European societies, requesting educational
systems to respond to the unforeseeable demands of a society in which the process of
social change has been accelerated in the last few years. Thus, the quick transformation
of an industrial society towards a knowledge society is already raising new
requirements of adaptation of European’s educational systems.
In the last years, in all European countries there has been a succession of reforms to
improve the initial teacher training as an attempt to respond to the new educational
realities resulting from the acceleration of the social changes. These reforms have been
made considering two realities: first, the awareness that Europeans were preparing
teachers for an educational system that was already finished, and secondly, the evidence
of which most of the European teachers who began to work in secondary school had a
good academic education, but lacked the social and communicative skills necessary to
survive at the educational relationship within the classrooms.
There are two extended and general tendencies in Europe: the first is the increase of
years of the required training to become Secondary school teacher. This is the

10. 10
consequence of recognising that European teachers must now confront new difficulties
to exercise their profession. Secondly, the tendency is to integrate teacher training
within the university’s framework, leaving non-university institutions of training aside,
and accepting the necessity in all European countries of a long university training
program to become secondary school teachers.
Within the framework of the tendencies described above, the structure of the initial
teacher training in Europe follows a variety of models, although there is a basic norm
that regulates the initial teacher training to guarantee minimum levels of homogeneity in
the degrees that are obtained. In all Europe, it is a requirement to all secondary school
teachers to obtain a university degree of at least five years of study. Besides this and
independently of the followed model, the necessity of specific training of practical and
professional character is already accepted in all European countries.
Most of European countries establish mandatory subjects as minimum requirements of
curricular content, whereas others must fulfil specific objectives. The existing initial
training norm usually stipulates the mandatory inclusion of at least the following areas:
pedagogy, theory of education, psychology, subject knowledge and subject learning,
and teaching practice (Eurydice, 2002, p.70). Countries that define objectives, instead of
subjects, indicate minimum levels that teachers need to acquire when finalizing their
initial training, and those levels are generally focused in two aspects: subject knowledge
and educational skills. “Usually, a relation of aptitudes are included, whose acquisition
would be recommendable, such as social skills and the capacity to take care of the
individual development of students” (Eurydice, 2002).
3. TEACHER TRAINING -TRAINERS OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION TEACHERS IN EUROPE
3.1 Competencies
Models in TVET Teacher Training:
In a recent study, Bünning and Shilela (2006) identify three emerging models of TVET
Teacher Training in German universities:
• The Consecutive Model
• The Top-Up-Model
• The Blended Model
The Consecutive Model
In this model the three educational strands of major, minor, and vocational
education/didactics are integrated to Bachelor’s programme and major and minor are
continued at Master level.
The model offers a programme that focuses on teacher training with the result that the
graduates at Bachelor’s level are experts in their (teacher training) field. The
specialization on their teaching training field could be a disadvantage if graduates try to
find employment, with their Bachelor’s degree alone, outside the teaching domain.

11. 11
Regarding Bünning and Shilela (2006) “employers may not value the emphasis on
teacher training in the first degree portfolio. Moreover employment opportunities in the
public sector are currently limited. These factors alone mean that graduates emerging
from the Consecutive Model with a Bachelor’s degree from a university could be faced
with limited options for employment, which could be seen as a direct contradiction of
one of the envisaged benefits of restructuring” (p. 21).
The Top-up-Model
The Top-up-Model introduces just one strand of teacher training at the Bachelor’s level
and Master programme builds up on a Bachelor’s degree (e.g. in a technical field). In
this model the major results from the field studied at Bachelor’s level, which is
continued at Master’s level. Minor and vocational education/didactics are exclusively
studied at Master’s level.
This model offers a Bachelor’s programme which is mainly focused on subject
expertise in a given field. Graduates emerging from the Top-Up-Model could be
considered to have the advantage over their peers graduating from the Consecutive
Model, when seeking employment outside teaching. However, they will be
disadvantaged if they were to seek employment in education due to the limited
pedagogical training offered at Bachelor’s level (Bünning & Shilela, 2006).
The Blended Model
The Blended Model offers a two cycle degree system which introduces two strands
(major and minor) of teacher training at Bachelor level. There is a single module of
vocational education and didactics which is offered in all subject fields at bachelor’s
level and is open to students from other faculties. Master’s degree offers opportunities
to deepen understanding of studies of major, minor and vocational education/didactics.
Bünning and Shilela (2006) perceive the Blended Model as a compromise model
between the first two. These authors say that the Blended Model:
“aims to provide graduates with alternative career options by focussing on
areas which are relevant for employment outside teaching while
simultaneously introducing pedagogy and didactics at the Bachelor’s level,
thus offering a compromise between the Consecutive and the Top–Up-
Models. The Bachelor’s graduates from this model may not possess the
equivalent subject expertise as their counterparts from the Top- Up-Model,
but their command of subject knowledge would enable them to compete for
jobs in a non-teaching environment” (p.21).
Intended outcomes of restructuring TVET Teacher Training:
The three models intend to provide:
• Transfer between programmes
• Shorter study periods
• Enhancement of practical training
• Internationalisation of degree programme
Transfer between programmes

