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02 SES 07 A: Teachers II
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02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper Cultivating Neuroinclusive Pedagogy in FE: A UDL Aligned Professional Development Model through Neuro-illuminate Ulster University, United Kingdom Presenting Author:Topic Neuro-illuminate is a government funded sector‑wide professional learning initiative led by Ulster University to embed Universal Design for Learning (UDL) across Further Education (FE) colleges in Northern Ireland. Its focus is providing teacher professional learning on neurodiversity‑affirming practice in vocational and adult learning through the lens of UDL. While UDL has a strong theoretical basis and a growing evidence base for enhancing access, engagement, and learner variability (Almeqdad, et.al. 2023), institutional uptake often stalls without robust implementation support. Neuro-illuminate responds to this challenge by integrating teacher professional learning, leadership training, practical interventions on practice and dissemination of innovative practice to translate UDL from policy aspiration into meaningful institutional change to promote better accessibility (Capp, 2017., Rose. et.al. 2000). Research Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of the Neuro-illuminate intervention by examining shifts in organisational culture, governance and inclusive practice, and by assessing changes in educators’ confidence, knowledge and implementation of UDL‑aligned, neuroinclusive pedagogies using mixed‑methods data from surveys and semi‑structured interviews. Research Question To what extent does the Neuro-illuminate professional development intervention foster systemic change across Further Education colleges and enhance educators’ neuroinclusive pedagogical practices?
Theoretical Framework Through the lens of social justice theory the implementation of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) underpins this study as an equity‑driven pedagogical framework that treats learner variability as a structural reality rather than an individual deficit. UDL assumes that barriers to learning arise from curricular, environmental and institutional design, not from learners, thereby framing inclusive design as a core issue of educational justice. This aligns with Fraser’s (2008) social justice model of redistribution, recognition and representation, which argues that equitable participation requires addressing economic inequalities, cultural marginalisation and political voice simultaneously. From this standpoint, UDL’s proactive principles serve as mechanisms of redistribution (equitable access to knowledge), recognition (valuing diverse ways of knowing rather than pathologising difference) and representation (ensuring all learners can meaningfully participate and demonstrate understanding). By embedding multiple means of engagement, representation and action/expression, UDL disrupts exclusionary traditions that privilege normative learner profiles and resonate with inclusive pedagogy’s aim to extend what is ordinarily available to everyone. Positioned within a social justice frame, UDL becomes not just an accessibility tool but a transformative approach aimed at dismantling maldistribution, countering misrecognition and challenging misrepresentation, thereby asserting inclusive design as an ethical and political imperative for achieving parity of participation in education (Hanesworth, et. al 2019). European Policy Contribution. Neuro-illuminate operationalises EU‑level commitments to inclusive and accessible lifelong learning, aligning with the Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2021–2030, the Council Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong Learning (2018), and the European Accessibility Act (2019/882), as well as the UNCRPD Article 24 on inclusive education. The programme’s governance, digital content strategy, and accessibility standards explicitly map to these frameworks, offering a transferable model for European Vocational Education systems. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used Methodology. This study employs a mixed methods design using semi structured interviews and surveys to examine the effectiveness of the Neuro-illuminate intervention on both systemic change across participating Further Education (FE) colleges and its pedagogical impact on practitioners’ neuroinclusive practices. Quantitative data was collected through pre and post intervention surveys administered participants involved in Neuro-illuminate. Survey instruments capture changes in UDL related beliefs, perceived self efficacy, confidence in supporting neurodiverse learners, and perceptions of organisational readiness for inclusive practice. Because the small sample constrains (n=14 -full cohort). Given the focus on systemic change, interview protocols include questions about cross college collaboration, leadership commitment, and the embedding of UDL principles within organisational policy and professional development pathways. Data was analysed using Braun and Clarke’s (2019) reflexive thematic analysis to identify patterns across qualitative datasets. This approach enables a systematic, iterative analytic process suited to capturing depth and complexity in participant perspectives. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Anticipated Contributions. The paper will demonstrate how governance, targeted investment, and cross college collaboration enable system wide adoption of UDL and offer a policy aligned, exportable blueprint for FE providers across Europe seeking to advance inclusive, accessible, and digitally enabled learning ecosystems. This responds directly to EU priorities for quality, inclusive, and accessible education and for strengthening teachers’ inclusive pedagogies. References Capp, M.J., (2017). The effectiveness of universal design for learning: A meta-analysis of literature between 2013 and 2016. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 21(8), pp.791-807. Council of the EU. (2018). Council Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong Learning (2018/C 189/01). European Commission. (2021). Union of Equality: Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2021–2030 European Parliament & Council. (2019). Directive (EU) 2019/882- the European Accessibility Act. Fraser, N., 2008. Social justice in the age of identity politics: Redistribution, recognition, and participation. In Geographic thought (pp. 72-89). Routledge. Hanesworth, P., Bracken, S. and Elkington, S., 2019. A typology for a social justice approach to assessment: Learning from universal design and culturally sustaining pedagogy. Teaching in Higher Education, 24(1), pp.98-114.Rose, D., 2000. Universal design for learning. Journal of Special Education Technology, 15(4), pp.47-51. 02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper Structuring Professional Development for Upper Secondary Vocational Techers in Brazil: European Insights and Brazilian Possibilities 1: FGV EAESP, Brazil; 2: SEDUC SP, Brazil Presenting Author:High school vocational education – termed Professional and Technical Education (EPT) in Brazil - has emerged as a priority in the education policy landscape. The 2024 National Policy of Secondary Education has restructured final three years of high school (Nivel Medio or NM, grades 10 – 12) from a generic upper secondary education to a differentiated preparation where students choose among five specialization tracks (or itineraries). EPT is one of those five tracks, and is championed by the ministry as an opportunity for students to acquire valuable professional orientation and skills upon graduating from high school. To encourage expanded provision of EPT in high schools (EPTNM hereafter), the Federal Government has put in place financial incentives for the State Education Secretariats – which are responsible for secondary education in Brazil. While much of the existing vocational education system in Brazil is associated with its post-secondary system in a network of specialized Federal and State technical education institutions, the scope of nationwide EPTNM within the entire system of public high-schools is a qualitatively distinct proposition with resource challenges, complex stakeholder engagement, as well as needs for new technical, pedagogical and administrative capacities. The current contribution focuses on a key challenge of this rapid expansion – availability and preparedness of vocational teachers for the public system. This is a critical area of research since there is no national policy on professional development of teachers in EPTNM. In Brazil’s federative governance structure, where states have considerable autonomy, the lack of a national policy has resulted in attempts to extend the dominant practices of teacher development and management in general education to the realm of EPTNM which is a very distinct ecosystem. The core research question explored in this contribution is “What professional development models would be appropriate for EPTNM teachers in the current phase of rapid expansion in Brazil?” This inquiry is pursued with particular attention to insights from upper-secondary VET teacher development and management policies and practices in the European contexts. The conceptual framework guiding this research is situated at the intersection of two streams of scholarship –theories on boundary crossing between school and work (Akkerman & Bakker 2011, Bakker & Akkerman 2019), and the concept of teacher professional capital (Hargreaves & Fullan 2012). While the notion of boundary crossing is well theorized in European vocational education literature, there is a paucity of such research in the global south contexts (Gessler, Nägele & Stalder 2021). The construct of teacher professional capital – constituting human, social and decisional capitals (Hargreaves and Fullan 2012) - is predominantly explored with relation to teachers in the basic (or general) education contexts. In EPTNM teachers, one witnesses a heterogeneity of competence profiles not unlike in the European contexts (Antera & Nilsson 2025). However, unlike in the European contexts of upper-secondary vocational education, the scope of work-based learning and apprenticeships – an integral aspect of vocational education (Mikkonen et al 2017)– remains extremely limited and uneven in Brazil. The situation is further complicated by inconsistent contractual arrangements of EPTNM teachers and Brazil’s significant regional inequalities. The current research posits that professional development of diverse vocational teachers in such a fragmented EPTNM space needs to be intentional about robust cross-learning (boundary-crossing) opportunities that are sustained through collaboration for critical inquiry and collective reflection on practice (Ainscow, 2016; Datnow, 2021), and embodied in teacher professional capital in all three of its constituent domains: human, social and decisional (Fullan 2016). The research is expected to provide insights on differentiated professional development possibilities for EPTNM teachers and inform the emergent policy of teacher development and management in Brazil’s upper secondary vocational education. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The study focuses on EPTNM in the state of Sao Paulo – the economic powerhouse of Brazil, and the country’s largest public school network. The State Education Secretariat (SEDUC-SP) has been one of the leaders in Brazil for EPTNM expansion with a focus on teacher formation and student exposure to workplace. The study analyzes the directives and content of SEDUC-SP professional development initiatives for EPTNM teachers. It also presents a critical synthesis of the state’s administrative data on EPTNM teachers’ professional background, their prior and on-going pedagogical formation, their teaching portfolio and contractual arrangements with SEDUC-SP. This descriptive analysis of secondary data foregrounds the design and qualitative methodology employed to collect primary data from EPTNM teachers from five schools within the same regional educational directorate in the state of Sao Paulo. Each school represents a different configuration of EPTNM provision. To elaborate, only one of the chosen schools has a 9 hour school day (as provisioned by the law on integrated or full day high school), while others have school day ranging from 5 to 7 hours (reflective of the legacy system still in transition). These schools also vary in terms of the proportion of students enrolled in the EPT track (between 30% to 60%), specialization areas offered, and the contractual arrangements of the EPTNM teachers. While EPTNM teachers with full time contracts are teaching in two of the schools, the other schools employ part-time and temporary teachers in partnership with state and federal level VET institutions whose offerings include post-secondary level vocational training and degrees. The semi-structured interviews with the EPTNM teachers (currently in progress) focus on their teaching strategies, challenges and successes, collaboration with general education teachers, pedagogical support received from school, regional and central office leadership and their perceived professional development needs – both pedagogically and with the employment sector. In additional, key administrative officials responsible for managing teacher professional development of EPTNM teachers at the regional directorate and the SEDUC-SP central office are also being interviewed. These interviews focus on both the rationale and perceived efficacy of the current professional development models, as well as strategies planned to effectuate the state’s EPTNM access and quality aspirations. Reflexive thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke 2022) of the interview data will provide a nuanced understanding of the pedagogical challenges and needs of EPTNM teachers, and help inform a differentiated and coherent model of professional development along their teaching journey with SEDUC-SP. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Analysis of the secondary data reveals that SEDUC-SP has put in place an aspirational system for pedagogical formation for EPTNM teachers. A central component of that system is a mandatory distance-learning course which provides a shared pedagogical foundation for teachers and emphasizes the integration of technical knowledge with active methodologies and student-centered approaches. In addition to this initial training, the state promotes peer-based professional development through an initiative called “Multiplica” – however this is not a mandatory program. When it comes to on-going professional development opportunities for EPTNM teachers, it is supported through structured online lesson-planning activities conducted within the scope of ATPC (Collective Pedagogical Work Sessions). While ATPC is mandatory, it is offered for varying hours for part-time teachers, depending on their teaching load. This later issue (ATPC variability) indicates that while there is a strong effort within the SEDUC-SP to provide pedagogical training to all EPTNM teachers, a point of fragility in the current system lies in the uneven availability of in-service professional development opportunities within part-time teachers’ working hours. Significantly, an absolute majority (88%) of EPTNM teachers in the state are working part-time in schools while maintaining their professional affiliation with the industry. While such a state of affairs might be desirable in mature European VET systems (such as in Switzerland); lack of prior pedagogical training of the EPTNM teachers makes the quality of their professional development – both at initiation of their teaching careers and on an ongoing basis – remains a critically important factor for the system’s success in the Brazilian context (de Carvalho 2025, Itaú Foundation 2024). ECER 2026 provides an opportunity for this research to engage with and learn from European perspectives in order to balance pedagogical continuity and professional compatibility in professional development provisions for EPTNM teachers in Sao Paulo and Brazil at large. References Ainscow, M. (2016), “Collaboration as a strategy for promoting equity in education: possibilities and barriers”, Journal of Professional Capital and Community, Vol. 1 No. 2, pp. 159-172. Akkerman, S. F., & Bakker, A. (2011). Boundary crossing and boundary objects. Review of educational research, 81(2), 132-169. Antera, S., & Nilsson, S. (2025). Competence profiles of vocational teachers in Sweden. