Not just skills: what a focus on knowledge means for vocational education

This contribution to the symposium on Michael Young’s article ‘Overcoming the crisis in curriculum theory: a knowledge based approach’, supports his contention that curriculum theory has lost sight of its object—‘what is taught and learned in schools’, and argues that this has particularly deleterious consequences for vocational education and training (VET). VET is unproblematically positioned as applied, experiential and work-focused learning, and it is seen as a solution for those who are alienated from or unsuccessful in more traditional forms of academic education. This article argues that rather than being a mechanism for social inclusion, VET is instead a key way in which social inequality is mediated and reproduced because it excludes students from accessing the theoretical knowledge they need to participate in debates and controversies in society and in their occupational field of practice. It presents a social realist analysis to argue why VET students need access to theoretical knowledge, how a focus on experiential and applied learning constitutes a mechanism for social exclusion and what a ‘knowledge rich’ VET curriculum would look like.     

Learner identities in vocational education and training – from school to apprenticeship

The aim of this paper is to describe changing learner identities and trajectories of identification that take place among vocational education and training (VET) apprentices in Norway. This paper describes 23 young, male VET students’ learner identities in compulsory school (age 7–15) in comparison to their learner identities in VET apprenticeships (age 18–21), based on analyses of a set of biographical interviews about their schooling experiences. More specifically, the analysis describes changes in interviewees’ learner identities in their transition from school to apprenticeship. The analysis reveals that their narratives of being a student in school involved wounding educational experiences, such as negative student-teacher relationships, and feelings of failure and disengagement. At school, the participants’ learner identities were positional identities created in the shadow of the figured world of school, leading the students to individualised withdrawal. The narratives of their apprenticeship was characterised by a sense of belonging, feelings of equality to peers, independence and adulthood. The ‘adult working man’ identity is a disguised learning identity, in that it breaks with the wounded learner identity of the ‘failing student’ and thereby creates opportunities for active learning for apprentices, both as individuals and members of communities of practice.     

Self paced learning: A student perspective

Training reform in Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) has been well under way for over a decade. Reforms include marketisation, the widespread adoption of competency-based training, and most recently an adoption of various forms of flexible delivery. One of these alternative methods of delivery is self paced learning (SPL). SPL is presented by VET management as being advantageous to students and their employers, and in addition is generally less resource-intensive than face-to-face teaching. This paper examines SPL in a TAFE college from a student viewpoint. The research, using qualitative methods, examined the experiences of SPL, in Office Administration subjects, of students who have a Non English Speaking Background (NESB) or no regular access to computers. The paper describes how they adapted, reacted and responded to self paced learning. The difficulties experienced by these students when studying by self paced learning are discussed in detail The findings indicate that, whilst students are appreciative of the flexibility which self paced learning affords, there are some concerns about its efficacy in relation to educational outcomes.     

Self paced learning: A student perspective

Training reform in Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) has been well under way for over a decade. Reforms include marketisation, the widespread adoption of competency-based training, and most recently an adoption of various forms of flexible delivery. One of these alternative methods of delivery is self paced learning (SPL). SPL is presented by VET management as being advantageous to students and their employers, and in addition is generally less resource-intensive than face-to-face teaching. This paper examines SPL in a TAPE college from a student viewpoint. The research, using qualitative methods, examined the experiences of SPL, in Office Administration subjects, of students who have a Non English Speaking Background (NESB) or no regular access to computers. The paper describes how they adapted, reacted and responded to self paced learning. The difficulties experienced by these students when studying by self paced learning are discussed in detail. The findings indicate that, whilst students are appreciative of the flexibility which self paced learning affords, there are some concerns about its efficacy in relation to educational outcomes.     

Professional Development for Teachers Working with International Students

The commercialisation of education and the massive recruitment of international students across different vocational education and training (VET) systems including the US, UK, Canada and Australia have led to significant changes in the VET teaching and learning landscape. This situation compels the VET sector to design and develop new professional development programs to support the immediate and changing needs of teachers working with the diverse international student cohort. However, to date, teacher professional development in response to the growing population of international students has not been an explicit focus of empirical study and theoretical conceptualisation in VET research. This study responds to this paucity. It draws on a broader three-year research project funded by the Australian Research Council (2014–2017) that involves fieldwork, participation in and observation of staff professional development activities and interviews with 102 VET staff in Australia. It uses positioning theory as a conceptual framework to examine how VET teachers position themselves and their professional development needs in response to international students. The results call for a critical need to re-examine the focus of the current professional development programs offered for VET teachers. The current context requires teacher professional development in international VET to focus on developing teachers’ capabilities to re-examine their pedagogical beliefs and practices and to understand international students’ various needs and cultural backgrounds. The study also stresses the importance of ongoing professional learning to equip teachers with the skills and knowledge to appropriate their pedagogical practices in response to the critical need to prepare all students for the intercultural labour market and to use students’ diversity as a resource for teaching and learning.     

