02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper
"We are misfit children": How Vocational School Principals Perceive their Role
Mirit Haybi Barak, Avihu Shoshana
University of Haifa, Israel
Presenting Author: Haybi Barak, Mirit;
Shoshana, Avihu
Numerous studies have underscored the complexity of the role of school principals (Hitt & Tucker, 2016). The school principal's function has been analyzed in the context of diverse organizational, educational, and cultural domains, and their impact on multiple variables concerning students, teachers, and school effectiveness has been explored (Nettles & Herrington, 2007). However, very few studies have examined the unique characteristics of vocational school management (Foley, 2011; Gessler & Ashmawy, 2016; Park, 2012). Even fewer studies have examined how vocational school principals view their role (see, for example, Foley, 2011).
This research lacuna should disturb us in light of the unique characteristics of vocational schools in different countries (Ozer & Perc, 2020). Vocational schools are viewed as an alternative for students with low academic abilities or “at-risk youth” (Down et al., 2019). It was also found that these schools primarily serve working-class students (Nylund et al., 2017), and they suffer from negative stigma and poor image (Vlaardingerbroek & Hachem El-Masri, 2008). In this context, this study examines three key questions: How do vocational school principals portray their role and work environment? How do vocational school principals portray the pedagogy of vocational education? Do these definitions and descriptions imply educational stratification and social inequality in vocational schools, and if so, how are they manifested?
Vocational School Management
Several studies have argued the critical role of the school's socio-cultural context in influencing the school principal's leadership style (Belchetz & Leithwood, 2007; Hallinger & Bryant, 2013). They noted that effective school leadership could be perceived differently in diverse cultures (Tan, 2018). Bennett and colleagues (2003) asserted, for example, that the effectiveness of a distributed leadership style is subject to the school culture: In one school, it will promote trust and partnership, whereas, in another, it may provoke opposition and mistrust.
The assertion that school leadership is context-dependent is the basis for the present investigation. Boateng (2012) argued that management in vocational education institutions differs from management in general education and should be addressed accordingly. Boateng (2012) asserted that vocational education provides students with practical knowledge, and society counts on these schools to prevent unemployment. Therefore, vocational school principals face multiple governmental demands and expectations on the one hand and labor market demands on the other.
Other studies have highlighted the singularity and importance of the vocational school principal because this educational stream is continually subject to changes and effects of the labor market and economy. Thus, the effective management style for this educational stream should be adaptive and responsive and create an educational environment that can adjust to government changes and reforms. It should also provide graduates capable of responding to the same changing job market (Wonacott, 1998).
However, only few studies have directly addressed the unique aspects of management and educational leadership in vocational schools. Several studies have examined how vocational school principals cope with policy reforms or demands to produce change and academic innovation. Foley (2011), for example, investigated how neoliberal reform has affected Australian principals' vocational identity and found them to have multiple identities that they constantly "juggle" when required to implement change in the field.
Notably, however, the research literature barely addresses the question of whether vocational school principals are characterized by a unique leadership style or by management considerations common to all school principals. A comparative study (de Jong et al., 2020) conducted in the Netherlands revealed that vocational school principals were inclined toward a leadership style that the authors termed Thire (theirs). These vocational school principals functioned more as facilitators than primary school principals or academic high schools.
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedThis study is based on a qualitative methodology, with data collected from 22 in-depth interviews with vocational school principals in Israel. we used the snowball sampling method. We located suitable interviewees through personal connections (four participants were interviewed in this way). In addition, an invitation to participate was posted on social networks (14 interviewees), and others were located through mutual acquaintances (four interviewees) who helped us connect with additional interviewees.
