Vocational Education And Training Providers Research Articles

Exploring the Business Model and Organizational Innovation of Vocational Schools: A Case Study of Development Units

Since 2015, the Skills for Jobs (S4J) project, funded by the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) and implemented by Swisscontact, has actively promoted private sector engagement in skills development. The project's primary objective is to facilitate ten public Vocational Education and Training (VET) providers in innovating their offerings, delivery methods, and organisational practices through close collaboration with the private sector. Under the leadership of national actors, these VET providers would become national-level transfer agents of innovations introduced to enhance employability. Development Units (DUs) were established at the VET provider level to facilitate this innovation and to lead technically various functions, including labour market intelligence, curricula development, business relations, continuous professional development, marketing, and career development. Their purpose is to ensure that the newly introduced functions align with the strategic objectives of the VET providers, provide technical support to staff members involved, and coordinate and steer the implementation activities. This research employs a comparative case study approach to illuminate DUs' preconditions and multilevel effects as organisational innovation and draws upon theoretical frameworks such as business models, organisational design, innovation, VET governance, and private sector engagement. It reveals that DU as an organisational innovation led to VET providers' shift of the business model towards novelties in the value proposition, creation and capturing and higher performance. As a result of Dus, VET providers become more powerful actors in the VET system governance in general and centres of the ecosystem at the regional level. The research revealed key organisational capabilities that should be enhanced to allow for effective DUs and high performaning innovative VET providers.

Governing students for work and for life - guidance for students with special educational needs in Finnish VET

ABSTRACT Guidance has gained an increasingly important role in education. In this study, guidance for students with special educational needs within competence-based and customer-oriented, Finnish vocational education and training (VET) is examined from a governance perspective. Data were collected via focus group discussions among different categories of staff at one VET provider. A close-to-text analysis of the data was then performed followed by an investigation based on the Foucauldian key concepts, governmentality and power. Three versions of guidance were identified. In the first version, students are regarded as active and self-governing people, whose own motives and interest in education need to be identified and taken into account. In the second version, students are described as having difficulties in carrying out their studies and are given a passive role and exposed to objectifying governance by means of disciplinary power. In the third version, students are assumed to have a great need for support and are subject to a thorough, yet subtle, governance by means of pastoral power. The results are discussed with a focus on student categorisation and subject positions.

Benchmarking of the e-Learning Quality Assurance in Vocational Education and Training: Project Results

Purpose: The paper aims to present project No. 2020-1-SK01-KA226-VET094266 BEQUEL and partial results of the benchmarking questionnaire. Methodology/Approach: The starting point for the project solution was an analysis of the current state of ensuring the quality of e-learning in vocational training and education in the partner countries of the project (Slovakia, Greece, Spain, and Italy) and an overview of laws and regulations valid at the European level and in the world. A benchmarking survey was conducted to determine the level of e-learning quality assurance in these countries compared to good practices in the European Union. The Benchmarking Badge published monthly on the www.bequal.info portal tracks changes over time. Findings: The average standard for the four involved countries after the pandemic was the level for VET (Vocational Education and Training) providers: (1) strategy and policy for e-learning 71.6%, (2) support for trainers and trainees for e-learning 70.4, (3) infrastructure support for e-learning 74.9%, (4) program/course design and development and approval for e-learning provision 75.8%, and (5) e-learning training program evaluation procedures 67.9%. Research Limitation/Implication: On the one hand, the project was limited by the measures of the Covid-19 pandemic, during which face-to-face meetings and training were not allowed. Still, on the other hand, the VET providers recognised their weaknesses, strengths, and readiness for complete online education. Originality/Value of paper: Examples of good practice and video presentations inspire improving the quality of e-learning in VET.