Primary school puberty/sexuality education: student-teachers' past learning,present professional education,and intention to teach these subjects

Primary school teachers are often tasked with puberty/sexuality education for students who are undergoing sexual maturation at ever-earlier ages. This study explores the changing trajectories of the pre-service learning and teaching of primary school puberty/sexuality education at an urban university, including student-teachers' childhood learning, professional pre-service studies, and technological educational future. Biographical narratives and a theoretically based conceptual and diagnostic framework are used to analyse the views of fourth-year Bachelor of Education student-teachers about their own primary school puberty/sexuality education, their present university professional education for teaching these subjects, and their intentionality to teach them to future Grade 6 school students. Results show that these student-teachers intend to replicate their own primary school learning experiences. Pre-service professional education appears to have failed to operationalise the contemporary learning and teaching of puberty/sexuality education that would allow a new generation of more effective knowledge and pedagogies to be implemented.     

Fully integrating upper-secondary vocational and academic courses: A flexible new way?

The tracking of students in upper-secondary school is often criticised for narrowing the post-secondary pathways of student in the vocational education and training (VET) track, which can stigmatise VET. To tackle this problem, countries have introduced courses that integrate aspects of VET and academic study, which provide the dual purpose of preparing students for work and vocational study and providing university pathways for more academic students in the VET track. In this study we assess the latter purpose by examining the outcomes of university aspirants who take these courses in their final year of school. Using rich survey and administrative data from Australia and propensity score matching we find that these courses are associated with lower academic performance and a lower chance of attaining a university offer. Decomposition results show that poor performance in integrated courses is the main driver, which points to potential tension between the two purposes.     

Neoliberal economic markets in vocational education and training: shifts in perceptions and practices in private vocational education and training in Melbourne,Australia

This article argues that the adoption of the competitive Vocational Education and Training (VET) markets in Australia resulted in shifts in institutional perceptions and practices. Using situated experiences and perspectives from quality assurance auditors, training managers, international students and VET teachers from seven commercial for-profit private VET institutions in Melbourne, Australia, the article suggests that there are emerging patterns of institutionalised market-based relationships, which can have long-term implications for pedagogy, learning and international students' outcomes in VET.     

Apprentice or Student? The Structures of Construction Industry Vocational Education and Training in Denmark and Sweden and their Possible Consequences for Safety Learning

There is a notable difference in occupational injury rates in the two Scandinavian countries, Sweden and Denmark, with the latter having a 40% higher rate of fatal occupational injuries in the construction industry. This study explored differences in the vocational education and training (VET) systems between Sweden and Denmark that may be important for students’ safety learning and practice during VET. In both countries, students participate in full-time education, and the curriculum includes school-based as well as company- based training. However, during company- based training Swedish students retain their student status, whereas Danish students are employed as apprentices. From a perspective of viewing safety as a social practice developed through interactions of different social and institutional bodies, the analysis points to this difference in employment status as important for their safety practices and also for the teachers’ position to influence safety learning and practices during company-based training. An analysis of interview and survey data focusing on how VET students enact safety ‘knowings’ across learning sites, suggest how different forms of connectivity models in VET promote various forms of safety learning among students.     

Making it real: The benefits of workplace learning in upper-secondary vocational education and training courses

In OECD countries, ‘real world’ upper-secondary vocational education and training (VET) programs are used to engage less academically oriented youth in learning, while helping to prepare them for post-school work and/or further education. In general terms, VET programs with high employer involvement, such as apprenticeship schemes, are considered to be superior to classroom-based VET programs that are typically found in many English-speaking countries. In this study, we examine outcomes from a potential ‘third way’: classroom-based VET with a short-term structured workplace learning component. Using propensity score matching and PISA data linked to information from the Longitudinal Survey of Australian Youth, we find this model is associated with higher school completion rates and better employment transitions.     

Maturity and Interculturality: Chinese students' experiences in UK higher education

Increasing global competition for students has witnessed an ever more rapid internationalisation of higher education. In the case of the UK, there has been a major influx of Chinese students to British universities since the launch of the British Government's long-term worldwide educational campaign in 1999. Drawing upon evidence from an extensive review of the literature on the internationalisation of higher education, this article will explore variations in Chinese students' intercultural adaptation to the British higher education environment. Discussion of their experiences will be based upon a synthesis of findings of three studies, led by the author, investigating the pedagogical, sociocultural and psychological challenges that they have encountered when studying in British universities.
Evidence from these studies suggests that despite various challenges and struggles, most students have managed to survive the demands of the learning and the living environment and to adapt and develop. Analysis of their learning experiences suggests that this learning process spans a developmental continuum involving the students in overcoming emotional tensions arising from changes in their cognition, their sense of identity and sociocultural values. A holistic and developmental perspective is thus required to understand changes in students' perceptions and values as part of their wider adaptation to the academic conventions of their host countries. The findings will make an original contribution to understandings of the impact of the internationalisation of higher education on individuals' learning, change and development.     

