Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Of Vocational and Technical Education'

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has proposed that economic growth in developing countries can best be achieved through a good delivery of technical/vocational education targeted to the specific needs of the country and its economy. In Iraq, the state regards technical/vocational education within the secondary system of education as the main source of the middle-rank skilled labour needed to satisfy the requirements of the economy. This study analyses the development of technical/vocational secondary education policies in Iraq. It seeks to examine this system in relation to the country's geopolitical, economic, social and cultural circumstances. The first chapter considers the arguments for and against I technical and vocational: education. The second chapter is concerned with Iraq's geopolitical position and examines the structure of its society. It will also examine the evolution and development of the Iraqi economy, with the main focus on the period after 1968. The third chapter is an analysis of the existing Iraqi educational system, including principles, aims and priorities, levels of education and quantitative growth, education finance and administration, curriculum and examination system. The fourth chapter reviews the nature of and growing need for technical and vocational education throughout the history of the country. The fifth chapter evaluates the existing system of technical and vocational education by firstly, examining its characteristics and then the problems facing it. Implications for planning and the reform of technical and vocational education in Iraq emerge from the conclusions and suggestions which constitute the final part.

The purpose of this research was to provide evidence of the impact career and technical education courses have on students after graduation. Numbers of Career and Technical Education (CTE) completers have continually dropped at the participating schools for the past five years. Five categories of placement after graduation were studied including the following: college, employment, postsecondary vocational training, military, and no placement. Archival data were gathered from postgraduate surveys conducted by high schools as required by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Data were collected for graduates in 2011, 2012, and 2013 from four area high schools that provide CTE training to some students at their own high schools and send a portion of students to an area career center for additional offerings. A Pearson product-moment coefficient of correlation (Pearson r) was calculated, and t-tests were used to assess the data. The findings revealed large positive relationships between completers of CTE programs and placement in college, employment, or related locations, yet the results of the t-test indicated there was no significant difference (at p < .05) between the placement for students who attended either a District or Area Career and Technical facility. This research may assist schools in presenting the benefits of CTE training to fifth- through tenth-grade students, provide ways for schools to better implement CTE programs, and to make the programs more accessible to future students.

This thesis was written as part of a process to secure funds for developing a "Preparatory Vocational Education" training academy for entry-level "Irrigation Technicians." Research revealed that funding for vocational program development was being awarded to "All-inclusive" or academy-style programs. These programs provide instruction necessary for students with zero experience to compete as entry-level journeymen. This project is based on a partial proposal draft for a U.S. Department of Labor Grant.

This qualitative study investigated information sharing practices between two Southern California comprehensive high schools and an offsite career training (CT) school with a focus on students with disabilities (SWD). The case study approach examined how student information is communicated in support of new federal and state policies related to college and career preparedness. Bolman and Deal’s Four Frame Model served as the theoretical framework. The 12 participants included special education teachers, career technical teachers and administrators of curriculum and instruction. Findings included organizations operate separately, resulting in minimal teacher input in individual education plan (IEP) development and implementation, lack of targeted professional development for teachers at both organizations, and lowered expectations of SWD. Implications and suggestions for leadership to align structures and promote collaboration to facilitate SWD learning are examined.

Due to the high unemployment rate and difficulty for students to transition from education to work, this thesis looks at how Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs provide a supplement to the traditional education systems throughout the world, and can be a solution to students graduating with employable skills so they can find meaningful work. The thesis answers the question: “What are the effects of Career and Technical Education?” through a qualitative method of an open-ended survey administered to three educational organizations in Northern California. Participants included four teachers, five administrators, and 96 high school students. The results showed that CTE programs have incredible effects on students, from being life-changing to providing necessary career skills and the space to navigate college and career choice. Students, teachers and administrators recommend that CTE programs be adopted nation wide, so students can decide what career to pursue.

