A critique of the Capability Approach’s potential for application to career guidance

In this article, we provide a balanced critique of Sen’s Capability Approach (CA) with reference to its potential to inform career guidance theory and practice. There are varying understandings and interpretations of the CA. Some see capabilities as universal, whilst others favour a more relativist view. The CA is also vulnerable to misunderstanding. Critiques based on misunderstanding are easily dismissed, so our focus is on substantive conceptual and practical critiques. Three main challenges are explored: conceptual debates about the nature of freedom and justice; limitations arising from the disciplinary origins of the CA; and challenges in operationalising the CA.

     

Migrants and the language of instruction: Is the EU policy deficit driving new innovations in social inclusion?

Language learning has long been seen as an important tool for achieving European Union (EU) targets for social inclusion. However, “mainstream” policy instruments like the Action Plan on Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity and the European Charter for Minority Languages have been undermined in recent years by the effects of the global financial crisis, which has contributed to the widespread decimation of welfare budgets in many EU member states. This has been accompanied by the increasing influence of a “neo-liberal” discourse in welfare and social service policies and practices, leading to the delegation of responsibility for service provision from central, regional and local government to commercial enterprises, civil society and, ultimately, to citizens themselves. At the same time, the gaps in service provision that have resulted from this “financial crisis” have opened up new opportunities for social innovators. New kinds of organisations are beginning to develop and apply new approaches using language learning to deliver innovative services aimed, for example, at supporting the integration of immigrants in society. Using case study analysis, this paper explores how these new approaches have developed, what kinds of innovation are being delivered and the contribution these social innovations are making to broader EU social inclusion objectives.     

Pessimism of the intellect,optimism of the will? Troubling the relationship between career guidance and social justice

Career guidance claims a lineage to ‘modernity’, where individuals carve dignified lives for themselves, irrespective of social origin. Here, ‘social justice’ has particular connotations, relating to the meritocratic redistribution of resources in ways that reward ability and effort. This article explores alternative conceptions of social justice, taking seriously the fundamental insight that if individuals make history, they do so in circumstances not of their own making. Drawing on recent theories of social justice, an effort is made to ‘trouble’ mainstream notions of career guidance, and to imagine how it can be of the greatest benefit to the least advantaged.     

Fast track to the labour market? Experiences of learning in an active labour market policy measure for migrant teachers in Sweden

International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance - This article analyses the case of a Swedish so-called “fast-track” programme for newly arrived migrant teachers with the...     

The problem with women? Challenges posed by gender for career guidance practice

Institutionalised discrimination continues to perpetuate deep rooted social divisions, with gender inequality persisting as a pervasive feature of labour markets across the world. Despite the depth and breadth of gender inequality, there is limited acknowledgement in career theory that the career support needs of women are distinctive. A qualitative international comparative study into the career trajectories of older women (aged 45–65) has been conducted across six countries (Australia, Argentina, Germany, Italy, England and South Africa). The results provide an international understanding of women’s careers and offer insight into career theory and practice for women that are culturally relevant.     

Research-based knowledge: researchers’ contribution to evidence-based practice and policy making in career guidance

To present evidence for the outcomes of career guidance is increasingly seen as pivotal for a further professionalization of policy making and service provision. This paper puts an emphasis on researchers’ contribution to evidence-based practice and policy making in career guidance. We argue for a broader and more pluralistic research strategy to meet the complexity of possible questions needed to be asked to provide evidence in career guidance. The article puts a specific focus on the need for a stronger involvement of the voice of users.     

Should eminence based on outstanding innovation be the goal of gifted education and talent development? Implications for policy and research

Systemic goals for gifted programs can take many forms. The authors place most program goals into a dichotomy — those that address the present academic needs of gifted students in schools and those designed to prepare future eminent path breakers and innovators. To clarify our arguments, we first define eminence and then offer examples from national mission statements that target gifted programs either to academic needs of advanced students or future needs of society. Although we support both goals, we promote the latter, even in light of the complications that we delineate. To demonstrate a model of eminence development that might be implemented more widely, we present a prototype program generated at the American Psychological Association. We close our argument with recommendations and implications for research and policy.     

