Cross-sector collaboration in upper secondary school vocational education: experiences from two industrial towns in Sweden and Norway

This study explores industry–education collaboration on vocational education and training (VET) in upper secondary schools in Sweden and Norway, with particular attention to the initiatives, organisation and operational management, and aspects of robustness and lock-in effects. The case studies include two upper secondary schools situated in manufacturing based towns, which are similar in size and industrial structure, and have the dual system of education. Pupils come from these towns and other places in the surrounding region. The research design is based on a mixed-method approach, including interviews and other sources of information from schools and industry. This covered organisational and operational levels, corporate motives and arrangements, industrial composition, labour market conditions, and other regional and national characteristics. The results demonstrated how shared goals of improving the reputation and quality of VET and meeting industries’ needs for skills formed in two distinct organisational models. These findings raise concerns about the robustness of these collaborations, since how changes occur in companies’ economic situations may affect their ability and motivation to participate in VET training. The authors conclude that the arrangements have had success but may create a lock-in-situation regarding the companies’ ability to restructure and develop new skills for new sectors.     

“十四五”时期天津市中等职业教育师生规模预测研究

基于2005—2020年天津市社会、经济、教育发展相关数据,运用自相关模型,预测影响天津市中等职业教育师生规模的关键因素;运用多元线性回归模型,预测“十四五”期间天津市中等职业教育专任教师规模、各学历层次专任教师规模和学生规模,得出师生规模下降、教师学历高移、教师结构有待优化的结论,基于供给侧结构性改革视角,从增强职业教育吸引力、健全教师培养体系、构建产教融合机制等方面提出了扩大中职学生规模、提升中职教师学历、优化中职教师结构的政策建议。     

灵活学习:澳大利亚职业教育与培训对信息经济的应对战略

为了应对信息经济和知识社会,澳大利亚强调职业教育与培训中的灵活学习.最重要的举措就是制定了<2000-2004年职业教育与培训灵活学习国家合作框架>和<2005年澳大利亚职业教育与培训系统灵活学习框架>,这两个框架明确了灵活学习的目标,促进了灵活学习的发展.     

澳大利亚TAFE学院职业技术培训的特点和借鉴意义

该文分析了澳大利亚 TAFE学院的职业技术培训的特点 ,同时对照中国高教改革的背景总结了其对中国高教改革的借鉴意义。     

The didactics of vocational Bildung: how stories matter in VET research

In the research on education, the field roughly covered by the concept of Bildung has seen a wide-ranging discussion philosophically but less has been said and done from an empirical and vocational perspective. Bildung includes matters such as: formation of character, ethical and aesthetic knowledge/capability, capacity for wise deliberation and reflection as well as the development of personal autonomy. The focus here is on how narratives about teaching and curricula, both enacted and experienced, can be used to articulate significant aspects of Bildung-related practical knowledge. The empirical basis for this draws on a variety of narrative sources. By presenting, comparing and discussing narratives, it will be argued that there is a number of Bildung-related educational matters, not least in vocational education and training, where a narrative articulation can contribute. These can be differentiated in at least five groups: enriching knowledge of vocational tasks; conceptual development and critical reflection; advancement of practice; development of ‘practice fields’ and the articulation of patterns of vocational Bildung affordances. In distinguishing these different ways in which vocational Bildung as a form of practical knowledge can be enriched through narrative studies, the article contributes to our capacity for doing systematic research in the subject area.     

高职高专教育的现状及思考

近几年由于高职高专教育的快速发展,在高职高专教育中出现了学生人数越来越多,学生素质存在差异,而师资力量、尤其是“双师型”教师严重不足,并且结构也不尽合理,有的教学内容与实践脱节等,根据这种情况应加快高职高专教育的改革步伐。     

Measuring labour market success: a comparison between immigrants and native-born Canadians using PIAAC

Canadian society is characterised by a plurality of immigrants and Canadian migration policy and corresponding recognition approaches are strongly geared to economic criteria, qualifications and skills. This paper addresses the question how immigrants who have acquired their highest qualification outside Canada are able to use their foreign qualifications and skills in their current job. The analyses are conducted to verify the assumptions of human capital theory as well as the lack of transferability of human capital across country borders. To answer these questions a labour market success index is developed, which is used as a dependent variable in regression models. The results show that traditional operationalisations of human capital (years of education, years of work experience and skills) have a positive effect on individual labour market success. At the same time, being born abroad and having acquired one’s highest qualification abroad in comparison to Canada, especially in a Non-Western country, has negative effects on the overall labour market success of an individual. Detailed comparisons regarding different indicators of labour market success also prove these comparatively negative effects. The results demonstrate the limited explanatory power of human capital theory and the necessity to complement it with Bourdieu’s concepts of social and cultural capital.     

Preparing work-ready nurses: reflexive learning for diverse students in the Australian vocational education and training sector

This paper highlights a disjuncture between training frameworks designed to meet work-based competencies, and educational flexibility desirable to prepare diverse learners for fluid workplaces and roles. We describe a pilot study that explored teaching and learning practices in a vocational education and training Diploma of Nursing program. The study used qualitative approaches framed by a social view of learning as a reflexive process. Frictions emerged in how teaching and learning was fostered and how knowledge and skills were contextualised through nursing-accredited training packages. A case is made to enhance critical thinking and reflexive approaches to prepare work-ready nurse graduates.     

澳大利亚高中职业教育最新概况及启示

澳大利亚是世界上职业教育发达的国家之一,近年来以高中为本位的职业教育培训受到了职教界的关注。本文介绍了澳大利亚高中职业教育的最新概况,分析了澳大利亚高中职业教育培训的特点,总结了此种教育体制对我国的启示,对我国职业教育有一定的借鉴作用。     

A social justice alternative for framing post-compulsory education: a human development perspective of VET in times of economic dominance

The article provides an alternative theoretical framework for evaluating contemporary issues facing education, specifically vocational education and training (VET) in Europe. In order to accomplish this, it draws on the theoretical insights of the capability approach in the work of Amartya Sen; the concept of vulnerability as intrinsic to every human being, established by Fineman and Grear; and the concept of oppression advanced by Iris Marion Young. By developing the core concepts of each of these theories, the paper presents a human-based evaluative tool for education and argues that a fundamental misconception has arisen as to the purpose of post-compulsory education, a misconception generated by the wholesale application of the language of skills and productivity to the field of education, thus relinquishing its role to purely economic interests. The social justice framework presented herein aims to present a possible alternative approach to discuss and evaluate VET, in which humanistic concepts such as the recognition of human vulnerability and agency are central to the debate.