Search Results for
"Vocational education"

This article presents a comparative analysis of governance structures in the dual vocational education and training (VET) systems of Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. First a theoretical framework for the classification of plural systems such as dual apprenticeship training is discussed. It is argued that governance in VET can be described according to the coherence of the system on the one hand and the rationale of agency on the other. Moreover, it is assumed that four ideal types of governance can be distinguished. A methodology is presented to implement this framework in data collection and analysis and as an evaluation tool for expert workshops. The study recommends a consistent legal framework regarding the cooperation of learning venues and the establishment of an evaluation and feedback scheme in the shape of an assessment during the training process. In order to efficiently coordinate VET practice, VET policy and VET research, the establishment of a 'VET innovation system' is suggested.

This article frames the lived experiences of management and educators in further education and training (FET) colleges in South Africa, against the backdrop of the radical transformation in the governance of this sector over the past twenty years. The reforms are first described and analysed in terms of their integration and rationale for agency. Second, issues of disjuncture between the internationalized ideal of decentralisation and the emergent, problematic reality of deconcentration and delegation will be explored. Third, data from interviews with principals, council chairpersons and lecturers detail the lived experience of the reform. Governance reforms are perceived as incoherent and lacking a clearly discernible trajectory, and have resulted in highly stressful experiences of alienation, disillusionment and disempowerment by those at 'the chalkface'. As South Africa faces another cycle of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) reforms, this article suggests that policy makers must take into account the capacities of the people in the system to implement the proposed changes.

[No abstract available]

[No abstract available]

The authors explore governance and related policies that shape Canada's vocational education and training (VET) system and trends that have the potential to fundamentally change accepted practices. The conceptual framework derived from Bourdieu's theoretical concepts of field, habitus, and capital is applied to the description of Canada's apprenticeship system within its particular political, economic and social contexts and current power relations. The authors further contemplate how policy changes may be undermining this system and negatively influencing individuals' work and learning opportunities. Lastly, proposed policy directions for Canada's apprenticeship system are critically examined.

Complexity is a feature common to all vocational education and training (VET) governance arrangements, due to the wide range of students VET systems caters for, and the number of stakeholders involved in both decision making and funding and financing. In this article, Pierre and Peter's framework of governance is used to examine complexity in VET governance models. Criticism has been made of complex decision-making processes in VET governance models, whether stemming from co-determination with social partners or shared responsibilities in federations between national and sub-national governments, with the contention being that such complex processes reduce system adaptability. This article argues that the focus on decision-making processes is misguided and the effects of other complex system processes should be considered. First, debate needs to be broadened to take into account how governance frameworks emerge from historical and political differences, such as the impact of federal structures of government. Adaptability depends on more than decision-making processes. Second, international comparisons suggest that complex policy instruments, whether the result of convoluted decision-making or not, may demonstrate greater adaptability in the system but also threaten system coherence. Finally, complex processes for allocating resources and generating feedback seem to increase system accountability, although unintended consequences for other system outcomes may yet emerge.

Local educational agencies (of which there are more than 14,000) have the primary responsibility for governance of public vocational education and training (VET) in the United States. Local agencies operate within a framework of state legislation and regulations that are heavily influenced by federal legislation. The federal government offers funds to the states for the support of VET. To qualify for these funds, states must submit plans to the federal government describing how they will use the funds to achieve the intent of federal law. States, in turn, require local agencies to submit plans for their use of the funds. The diversity of this system is further complicated by the variety of ways that states assign responsibility for the administration of secondary and postsecondary VET. Initiatives to link secondary and postsecondary training include Tech Prep, career pathways, and, in the most recent federal legislation, programs of study. Almost all government-supported skill training outside the education system occurs through the Office of Apprenticeship and the Job Corps, both of which are administered by the federal Department of Labor. The number of trainees in these programs is much lower than that of those receiving skill training from educational institutions.

This article examines the issue of noncompletion in vocational education and training. It looks at how noncompletion is defined and at some of the different ways it is measured, presenting some estimates using recent OECD data. It then outlines some of the approaches to identifying causes of noncompletion, distinguishing between perspectives that highlight barriers associated with institutions themselves and the way they operate and are organized as places of learning, and factors associated with what individuals bring with them to the place of learning, including their family context, their intentions, work situation, dispositions, interests, and motivations. Following this is a brief outline of the sorts of strategies employed to reduce noncompletion. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.