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET), 12(3), 411-432. Bakker, A., & Akkerman, S. (2019). The learning potential of boundary crossing in the vocational curriculum. The Wiley handbook of vocational education and training, 349-372. Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2022). Thematic analysis: A practical guide. Sage Publication Datnow, A. (2021), “Commentary: professional learning networks: insights and future questions”, Journal of Professional Capital and Community, Vol. 6 No. 2, pp. 200-204. de Carvalho, F. R. D. S. (2025). Formação docente na educação profissional e tecnológica: perspectivas e desafios para inclusão escolar no ensino médio integrado. (Teacher training in vocational and technological education: perspectives and challenges for school inclusion in integrated secondary education). Perspectivas em Diálogo: Revista de Educação e Sociedade, 12(31), 223-243. Fullan, M. (2016). Implementation: Amplify change with professional capital. The Learning Professional, 37(1), 44. Gessler, M., Nägele, C., & Stalder, B. (2021). Scoping review on research at the boundary between learning and working: A bibliometric mapping analysis of the last decade. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET), 8(4), 170-206. Hargreaves, A. and Fullan, M. (2012), Professional capital: Transforming teaching in every school. Teachers College Press. Itaú Foundation. (2024). Contribuições para uma Política Estadual de Professores para a Educação Profissional e Tecnológica de Nível Médio (Contributions to a State Policy for Teachers in Vocational and Technological Education at the Secondary Level) Mikkonen, S., Pylväs, L., Rintala, H., Nokelainen, P., & Postareff, L. (2017). Guiding workplace learning in vocational education and training: A literature review. Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training, 9(1), 9. 02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper Tensions in Workplace Learning of Early Career Teachers in Vocational Education 1: VIA University College, Denmark; 2: Aalborg University; 3: Københavns Professionshøjskole Presenting Author:This paper presents findings from the Danish NUE-project, funded by the Independent Research Foundation of Denmark (DFF). NUE examines early-career vocational teachers and the conditions concerning their onboarding, integration, and workplace learning. Early-career teachers in VET face numerous challenges in vocational teaching, often combined with limited pedagogical training and education, which makes their situation especially precarious, often resulting in high turnover in Denmark (Hjarsbech & Riis, 2023). This instability hinders the development of high-quality teaching and diminishes the appeal of VET careers, a pressing issue given VET’s critical role in preparing skilled professionals for various industries (Rohwedder & Le Fevre, 2025; Wheelahan, 2014). The lack of early-career support for VET teachers exacerbates this problem (CEDEFOP, 2016; Smith & Yasukawa, 2017). Unlike their counterparts in conventional educational fields, VET teachers are typically professionals transitioning from industries such as nursing or carpentry into teaching roles, often without formal pedagogical credentials (Rohwedder, 2024; Smith 2020). This project aims to generate essential knowledge about the integration and participation of early-career VET teachers in organizational communities of practice (Wenger, 1998) Guided by the research question, ‘How are the conditions and possibilities for developing the professional competences of early-career teachers constituted in the workplace of VET?’ The project examines four heterogeneous vocational education cases in Denmark (a health-care school, an agricultural school, a technical school, and a prison officer school) to highlight the potential differences and similarities that early-career teachers in VET face in workplace learning and overall integration across these schools. The project focuses on outlining and investigating the communities of practice of the four case schools, drawing upon cultural-historical psychology (Engeström, 2001) and organizational learning theory. We especially focus on communities of practice as a lens for understanding and enunciating the challenges early-career VET teachers face. Specifically, we are inspired by the concept of ‘communities of practice’ (Lave & Wenger, 1991), which we attempt to update and actualize in our research design, taking into accounts critiques raised toward the concept as such (Gherardi, 2009). The concept ‘communities of practice’ is here fertilized with perspectives stemming from cultural historical psychology as a whole (Engeström, 2001), especially we are attentive towards the inherent contradictions between the respective agents in the fields, and how other fields influence the cases we investigate, which is also used in other forms of practice theory (Schatzki, 2018, Bourdieu,1990) . Especially, we wish to inquire whether it is possible to plot trajectories for early-career teachers across the case schools, trajectories that encapsulate the dynamic tension of inertia-acceleration akin to Lave’s legitimate-periphery concept. One year into the project, we have identified various tensions across the four cases. Not tensions we necessarily can solve, but rather as analytical points of departure to which we, as researchers, invite VET practitioners to use these tensions to generate insights and learning opportunities (Brandi & Elkjaer, 2022; Persson & Revsbæk, 2024) about the integration and onboarding of early-career teachers. