Vocational Education Research Articles

AI Application in Secondary School STEM Education

This article provides a literature review to understand the application of AI in STEM, including the research methods, tools, subjects, ethics, etc. Pay attention to the process of cultivating students' technical skills, core technical literacy, curriculum reform in technical education, and relevant international comparisons. Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIEd) primarily focuses on the development of "computers that perform cognitive tasks," typically related to the human brain, particularly in learning and problem-solving. Applications and tools driven by artificial intelligence technology, such as intelligent robots and adaptive learning systems, are increasingly being utilized by educators and learners in K-12 and university environments. Artificial intelligence technology provides learners with the opportunity to achieve personalized learning to meet their individual needs.

“It Always Comes Back to Intrinsic Motivation”: A Qualitative Investigation into Facilitators of Engagement and Well-Being Across the Many Roles of a Dance Artist

ABSTRACT Although “making it” in dance has long been associated with a performance career, few dancers solely perform and many also pursue choreography and/or teaching. Considering these many ways of being a dance artist, the aim of this study was to understand (a) the psychological characteristics which are perceived to be facilitative of engagement and well-being in dance, and (b) the experiences that dancing itself provides that encourage engagement and well-being. Eight dancers in vocational ballet training and 17 professional dance artists, all of whom had performed and/or taught and/or choreographed, participated in semi-structured interviews which were analyzed using thematic analysis. Key themes of a) intrinsic motivation to dance, b) psychological characteristics in the dancer, and c) basic psychological need satisfaction in dance were found. It is important to equally nurture intrinsic motivation across dance training, performance, choreography, and teaching to promote engagement and well-being across the training and career span.

The Relationship between Level of Creative Thinking and Visualization Skills among Students in the Technical and Vocational Education Program

The Relationship between Level of Creative Thinking and Visualization Skills among Students in the Technical and Vocational Education Program

Examining the integration of SDGs in a first-year methodology course: a case study in social education by admission pathway

Purpose This study aims to analyse how Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are incorporated into a first-year Social Education methodology course at a Spanish public university. It assesses the impact on students’ understanding of sustainability and its relevance to socio-educational research and future careers, considering different admission pathways. Design/methodology/approach A case study on integrating the SDGs into a methodology course, which involved 110 students. Students’ knowledge and perceptions were measured before and after the teaching experience using an online questionnaire. Differences based on admission pathways [Advances Vocational Training Programs (CFGS) and University Entrance Exam (PAU)] were explored. Findings Initially, students had a low understanding of sustainability and SDGs, with those entering through PAU having an even lower understanding. However, both groups showed significant improvement after the teaching experience. Interestingly, the pattern of differentiation was inverse, with PAU students showing a higher level of SDG knowledge compared to CFGS students by the end of the course. While students recognised the importance of SDGs in their careers, their personal involvement with them in daily life appeared moderate. Research limitations/implications The assessment tool, based on validated surveys, aims for better accuracy in measuring university students’ knowledge and perceptions of sustainability. Future research may broaden its scope to assess effectiveness in different courses and among diverse student groups. Practical implications The variations in student knowledge and perception about sustainability and the SDGs, before and after the teaching experience, and across different admission pathways, highlight the important role of higher education institutions in achieving equity and shaping future change agents’ perspectives. Originality/value These findings reveal how innovative educational experiences promote sustainability and social responsibility among university students, emphasising the crucial role of ongoing assessment in ensuring effective sustainability and equity education.

Experiences of students with disabilities in technical vocational education and training colleges

Background: Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in South Africa is often viewed as the ‘Cinderella’ of higher education, with many matriculating students choosing mainstream universities instead. This preference stems from stigma and misconceptions that label TVET students – often from poorer working-class backgrounds – as less intelligent than their university peers. The lived experiences of students with physical and learning disabilities in these institutions are particularly underexplored.Objectives: This study aimed to illuminate the experiences of students with disabilities at five TVET colleges in Gauteng, South Africa.Method: Using a phenomenological approach, the study conducted story exercises and individual interviews with a convenience sample of 40 students with disabilities.Results: The findings reveal that TVET education predominantly serves black students from marginalised backgrounds, with students with disabilities facing significant barriers in accessing both the curriculum and the physical environments of the colleges. Despite numerous challenges, a resilient narrative emerged among these students, rooted in African traditional values.Conclusion: This article contributes to knowledge on disability inclusion in higher education by showcasing the challenges and resilience of students with disabilities in South Africa’s TVET system.Contribution: The study employed innovative methodologies, such as picture stories, to co-create knowledge with students living with disabilities.