12. 12
When considering the flexibility offered by TVET Teacher Training programmes to
transfer between any given programmes, the Consecutive Model offers limitations since
only allows students to transfer to a programme that follows the Consecutive Model.
However, Top-up-Model offers most flexibility in terms of transferring from one
programme to another. And the Blended Model is the only one that opens up to
graduates from different models, being the prerequisite that graduates should have
followed a module of vocational education and didactics in their Bachelor’s studies.
Shorter study periods
Regarding Bünning and Shilela (2006) graduates emerging from three years of
Bachelor’s study and who want to gain employment will most likely still need to
continuo on studying for two more years of Master’s. Therefore, the objective of
shorter study periods would have not been achieved in Germany since the new study
period of five years is longer than the former system.
Enhancement of practical training
One of the aims of the Bologna Declaration was to strengthen the practical elements of
TVET Teacher Training through the restructuring exercise; however, “the three
emerging models do not demonstrate evidence of a strategic approach to restructuring
which would ensure the inclusion of more intensive periods or stronger links with
practical training” (Bünning & Shilela, 2006, pp. 20-21).
Internationalisation of degree programme
The Bologna Process provides an excellent opportunity for universities to develop
international programmes, however very few universities in Germany have design
programmes that encompass an international perspective.
3.2 Conditions
The European Commission Expert Group underlined on their Progress Report (2004)
the general guiding principles that should be taken into account in the development of a
common framework supporting the development of quality teacher and trainer
education in Europe.
• Teaching/training should be seen as a profession based on a professional, tertiary
level, university, or equivalent, research-based initial education for teachers and/or
other appropriate professionally recognised levels for trainers;
• The issue of competences in teacher /trainer education should be seen in a lifelong
learning perspective;
• The process of continuous professional development should be ‘owned’ by both
individuals and institutions in a context of partnership between teachers, their
constituent organisations, employers, parents’ associations and education
authorities;
• Mobility should be seen as an integral part of professional development at initial
training and continuing professional development stages. It should be seen as
contributing a European added-value to the development of optimum learning

13. 13
environments for all young people and should be appropriately recognised and
accredited;
• The European dimension should have a much stronger presence in initial teacher
education curricula and programmes;
• Appropriate professional support should be provided for those responsible for the
education of teachers and trainers;
• Effective support structures are necessary at European level in order to promote
the European dimension of the professional development of teachers and trainers
and build new knowledge in the field of educational research.

14. 14
Section II
Spain
1. FRAMEWORK
1.1 University in Spain
1.1.1 Competencies:
The Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports published a framework-document (2003)
in which they present the plan of adaptation of Spanish universities and their official
tittles into the schema proposed by the Bologna Declaration. We illustrate the
characteristics of graduate and postgraduate degrees below:
Graduate degrees
The educational objectives of official graduate degrees in Spain will have, in general, a
professional orientation that should provide a university education in which are
harmonically integrated:
• basic generic competencies,
• cross-sectional competencies related to people ‘s integral education and,
• more specific competencies that make possible a professional orientation that
allow university degree holders to integrate into the labour market.
These degrees will have to be designed based on professional profiles with a national
and European perspective, and on objectives that must mention generic, cross-sectional,
and specific competencies (knowledge, capacities, and abilities) that should be reached.
It should be possible to allow for certain flexibility to universities for diversifying its
programs, intensifying or personalizing some of the specific competencies related to
professional orientation, as well as to establish itineraries of free curricular
configuration. But, in no case, these itineraries could be recognized as specialties nor be
reflected in the official Graduate title.
Postgraduate degrees
In agreement with the established in the Bologna Declaration, postgraduate degrees, for
whose access it will be required to have passed first level of higher education (Graduate
degrees), will lead to the acquisition of Masters and/or Doctoral degrees.
The design of this level’s structure is done in several effective ways in other countries
and all of them present advantages and disadvantages. In general, however, it could be
advisable to establish a Master-Doctoral structure that has a sequential character so that,
for the set of degrees, the access to the doctoral thesis elaboration period could only be
possible after acquiring a Master’s degree. In any case, this exigency should be
necessary in Masters which are not oriented towards investigation, and that are strictly
professional. But, it can also be understood that this structure is too rigid and, thus, it