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used The NUE-project adopts a pragmatic approach, applying research methods to real-world conditions (Dewey, 1938). The key line of inquiry is a multiple-case study with four VET institutions, each examining the research question in different organizational settings. These four cases) represent a diverse sample of institutional and vocational environments, each with unique conditions for onboarding early-career VET teachers. Each case is examined through a four-step qualitative process: a) dialogue meetings with school leaders to align the research process with the specific institutional context; b) participatory field observations (Kristiansen & Krogstrup, 2015) of activities related to early-career teachers’ daily experiences within the organization; c) individual and group interviews with early-career teachers to explore their integration and participation in the community of practice; d) group interviews with experienced vocational teachers to further investigate the conditions and opportunities for onboarding in their respective organizations and to empower teachers, helping them better understand and navigate their organizational roles and challenges; and e) each empirical case study is condensed into a case profile to illustrate and exemplify the conditions and possibilities regarding inertia–acceleration or related theoretical conceptualizations. A simultaneous trajectory in the research design is the hermeneutic line of inquiry (Dibley et al., 2020). The research team has begun to interpret preconceptions and emergent understandings, tracing how new lines of understanding emerge from the cases, and how these may change and enhance this line of inquiry (Crowther & Thomson, 2020). One year into the project, we have concluded our first round of data collection. Following an abductive line of inquiry (Tavory & Timmermans, 2014) we have identified tensions across the four cases, which we have added to our inquiry (our interview guides, observation scaffolding, workshop design), resulting in a more fine-grained line of inquiry, where we examine the validity of these tensions. It is still too early to dismiss or confirm the usefulness of the proposed concept and lens of inertia-acceleration, but the heterogeneous nature of vocational education regarding onboarding and workplace learning is quite clear in our data. Early-career teachers face very different conditions and challenges across our cases, with tensions manifesting in varying degrees in all the case schools, as well as in different forms. In our presentation, we present these findings concerning tensions and conceptualize them from our working concept of communities of practice and outline our next step in our abductive line of inquiry. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Our preliminary findings indicate a line of tensions that influence early-career teachers’ workplace learning in vocational education. Here, we present findings concerning two tensions, conceptualize them from the concept of communities of practice, and outline our next step in our abductive line of inquiry. The tension of ‘institutional lesson plans’ and the tension of ‘colleagues’ is enunciated in our presentation. In all four cases, we found that institutional lesson plans and PowerPoints are available in various formats. Early-career teachers face dilemmas concerning these codified and manifested lesson plans. On the one hand, early-career teachers find them helpful for lesson planning. On the other hand, early-career teachers also point out that some plans seem outdated, inadequate, and out of sync; do early-career teachers then have to be faithful to outdated lesson plans? Moreover, the highly diverse composition of vocational training classrooms similarly challenges the general nature of lesson plans, which typically address issues concerning group work and differences between students in terms of competencies, age, and so forth. The second tension concerns colleagues and unfolds as support and peripheral positioning. Experienced colleagues tend to welcome newcomers with guidance framed through established norms — for example, “this is how we usually do things here.” While intended as supportive, such practices may simultaneously constrain newcomers’ agency and maintain them in a peripheral role. Additionally, we outline how our hermeneutic line of inquiry has fertilized our abductive inquiry, and how our overall pragmatic research design might inspire other VET researchers. The lens of cultural-historical psychology and organizational learning provides a nuanced understanding of the challenges, and we present how this lens could benefit vocational research, especially in a pragmatic approach. References Brandi, U., & Elkjaer, B. (2024). Lessons from pragmatism: Organizational learning as resolving tensions at work. Educational philosophy and theory, 56(5), 448-458. Crowther, S., & Thomson, G. (2020). From description to interpretive leap: Using philosophical notions to unpack and surface meaning in hermeneutic phenomenology research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 19 CEDEFOP. (2016). Briefing note on professional development for VET teachers and trainers. https:// www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/publications-and-resources/publications/9112 Dewey, J. (1938). Logic: The theory of inquiry. Henry Holt and Company. Dibley, L., Dickerson, S., Duffy, M., & Vandermause, R. (2020). Doing hermeneutic phenomenological research: A practical guide. Sage. Engeström, Y. (2001). Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualization. Journal of education and work, 14(1), 133–156. Gherardi, S. (2009). Community of practice or practices of a community. The Sage handbook of management learning, education, and development, 514–530. Kristiansen, S. & Krogstrup, H. K. (2015). Deltagende observation 2. udgave. Hans Reitzels Forlag Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning : Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge University Press Persson, A. S., & Revsbæk, L. (2024). Wickedity in onboarding to high-stress social work: an action research study. Journal of Workplace Learning, 36(2), 186-201. Rohwedder, A. B., & Le Fevre, D. M. (2025). Effective early career VET teaching: the importance of developing adaptive expertise in workplace learning. International Journal of Training Research, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/14480220.2025.2512733 Rohwedder, A.-B. N. (2024). Didaktisk Onboarding i Erhvervsskolen. Forskningsrapport Schatzki, T. (2018). On practice theory, or what’s practices got to do (got to do) with it? Education in an Era of Schooling, 151–165. Bourdieu, P. (1990). The Logic of Practice (R. Nice, Trans.). Cambridge, UK: Polity Press. Smith, E., & Yasukawa, K. (2017). What makes a good VET teacher? Views of Australian VET teachers and students. International Journal of Training Research, 15(1), 23–40. Tavory, I., & Timmermans, S. (2014). Abductive analysis: theorizing qualitative research. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practices. Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University. Wheelahan, L. (2014). Literature review: The quality of teaching in VET. L.H. Martin Institute for Higher Education Leadership and Management Melbourne Graduate School of Education University of Melbourne. 02. Vocational Education and Training (VETNET)
Paper Pedagogues or Craftspersons? A Latent Class Analysis of TVET Educators’ Educational Aims and Socio-Emotional Support for Students 1: Häme University of Applied Sciences (HAMK), Finland; 2: University of Helsinki, Finland Presenting Author:Technical vocational education and training (TVET) takes place both at school and workplace. As TVET students cross the boundaries of school and workplace, they encounter various educators, both teachers and workplace supervisors, who adopt different educational aims for student development in their teaching and guidance (Berner, 2010; Löfgren et al., 2022). Educational aims are theoretically integral to educators’ professional identity (Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024; Vähäsantanen & Hämäläinen, 2019). Educators who identify themselves as craftspersons prefer professional educational aims which are directly linked to the immediate vocational practice: development of professional expertise and professional identity, membership in the professional community of practice and employment (Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024; Löfgren et al., 2022; Nylund & Gudmundson, 2017). Educators who identify as pedagogues recognize the aforementioned professional educational aims but place particular emphasis on pedagogical aims that more comprehensively advance students’ personal growth: lifelong learning, general education and eligibility to further education, gender equality and a good life (Antera, 2022; Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024). Both workplace supervisors and TVET teachers have a background in the industry and those who choose to continue their career within teaching usually retain close connections to their previous profession; therefore, previous studies suggest that TVET educators more commonly would identify themselves as craftspersons (e.g., Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024; Nylund & Gudmundson, 2017).
While TVET educators’ professional identity seems to imply what knowledge they want to mediate to the students, it also suggests which tasks and practices educators prefer in their teaching and guidance (Berner, 2010; Löfgren et al., 2022). Previous studies suggest that pedagogues are more likely to establish a socio-emotionally supportive learning environment to the students than the craftspersons (Nylund & Gudmundson, 2017). A learning environment can greatly support student learning when educators provide the students with social support to overcome setbacks, recognition and equal treatment to strengthen student self-efficacy beliefs and motivation and when there is a positive and safe climate where learning is promoted without a fear of getting embarrassed when failing (Toom et al., 2017). However, previous European studies conducted in Sweden, Estonia and Finland suggest that TVET educators offer their students varying levels of socio-emotional support (Berner, 2010; Goodson & Ümarik, 2019; Löfgren et al., 2022).
Previous studies concerning the associations between TVET educators’ professional identity and their support to students are mostly qualitative (e.g., Berner, 2010; Löfgren et al., 2022). There is a need for quantitative studies that could reveal ‘concealed aspects’ behind educators’ educational aims (Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024). Therefore, this study aims to quantitatively examine TVET educators’ professional identity. It employs latent class analysis (LCA; Weller et al., 2020) to investigate whether Finnish TVET educators can be classified into pedagogues and craftspersons according to their educational aims. The study also aims to explore possible class differences in socio-emotional support for students: social support, recognition, equal treatment and a positive climate for learning. The research questions and hypotheses are as follows: RQ1. How can TVET educators be classified according to their aims for teaching and guidance? H1. TVET educators can be classified as either a pedagogue or a craftsperson. H2. It is probable that a TVET educator is classified as a craftsperson. RQ2. How do profile classes differ in TVET educators’ perceptions of themselves as advancers of a socio-emotionally supportive learning environment? H3. Pedagogues perceive that they provide their students with more social support, recognition, equality and positive climate than a craftsperson. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used Research context Workplace learning is an integral part of the Finnish TVET system in which responsibility for supporting and assessing students’ learning is shared by the teacher and the workplace supervisor. However, only vocational teachers need to be pedagogically competent. Therefore, the Pedaknow project (University of Helsinki, Finland, 2022‒2023) investigated Finnish TVET teachers’ and workplace supervisors’ pedagogical competence. Vocational education providers from each Finnish province recruited local workplace supervisors to participate. Measures and data collection Data were collected between August 2022 and June 2023 with an online survey combining different measures. Firstly, participants’ educational aims were measured with a new instrument with eight optional educational aims based on earlier research. These covered four professional (‘professional expertise’; ’development of professional identity’; ‘membership in the professional community’ and ’employment’) and four pedagogical (’lifelong learning’, ’living a good life’, ’advancing gender equality within technical trades’ and ’general education and eligibility to further education’) educational aims. A participant could choose up to four aims. Subsequently, choices were coded as either 0 ’not selected’ or 1 ’selected’ resulting in eight dichotomous variables. Secondly, participants’ perceptions of themselves as promoters of a socio-emotionally advanced learning environment were collected with the modified instrument of Toom and colleagues (2017). Participants rated on a five-point Likert scale (1 = ‘completely disagree’ to 5 = ‘completely agree’) their proneness to provide the students with social support, recognition, equal treatment and a positive climate for learning. Sample and data analysis There were 387 TVET subject teachers and 250 workplace supervisors taking the survey which resulted in a total sample of N = 637. All observations were complete. There were 479 males (75.2%) and 126 females (19.8%). The rest chose the option ‘other’ or did not want to declare their gender. Mean age was 51.3 years (SD = 9.76; range: 23‒76 years). Every participant was asked for an informed consent. They participated voluntarily and without incentives. Statistical analyses were conducted in RStudio. First, participants were classified according to their preferred educational aims using latent class analysis (LCA) with the poLCA package (Linzer & Lewis, 2011). Then, class assignments were cross-tabulated with participants’ job positions to examine whether it was probable for the vocational educators at school and workplace to be assigned as craftspersons. Last, a series of Welch’s t-tests were run to investigate the possible differences in participants’ self-assessed provision of social support, recognition, equal treatment and a positive climate for learning. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings Results from the LCA strongly implicate that TVET teachers and workplace supervisors could be classified based on their preferred educational aims into pedagogues (75% of the sample) and craftspersons (25%). For both pedagogues and craftspersons, professional educational aims were highly probable. The clearest distinction was the professional aim of ‘membership in the professional community’ which was extremely probable for the craftspersons and not very probable for the pedagogues. In addition, every pedagogical educational aim was more likely to be chosen by a pedagogue than a craftsperson. While the division between pedagogues and craftspersons is in line with the earlier studies (e.g., Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024; Nylund & Gudmundson, 2017), the results of this study also showed that there were more pedagogues than craftspersons both among the TVET teachers (80%) and workplace supervisors (68%). This result challenges the view of some previous studies which suggest that a craftsperson identity could be more common (Berner, 2010; Goodson & Ümarik, 2019; Löfgren et al., 2022). The results further imply that pedagogues tend to provide their students with more socio-emotional support than craftspersons: especially social support but also equal treatment and a positive climate for learning. However, there were no statistically significant differences between pedagogues and craftspersons regarding their recognition of student endeavours. This study added to the existing discussion about TVET educators’ professional identity by providing a more refined structure behind educators’ educational aims (Bükki & Fehérvári, 2024) and advanced this conversation by considering also workplace supervisors and the association between educator professional identity and socio-emotional support for students. The results may be helpful in developing vocational teacher training as well as TVET teachers’ and workplace supervisors’ continuous professional development. References Antera, S. (2022). 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