Of the 22 participants, seven were women, and 15 were men. The seniority of the interviewed principals ranged from 3–18 years. Six interviewees held a teaching certificate, six principals had worked in academic schools, and 10 were retired army officers. Career army officers retire from the military in Israel at a relatively early age––in their 40s and 50s. In light of the symbolic capital associated with being an army officer in Israel, a society in which security and the military play a central role, this transition of military officers to education is relatively common. The participants' schools are located in various cities throughout Israel. The study was approved by the ethics committee of the Faculty of Education at the university with which we are affiliated.
The research tool in this study was a semi-structured in-depth interview that aimed to examine the principals' perception of their professional role. The semi-structured hour-long interviews comprised several sections: The principals' career path; perception of the principal's role; daily administrative routine; student population; relationship with parents; social criticism concerning vocational education:
The research epistemology guiding us in this study was derived from the thematic analysis approach (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The data were analyzed in six steps. Step 1 included reading the raw data and taking notes about the descriptive and linguistic aspects of the content, as well as preliminary interpretive notes. Step 2 called for an initial conceptualization of the central themes that each author identified. Stage 3 included reading the interview transcripts following the initially extracted themes. Step 4 included a free reading to identify themes not identified in the previous step. Stage 5 included a focused reading of the interviews according to the themes suggested by the authors. Step 6 involved a final reading of the interviews to extract themes not identified by the authors in the previous stages. For each stage, the authors discussed the themes and their classification.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsThe primary findings of the current study revealed that principals describe their role as managing under social exclusion. This type of management was described through several key features, such as the school's stigmas, low social value, and the nature of the students. The principals described the students as “at-risk youth” who suffer from cognitive, emotional, and behavioral problems. They described their management job as unique, partly because it primarily involves working closely with the youth, typically in the absence of parental involvement (termed a "school without parents").
Principals described their work as managers lacking a routine or having a routine comprised of ongoing crises. They further lamented a sense of uncertainty due to the constant fear of insufficient student enrollment, leading to ongoing closure threats. Against this background, one of the primary roles of vocational school principals is to engage heavily in marketing.
In addition, the interviewed principals cited several consequences associated with managing educational spaces of exclusion (called by one of the participants "the backyard of the educational system"): The principals are negatively tagged (considered "second-rate principals"); they are refused entry from hegemonic and prestigious training courses; they see themselves managing students who deride attending a vocational school; and teachers who feel like “second-rate” teachers. It is noteworthy that the principals' experience of marginalization and exclusion resonates with research findings regarding the students' and teachers' experience in vocational schools (Ben Peretz et al., 2003; Van Houtte, 2004).
The article discusses the meaning of principals' description of their role in in the context of the "coalition of despair," (Sharlin and Shamai, 1999) especially how education and welfare professionals' experiences parallel those of the marginalized populations they serve. Also discussed was how the principals' role perception impacts educational stratification and social inequality.
ReferencesBelchetz, D., & Leithwood, K. (2007). Successful leadership: Does context matter and if so, how? In C. Day & K. Leithwood (Eds.), Successful principal leadership in times of change (pp. 117–138). Springer.
Ben-Peretz, M., Mendelson, N., & Kron, F. W. (2003). How teachers in different educational contexts view their roles. Teaching and Teacher Education, 19(2), 277–290.
Boateng, C. (2012). Restructuring vocational and technical education in Ghana: The role of leadership development. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 2(4), 108 – 114.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.
de Jong, W. A., Lockhorst, D., de Kleijn, R. A. M., Noordegraaf, M., & van Tartwijk, J. W. F. (2020). Leadership practices in collaborative innovation: A study among Dutch school principals. Educational Management Administration & Leadership,
Down, B., Smyth, J., & Robinson, J. (2019). Problematising vocational education and training in schools: Using student narratives to interrupt neoliberal ideology. Critical Studies in Education, 60(4), 443–461.
Foley, A. (2011). Vocational education and training manager discursive practices at the frontline: Alternative possibilities in a Victorian setting. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 39(1), 105–121.
Gessler, M., & Ashmawy, I. K. (2016). The effect of political decentralization on school leadership in German vocational schools. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 44(2), 184–204.