The onion model: Myth or reality in the field of individual differences psychology?

To bring order in concepts related to individual learner differences, Curry (1983) designed the three-layered onion model. As this model provides an interesting way to distinguish related concepts – such as cognitive styles and approaches to studying – on the basis of their stability in learning situations, ample studies build further on this model. Given that only few studies have been conducted to empirically test the model, we conducted two studies to address this research gap. In the first study (N = 113), analyses do not show a clear causal path from three concepts belonging to different layers in relation to learning outcomes. In the second, longitudinal study (N = 162), no support is found for differences in stability between cognitive styles and approaches to studying. Our research does not provide solid evidence for the onion model, which warns to be cautious with applying the assumptions of theoretical models in educational practice without empirical support.     

Is the globalization of the economy creating values for a new civilization?

Conclusion In response to the globalization of the economy, the international community must be resolute in promoting universality in the most profound sense of the word: a type of universality which both challenges all models and acknowledges and respects the contribution of all peoples to universal civilization. UNESCO sees globalization as extending far beyond economic issues. It disrupts life styles and behaviour patterns, and overturns habits of decision-making and governance and forms of artistic expression. The challenge that it poses for UNESCO is that of perceiving all the complexity of its ramifications, so that in an interdisciplinary and intercultural spirit we can devise strategies and policies to ensure that it works for the benefit of all, particularly those who are at present excluded from it. Original language: English/French Ko?chiro Matsuura Since November 1999 Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). After a long career in the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs—Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1992 to 1994—Mr Matsuura became successively Japanese Ambassador to Andorra, then Djibouti, and then France. He was Sherpa for Japan at the G-7 Summit in 1993 and Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO in 1998–99. He studied at the University of Tokyo and Haverford College (United States of America), and received a doctoratehonoris causa from the Université Jean Moulin, France. This text has been adapted from a speech made at the closing meeting of the Rencontres de Versailles on the theme of ‘Is the globalization of the economy creating values for a new civilization?’, held at the Chateau de Versailles, France, on 17 June 2000.     

Is Japanese education the “exception”?: examining the situated articulation of neo-liberalism through the analysis of policy keywords

This article builds on the author's earlier work, published in Vol. 28 No. 1 of this journal, that critiqued the Orientalist legacy in Anglo-American discussions of Japanese education. One of the manifestations of this legacy is the prevailing view among the Anglo-American observers of Japanese education that Japanese education is the “exception” to the recent global restructuring movement. This article problematizes this view by exposing a similar but differently articulated structural change in Japanese education over the past three decades. Drawing on cultural studies and critical discourse analysis, the author focuses on the two policy keywords that the Ministry of Education has consistently used by for the past three decades: kosei (individuality) and yutori (low pressure). Tracing the complex histories of articulation and rearticulation of these policy keywords, the author demonstrates how the keywords, which had been associated with progressive political struggles against the Ministry's central control of public education, were mobilized to reconstitute people's common sense about education and thus to naturalize the radical systemic change towards the neo-liberal, post-welfare settlement. In conclusion, the author discusses the implication of the study to the field of comparative and international education, calling for a more critical, reflexive engagement with the field's preoccupation with “national differences”.     

Quality assurance and evidence in career guidance in Europe: counting what is measured or measuring what counts?

Quality assurance (QA) and Evidence in career guidance are increasingly seen as an indispensable part of explaining and even legitimising career guidance activities and policies. It is no longer sufficient to assume that career guidance or career education has an impact. This has to be demonstrated. This paper provides an overview of how and why QA approaches are featuring ever more significantly on the agenda of many European Countries. A particular focus is the link between particular quantitatively oriented QA approaches and the effects that this has upon guidance policies and practices. The paper concludes by raising some of the wider QA issues that need to be addressed.     

Implications of massive open online courses for higher education: mitigating or reifying educational inequities?

