Search Results for
"Vocational education"

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there are differences in creativity level, as measured by Test your Creativity Level Scale (TYCL) between a group of vocational education students who were taught utilizing project-based method of instruction and a comparable control group taught via traditional method of instruction. The TYCL was administered as a pre-test and post-test for both groups of students (63 in the experimental group and 62 in the control group). Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) on the post-test results of the TYCL with the pretest scores as a covariate indicated significant differences between the groups at the.05 alpha level in favor of the experimental group on the overall creativity level and on each dimension's scores (intuitive awareness, external locus of control, self-confidence, and originality). The study ended by offering a number of theoretical and practical implications for the field of study.

Much attention has been focused on integrating competency-based curricula into educational programs in health management. Achieving the benefits of competency-based curricula requires substantial effort to identify competencies that are both specific and comprehensive, and that reflect consensus among faculty and stakeholders. The objective of this paper is to describe an approach to competency-based curriculum development and monitoring of students' progress toward competency achievement. Our approach identifies 20 competency areas, organized in technical, analytical/conceptual, and interpersonal domains. We demonstrate how individual courses can be mapped to these 20 competency areas and provide survey data on students' and graduates' self-rated competencies. We find the self-rated competencies of new graduates were significantly higher than the self-rated competencies of entering students in 17 of the 20 areas. Our work illustrates an approach to competency-based education that is feasible and helpful for program planning and evaluation. The list of competencies is tractable; the mapping of competencies to didactic coursework and practical experiences is clear and reflects reasonable consensus among faculty and preceptors. Finally, the approach is flexible, as competency areas can be added and removed to be responsive to new research evidence and the changing needs of the field.

Boys' underachievement in most Western education systems has been interpreted as symptomatic of a «masculinity crisis». This article analyses gender differences in drop-out rates from upper secondary education in Norway based on relevant research and statistics. The first part argues that gender differences are more related to structural conditions and social background than gender, and should be understood in light of the institutional context in male-dominated vocational courses. For instance, pupils here are selected for apprenticeship training positions based primarily on grades, which vary more with social background than with gender. However, the relationship between institutional conditions, social background and drop-out has received little attention, and high drop-out rates have been understood as a gender problem for boys. The second part of the article considers the wider societal background for this kind of gender problem interpretations. Such interpretations are related to more general discussions on the «masculinity crisis» and can represent individualized accounts, as they tend to neglect the significance of social context. Finally, there is discussion of how conceptual changes in drop-out research seem to be influenced by general theoretical changes toward more emphasis on individual choice and less on social structures. © UNIVERSITETSFORLAGET TIDSSKRIFT FOR SAMFUNNSFORSKNING.

Previous research on the education-to-employment transition for students with disabilities has suggested that participation in school-to-work programs is positively associated with post-high school success. This article utilizes data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) to extend these findings in several ways. First, we assess the efficacy of specific types of school-based and work-based initiatives, including job shadowing, mentoring, cooperative education, school-sponsored enterprise, technical preparation, internships, and career major. Next, we extend the usual focus on the employment outcomes of work status and financial compensation to consider job-specific information on the receipt of fringe benefits. Overall, results from longitudinal multivariate analyses suggest that transition initiatives are effective in facilitating vocational success for this population; however, different aspects of school-to-work programs are beneficial for different aspects of employment. School-based programs are positively associated with stable employment and full-time work while work-based programs most consistently increase the likelihood that youth with disabilities will be employed in jobs that provide fringe benefits. Analyses also indicate that - once individuals with disabilities are stably employed - they can be employed in "good" jobs that provide employee benefits. © 2008 IOS Press. All rights reserved.

[No abstract available]

There has been renewed emphasis on the vocational in recent policy documents concerning provision for the 14-19 age group. More open acknowledgement of the vocational/academic divide within English education has appeared alongside the creation of increased vocational opportunities for young people. Research undertaken for the Transforming Learning Cultures in Further education project has, however, raised questions concerning the provision of vocational options for 14- to 16-year-olds that are not being fully addressed by policy-makers. This article aims to provide an answer to two linked questions: why might it be important to offer vocational options to students of this age in a further education college? And, under what conditions might students benefit most from such provision? Our research revealed that students can value highly such vocational experiences, but that the extent to which young people actually benefit from the opportunity to engage in vocational learning depends crucially upon the way in which such opportunities are experienced as different from ‘normal’ schooling. It has also revealed that the opportunities for such experiences are potentially fragile, vulnerable to the effects of change within the institution. © 2007, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All rights reserved.

