Over the last decade, in the face of rapid technological change and aging populations, OECD countries have intensified efforts to develop more flexible forms of education and training to increase opportunities for individuals to acquire new skills throughout their working lives. In this context, micro-credentials – certificates that certify that learners have achieved a small volume of learning outcomes – have received substantial interest among policymakers and educational professionals. In 2022, European Union (EU) Member states adopted a Council Recommendation on “a European approach to micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability” establishing common principles for the development of micro-credentials across the EU. This Recommendation explicitly set out to strengthen and complement existing learning opportunities, increase participation in lifelong learning and help reach the EU’s ambitious target of 60% of all adults participating in training every year.
In common with many other OECD countries, Czechia has initiated its own reforms to enhance the flexibility and relevance of its education and training system and to increase upskilling and reskilling opportunities for adults. While Czechia boasts high employment rates and one of the lowest rates of unemployment among OECD countries, its economy, with its sustained focus on manufacturing, will be strongly affected by digitalisation, automation and the adoption of green technologies in the short to medium term. In parallel, youth cohorts are shrinking and the workforce will need to become increasingly productive to sustain living standards over the coming decades.
Despite policy efforts in recent years, engagement in lifelong learning in Czechia remains below European averages, with particularly low rates of participation in learning among workers with vocational qualifications and those who lack qualifications altogether. In light of national and European objectives to increase lifelong learning and the European approach to micro-credentials, Czech higher education institutions developed a common approach to implementing micro-credentials in higher education between 2022-24 as part of a successful pilot project.
With the ambition of building on this experience, further developing such flexible learning offerings in other parts of the education and training landscape and laying the foundations for a harmonised national approach to micro-credentials, the Czech authorities requested technical support from the European Union’s Technical Support Instrument (TSI) in 2023. The resulting project, undertaken by the OECD in co-operation with the European Commission’s Reform and Investment Task Force (SG REFORM) and Czechia’s Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MŠMT), set out to develop a strategy for developing a harmonised micro-credentials system for Czechia. Drawing on an assessment of the Czech context, in-depth analysis of international policies and practice and a wide-ranging consultation with stakeholders across Czech regions, this report sets out that proposed strategy to help guide Czech policymakers and practitioners in their future efforts to implement micro-credentials in the country.