The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to examine the effect that Career and Technical Education (CTE) concentrators, non-CTE concentrators and academic concentrators have on the on-time graduation of 1035 high school students in 7 high schools in Arizona for the 2015–2016 school year. There were three research questions that drove this study: 1) What effect does CTE concentration and non-CTE concentration have on on-time graduation? 2) What effect does CTE concentration and academic concentration have on on-time graduation? And 3) What effect does non-CTE concentration and academic concentration have on on-time graduation? The theoretical foundation for this study was social cognitive theory with a focus on academic self-efficacy. The research questions were addressed using a chi-squared analysis and binary logistic regression (logit). The Chi-square test showed that there is a statistically significant association between CTE concentrators and on-time graduation χ ² (1) = .15.893, p = .000. On-time graduation was not independent of CTE program completion for CTE concentrators and non-CTE concentrators, but on-time graduation was associated with program status. The binary logistic regression (logit), showed that CTE concentrators were 4.088 times, R² = .061, p = .000, and non-CTE concentrators were 1.907 times, R ² = .015, p = .047, more likely to have higher on-time graduation over academic concentrators. These findings suggest that students who take or complete a CTE program will graduate on-time.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007.
The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on May 11, 2009) Includes bibliographical references.

The purpose of this mixed methods research study was to examine factors influencing community college Career Technical Education (CTE) students in their field of study choice. The problem was twofold: (1) Community college CTE performance metrics include earnings goals, but there is little research to inform the performance metric (Harrington, Mbomeda, & Casillas, 2018; Roberts, Leufgen, & Booth, 2018); and (2) CTE students, who are disproportionately economically disadvantaged, pursue fields of study that do not lead to a living wage (Bahr, 2010; Booth & Bahr, 2012; Zhang & Oymak, 2018). For this within-stage mixed model design (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004), I created an instrument to examine quantitative and qualitative data for CTE field of study choice. The Choice of College Major Survey (CCMS) had three domains: 1) student characteristics, which consisted of the 27 Likert items; 2) sociodemographic, which consisted of the seven demographic items; and 3) six open-ended items, which were the qualitative part of the study. I tested variables within the student characteristics domain and the career integration variable. I found statistically significant (p I used the conceptual model of Hirschy, Bremer, and Castellano (2011) for community college CTE student success. Although I did not set out to propose a new conceptual model, my findings led to a proposed conceptual model for CTE field of study choice, based on the model by Hirschy et al. (2011). My findings indicated a distinction between influencers, which were included in the conceptual model by Hirschy et al. (2011), and purposeful process, which was not included. Because the conceptual model by Hirschy et al. (2011) was designed to explain student attainment of educational goals rather than field of study choice, purposeful process was not relevant in the original model. Further testing and validation of the CCMS and the proposed conceptual model would add to theory and practice. In this paper I make recommendations for policy and practice and suggest further research.

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods study is to examine the degree to which Washington State community and technical college workforce education administrators perceive their institutions to be labor market-responsive based on the Community College Labor Market Responsiveness assessment’s seven dimensions of labor market responsiveness (leadership and governance, organizational structure and staffing, organizational culture, resources and funding, information and data, relationship-building, and partnerships) and to explore the factors impacting each of the seven dimensions.

Methodology: This mixed methods study described 39 Washington State community and technical college workforce administrators’ perceptions of community college labor market responsiveness. An explanatory design was employed to collect quantitative data to describe, followed by qualitative data to further explain. Data was collected using a web-based survey instrument with fixed-choice Likert-type and open-ended questions.

Findings: Overall, 62% of workforce educational administrators perceive the community colleges in Washington to be somewhat or almost always labor market responsive. The two most displayed dimensions were leadership and governance and organizational culture, however, the weakest dimension was organizational structure. The most impactful factors identified were: resources, leadership, workforce focus, organizational factors and external engagement. An unexpected finding was the absence of the practitioners’ reference to entrepreneurial characteristics, even though this is emphasized by scholars.

Conclusions: Washington State community and technical colleges are experts in workforce development although many factors impact their ability to effectively respond to labor market needs. This study concludes that Washington State community and technical colleges are perceived to be moderately labor market responsive, yet committed to external relationships and partnerships, and in need of more adequate financial, human and information resources to reach their full potential. Secondly, although there is strong leadership supporting labor market responsiveness efforts, unsupportive organizational structures limit their impact. In addition, entrepreneurial approaches are necessary to navigate resource-limited environments and this is not adequately supported by community colleges.