Vocational education and training and the therapeutic turn

The concept of ‘therapeutic education’ is being increasingly used in contemporary education policy studies to identify learning initiatives which are dominated by objectives linked to personal and social skills, emotional intelligence and building self‐esteem. Contemporary educational goals connected with such strategies have been criticised for encouraging a ‘victim culture’ which marginalises learners and replaces the pursuit of knowledge and understanding with the development of personal values relevant to a life of social, cultural and economic risk and uncertainty. In relation to vocational education and training (VET) and post‐school policy trends in particular, Hayes has argued that preparation for work has abandoned vocational/occupational knowledge and skills in favour of providing learners with personal skills for emotional labour in low‐level service jobs. This paper interrogates such analyses and questions whether the therapeutic role of VET really is incompatible with the traditional objectives of developing knowledge, understanding and values in work environments. Links are made between new emphases on work‐based learning and the ‘caring’ conceptions of learning in post‐school education. It is concluded that—although therapy should not dominate VET—an attention to the important values dimension of learning in the field does involve a therapeutic dimension of some kind.     

Implications of missed opportunities for learning and assessment in design and technology education

Supporting student learning can be difficult, especially within open-ended or loosely structured activities, often seen as valuable for promoting student autonomy in many curriculum areas and contexts. This paper reports an investigation into the experiences of three teachers who implemented design and technology education ideas in their primary school classrooms for the first time. The teachers did not capitalise upon many of the opportunities for scaffolding their students’ learning within the open-ended activities they implemented. Limitations of the teachers’ conceptual and procedural knowledge of design and technology were elements that influenced their early experiences. The study has implications for professional developers planning programs in newly introduced areas of the curriculum to support teachers in supporting learning within open-ended and loosely structured problem solving activities.     

Learning environments at higher education institutions: Relationships with academic aspirations and satisfaction

This study investigated university students?? perceptions of their institutions?? learning environments, and related those perceptions to students?? academic aspirations and satisfaction with their universities. A sample of 12,423 juniors at 42 universities in Taiwan was used to confirm the validity and reliability of the instrument: CUEI-S. The study revealed diversity of students?? perceptions among specific aspects of the learning environment. Students responded more positively for student cohesion, library resources and administrative support, but less positively for student-faculty relations, student services, enhancement of their language abilities and emotional development. The majority of students had low academic aspirations but felt satisfied with their universities. The learning environment on campus was shown to play an important role both in students?? academic aspirations and in their general satisfaction, whether the individual student or the university was used as the unit of analysis. The relationship between faculty and students is the aspect that was most strongly associated with students?? academic aspirations. On the other hand, both adequate library resources and university support for student services were the key correlates of students?? general satisfaction at the individual student level. By identifying important relationships among variables, this study suggests initiatives for improving the learning environment at higher education institutions.     

Part-time students in transition: supporting a successful start to higher education

The transition into higher education is a critical time for all students. A positive early experience provides a strong foundation for future academic success whilst a negative experience can be destabilising for a new learner. To date, research has primarily focused on full-time undergraduates in order to explain the reasons for high attrition rates at the end of the first year. Less is known about the experiences of part-time undergraduates despite the fact that they make up over one quarter of the total student population (HESA, 2015). This article reports on a study to investigate the initial experiences of a group of part-time undergraduates who have chosen to undertake a degree at a small study centre run by one university. Using a mixed methods research approach, the research captured the lived reality of the experience and identified the contributing and negating factors that can influence a successful transition. Perceptions of the level and type of support provided for students during transition were gained from both staff and students. The findings confirm a heterogeneous group. Despite being highly motivated, the early transition period was generally characterised by a sense of trepidation and self-doubt as students took their first steps in higher education. The research highlights the complexity of the initial decision-making process for part-time students and the barriers they face. It concludes that a flexible but unified approach, involving tutors and the wider support services, is needed, as unique students require unique responses to their transition needs.     

The Use of Cinema in the Counselor Education Curriculum: Strategies and Outcomes

The authors discuss the use of motion pictures to provide learning experiences for students in counselor education programs. A review of the counseling literature revealed many references to teaching with films; only 2 articles, however, recommended using film in counselor education. This article includes activities for teaching diagnosis, counseling theories, interventions, and ethics. Positive feedback was received from 182 graduate students who responded to a 5‐item qualitative and quantitative follow‐up questionnaire after they completed such a course.     

Speechlessness,anxiety, and confusion in a teacher education student group

The aim of the study was to explore the tensions, as experienced by student teachers, in a teacher education program that is based on psychodynamic theory. Previous research shows that students have had orientation problems in innovative university studies because it involves students having to take steps toward their discomfort zone. It was therefore considered important to study the mismatch or match of the training model and student experiences. The data were gathered through student interviews. The data analysis utilized a case study methodology and proceeded from thematic network analysis toward a deeper interpretation of the data. The analysis shows students struggle to understand the meaning and practices of psychodynamic-oriented pedagogy. The analysis also shows that students were unable and unwilling to share their learning experiences with students outside the new program. This can be understood as a tension between different conceptual understandings of learning.