Collaborative Approaches in Online Nurse Education: A Systematic Literature Review

According to the socio-constructivist theories of learning, collaborative learning allows negotiation of shared meanings and co-construction of new knowledge among peers. This approach fits particularly well with healthcare professional education needs, as these professionals often face challenging issues that require the ability to fully understand the complexity of the patients’ health conditions through working with others. However, while collaborative learning approaches are widely used in face-to-face nurse education contexts, their online equivalent still seem to be understudied, in spite of their great potential for the field. This systematic literature review investigates: (1) to what extent are online collaborative learning activities being adopted and investigated in formal nurse education, (2) What kind of online collaborative learning activities/techniques are proposed and what team structures are employed, (3) what technologies are used to run these learning activities, and (4) what methods are used to evaluate the impact of these activities. Studies were included if they presented online collaborative learning activities proposed by Universities or VET (Vocational Education and Training) providers. Articles published in 2015 or later were collected in November 2022 from Scopus, Web of Science and Medline. A total of 1059 records were retrieved, selected and analysed by four coders, resulting in a final dataset of 75 papers that were coded for type of collaborative approach, study characteristics, research methodology used, strength of evidence, and relevance to the research questions. Most of them described the use of activities like Discussions, Case Studies and Peer Reviews, sometimes in association with Role Play. In terms of technologies, Learning Managements Systems, forums and social media were already common pre-pandemic, but during the lockdown synchronous communication tools – often used to support simulations – took over. Data collection was carried out quantitatively, qualitatively or using mixed methods, but in many cases data reporting is weak or absent at all. The majority of the retrieved papers illustrate activities where collaboration was not structured in any way and there was no joint assignment or common objective/artefact that learners needed to reach/produce. In case of blended interventions, often collaboration is limited to the f2f sessions, while the digital setting is used for individual work. In terms of social structure, most of the time small groups or plenaries are used. In summary, the review reveals that studies on online collaborative learning for nurses are limited, especially in Europe, and the design of online collaborative activities often clashes with the principles put forward by the Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) research community. Based on the results of the review we put forth some key recommendations, such as ensuring that online collaboration involves the creation of a shared artefact and striving to make virtual simulations actually collaborative, rather than limited to envisage student interactions in the debriefing phase. The paper also proposes a number of research areas seldom investigated and that would deserve further attention in the future.

Supply and demand matching of VET skills - a regional case study

The proper alignment between supply of Vocational Education and Training (VET) and labour market demand is critical to successfully achieve VET’s main benefits, such as reduction of academic dropout rates, unemployment reduction and economic growth. This article presents the study carried out in Leiria region (Portugal) to define VET areas priorities at the secondary education level. A mixed methodology was applied by using both quantitative (employment microdata, employers survey and employment offers analysis) and qualitative (interviews, focus groups and documents analysis) instruments and techniques. A diverse group of stakeholders (e.g. regional policymakers and private and public sectors’ employers) were heard in order to anticipate the market’s needs for skills. The results, obtained through the various methodologies, point to the same skills’ priorities and reveal several mismatches between demand and supply of qualifications. Thus, this study helps policymakers to prioritize areas of education and VET providers to design courses aligned with the real needs of the region’s labour market. Additionally, several challenges are identified, as the need of a better dialogue between the VET system and employers. By increasing the quality of VET supply, our policy suggestions contribute to reduce future demand-supply imbalances, and therefore, to reduce unemployment, control the demographic problem, increase the companies’ expansion and promote regional development.

Transfer in international VET cooperation: Development of a typology

AbstractIn this paper, the perspective of international vocational education and training (VET) providers on the issue of transfer from Germany as a origin country to a specific target country is considered. The existing state of research on the topic of VET transfer has so far been largely located at the macro level. Still, to develop a better understanding of transfer, it is useful to include individual projects on a programme basis in the analysis as their understanding in turn shapes the entire transfer work. The study aims to identify the understanding of transfer of vocational training service providers in internationalisation projects, as well as different types of transfer. Case studies are applied that involve German VET providers, sampled from a German funding line. Based on qualitative and quantitative data, process documents and previous research, in‐depth interviews with six project actors are conducted to identify the perspectives and approaches for transfer. Among other theoretical approaches, Dolowitz and Marsh's policy transfer framework and Gessler's levels of transfer form the theoretical framework of the study. In the context of the present study, different understandings of transfer can be attributed. Furthermore, using type‐building content analysis, four ideal transfer types, namely imitative Re‐Combination, adaptative Specialization, adaptative Re‐Combination and transformative Specialization are classified. The transfer itself is determined by the project activity rather than by a pre‐determined understanding of transfer on the part of the internationally active VET provider. In turn, the project activity shapes the type of transfer in combination with the project partners in the target country context. The project actors focus on structures and content; the transfer of practices and processes is largely understood implicitly and thus less directly forced.