The impact of neoliberalist government reform and regulatory oversight on private training providers in the UK technical education sector

PurposeAdopting the lens of ambidexterity, this paper examines decision-making within private technical education providers as they attempt to meet workforce and UK government training demands against a backdrop of unprecedented pace of global change in technology.Design/methodology/approachQualitative data, drawn from semi-structured interviews of participants within a private training provider, was analysed thematically to investigate common patterns, clarify understanding and identify development areas to inform government bodies and private provider apprenticeship delivery practices.FindingsThe findings reveal the extent to which neoliberalism is potentially undermining technical education reform and increasing regulation whilst decreasing trust and reducing authentic partnerships between key stakeholders, together negatively impacting ambidextrous decision-making.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited by the use of a monolingual, monocultural sample; therefore, a broader cross-section of respondents from a wider range, size and geographical location of training providers may result in a deeper understanding of the varying tensions and challenges associated with technical education reform.Practical implicationsThis work seeks to inform policymakers of the wider consequences of neoliberalism and provide recommendations for government bodies and technical training providers to work collaboratively in seeking solutions to the barriers in delivering vocational training fit for a future-proof workforce.Originality/valueThis paper builds on a limited body of research examining the dual impact of once in a lifetime technological challenges and the consequence of neoliberalism upon ambidextrous decision-making within private providers of post-16 technical education.

Передумови та тенденції розвитку системи професійного навчання службовців органів публічної влади в Україні

This article is devoted to the theoretical substantiation of the prerequisites and tendencies in the development of the system of professional training of civil servants and employees of local self-government bodies (public authorities) in Ukraine. Within this article is a proposal for a hypothesis that the professional training provided by the relevant system is currently becoming the only factor capable of compensating for the needs of public authorities for employees who are able to effectively perform the functions and powers assigned to these bodies. It is determined that the prerequisites for the development of the system for professional training of public authority employees are the conditions for the existence of the components (parts) of the system for professional training existing at the time of its reform (within the framework of this article, at the beginning of 2024), and the tendencies in the development of the system of professional training of public authority employees are the main directions of targeted changes in its components (parts) during certain periods of its functioning. Based on the analysis of strategic documents (strategies, concepts, plans) for the management bodies of the civil service and local self-government system, the general and specific prerequisites and tendencies in the development of the system of professional training for civil servants and local self-government officials in Ukraine are identified. Based on the analysis of statistical data (needs of public authorities' employees in vocational training for 2024–2027, the amount of funding for vocational training of employees at the expense of the state budget for 2021–2024), the author identifies the correspondence between the priority issues of training, as the needs of employees, and the use of funds for it. At the same time, it is established that the State is not able to financially meet all the priority needs of employees in professional training, which requires the search for new mechanisms for the development of the professional training system, one of which is proposed to be the receipt of an annual certificate for professional training by employees. It is substantiated that, given the prerequisites and tendencies in the development for the system of professional training for public authority employees in Ukraine, it should be based on a combination of the principles of centralisation and decentralisation for each of its parts

Оцінка соціально-економічного потенціалу Дніпропетровщини: умови створення технічного освітньо-наукового кластеру

The article highlights the concept of a «Technical Educational and Scientific Cluster» (TESC). It is established that its structural foundation is based on a developed university ecosystem, which includes participants in the educational process, infrastructure facilities, and structural units – scientific and educational institutes, colleges, lyceums, incubators, and technoparks, which interact with each other creating a unique synergy aimed at the innovative development of a particular region and industries, such as: engineering, aerospace, transport, chemical, metallurgical, construction, etc. It is determined that the integration of the cluster into the region's economy involves the development of cooperation not only between educational institutions and enterprises but also with local authorities, business associations, and investors, which influence the formation of the region's socioeconomic potential (SEP) and ensure the creation of a favorable environment for the development and implementation of new technologies in production. This contributes to the development of the region's economy, increasing its competitiveness on the global market of goods and services. Emphasis is placed on the university, which plays a key, integrating role and is the core of the cluster, uniting various elements of the ecosystem and ensuring their effective interaction and has a direct and profound impact on the region's SEP. In fact, it becomes an innovative center of the region, not only generating new knowledge and training highly qualified personnel but also creating a powerful synergistic effect by cooperating with businesses. Such a tandem contributes to the rapid commercialization of scientific developments, the birth of new technological startups, and, as a result, the growth of the region's economic potential. At the same time, by involving students in scientific research and entrepreneurial projects, it forms an innovative culture, increases social mobility, and contributes to improving the quality of life of residents, increasing the investment attractiveness of Dnipropetrovsk region, and forming a stable position to changes in the economy. It is emphasized that the development of TESC is impossible without taking into account the specifics of the region's SEP. Constant monitoring of such factors as the level of education, the innovative activity of enterprises, and the investment climate allows adjusting the cluster's development strategy and ensuring its compliance with the needs of the region