Hallinger, P., & Bryant, D. A. (2013). Synthesis of findings from 15 years of educational reform in Thailand: Lessons on leading educational change in East Asia. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 16(4), 399–418.
Nylund, M., Rosvall, P. Å., & Ledman, K. (2017). The vocational–academic divide in neoliberal upper secondary curricula: The Swedish case. Journal of Education Policy, 32(6), 788–808.
Ozer, M., & Perc, M. (2020). Dreams and realities of school tracking and vocational education. Palgrave Communications, 6(1), 1–7.
Park, J. H. (2012). The effects of principal’s leadership style on support for innovation: Evidence from Korean vocational high school change. Asia Pacific Education Review, 13(1), 89—102.
Sharlin, S. A., & Shamai, M. (1999). Therapeutic intervention with poor, unorganized families: From distress to hope. Routledge.
Tan, C. Y. (2018). Examining school leadership effects on student achievement: The role of contextual challenges and constraints. Cambridge Journal of Education, 48(1), 21–45.
Wonacott, M. E. (1998) Leadership development in career and technical education. ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education.
02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper
Learning Environments in Vocational Education and Training
Bjarne Wahlgren, Vibe Aarkrog
Aarhus Universitet / University of Aarhus
Presenting Author: Wahlgren, Bjarne;
Aarkrog, Vibe
The learning environment at vocational colleges influences the students' learning, their well-being and drop-out rates. Consequently, the learning environment is an important factor in the learning process. In a project about learning environment at vocational colleges, we analysed factors in the learning environment that have an impact on students’ wellbeing and completion of VET. Based on a review of international research on these factors, an empirical study was conducted about the factors, their interrelation, and the development of a positive and learning environment.
The factors concern the vocational part of the learning environment as well as the social learning environment. In the current leaning situations as well as in the literature referred, these factors interact. However, we have categorized the different studies in accordance with the main emphasis in the particular projects. In this project, we have not included conditions related to the physical side of the learning environment.
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedThe review of the international research the learning environment included studies from the ERIC database and searches in the journals 'International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training', 'Nordic Journal of Vocational Education and Training', and the 'ECER VETNET proceedings'.
Based on the review, we have identified a number of factors that have an impact on the educational environment. In the empirical study, the identified factors are elaborated and operationalized to be tested on data about learning environments at 13 Danish vocational colleges. The data included observations, interviews, and ‘mobile ethnography’.
Altogether 24 VET programmes were analysed comprising a broad spectrum of vocational branches. In each programme, students and teachers were interviewed. For both students and teacher, half of the interviews were conducted as focus-group interviews, half of the interviews as individual interviews. The interviews were semi-structured conducted according to an elaborated frame. In the interviews, results from the researchers’ systematic observations of teaching situations at the college were included and transformed to questions. Each interview lasted between half an hour and one hour. The theoretical developed impact factors served as a frame for analysing the interviews. The total number of interviews were 132.
This method was supplemented with a data collection using a method named ‘mobile-ethnography’. In logbooks, the students were asked to describe situations where they had experienced a positive learning environment and illustrate these situations and environments with mobile- recorded video-sequences. Like the interview data, these data provided elaborated examples of factors located in the above-mentioned review of international research.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsConcerning factors related to the vocational part of the training, the analyses show that it is important for the students’ well-being and satisfaction with the training that they accomplish authentic tasks from the professions Likewise, it is important, that the students are involved actively and responsibly in the learning, and that the teachers have time for systematic differentiation. It is important, that teachers have positive expectations for the students ' performance, that the students are supported in setting goals and retaining these and that all students receive feedback. Furthermore the study shows that collaboration between teachers in the colleges and trainers in the workplaces should be developed, and the teaching should be holistic, practice-related and experimental.
