Exploring the Role of Research in Bridging Divides and Shaping the Future of VET in Cyprus
We have been invited to attend to the European Conference on Educational Research held in Nicosia, Cyprus between the 26th to the 28th August under the auspices of the European Educational Research Association. Under the theme of Education in an Age of Uncertainty: Memory and Hope of the Future, the ECER 2024 provided opportunities for researchers to gather, discusses and debate on the reality of societal improvement as an ongoing process that draws on a past, is explored in the present and seeks to influence the future.
What is the European Conference on Educational Research?
Since the first ECER in 1992, the conference has grown into one of the largest annual educational research conferences in Europe and has toured Europe – East and West, North and South. ECER is the place to meet researchers from a broad field of academic traditions, themes and cultural backgrounds. By 2015 the conference attracted annually about 2500 participants from more than 70 countries and, except for during the pandemic years, attendance at ECER has continued to grow. ECER is organised in cooperation with universities and national/regional research associations. Universities who are interested in hosting an ECER are invited to contact EERA office for more information.
VETNET Opening Session: A Common Labour Market
Our Managing Director, Giorgos Giorgakis, as the national representative of Cyprus to EfVET, was invited to attend the panel discussion of the VETNET Opening Session: A Common Labour Market, to delve into the Greek-Cypriot VET Context. The presentation led into a fruitful discussion with researchers across Europe discussing the importance of research to help drive the demand of VET in Cyprus.
Acknowledging the current status quo of Cyprus, the ECER sought to contextualise the VET sector of the Republic of Cyprus in its entirety inviting the Turkish-Cypriot community to present their current VET context. Under the title “A common labour market”, the panel discussion aimed at exploring any possible routes that could eventually lead to exchange and cooperation among the two communities in terms of the VET occupational market. The challenges faced by each community were thoroughly discussed focusing on the similarities and differences each VET sector needs to currently overcome.
Looking towards the future, the researchers attending the VETNET Opening Session, along with our panellists, discussed the possibilities and opportunities, if any, to create more synergies between the two VET communities. It was generally agreed that the research community could strive to facilitate of such opportunities by expanding the scope of their research to identify best practices of countries with polarised communities, to contextualise the social norms around VET and to highlight integration methods.
Overall, the VETNET opening session was truly inspiring. The dedication of the research community to their craft led to prolific discussions contributing towards the cooperation and collaboration of the VET sectors of the two communities.