Creating a Battery of Subtests to Measure Students' Skills in Technical Education

The study presents the design and creation of skill subtests battery. Before implementing the pedagogical experiment, the skill pretest and relevant subtests (PT1 to PT8) tested the psychomotor skills of students. There were two groups of students - the control group and the experimental group. Each group consisted of 10 students making 20 students overall. As part of the experiment, there was an effort to equalize the control and experimental groups. The results of the Mann-Whitney test showed statistically significant differences in the pretests in four subtests (PT1, PT2, PT3, PT8) between the control and the experimental group. The results of the pretests determine the students' skills before the implementation of the experiment. The experiment deals with the impact of the proposed distance education program on the quality and effectiveness of distance education. It aims to confirm the assumption formulated in hypothesis H1- the program will enhance the quality of teaching robotics, reflected in better skill posttest results. The study emphasizes the importance of technical education. It provides an objective assessment of students' skills and can facilitate planning the educational process.

Difficulty Aspects of the Vocational Education and Training

The paper presents results of a study the aim of which was to find out what causes difficulty in teaching technical subjects at upper secondary schools. For this purpose, a panel discussion was held with 20 selected staff members of two schools. The task of the panellists was to answer three questions: what are causes of difficulties in teaching technical subjects; what are the effective ways of motivating students to study technical subjects and how is it possible to maintain the motivation of students for a longer period of time; hence, what makes it possible to attract the attention of students more significantly in the teaching of technical subjects. The discussion was led by 3 moderators, university teachers from Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland. As it resulted from about 45-minute discussion of each of the stated questions, the main difficulty of technical subjects teaching is lack of students´ motivation what is partially caused by the way in which the students are assessed, and partially linked with the need to replace verbal teaching methods by other ones.

Greening TVET for Sustainable Skill Development: Opportunities and Challenges in Botswana with a Focus on Quality Education

The need to reorganise economies and the skill sets that individuals will need in the new order is urgent since climate change is impacting the entire planet. TVET systems are required to reskill and provide human capital with environmentally sustainable skills for green economies and jobs. This article investigates potential additional benefits that greening TVET education may offer to students, the employment market, and Botswana as a whole. The study examined current research on Botswana's preparedness for a green TVET industry. Results highlight the crucial role of greening TVET systems in supporting nations to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in meeting their climate change commitments and ensuring quality education. Investments made concurrently in greening TVET, green industries, and green technology have the potential to prevent significant employment losses and to create a significant number of new jobs for recent graduates. The emphasis should be on occupational green skills and any support mechanisms that may establish a green TVET system to take advantage of the new prospects. Additional findings point to the need for strong labour market data and skills anticipation to pinpoint in-demand green talents and create fresh initiatives focused on the green economy. To lessen potential issues of fragmentation between TVET greening programmes, environmental legislation, and the green job market, countries must have professionals to perform quality assurance and monitoring of the novel synergies between the greening of TVET systems, learner skills, and the job market.

The Application Strategy of Flexible Management in the Education Management of Higher Vocational Colleges Students under the New Vocational Education Law

The Application Strategy of Flexible Management in the Education Management of Higher Vocational Colleges Students under the New Vocational Education Law

Integrating Principal Leadership and Teacher Roles with AI-Based 'Merdeka' Curriculum Innovation: The Quantitative Research

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into educational frameworks has encouraged innovative approaches to curriculum development, particularly in vocational high schools in Indonesia. This research investigates the integration between principals' leadership styles, teachers' roles, and the implementation of AI-driven 'Merdeka' curriculum innovations in this context. Using a correlational method with a quantitative approach, data were collected from vocational high schools in Padang using a proportional random sampling technique. As a research instrument was a questionnaire that underwent content and construct validity assessments and was tested for reliability using Cronbach's alpha. Data analysis used Pearson product moment correlation and multiple correlation. By analyzing the dynamics in a vocational high school, the study aims to provide valuable insights into the effective integration of AI technologies in education, offering theoretical contributions to the educational leadership discourse and practical guidance for stakeholders in navigating the complexities of curriculum innovation in Indonesia's vocational education sector.