The proliferation of massive open online courses (MOOCs) has stirred a fervent debate about global access to higher education. While some commentators praise MOOCs for expanding educational opportunities in a more open and accessible fashion, others criticize this trend as a threat to current models of higher education and a low-quality substitute for traditional learning. Drawing on a comprehensive literature review of both academic and popular media sources, this article will explore the impact of MOOCs on the field of higher education, with a particular emphasis on their promise to enhance educational opportunities worldwide. Specifically, the analysis will focus on the four issues that have – so far – proven to be most significant in shaping the future of MOOC as an equalizing force in higher education: credit, pedagogy, internationalization, and, finally, legal and financial aspects.     

How does career guidance at schools encounter migrant young people? Interactional practices that hinder socially just guidance

International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance - The aim of this article is to show how interaction research can contribute to the understanding and praxis of socially just guidance....     

Sense of belonging or feeling marginalized? Using PISA 2012 to assess the state of academically gifted students within the EU

There are two competing stereotypes of gifted students: harmony theory (gifted students are well adjusted and successful in life) and disharmony theory (giftedness forms a threat to a harmonious development). In this context, the PISA 2012 data were used to explore middle-school students’ experiences in terms of sense of belonging, student–teacher relations and attitudes toward school concerning learning activities/outcomes. Fifteen-year-old students from 13 European countries were selected for this data-set (normative = 79,550, gifted = 1956). Student’s scores on the four scales were tested for significant differences with students from that same country. Tests revealed no significant differences for 55% of the comparisons, 40% of comparisons had positive effect sizes for gifted students, and 4% had negative effect sizes. The evidence presented in this study supports the existence of harmony theory. More specifically, the vast majority of gifted students in this study reported equal or higher level of belonging. Contained within the findings in this study on students’ to the sense of belonging is a lack of evidence of gifted students reporting higher levels of loneliness. These findings strongly reflect the Terman’s assertion almost a century ago stating the lack of gifted children tending to be more socially maladjusted.     

Is ‘gender-sensitive education’ a useful concept for educational policy?

This article responds to Astrid Sinnes and Marianne Løken’s article ‘Gendered education in a gendered world: Looking beyond cosmetic solutions to the gender gap in science’ by exploring the idea of ‘gender-sensitive’ education and its usefulness in educational policy. It draws on theoretical discussions of the concept of gender and of difference to consider ways in which ‘gender-sensitive’ education might serve the task of promoting equality and justice.     

Is the United States losing its status as a reference point for educational policy in the age of global comparison? The case of South Korea

This paper seeks to contribute to recent comparative discussions about the shift of traditional referential points as a result of new global governance by the OECD through PISA. In doing so, the authors investigate whether the lower PISA rankings of the US have resulted in the shifting of its referential status in South Korea. For the purposes of analysis, media representation of US education in South Korea is analysed by using two disparate newspapers from two time periods: three years before the first PISA release in 2001 and three years after 2009. This paper uses media discourses as primary data, but it also considers other complementary data such as policy documents and government policy statements on education. Recently, global governance through comparative data has become more significant, but the results of this study suggest that one should be careful about oversimplification. The results of this study imply that the pattern of external referencing in media representation hinges on historical, political, and cultural experiences rather than purely evidence-based discourses, at least in the case of South Korea.     

One year of preschool or two: Is it important for adult outcomes?

Until recently, public funding for preschool education had been growing rapidly over a decade with most state programs providing one year of preschool for four year olds. Fewer three year olds are enrolled in preschool. To investigate the importance of enrollment duration, this study is the first to estimate long-term dosage effects of years of preschool. We use data from a cohort of 1500 students in the Chicago Longitudinal Study who enrolled in the Chicago Public Schools in the mid-1980s. Many of these students participated in a high-quality preschool program called Child-Parent Centers (CPC) for one or two years. To address selection with multiple treatments, we employ inverse propensity score weighting. Relative to children who attended one year of CPC preschool, the two-year group is significantly less likely to receive special education or be abused or neglected or to commit crimes. The findings provide support for the long-term benefits of greater exposure to preschool.