In relation to the social learning environment, it is important that the teachers are able to establish positive relationships with the students. These relationships include that the teachers are authentic role models for the students inside and outside the classroom. Furthermore, teachers should facilitate positive relations among the students by creating vocational and social communities that counteract bullying and gender discrimination. Finally, the colleges should ensure a smooth transition to the workplace-based training, including that the teachers collaborate with the workplace. A supportive learning environment requires that the teachers have developed social and personal competences.
References•Aspelin, J. (2019) Enhancing pre-service teachers’ socio-emotional competence. International Journal of Emotional Education. Special Issue, Vol 11, No 1 (153-168).
•Becker, S., Pfost, M. & Artelt, C. (2018). New Challenges, New Motivation? Goal Orientation Development in Graduate of Higher Track Schools and Their Peers in Vocational Training. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1-15.
•Downing. J.J. (2017). Design principles for applied learning: bringing theory and practice together in an online VET teacher-education degree. International Journal of Training Research, 15 (1), 85-102.
•Dutschke, A. (2018). Understanding VET teacher attitudes to student support in a major public VET provider. International Journal of Training Research, 16 (2), 163-181.
•Krane, V., Ness, O., Holter-Sorensen, N.Karlsson, B. & Binder P-E. (2016). ‘You notice that there is something positive about going to school’: how teachers’ kindness can promote positive teacher-student relationships in upper secondary school. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, Vol 22, No 4 (377-389).
•Lüthi, F. & Stalder, B.E. (2018). Situational and individual resources predict learning opportunities and career outcomes in VET. In Nägele, C. & Stalder, B.E. Trends in Vocational Education and Training Research. VETNET ECER Procedings 2018.
•Neuenschwander, M.P., Hofmann, J., Jüttler, A. & Schumann, S. (2018). Professional Desires and Career Decisions: Effects of Professional Interests, Role Models, and Internship in Lower Secondary School, International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training, 5 (3), 126-243.
•Niittylahti, S., Annala, J. & Mäkinen, M. (2019). Student engagement at the beginning of vocational studies. Nordic Journal of Vocational Education and Training (NJVET), Vol. 9, No. 1, 21–42, doi: 10.3384/njvet.2242-458X.199121.
•Placklé, I, Könings, K.D, Jacquet, W, Struyven, K, Libotton, A., Merriënboer, J J.G. van & Engels, N., (2014). Students’ Preferred Characteristics of Learning Environments in Vocational Secondary Education, International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training, 1 (2), 107-124.
•Stousland, H. & Witsø, H. (2015). Er stasjonsopplæring i videregående skole en metode som er egnet til å støtte yrkesfageleven i vurdering av egen læring? Nordic Journal of Vocational Education and Training (NJVET), Vol. 5, 2015.
•Undervisningsministeriet (2019). Eleverne trives på erhvervsuddannelserne. file:///C:/Users/au198612/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/IE/DYLKSJLT/190426-Notat-ETU-EUD-2018-11042019%20(1).pdf
02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper
A place for emotional competences in Vocational Education and Training
Marina Fiori1, Florinda Sauli2, Matilde Wenger1
1SFUVET, Switzerland; 2The University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, Switzerland
Presenting Author: Fiori, Marina
The world is facing an unprecedented change due to technological innovation, the globalization of products and trade, and demographic shifts that are significantly impacting the way of working and the characteristics required to work productively (International Labour Organization [ILO] 2019). In the face of such challenges, individuals need to develop additional, soft or transferable skills that can be applied to working regardless of the specific function occupied. In particular, the competences that refer to the emotional aspect of the individuals, namely emotional competences, may be particularly helpful in times of challenges and high uncertainty.
Emotional competences or skills may encompass several characteristics. Across the different theoretical frameworks, a primary role may be attributed to the following competences: emotional self-awareness or the ability to understand one’s own emotional reactions and their effects on thinking and behavior. Self-management (or self-control), which ensures better capacity to cope with uncertainty and the pressure of everyday life. Empathy and social awareness, which impact interpersonal relationships by creating more profound connections with others and an improved reciprocal understanding (Petrovici & Dobrescu, 2014). These competences have proved to be critical factors accounting for, among others, better social adjustment and higher employability (Nelis et al., 2011).
