Producing competencies for learning economy

The rapid change in work and the labour market challenges the education system. In addition, our understanding of knowledge, the learning process and competence has developed. Lifelong learning and the interaction with industry call for new models to organise vocational education. The main question of the study is: How can the current vocational education system in Finland respond to the challenges of the learning society? The study gives a brief review of the relation between the learning economy and education. It analyses the vocational education reform of the 1990s and describes its development up to 2000. The polytechnic reform is analysed on the system, institutional culture and practical levels. The focus of the investigation of upper secondary vocational education is mostly on its implications for industry. The structural reform of the Finnish vocational education is complete. Finland is at the top of the world in terms of higher education opportunities; our system offers study places for all schoo