15. 15
should open up the possibility to design postgraduate programs in which students, after
having coursed a significant number of credits, could be admitted by a Department or a
University Institute of Investigation in order to initiate their doctoral investigation.
For that reason, it is under consideration of the University Coordination Council
(Consejo de Coordinación Universitario):
A) If the acquisition of a Master’s degree should be a requirement for accessing
to doctoral levels,
B) if this exigency must be a standard while opening the possibility to regulate
the extraordinary circumstances that allow postgraduate programs, in which
access requirements are established, for instance, to have completed a number of
credits of the program, but without having completed and acquired a Master’s
degree,
C) or if this possibility does not have to be considered of extraordinary character
but generalizeable to certain types of Masters based on its objectives and
educational contents. In any case the Government will establish, with previous
report of the University Council of Coordination, the general requirements to
access to Postgraduate and Doctoral studies.
1.1.2 Conditions:
Under section VII “Quality and Accreditation of the Spanish High Education” of the
report “Bricall Report”, it is described the evaluation experience in Spain in which since
1990 with the objective to favour the incorporation of concrete measures to improve
quality in university, the Universities Council (Consejo de Universidades) impelled an
alternative line oriented to favour the elaboration of guidelines of evaluation based on
an analogous conception of foreign models of evaluation, whose first result was the
Experimental Evaluation Programme of Quality in Universities (1992-1994), and
immediately later the participation in the European Union Pilot Project. This process
had an institutional continuity in the National Evaluation of Quality Plan.
The stages of the system of evaluation in Spain are summarized below:
University Field
Administrative Field
University Council
Activities
European Union
Activities
1990 - 1991 • Debate on level of
evaluation reached
(studies, seminars,
publications)
oriented towards
quality
improvement.
1992 - 1994 • ESMU
Programme
• Experimental
Evaluation
Programme

16. 16
1994 - 1995
• National
Evaluation Plan
• Experimental
programme review.
• Agreement of
Universities
Council by which
proposes the
Government the
adoption of a
National Evaluation
Plan.
• European Pilot
Project
coordination
• European Pilot
Programme
• Final conference
on European Pilot
Programme
1996 - 1997
• 1st Call for the
National Evaluation
Plan.
• Direct participation
in the Plan of some
Autonomous
Communities.
• Evaluation Plan
development.
• 1st Report on
Quality in
Universities.
• European Union
Commission
recommendation
proposal on
guarantee the
quality of higher
education.
1998 - 1999 • 2ond and 3rd Call
for the National
Evaluation Plan.
• Constitution of
regional Evaluation
agencies.
• Development of
Evaluation Plan
• European
Evaluation Model
• Creation of
network of
European
Evaluation
Agencies.
The National Evaluation Plan of Quality in Universities was based on different
arguments:
• First of all, organizations must incorporate policies oriented to improve the quality of
products and services that justify their creation. Universities cannot remain in the
margin of this tendency, especially when by nature they are institutions with academic
and scientific excellence.
• In addition, the incorporation of Spain into the European Union has also demanded a
homologation according to the educational policies within the Union. University
quality evaluation constitutes a policy impelled by diverse communitarian guidelines
and recommendations.
• Finally, university institutions financed from public resources are required to provide
account on performance and use of founds.
Following the European Commission criterion, quality evaluation methods are
conceived as procedure rules. This means that they define the procedure of quality
evaluation in institutions (subject and modalities of participation, aspects to examine,
etc.), but do not establish definitive criteria of quality based on standards. It is each
university’s responsibility to decide its own notion of quality tied to its objectives.