The development of emotional competences is particularly important for a population that faces frequent emotional ups and downs: that of adolescents. In particular, VET students and apprentices are experiencing a sensitive period of their life: the transition from adolescence to adulthood is condensed compared to other adolescents because they are required to become independent (financially and psychologically) earlier than students who pursue tertiary education (Masdonati et al. 2007). Hence, they are exposed to intense emotional reactions, such as those related to the fear of social exclusion, and to social environments (including peer pressure and job context) that may be perceived as stressful.
Emotional competences may foster resilience through the facilitation of stress regulation (Davis, 2018), by supporting better self-management and more effective interpersonal relationships. The benefits of interventions on emotional competences for students are numerous: better conflict management and emotion management, which may reduce youth violence and bullying (Brown et al., 2011) reduced dropout rate and stronger support in becoming more effective students, also from the point of view of social adaptation (Nathanson et al., 2016).
Emotional competences may also benefit another important actor in VET: professional schools’ teachers. The school environment is known to involve several stressors--such as classroom management, pressure from parents, responsibility for students’ learning—which account for high levels of burnout in this profession (Kinman et al., 2011). Several studies show that teachers’ well-being, resilience to stress, and effectiveness in class can be improved by training on emotional competences (e.g., Vignjević Korotaj & Mrnjaus, 2021).
In sum, interventions on emotional competences seem particularly suitable for supporting the development of key actors in VET, namely, students and teachers. While interventions and scientific contributions on emotional competences are flourishing in the educational contest, we observe few programs in Europe and a dearth of scientific contributions regarding emotional interventions in vocational education and training (VET).
With this contribution we aim to provide the state of the art on existing scientific publications about emotional training interventions in VET and a summary of existing programs at the European level. Ultimately our goal is to open a discussion around how emotional training may be regarded as a compelling domain of research for VET scholars and practitioners.
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedIn the literature, emotional competences are sometimes grouped under the broader category of socio-emotional competences or more generally social competences or social skills (Monnier, 2015). The literature that traditionally has provided a theoretical framework for the development of such competences is that of emotional intelligence. Consequently, in our search we used different keywords that expressed the same concept and employed emotional intelligence as the theoretical framework.
We selected the literature according to the following inclusion criteria. The studies had to: a) involve a training program aimed at improving socio-emotional competences; b) be in the VET context; c) include measures of emotional intelligence; d) date from 2000 to 2021; e) be written in English.
We started by searching in the Web of Science database, using the keywords “emotional intelligence” OR “emotional competenc*” OR “social competenc*” OR “socio-emotional competenc*” OR “socio-emotional skills” OR “soft skills” OR “core skills” AND “vocational education and training” OR “VET”, obtaining 61,556 results. The screening procedure radically reduced the results: only two articles were selected (Madalinska-Michalak, 2015; Repetto Talavera & Pérez-González, 2007). We also checked on the ERIC, Taylor and Francis Education Online Archive, and Google Scholar databases, but no article was found to be relevant according to the inclusion criteria.
To understand whether the lack of scientific reports corresponded to a lack of projects on socio-emotional competences, we further searched programs carried out in Europe. We applied the following inclusion criteria: They had to take place in Europe, be in VET, and include a training on socio-emotional competences. We also searched on Google and on websites of some targeted VET networks or institutions: CEDEFOP (European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training) and VETNET (European Research Network on Vocational Education and Training) at the European level; BiBB (Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung) in Germany, and SERI (State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation) in Switzerland. In total we identified four programs at the European level.
