The current study is a survey-descriptive one in which the statistical population includes the experts working at Technical and vocational Training Organization and its subordinate offices, experts working in the industrial section, faculty members and scientific centers. The required data for this study were collected through researcher-made questionnaires and check lists. Analytic Hierarchy Process was employed to help choose the best courses and skills from four different perspectives (needs of job market and industry market, attention to entrepreneurship development, attention to job creation for university graduates and equality of priorities). The results showed that the priorities from the perspective of choosing the skills based on the need of the job and industry market are as follows: the first priority is the skills of repair and maintenance of gem spectrometer, the second one is assigned to the skills of working with gem spectrometer, the third priority belongs to the skills of repair and maintenance of X-Ray emission spectrometer, the forth one is the skills of repair and maintenance of gas chromatography-gem spectrometer and the last priority is the skills of working with X-Ray emission spectrometer. From the viewpoint of attention to entrepreneurship development the priorities are as follow: the first one is related to the period of working in chromatographic laboratory as a user having the skills of working with gas chromatography-gem spectrometer, the second priority is having the skills of a furnishing mill user, having the skills of working with furnishing mill, the third priority is the skills of X-Ray user having the skills of working with X-Ray emission spectrometer, the forth one is the skills of repair and maintenance of visible-ultraviolet spectrometer and the fifth priority is the skill of working with refract meter. From the perspective of attention to job creation for university graduates the priorities are as follows: the first one is the skills of working with the device of sedimentation in vacuum with fire vaporizer, the second priority is the skills of repair and maintenance of gem spectrometer, the third priority is the skills of working with gas chromatography-gem spectrometer, the forth one is the skills of repair and maintenance of nuclear magnetic resonance-immediate transfer and the fifth one is the skills of working with chromatography of provided liquid. From the perspective of equality of priorities, the result showed that the first priority is the period of working in the spectrometric laboratory as a user having the skills of repair and maintenance of gem spectrometer. The second priority is assigned to the period of working as a user in the relevant chromatographic laboratory having the skills of working with gas chromatography-gem spectrometer. The third one relates to the period of working in the spectrometric laboratory as a user having the skills of working with gem spectrometer. The forth priority is the period of working as a user of X-Ray spectrometer having the skills of working with X-Ray emission spectrometer and repair and maintenance of it.

This descriptive study aimed to evaluate the appropriateness of the curriculum (in terms of curriculum elements) of vocational training from the perspective of trainees. In this study, we sought to assess the appropriateness of the curriculum element (aims, content, teaching and assessment) in technical and vocational education. The study population included all the students (male and female) of professional centers of Sanandaj city, out of which a sample of 344 was randomly selected. A researcher-made, 48-item questionnaire based on four main elements of the curriculum was administered to collect data. Descriptive (mean, standard deviation, frequency) and inferential statistics (t test, univariate analysis of variance and Friedman test) were used to analyze the data. The results showed that the technical and vocational education have proportionality with three elements (objectives, content and assessment). The proportionality of other element (method) was reported to be above average level of fitness. Moreover, the value of F was significant and indicated that there exists difference between the proportion of vocational and technical education and curriculum elements.

Iran Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO) arranges the National Skills Competition (NSC) annually aiming to boost youths’ self- efficacy, to generate creativity and innovation in technical and vocational training (TVT), and to provide suitable environment for fair competitions and entrepreneurship development, as well as TVTO discourages labor force, provides opportunity for youth in order to present their competency and expertise, develops a mechanism for updating national- level skills on the international ones, and prepare an enabling environment to interact between labor force and real world of work through the competition. Introducing NSC and World Skills Competition (WSC), the paper examined the evolution of vocational skills competition as a significant instrument for developing TVT and describes the benefits and criticisms addressed to the competition. This is a review and applied- type paper. The reliable and valid data of Iran NSC Office and WSC Secretariat were used. The analysis results and authors’ experiences show that the role of competitions in developing and promoting TVT cannot be ignored. At the end, some recommendations have been proposed for continuous improvement of competitions based on the results.

A glance at Iran’s education system history shows that its education systems are always exposed to modification and change. The most important reasons for these modifications are making the education system parallel with the changes in the political, economical, and social environments and in the recent decades haven been causing the speeding-up of economical modifications. Therefore modification of Technical and Vocational training system can be considered a main priority for modification of country’s education system. This is an important tool for training and increasing the performance of human resources, for the purpose of making the ground for economical modifications and expansion.One of the countries – in late 1980s – which was in the same conditions as ours – today – (in such ways as dependency on export of raw material, protective economy, facing youths’ unemployment and economical downfall, land space, geographical distribution, and cultural variation) is Australia. This country began  economical expansion based on modification of Technical and Vocational Education system in late 1990s. Hence, the country gained valuable achievements by the end of the decade and the beginning of the twenty first century. Therefore, the study of the characteristics of this system can bring with itself lessons for the modification of Technical and Vocational Education in Iran. Three important characteristics exist in the Technical and Vocational Education System, especially in Technical and Complementary Education, which provides for movement and flexibility of the system in responding to industry needs as well as expansion and continual modification. These characteristics include: 1- Organizational independence of Technical and Vocational Education System; 2- Communication with Production and Services sector; and 3- The creation of research centers and communication with universities and scientific centers. By describing and researching into usage of these characteristics in Iran’s Technical and Vocational Education System, this article has shown that paying attention to it can help Iran’s mentioned educational system. Of course in order to take place, these modifications require the setup of opportunities such as making the university structure research-based, setup of research centers in the field of Technical and Vocational Trainings, as well as organization and expansion of civic and complementary organizations so that with their help we would be able to setup mediator organizations, which would be able to provide for direct relationship between education and production sector. At the end of the article, a set of suggestions have been made for the modification of  Technical and Vocational Education System in Iran.

Todays, job advertisement focuses on interpersonal skills, creativity, team working, problem solving as a main profession parts. In other words, the type of skills who employers are seeking for job focused on soft skills instead on hard skills. This study emphasizes on importance of soft skills for VET graduates. Consequently; soft skills includesproblem solving, interpersonal skills and team working being discovered, while its development methodology being assumed within seminars, periodic feed back, web based training courses.

Given the importance of training in organizations to adapt to environmental change, the main purpose of this study was training needs assessment of technical and vocational instructors in order to extract appropriate training courses for instructors. The research was selected based on the symbolic interpretive-paradigm, qualitative method and exploratory strategy. Necessary data was collected through in-depth interviews with 40 instructors. By content analyzing the data based on DACUM technic, 23 job tasks including preparation and compilation of educational topics, design and planning, participation in exams, course evaluation, comprehensive assessment, mastery of teaching methods and techniques, classroom management, modeling best practices, research and study, being responsive, helping to engage learners, transferring views, criticisms and suggestions to organization officials, training coaching, managing the purchase of training course items, managing workshop safety and health, field development, consulting and expertise, communicating with experts, development of communications outside the province, holding excellent classes, introducing organization and new tools and models, were extracted. In addition, instructors need 67 components of competence to perform these tasks. Based on these competencies, 110 training modules required by instructors were extracted. Finally, strengthening coaches' knowledge and communication skills were identified as the most important training needs.