Research on the Reform Path of Ideological and Political Education in Tourism English Courses in Higher Vocational Education

Tourism English in higher vocational education has profound humanistic, strong professional orientation, and instrumental characteristics. Through analyzing the current situation of ideological and political teaching in Tourism English courses in higher vocational education, it is found that there are too few ideological and political elements in the curriculum, the skills teaching and ideological education are not unified, and the ideological and political education in the curriculum tends to be empty preaching. The reasons for this are the weak ideological and political awareness of teachers, the emphasis on skills in textbooks over ideological and political education, and the conservatism of teaching methods. Based on the requirements of curriculum ideological and political education and teaching reform, a teaching reform practice path is constructed from four aspects: anchoring curriculum ideological and political goals, improving teachers’ ideological and political awareness and educational ability, creating ideological and political-oriented textbook resources, and integrating ideological and political teaching methods through multiple channels throughout the entire process, in order to cultivate students with patriotism, international vision, and professional skills.

Professional Training of Engineering-Teachers in the Food Industry: Evaluation of an Experimental Model

The article analyzes the peculiarities of the pedagogical experiment aimed at solving the contradiction between the needs of Ukrainian society for highly qualified teachers and the actual state of pedagogical education. The main research methods include mathematical statistics, in particular the calculation of the student's t-test and the nonparametric Pearson test. The hypothesis is that strengthening the personnel potential of vocational education is ensured by the readiness of future specialists to quickly adapt to changing working conditions in production and education. This is ensured by creating appropriate psychological and pedagogical conditions. The results of the study confirmed the effectiveness of the experimental model.

Optimizing Call Center Productivity through Key Work Environment Factors

This study aims to enhance productivity by fostering a business environment where workers can thrive, similar to a well-functioning ecosystem. It investigates whether factors such as workers' aptitude, training, tools and technology, workload, workplace relationships, working conditions, employee well-being, and satisfaction with compensation positively impact productivity. The study focused on call center agents in Cebu Province, Philippines, with an estimated population of 200,000. Using a Cochran calculation, a sample size of 384 respondents was determined, accounting for a 5% margin of error and a 95% confidence level. Due to challenges in reaching participants, convenience sampling was employed, yielding 385 completed surveys, exceeding the minimum required. Data was collected through a descriptive survey with simple, close-ended questions, validated by call center agents and demonstrating high reliability (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.967). The weighted mean for each predictor and the dependent variable was calculated, and linear regression analyses examined the relationships between predictors and productivity. Additionally, ANOVA within the context of linear regression assessed the significance of these relationships. The findings revealed that the eight identified predictor variables collectively received an average score of 3.277 out of 4.0 from call center agents. All eight predictors—employee aptitude, work training, tools and technology, workload, satisfaction with compensation, employee well-being, working conditions, and workplace relationships—were significant indicators of productivity and explained a portion of the variance in the dependent variable. These results emphasize the need to enhance activities and policies related to all predictor variables, as each significantly impacts productivity. Notably, working conditions and job training received the highest ratings, indicating strong employee satisfaction in these areas. However, urgent attention is needed in addressing employee well-being and satisfaction with compensation, which received the lowest ratings.

Intelligent Support for Low Literacy Adults: The European Portuguese iRead4Skills Corpus

