General education and vocational education are the two ways and means of education-one that give theoretical experience and the other practical. The former is compulsory for up to the secondary stage and the latter is an optional or professional education. Vocational education prepares people to work in a trade, a craft, as a technician, or in professional vocations such as engineering, accountancy, nursing, medicine, architecture, or the law. It refers to a skill-based program that enables students to obtain knowledge, training, and practical skills of a specific trade.
The vocational training has many benefits not only for an individual but also for the nation. Education instituted in our country is a bit faulty in one sense that it does not aim at practical education/aspect as its most parts are academic, theoretical and bookish. It does not turn students are confident and self-directing men as vocational education does.
Vocational education is such education or training in practical as it makes the learners self-directing persons. The development of nations requires skilled manpower and vocational education prepares them for the job. It does not concentrate on bookish knowledge. It allows learners to learn how to read and write so that they can read the manual or something written on machinery tools. Also, the demand for skilled labor has increased manifold in both the business and government sectors. A general educated man may face reality, the day’s problems and complexities of the world.
In a developing country like Bangladesh vocational education is much important more than general education. It is noted that young men and women in Bangladesh can get training more than thirty very important kinds of works which the Bangladesh manpower needs. The main jobs are agriculture extension workers, carpenters, cooks, dairymen, electricians, craftsmanships handicrafts, mechanics, nurses, etc. In addition, there is a high demand for these skilled people in both the government and the business sector.
Vocational education provides them with practical knowledge and experience in these aspects. It helps a person choose his career early in life and formally train for it. The courses of vocational education are not a long-termed basis. It aims at imparting them practical knowledge and making them fit for these jobs which Bangladesh needs for her development. This increases the productive capacity of a country. Its object is to provide young learners with a sure foothold in the struggle of life.
Vocational education prepares pupils to understand social realities so that they themselves work out their own potential. A vocational learner never remains out of employment. He is competent to work in practice. The university degree does not enable one to earn his livelihood in most cases, Such educated unemployed or ill-employed citizens worsen really the problems of unemployment in an independent country.