Overall, the analysis of programs shows that the domain of socio-emotional competences has been approached in VET, although the programs developed in most cases are not publicly available in terms of reports and summaries of the results obtained. Furthermore, the general impression is that these programs were more like first attempts to approach emotional competences in interventions, but they did not necessarily adopt a scientific approach in how the intervention was developed and its effects analyzed.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsIn this article we conducted a literature review on the topic of emotional competences, in particular searching for scientific articles describing training in socio-emotional competences in VET. Acknowledging the dearth of scientific contributions (only 2), we extended our search to programs developed in Europe. We found that there are only a few training programs on socio-emotional competences in VET developed so far, and, based on the materials publicly available, they seem to lack a rigorous scientific approach. We drew primarily on psychological approaches to socio-emotional competences to provide a theoretical framework that is rich in assessment methods and scientific evidence. These approaches require adaptation to the VET context specificities and to its literature of reference.
Our analysis has raised a few important questions: Why are research and interventions on emotional competences so little developed in VET, in absolute terms and as compared to the educational and psychological domains? A possibility is that the role of emotions and of individual differences in emotional competences have not been recognized in VET yet, differently from what happened in education and psychology. Given the raising importance of transversal skills, which include emotional competences too, this dearth of contributions underscores a gap that needs to be addressed in future research and interventions. To what extent is it important to add socio-emotional competences in a VET curriculum? We believe that our analysis has highlighted a few good reasons why VET students would particularly benefit from this type of training and hope to raise interest and awareness about this compelling topic in VET.
ReferencesBrown, E.C., Low, S., Smith, B.H., Haggerty, K.P. (2011). Outcomes from a school-randomized controlled trial of steps to respect: A bullying prevention program. School Psychology Review, 40(3): 423–443. doi: 10.1080/02796015.2011.12087707
ILO (International Labour Organization) 2019. ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work. Available via https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/@ed_norm/@relconf/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_711674.pdf. Accessed 30 Sept 2021.
Kinman, G., Wray, S., & Strange, C. (2011). Emotional labour, burnout and job satisfaction in UK teachers: the role of workplace social support, Educational Psychology, 31:7, 843-856, DOI: 10.1080/01443410.2011.608650
Madalinska-Michalak, J. (2015). Developing emotional competence for teaching. Croatian Journal of Education 17(2): 71-97. doi: 10.15516/cje.v17i0.1581
Masdonati, J., Lamamra, N., Gay-des-Combes, B., Puy, J. D., (2007). Les enjeux identitaires de la formation professionnelle duale en Suisse : un tableau en demi-teinte [Identity issues in dual Swiss VET: a mixed picture]. Formation emploi. Revue française de sciences sociales 100: 15-29. doi: 10.4000/formationemploi.1253
Monnier, M. (2015). Difficulties in defining social-emotional intelligence, competences and skills: A theoretical analysis and structural suggestion. International Journal of Research in Vocational Education and Training 2(1) : 59-84. doi: 10.13152/IJRVET.2.1.4
Nathanson, L., Rivers, S.E., Flynn, L.M., Brackett, M.A. (2016). Creating emotionally intelligent schools with RULER. Emotion Review 8(4): 305-310.
Nelis, D., Kotsou, I., Quoidbach, J., Hansenne, M., Weytens, F., Dupuis, P., Mikolajczak, M. (2011). Increasing emotional competence improves psychological and physical well-being, social relationships, and employability. Emotion 11(2): 354–366. doi: 10.1037/a0021554
Petrovici, A., Dobrescu, T. (2014). The role of emotional intelligence in building interpersonal communication skills. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 116: 1405-1410. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.406
Repetto Talavera, E., Pérez-González, J.C. (2007). Training in Socio-Emotional Skills through On-Site Training. European Journal of Vocational Training, 40 (1): 83-102.
Vignjević Korotaj, B., & Mrnjaus, K. (2021) Emotional competence: a prerequisite for effective teaching, Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja, 34:1, 39-52, DOI: 10.1080/1331677X.2020.1751673
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