17. 17
The integrated process of evaluation that each Spanish university must follow is made
up of three main stages:
• Internal Evaluation: It begins with the collection and systematization of information
referred to the evaluation object unit. This information is made up of statistics,
management data and indicators on inputs, processes and results of the unit activity.
The study elaborated by the internal evaluation Committee integrates this information
with the observations, opinions, and evaluations generated in the process.
• External Evaluation: An external Committee of evaluation analyzes the study and
visits the evaluated unit. From their observations, information, opinions and
evaluations collected during interviews, emit an external report. This report is put
under consideration by the evaluated unit in order for them to present their allegations
or considerations.
• Evaluation report: The synthesis of the study and the external report provides the
definitive report of the evaluated unit which must be diffused and published
appropriately.
The “Bricall Report” states that the process of evaluation of Spanish quality in
universities needs to take a step forward and to replace the strict program of evaluation
by another one of evaluation and accreditation. The balance of the National Evaluation
Plan of Quality in Universities must serve as base for the accomplishment of later
programs with more concrete and selective objectives and to increase the degree of
exigency in the results.
2. TEACHER TRAINING IN SPAIN
2.1 Competencies
The Spanish educational system does not contemplate the competencies of teachers but
their functions. Therefore, we thought appropriate to include in this section “The
Functions of Teachers” (2/2006: 17183) which are specified under Article 91 of the
Education Act 2/2006 May 3, of Education. The complete set of functions is set out
below:
a) Planning and education of all areas, subjects, and modules that have been
entrusted to them.
b) Evaluation of students’ learning process, as well as evaluation of educational
processes.
c) Guardianship of students, direction and orientation of their learning, and their
support in their educational process in collaboration with families.
d) Educational, academic, and vocational orientation of students, in
collaboration with specialized departments or services.
e) Attention to students’ intellectual, affective, psychological, social, and moral
development.

18. 18
f) Promotion, organization, and participation in complementary activities, inside
and outside the educational enclosure, programmed by the school.
g) Contribution to the development of schools’ activities in a climate of respect,
tolerance, participation, and freedom in order to promote the values of
democratic citizenship within students.
h) Periodic report to families of learning process of their daughters and suns, as
well as to provide guidance to the families of how they can cooperate.
i) Coordination of educational activities, management, and direction that have
been entrusted to them.
j) Participation in the general activity of the school.
k) Participation in the evaluation plans determined by educational
Administrations or schools.
l) Research, experimentation, and continuous improvement of corresponding
learning processes.
2. Teachers will carry out these functions, precise in the above section, under the
principle of collaboration and teamwork.
Even though, the Spanish educational system does not contemplate the competencies of
teachers on the III Conference of Education Deans and Directors (November 2005)
were underlined the professional profile that teachers need to acquire in their initial
teacher training. Conference speakers agreed that in order to obtain this profile, Spain
needs an initial teacher training of teachers of Secondary Education that offers to future
teachers, theoretical tools and practical skill to think and to act in the exercise of their
profession like true educators and not only like experts in a curricular area.
It was said that in order to make initial teacher training a professionalizing instrument
for teachers, it must be based on the capacity to integrate knowledge of several areas
and typologies, achieving a constant interaction and integration between theoretical
knowledge and practice.
This capacity to integrate different knowledge into the classroom defines the basic
competency of teachers and it indicates their professionalism. Thus, the profile of
teachers of Secondary Education must:
• dominate the scientific field that they will teach
• acquire a global vision of the curriculum of Secondary Education and know in
depth the curriculum field
• dominate specific didactics of their scientific field
• know their students’ cognitive and cultural characteristics of diversity and know
them from different secondary stages (ESO/Bachillerato)
• learn to integrate theoretical knowledge (disciplinary or cross-sectional) with
practical professional competencies