Changing Skill Formation in Greece and Italy – Crisis-Induced Reforms in Light of Common Institutional Legacies

Context: After the Eurozone crisis unfolded a decade ago, comparative political economy has investigated reforms of public administration, labour market, welfare state and economic policy particularly in Southern European nations which were hit hardest by the crisis. However, analyses of skill formation reform, particularly vocational education and training (VET), have been scant, despite a common problem pressure for reforms emanating from stubbornly high rates of youth unemployment and similar legacies of statist VET. Approach: We investigate VET reforms brought underway in Greece and Italy during and in the aftermath of the crisis, asking how far apprenticeship-like forms of learning within their VET systems were strengthened. Empirically, we base our analysis on primary and secondary sources, having conducted semi-structured expert interviews in Greece and Italy in 2019. Results: We find that both countries attempted to strengthen the role of apprenticeship and work-based learning, but that politics differed across the two cases in the context of the Eurozone crisis. While in Italy, reforms were 'internalised' and shaped by domestic politics, Greek reforms were largely driven exogenously by the negotiations with the Troika. Conclusion: Although Italy and Greece have undertaken reforms to reduce the dominance of the state in VET provision by expanding apprenticeships and work-based learning, these do not amount to large scale changes to the dominant logic of school-based VET provision. In order to boost their potential in terms of practical learning both countries would need to continue on their reform pathways.

Perception of export intenders on relevant resources and competences for the internationalization of vocational education and training (VET) providers

AbstractThe local market conditions for VET in Germany naturally affect the exportability of these educational products. In the rarest of cases, education and training products are transferable to foreign markets without any adaptation. The existing literature on international VET cooperation focuses on several transfer aspects as well as case studies of active exporters, investigating drivers and challenges of foreign engagement or analysing international business models. The perspective of resources and competences of VET providers going international has not been considered so far, failing to understand the relevancy of specific factors. This study analyses the required resources and capabilities of internationally active VET organizations (exporters) as well as those without any international experience, but intending to internationalize (intenders). Based on a literature review, this study applied four constructs of company resources and six constructs of competences necessary for conducting international business, each containing two to five indicators. Applying a quantitative research approach, data from 43 exporters and 37 intenders were collected to explore the most relevant resources and competences of both groups. Based on a ranking of all factors, a significant difference in terms of relevance perception was detected comparing both groups. Exporters rate relational resources, intercultural competence, physical resources, and product adaption abroad as much more relevant than export intenders do. Intenders, on the other hand, seem to rely heavily on their strengths in the national market and give high priority to organizational resources like quality management and strategy development for opening up international markets. These findings indicate that support programmes fostering the internationalization of VET providers should put more emphasis on the relevant resource and competence development that export intenders need.

Girls in trades: tokenism and sexual harassment inside the VET classroom

ABSTRACT When women enter occupations that have historically and traditionally been the realm of men, they face a multitude of barriers that make their experience difficult and that contribute to a gender-segregated workforce. Vocational Education and Training (VET) is the entryway to employment in the skilled trades, and VET providers have a role in introducing students to the industry, in the formation of occupational identity and occupational behaviours, establishing workplace cultures and standards of professionalism. Furthermore, VET has a moral and legal obligation to provide a safe classroom for all students. This paper reflects on the role of VET in perpetuating gender segregation in the skilled trades in Australia. We report on a qualitative research project with tradeswomen, apprentices, industry and government representatives that found that significant barriers confront tradeswomen apprentices in VET institutions. The study found that VET has the capacity to normalise the tokenism of women and contribute to gender harassment. We argue that a VET classroom environment where gender inequalities and harassment are normalised, and a gender biased apprenticeship system, contribute to gender segregation in the skilled trades.