Recommendations: Further research is recommended to include other populations, correlate perceptions with other indicators, and compare perceptions between more than one sample. An exploration of entrepreneurial characteristics and vocational program review processes of community colleges should also be studied.

Postconflict governments and counterparts have collaborated to provide skills training to communities as a critical postconflict development strategy. In these undertakings, the role of community members remains largely undefined. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to understand the perceptions held by rural community members regarding the role they played in influencing government's policy priority for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) as a local human development strategy in postconflict Liberia. The conceptual framework was based on human capital theory and concepts of motivation and achievement. Fourteen participants were purposefully selected for the study. Data were collected from interviews, focus group discussion, and documents and analyzed using constant comparison. Results indicated that increasing human capital, restoring self-esteem, encouraging civic participation, and building peace were among the community members' motivations for establishing a skills training institution. Leadership, advocacy, and ownership were major roles community stakeholders played in establishing their local skill training institution; voluntarism and collaboration were found to be strategies for support to the local TVET initiatives. Findings have positive social change implications for facilitating community-initiated TVET programs for youth employment as well as informing TVET policies in countries transitioning from conflict to development.

In the United States, colleges and universities are under pressure from multiple sources to improve course completion and graduation rates and to reduce the cost of obtaining a degree. This qualitative phenomenological case study, underpinned by the social constructivist perspective, explored second-year manufacturing degree students’ perceptions of the impact of their teachers’ servant leadership behaviors on their successful course completions at a Midwest technical college. Servant leadership was the theoretical base for the study, which consisted of Q sorts by, and interviews with, students from two manufacturing degree programs. One program had higher course completion and graduation rates and the other had lower course completion and graduation rates. The responses were coded using data from an extensive literature review and were analyzed for themes according to the perspectives of the participants’ Q sorts and responses to interview questions. While the study did not reveal a simple, straightforward solution to the very complicated student success problem in technical college manufacturing programs, it did identify the elements of an emergent model recommended for manufacturing teachers: servant teaching.

This study is directed at improving quality of graduates coming out from the Technical and Vocational Education (TVE) system in Bahrain.The aim of TVE system is to equip the students with the skills, knowledge and work ethic required for various industries, such as electrical, electronic, telecommunications, building services, mechanical engineering and computer technology. The TVE system is a two-tier system of education comprising SBL (containing specialised technical modules delivered in the school environment) and WBL (including work placement periods) intended to equip the students/graduates with cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills essential for their future careers. Recent TVE studies have indicated that a gap exists between the students’ skills acquired during SBL and WBL study and the skills required by industrial companies in Bahrain. A novel employability skills model was developed based on extensive literature survey and exploratory studies conducted by the researcher. The skills gap was determined through quantitative and qualitative analysis of the responses of the stakeholders to Questionnaire 1. Furthermore, to interlink employability skills requirements with teaching and learning provisions within TVE, the researcher has integrated two-dimensional (2D)models for cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains within the existing provisions. For the above purpose a new 2D model for affective domain skills has been developed. With an aim to improve teaching and learning provisions, the correlation between the existing approaches of teaching and learning practised in TVE educational environment with students’ learning styles was examined using Questionnaire 2. All the above was used for structuring learning activities in engineering courses so that a better match between the employability skills model and skills taught during SBL and WBL could be achieved. To maximise the output from TVE system, a novel SWT (SBL-to-WBL Transition) module was designed and developed. This was to ensure that TVE students receive the necessary training required by industry before they go in work placement(included in WBL programme) which would enable them to perform at a very high level; within the industrial environment. The module design was based on the user-centered approach and included necessary elements to satisfy the requirements of the novel employability skills model and 2D models for cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains. The developed SWT module contained five case studies which were related to real work examples. The learning activities included, challenged the students to recognise, make informed responses, and work comfortably with the diverse requirements of WBL environment. The user evaluation of the proposed e-learning package was done by the students and teachers who completed Questionnaire 3. Based on the above a new quality framework for online courses was developed. The modified framework extends the existing information quality frameworks by incorporating features associate with pedagogical and technological contexts. The framework would be useful in determining adequacy of the new SWT module in providing workplace proficiencies, preparing TVE students for work placement, providing effective teaching and learning methodologies, integrating innovative technology in the process of learning, meeting modern industrial needs, and offering a cooperative learning environment for TVE students. The proposed SWT module represents a major contribution to the improvement of TVE system in Bahrain because it challenges students and teachers to be capable of recognising, making informed response towards, and working comfortably with the diversity they encounter in WBL environment.