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• acquire a global vision of knowledge or holistic thinking
• know to work in a team
2.2 Conditions
Initial training that tries to compact all learning in a period of three or four years still
prevails in Spain today. Zabalza (2006) thinks that this approach makes Spanish initial
training superficial and prevents from building up a knowledge model in which theory
and practice are integrated. In that sense “the connection of initial training and in-
service training should be a requirement” (p.53).
The political objective of Spain is to design a high-level training plan that prepares
prospect teachers to confront the new educational challenges they face now and will
face in the future. In response to these new challenges, Spain has decided to incorporate
new requirements for the teachers’ professional profile such as: languages,
multiculturalism, questions of gender and coexistence, diversity of students, new
technologies, learning difficulties and work with families (OCDE). Along those lines,
Imbernón (2006) states that Spain also needs a change in the profile of teachers to
include greater pedagogical competencies and skills to work with their colleagues.
The I Forum of ANECA (National Evaluation Agency of Quality and Accreditation)
about University Professors tried to make some reflections on the European
convergence process. Forum speakers agreed that this process is an excellent
opportunity to improve the effectiveness and the efficiency of the actual system of
education-learning that still prevails in most of Spanish universities.
Forum speakers agreed that during the period of the two organic laws (LRU and LOU),
which has framed university way of work in Spain; teachers’ research activity has been
over-evaluated not favouring teaching work, which has become a "load" practically
without stimulus. According to them, Spanish universities urgently need to favour a
cultural and strategic change to revitalize teaching, without that, failure of the
implantation of the European high education space is guaranteed. However, they state
that recognition and stimulus of educational activity cannot be increased without
training and evaluation of teachers. Those are two pending challenges that need to be
urgently approached. Few systematic teacher training programs are implemented at
Spanish universities. Therefore, it is important to implement teacher training programs
regularly.
Forum speakers concluded that teacher training towards the European high education
space must be guided by general principles such as: a) emphasis not only in aptitude but
also in attitude; b) establishment of networks based on teacher training in order to
favour training in all teachers; c) implication of mixed trainers, some of which should
belong to teacher training field; d) technical and economic support; d) permanent
evaluation and improvement; and f) provide incentive systems for teachers. In this
context, it is very important the selection of teacher training contents, being the main
ones: design and evaluation of competencies, active participation of students, team work
between teachers, personalized tutoring, evaluation of students and the new education-
learning system, among others.

20. 20
Quality agencies can also play a main role in the advancement of university teaching,
contributing to the indispensable cultural change. Thus, if criteria, indicators, and
standards are established, they will stimulate teaching indirectly (e.g. criteria for teacher
evaluation, where teaching must have a greater weight) as well as directly (e.g.
university programs that support teacher training).
Within this context, however, Zabalza (2006) thinks that the successive Spanish
educational reforms have not made changes in initial teacher training. Initial teacher
training programs are still not in conditions to prepare future generations of teachers in
those competencies that teaching requires. Spanish universities continue to work and
focus things in similar ways as they did twenty or twenty-five years ago. Indeed, the
needs of the Spanish educational system have evolved in such ways that, at present, lack
the required "competent" teachers prepared to provide answers to the new educational
context and its new challenges.
3. TEACHER TRAINING -TRAINERS OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION TEACHERS IN SPAIN
3.1 Competencies
Every day new social needs appear. In order to guarantee that those needs are covered,
new professional profiles are required. This makes very difficult to define a professional
profile. Therefore, the study (Ferrández, Tejada, Jurado, Navío, and Ruiz, 2000)
addresses this question by applying the concepts of flexibility and versatility while
defining the professional profile. Professional profiles are redefined according to the
dynamics of society, thus the literature review presented below will depict the
functions, roles, and competencies of teacher training and teacher training of vocational
education, considering their mutability.
Professional profile of teacher training professionals:
Trainers of vocational education teachers are well characterized as a group, since they
all share a well-defined function as instructors of vocational education. These
professionals have acquired, through professional experience or through initial teacher
training, a series of pedagogical competencies on a technical field, even though, some of
them may have few or no industrial experience which questions their authentic
specialization. In most countries these professionals, identified as teachers who instruct
practical, technical, and theoretical aspects, work mainly as teachers.
These professionals teach vocational education under the educational system. There are
few differences between those who teach at public and private sectors.
Public sector
Trainers of vocational education teachers who teach at public sectors are required to
possess a university diploma or a high level degree (higher technician). Furthermore,
they are required to succeed in a standardized public contest to become trainers of
vocational education teachers. However, there are also provisional trainers of vocational
education teachers who are called “interinos”. In both cases, they work only as teachers
and they cannot combine their teaching activity with any other remunerated activity.