Being successful in the educational market: employers in practice of Swedish higher VET provision

ABSTRACT Contemporary vocational education and training (VET), both initial and higher, is strongly market oriented, and governments shape systems with significant roles for employers. The study presented in this article aims at examining how employers are positioned in the practice of VET provision in such a system. Specifically, it recognises and interprets how employers are positioned in the provision of state-funded Swedish higher VET as expressions of relative power and control. The study was conducted using interviews with educational personnel and observations of meetings between employers and VET programme providers.

Market conditions of international VET providers: a comparative analysis of Australia, UK, USA, and Germany

VET (vocational education and training) is a highly complex, multidimensional worldwide phenomenon with diverse structures. Additionally, very different actors define the functions of a national (or even a regional) VET system. The paper contributes to a better understanding of the policy frameworks and current states of such systems. Therefore, we focus on selected VET systems in order to understand their specifics and thus, their market conditions. A qualitative approach is used to answer the research question regarding which conditions create or support market-based opportunities for the provision of commercial vocational training services. We find that the liberalism and deregulation of the VET sectors, as well as the marketisation of VET practices, lead to incentives to internationalise VET offers. Thinking in terms of skills, the kind of education system does not play a role. This is the case in liberal market-driven VET approaches (here, the UK, the USA and Australia) and is mirrored in the micro-analysis categories of curricula, learning location, content, and learning process.

Managing the Challenges of Vocational Education and Training in Indonesia-The Mire of Uncertainty!

The Indonesian Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector currently faces many challenges. Across the country, a complex historical amalgam of training facilities is overseen by a centralized administration, which itself is composed of many different Institutes and bureaucracies, each of which has some coordination and resource responsibilities for the implementation of VET. Managing this VET provision is an essential part of Indonesian’s training reform agenda. The Indonesian Government’s higher educational reform Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka has recently been introduced to radically reshape the tertiary education sector through ‘emancipated learning’ requiring innovation, creativity and collaboration. This policy shift has challenged industry, civil society, and educationalists to steer a pathway toward tertiary educational reforms particularly in respect of the challenge in preparing human capability programs that meet the demands of a modern workforce. Therefore a refocus towards closer partnerships between VET providers and the industries they serve is urgently needed in order to meet the competency standards required of a modern Indonesian workforce. This paper explores these national and international challenges as they pertain to managing these transformational VET reforms. Keywords: Vocational Education and Training, Competency standards, Kampus Merdeka. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/12-33-03 Publication date: November 30 th 2021

ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT APPROACHES OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING RESULTS IN EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES

Work based learning (WBL), introduced in Vocational education and training (VET) system, promises to increase economic competitiveness and development of the knowledge-based economy in Latvia. WBL aims to provide knowledge and understanding regarding types of work in a chosen occupation, build specific competencies needed for work and motivate young people to acquire 21st Century skills for smoother transition from education to sustainable employment and development of their professional career. WBL is closely linked to life-long guidance at all stages of decision making: future occupation or workplace, upskilling or reskilling, acquisition of transferable skills or career management skills. Ensuring effective integration of life-long guidance with WBL three elements are essential: engagement before entering WBL programmes; achievement within WBL to encourage participation and successful completion; transition to work after graduating VET supported by personalised follow-up and on-going career support.WBL is a new approach for most European Union Member States (EU MS), ensuring a positive impact on employment perspectives for students by providing skills demanded by employers and an acceptable level of VET quality, allowing the VET graduate to find a job quickly or obtain a well-paid job. The European Quality Assurance Reference Framework for VET (EQAVET) is an EU instrument to improve the systems of Quality Assurance (QA) in VET, based on a quality cycle and on using performance indicators and self-assessment. EQAVET proposes indicators that could be utilized to monitor VET provision and for peer reviews between EU MS. Most indicators serve as VET performance indicators, however some characterize VET impact on the graduate’s transition to work. Analysis of the positive and negative aspects of VET QA indicators could be the basis for development of WBL and support life-long learning strategies.