This paper presents the Portuguese dataset of the iRead4Skills project (Dataset 1: corpora by complexity level for FR, PT, and SP – v.2.0), a representative sample of written European Portuguese for automatic complexity assessment that addresses a gap in existing resources for Portuguese. The corpus was created within the framework of the iRead4Skills project, which encompasses Portuguese, French, and Spanish. The project aims to develop an intelligent system to evaluate text complexity while recommending appropriate reading materials to native adult learners with low literacy skills. The corpus compilation involved a manual selection of text samples across various textual genres and document types, covering a wide range of existing written materials and focusing on the reading needs and reading habits of the target audience—low literacy adults enrolled in vocational education and training centres or adult learning (AL) centres. The collected texts were categorised into the three distinct levels of complexity targeted and defined by the project: very easy, easy, and plain levels. Texts of higher complexity were also included, resulting in the creation of four distinct sub-corpora. The resulting Portuguese dataset consists of 2,186 texts and 942,818 tokens and serves as the foundational source for training and testing the project’s complexity analysis systems. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the compilation process of the corpus, encompassing its methodological design and the challenges faced. Although some existing Portuguese corpora were used for complexity studies and tool development, these primarily consist of texts classified according to CERF levels and retrieved from didactic materials designed for L2 teaching/learning or texts produced by L2 learners. The corpus presented in this paper introduces a new resource that addresses a significant gap in materials needed to inform and support studies and applications related to text complexity. The resulting dataset provides a novel and important language resource for European Portuguese, with several applications including research on linguistic complexity, development of automatic text complexity and readability assessment systems, and educational purposes.

Strategy To Increase The Competence Of Practical Supervisors In The Learning Process Of Midwifery Students

Higher education has the function of developing the ability in order to educate the life of the nation in accordance with the vision, mission and goals of Higher Education. In producing competent and competitive graduates, every university must adjust to the national standards of education that have been set. The scope of the national standard of education, the standard of educators and Educational Personnel states that, educators must have academic qualifications and competencies as learning agents, be physically and spiritually healthy, and have the ability to realize the goals of National Education. As vocational education, in the core curriculum of Diploma III Midwifery Education, the percentage of practical learning experience is set at 60 %. Competent practice mentors will contribute to producing midwifery graduates who can be used to become midwifery professionals. In order to improve the competence of the practice supervisor, one of them is the development of skills through education and training. This study aims to describe the management of education and training as improving the competence of practice supervisors in the College of Health Sciences. Improvement of the competence of the practice supervisor through the practice supervisor learning training is carried out through several stages, namely 1) analysis of the needs of the practice supervisor Learning Training, 2) design and planning of the practice supervisor Learning Training, 3) curriculum development of the practice supervisor learning training, 4) implementation of the practice supervisor learning training, 5) evaluation of the practice supervisor learning training, 6) obstacles and carrying capacity of the practice supervisor learning training. To achieve this goal, the research was conducted using a qualitative approach with a case study method on STIKes Abdi Nusantara and STIKes BPI. Data were collected using in-depth interviews, observations, and documentation studies. The data of this study were checked for correctness, reliability through triangulation process. The results showed that the process of implementation of the teaching and learning practice supervisor in the College studied went well. Education and training provided to the practice supervisor contributes positively to the competence of the practice supervisor.

Dialogic identities of male primary teachers in the UK: agency to nuance responses to gender stereotypes

ABSTRACT This paper explores the production and performance of male primary early career teachers’ (ECTs) dialogic identities within the feminized world of the primary school. Combining a ‘Figured Worlds’ lens with ‘gender heteroglossia’ supports a discourse analysis of five male primary teachers’ narratives of becoming and being a teacher in the UK. Applying these theoretical constructs to data gathered from semi-structured interviews over three years helps to uncover the meaning that male ECTs construct about themselves and others as they navigate new and difficult contexts. Findings reveal that through the manipulation of cultural resources, including dominant gender discourses, there are opportunities within personal agency for these men to begin to create a more nuanced response to stereotypical gender identities and performances.

Navigating AI Integration in Career and Technical Education: Diffusion Challenges, Opportunities, and Decisions

This review paper explores the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in career and technical education (CTE). CTE is an educational domain often overlooked in discussions about teaching and learning and notably omitted in the extant literature about AI’s application in educational settings. Although much of the existing literature focuses on AI in K-12 and higher education, CTE faces distinct challenges and opportunities in both education and the application of AI because CTE programming is more hands-on and industry-connected. This paper, grounded in Diffusion of Innovations theory, examines AI tool adoption processes among CTE educators by analyzing both barriers and opportunities. Key findings suggest that while AI offers significant benefits, its adoption is hindered by systemic factors. This paper contributes to the literature by highlighting the importance of contextualizing AI adoption within the distinct pedagogical practices and industry partnerships of CTE. It emphasizes the need for targeted strategies that address CTE-specific challenges, including robust infrastructure, equitable resource distribution, and fostering a culture of innovation among educators. The implications of this work underscore AI’s potential to bridge the gap between education and workforce demands, positioning CTE programs as critical sites for preparing students for the next phase of workforce under Industry 5.0.