21. 21
Depending on their sort of education, they are grouped into teacher training trainers of
practical, technical, and theoretical courses. Technical and theoretical teacher training
instructors are required to obtain high level degrees, whereas practical teacher training
instructors only need an intermediate level degree.
Private sector
Trainers of vocational education teachers who teach at private sectors have a similar
degree level, professional categories, and functions. The only differences that we
encounter are the access to permanent positions, recruitment, and sociolabour
conditions.
In both cases, their lack of professional experience acts as a barrier that prevents
innovation, access to new conceptions of techniques or procedures. Fortunately, the
tendency is to grant more emphasis to pedagogical questions of didactical,
organizational and educational orientation, and to emphasise the link between scholar
and labour fields.
Functions, tasks, and competencies:
Functions are set out below (Ferrández et al. 2000):
• To offer different types of training related to specific necessities.
• To define, to design, and to fit training courses of formation according to the
learning level of the groups.
• To teach training courses according to a previously established program.
• To design didactic materials in relation to the activities developed.
• To evaluate the learnings taught, using evaluation tools to collect the
information needed.
On the other hand, most of the studies define the role of teacher training according to
four competency fields (Bunk, 1994; Liepmann, 1992, cited by Ferrández et al., 2000):
• Technological competencies
• Teaching competencies (psychopedagogical)
• Work competencies
• Social competencies
However, Danau (191, p.53, cited by Ferrández et al., 2000) reveals in his study that
trainers of vocational education teachers were aware of the importance of social
competencies and interpersonal skills. However, most of those willing to develop their
profile or change it, preferred to improve their technological competency. Thus,
although they turned into teachers due to their high level of technical experience and
knowledge, they did not identify themselves as teachers. Others thought that to become
teachers was important, but only as a temporary stage in the course of their career.
Most trainers of vocational education teachers see themselves as technicians that work
temporarily in teaching hence Ferrández (1995, p.168, cited by Ferrández et al., 2000)
says that one can infer from the data that in-service trainers may not have (nor intend to
have) proper initial teacher training.

22. 22
The different unities of competency of teacher training proposed by INEM are the
following:
• To program educational actions linking them to the rest of actions related to the
organization of learning, in agreement with the surrounding’s requirements.
• Provide learning opportunities adapted to individuals or group characteristics
and their qualification needs.
• Attend and orient their learning process and qualifications.
• Verify the level of qualification reached, the programs, and the actions in order
to make decisions to improve the education level.
• Actively contribute to the improvement of the quality of education.
3.2 Conditions
Navío’s (2006) thesis seeks to delimit the functions, roles, and competencies of teacher
training professionals illustrating different authors’ perspectives on this matter. Our
purpose here is to present a synthesis of functions, roles, and competencies of trainers of
vocational education teachers extracted from the author´s work.
The main functions:
• To program the learning process
• To manage and coordinate the learning process
• To transmit and exercise knowledge, skills and attitudes.
• To adapt individual and group characteristics of participants to the process and
to help them to identify themselves with preset objectives and their chosen ways
of work.
• To define, design, and adapt training courses according to learning groups.
Four main roles:
• Teacher training as a catalyst: facilitates others to reach their conclusions and
goals.
• Teacher training as mentor: works as a role model for other people.
• Teacher training as coach: helps people learn through their work experience
reflections in order to better understand the processes implied.
• Teacher training as advisor: help participants to manage their learnings as
well as to reach their goals.
Specific pedagogical competencies:
• Diagnostic competency: Related to the identification of problems and problem
solving.
• Achievement competency: Suitable organization of context for problem
solving.
• Integration competency: The acquired knowledge is integrated and transferred
to the workplace.

23. 23
• Competencies linked to personality: They make reference to a set of specific
and generic transversal competencies required from both the person and the
professional.
• Competencies on Didactical-methodological expertise: Everything that
concerns adult’s psychopedagogy at the level of groups, contents, objectives and
methodological strategies.
• Team manager competency: Related to group dynamics.
• Advising competency: Providing advice to individuals and groups through their
education.
• Cooperative work competency: Given by the specific needs of the organisation
of work and the organisation of the education and learning of adults.
• Competencies in the expertise on political and organizational conditions:
Programming, development, evaluation, merchandising, work and industry
context, administration, law/legislation, personal, etc. These are aspects that
from the in-service training point of view, must be considered fundamental.

24. 24
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