International Standards bring technological, economic and societal benefits. They help to harmonize technical specifications of products and services, making industry more efficient and breaking down barriers to international trade. International Standards also contribute effectively to sustainability, by providing good practices on the use of technologies and the management of processes affecting economic, social and environmental aspects.
Educational institutions are increasingly recognizing these benefits and international standardization features in many curricula. We recognize the vital contribution educational institutions bring to raising awareness of standardization and its benefits, and are keen to support their work.
Some of the actions we have taken are highlighted below:
- A repository of resources and teaching materials.
- Awards to promote education institutions leading the way in standardization.
- Organization (in partnership with IEC and ITU) of the World Standards Cooperation academic days.
- Promoting cooperation between standards bodies and education institutions in developing countries.
- Contribution to postgraduate courses.
Currently these resources focus on education at the university-level. However, they will be gradually expanded to cover education about standardization at primary and secondary level.
The ISO repository of teaching materials is a list of existing teaching materials on standardization, with details of the authors and publishers. Teachers and standards professionals can use this tool to access information that can help them in designing and delivering courses on standards matters. In addition, the repository will help optimize the use of resources, facilitate the re-use of existing materials and highlight new subject matters to be addressed in the future.
Documents on standardization in education systems is a collection of articles, policy documents, academic research articles and others that describe how standardization is integrated into education in various countries.