Disruption of qualifications in manufacturing: challenges and prospects

PurposeThis paper aims to disclose the implications of the 4th Industrial Revolution for vocational and professional qualifications and their systems. It also seeks to enhance more active discussion of experts and researchers about the change of vocational and professional qualifications created by the advent of the 4th Industrial Revolution.Design/methodology/approachResearch is based on the case studies of the design and development of vocational and professional qualifications focused on the skills requirements of the 4th Industrial Revolution. There are analyzed and compared two cases of the international (EU) projects aiming to design and implement new qualifications in the metalworking industry and the case of introduction of additional qualifications in Germany. The main research methods include content analysis of the qualifications descriptors and vocational education and training (VET) curricula, a meta-analysis of the research on the implications of Industry 4.0 for VET.FindingsThe choices of the structure and contents of qualifications and VET curricula in the context of the 4th Industrial Revolution are defined by the specific state of technologies and work organizations in the enterprises, limitations of VET providers, individual skills needs of learners, national and sectoral policies in the field of qualifications and curricula. It requires compromises between the concept of solid qualifications based on the holistic orientation to work processes and the trends toward flexible curriculum; between the design of new qualifications and adjustment of the existing ones, as well as between the individualistic and collective approaches to qualifications.Research limitations/implicationsThe research is focused on the development of qualifications in the manufacturing sector (metalworking and engineering industry). The paper contributes to the theoretical discussions and research of qualifications, competence, VET and human resource development by suggesting a theoretical framework for the analysis of the development of qualifications in the context of the 4th Industrial Revolution, as well as by stressing the importance of holistic view to this development which should comprise both policies and practices of the design of qualifications, curriculum design, education and training and assessment of learning outcomes.Originality/valueThe paper provides insight into the implications of the 4th Industrial Revolution to the key processes of the national systems of qualifications by referring to the cases of current efforts to adjust qualifications in the metalworking sector and engineering industry. It also suggests possible scenarios for the future development of vocational and professional qualifications in the context of the 4th Industrial Revolution.

Efficiency of the teaching-industry linkage in the Australian vocational education and training

The vocational education and training (VET) sector plays a crucial role in Australia’s education system. Associated closely between the VET provision and industry, VET training quality is continually at the heart of debates in the process of implementing the Australian VET reform agenda. In response of key themes of this reform process, investigating the training efficiency of VET through the linked efficiency between teaching and industry responsiveness is imperative. The paper aims to address this objective by using the dynamic network data envelopment analysis in a balanced panel data for 2008–2012. This advanced model allows to assess simultaneously the efficiency of two nodes, teaching and industry responsiveness, and the overall dynamic training efficiency of VET based on fields of education in a network structure. We found that the overall training efficiency of VET is, on average, 0.835 while the mean divisional efficiencies of the teaching efficiency and industry responsiveness are 0.763 and 0.908, respectively. Sensitivity analysis is conducted to examine dynamic changes of the efficiency of the teaching and industry linkage following various period weights. Policy implications are drawn for the Australian VET sector.

New Methodological Approaches to Review Governance and Financing Arrangements in Vocational Education and Training (VET) and Skill Systems: A Data Collection Tool (DCT) 4.0 for Facilitating Self-Assessment Processes

The European Training Foundation (ETF) is more than aware that effective -good multilevel- governance arrangements in Vocational Education and Training (VET)-and Skill policies-is key for having sound skills in the labour market. The ETF developed new Data Collection tool 4.0 (DCT) to implement self-assessments working with partner countries (PCs) in governance and financing arrangements involving, at least, seven different categories of policy stakeholders (e.g. governmental actors-public servants-, social partners, private actors, key experts). This -innovative- tool contains 65 indicators for self-assessing seven governance- and financing- functions including institutional coordination mechanisms (e.g. strategic and legislative framework, management of public-private partnerships, VET providers network, evaluation, research and data analysis provision, councils/committee’s system etc.). The DCT 4.0 has been piloted in 5 ETF PCs (Albania, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Moldova and Uzbekistan). The results might inform further policy development driven by governance and financing arrangements/issues in ETF PCs (or perhaps, beyond). Further, this tool for policy analysis could inspire advisory processes focusing on how to support systemic reforms and/or carry out monitoring implementation-and/or policy review-, based on different types of governance and financing arrangements. The pilot experience developed in COVID 19 times, confirmed that online facilitation is a good way to get good results. However, the human touch factor is essential to facilitate such self-assessment in more impactful way as it could be embedded in real time into current policy dialogue strategies in the countries.