Background: Emergency medicine is team work from the field to the hospital and therefore it is also important for physicians to understand the work of paramedics, and vice versa. Interprofessional emergency medicine education for medical and paramedic students in Helsinki was started in 2001. It consisted of a 15 European credit transfer system (ECTS) credits programme combining 22 students in 2001. In 2005, the number of students had increased to 25. The programme consisted of three parts: acute illness in childhood and adults (AI), advanced life support (ALS) and trauma life support (TLS). In this paper, we describe the concept of interprofessional education of medical students and paramedics in emergency medicine. Methods: After finishing the programmes in 2001 and in 2005, the students' opinions regarding the education were collected using a standardized questionnaire. Results: There were good ratings for the courses in AI (2001 vs. 2005, whole group; 4.3 ± 0.7 vs. 4.2 ± 0.4, P = 0.44) ALS (4.7 ± 0.5 vs. 4.4 ± 0.5, P = 0.06) and TLS (3.9 ± 0.7 vs. 4.4 ± 0.5, P = 0.01) in both years. Most of the medical students considered that this kind of co-education should be arranged for all medical students (2001 vs. 2005; 4.8 ± 0.6 vs. 4.4 ± 0.5, P = 0.02) and should be obligatory (3.5 ± 1.5 vs. 3.1 ± 1.3, P = 0.35). Conclusions: Co-education was well received and determined by the students as an effective way of improving their knowledge of emergency medicine and medical skills. The programme was rated as very useful and it should be included in the educational curriculum of both student groups. © 2007 Acta Anaesthesiol Scand.

Background. Thomas Bessell Kidner is well-known in the United States as a great contributor to occupational therapy. He is not well-known in Canada despite the fact that his first contributions to the profession were made here between 1900 and 1918. Purpose. To tell the story of Thomas Bessell Kidner and his impact on occupational therapy. Methods. Interpretive biography research methods using archival materials, published papers and family papers. Results. Kidner's work as an organizer of manual training in elementary schools in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick and as Director of Technical education for Calgary prepared him for his work as vocational Secretary of the Military Hospitals Commission during World War I. Kidner developed, implemented and oversaw the reeducation program for injured soldiers across Canada. It included bedside occupations, off-ward and curative workshop activities provided by ward aides, as well as industrial training and apprenticeships in the workplace. Practice Implications. Kidner's story stimulates us to revisit our profession's early emphasis on return-to-work. Knowing about our past helps occupational therapists to build a stronger identity.

This article outlines the main elements of the German system of vocational training and looks at recent pressure for change in the system. It identifies two central elements in the system, the notion of the occupation and the dual structure of training delivery. These characteristics are embedded in an array of institutional arrangements which include co-determination within companies, industry-level collective bargaining, national legislation defining occupational categories, and state provision for apprenticeship schools. Several criticisms of the German vocational training system have emerged in recent years, reflecting changes in the German economy and society and the influence of external economic pressures for change. A review of some of the criticisms of the vocational training system and of legislative responses suggests that the system has managed most of these pressures by adapting its institutional arrangements rather than abandoning them. © 2007, Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

This contribution follows the descriptive review of Weigel, Mulder and Collins regarding the use of the competence concept in the development of vocational education and training in England, France, Germany and the Netherlands. The purpose of this contribution is to review the critical analyses brought forward by various authors in this field. This analysis also remarks on the most important theories and critiques on the use of the competence concept in the above-mentioned states, The systems of vocational education within the four states covered in this study are: the National vocational Qualifications in England, the approach to learning areas in Germany, the ETED and the bilan de compétences in France, and the implementation of competence-based vocational education in the Netherlands, and these are the respective focal points for the critical assessments of the competence concept presented here. These critiques encompass such aspects as the lack of a coherent definition of the concept of competence, the lack of a one-to-one relationship between competence and performance, the misled notion that employing the concept of competence decreases the value of knowledge, the difficulties of designing competence-based educational principles at the curriculum and instruction levels, the underestimation of the organizational consequences of competence-based education, and the many problems in the field of competence assessment. © 2007 The vocational Aspect of education.