European cooperation in vocational education and training: towards a common ambition

As the policy cycle for European cooperation in vocational education and training (VET) is coming to an end in 2020, the need for high-skilled labour is increasingly seen as paramount to ensure future sustainable and inclusive development in Europe. Drawing on Cedefop review and analysis of VET policies and their implementation, this article provides a brief overview of the progress made so far, areas of weakness, and persistent and new challenges ahead. Analysis confirms the gradual but continuous progress being made over the last decade despite the years spent in the long shadow of the financial crisis and the consequent economic and political uncertainty affecting many European countries. While participation to and, importantly, quality of VET varies across national systems, most Member States have progressed towards the achievements set in the Bruges Communique in 2010. This includes improved transparency, quality assurance and permeability of national qualification systems, as well as the enhanced responsiveness of VET provision to labour market needs through the wider recognition of the role of work-based learning and apprenticeship schemes. What is apparent today, more than ever before, is that the European institutional and policy framework represents a unique strength for Member States to focus on the big picture over the long term and make the most of the opportunities that an enhanced cooperation among national systems may offer to improve the overall performance, quality and attractiveness of VET in Europe.

Standing and attractiveness of vocational education and training in Finland: focus on learning environments

ABSTRACTThis article discusses the standing and attractiveness of vocational education and training (VET) in Finland. We argue that learning environments, along with the expectations for and attitudes towards them, are related to the attractiveness of VET. The empirical part of the article describes a comprehensive view of learning environments based on our several interview data sets and previous findings. Four sets of existing interview data (N = 96) are combined to depict school–work connection from the viewpoints of VET providers and teachers (n = 23) and workplace actors, including employer representatives and learners’ workplace trainers and co-workers (n = 30), as well as from the perspective of VET learners (students and apprentices; n = 43). The article discusses the design rationale behind learning environments and the challenges these environments face in Finland. The article concludes that learning environment design is focused on alignment between school and work. However, based on the interview data, there are attitudes and practices that hinder the connectivity between education and work, and the responsibility to align various experiences is largely left to the learner.

International Collaborations in the VET Sector: Motivations and Challenges

This study identified the motives for vocational education and training (VET) providers in different countries to collaborate internationally and the challenges they encounter by interviewing 16 teachers, program coordinators, and managers from four VET providers in China and Canada. The findings of this study highlight the difference in primary motives driving VET providers in developed and developing economies to pursue international collaborations. For the former, a commercial approach is prominent, while for the latter, international engagement is more instrumental and developmental in nature. This study also sheds light on the specific barriers such as curricula incompatibility and staff readiness created by the national focus of VET to engage internationally. These findings contribute to a fuller understanding of international collaborations in different national contexts across educational sectors. Furthermore, the employment of the interorganizational relations theory in guiding the investigation enriches the theory by extending its application into educational organizations and exploring how different motives could be interpreted in the educational setting.

Maintaining industry and pedagogical currency in VET: practitioners’ voices

ABSTRACTAn effective vocational education and training (VET) workforce that manages the learning of adults for the vocational demands of the twenty-first century requires teachers and trainers with current industry and pedagogical expertise. Research has found that approaches to maintaining industry currency and extending pedagogical expertise for VET practitioners are ad hoc and vary in effectiveness. This research focused on one large VET institutional site at which 26 VET teachers were interviewed on their perceptions of continuing professional development (CPD) and the processes and practices that were deployed to maintain their industry and pedagogical expertise. The results indicated varying perceptions on the ways in which industry currency and pedagogical expertise were maintained and developed. The results illuminate CPD practice in a government VET provider, and underscore the expressed need for a consistent, grounded and nuanced approach to CPD for VET practitioners to shore up their important role in maintaining adult, lifelong and transformative learning.