This thesis looks at how Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) be carried out to help society move towards sustainability. It starts by introducing the reader into the essential concepts about Strategic Sustainable Development (SSD), Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), TVET, and the barriers to integrating ESD into TVET. It also provides information about the case study conducted in a TVET organization in Ireland which is integrating ESD into TVET. The thesis presents the key aspects that TVET organization need to have in order to successfully support SSD and it also provides a definition of success which is developing a workforce skilled for sustainability where sustainability is defined by the four sustainability principles. After presenting the key aspects, it looks at the strengths and weaknesses, in the lens of the key aspects, of the case study and three other TVET organizations. It later provides with recommendations based on the challenges found integrating ESD into TVET and the presented key aspects in order for TVET organizations to reach the vision of success.

Telma Gomes - phone: 0736280415 - tegomes@uol.com.br Victor Samuel Brizuela - samworks@gmail.com Chen Chen Gu -guchenchen880309@163.com,

Develops a culturally and linguistically sensitive curriculum that provides unskilled and underemployed African Americans living in San Bernardino County with vocational education for technical and office occupations. This project will operate as a resource for teachers, counselors, and trainers who assist unskilled African Americans entering the workplace and that are in need of career and professional development in office protocol, computer software applications, and verbal and written communication skills.

This mixed-methods study analyzed student perceptions regarding the impact of career and technical education (CTE) programs on student engagement, mind-set, support of teachers, and school climate. The Tripod 7C instrument was utilized to gather quantitative data, while focus groups were utilized for gathering qualitative data. Survey results showed statistically significant differences between CTE and non-CTE subjects in the areas of care, captivate, and clarify. These findings were used to develop the questions and structure for the focus group discussions. The focus groups revealed four student-perception themes: teacher, environment, student engagement, and content. In the settings studied, CTE programs were noted to have significantly higher levels of student engagement, environments that are welcoming and warm, and caring adults.

Postconflict governments and counterparts have collaborated to provide skills training to communities as a critical postconflict development strategy. In these undertakings, the role of community members remains largely undefined. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to understand the perceptions held by rural community members regarding the role they played in influencing government's policy priority for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) as a local human development strategy in postconflict Liberia. The conceptual framework was based on human capital theory and concepts of motivation and achievement. Fourteen participants were purposefully selected for the study. Data were collected from interviews, focus group discussion, and documents and analyzed using constant comparison. Results indicated that increasing human capital, restoring self-esteem, encouraging civic participation, and building peace were among the community members' motivations for establishing a skills training institution. Leadership, advocacy, and ownership were major roles community stakeholders played in establishing their local skill training institution; voluntarism and collaboration were found to be strategies for support to the local TVET initiatives. Findings have positive social change implications for facilitating community-initiated TVET programs for youth employment as well as informing TVET policies in countries transitioning from conflict to development.

The study set out to determine the effects of Career Technical Education Career Academy participation on student outcome measures in a high minority urban school district. Three research questions explored student participation in career academies and student outcomes in the area of grade point average, credit completion and/or attendance rates. The three research questions investigated in this study were: 1) What are the effects of CTE on student achievement, grade point average, credit completion, and attendance rates? 2) Does the amount of time in the CTE program affect the dependent variables of grade point average, credit completion, and attendance rate? 3) Does the CTE academy affect the dependent variables of grade point average, credit completion, and attendance rates? The quasi-experimental design, which matched Career Technical Education participants and non-participants according to various demographic variables, allowed the researcher to control for variables that usually impact grade point average, credit completion and attendance rates. The matching and labeling of CTE participants and non-participants occurred prior to students' participation in an academy. The results of this study adds to a relatively small body of research which examines the impact of Career Technical Education programs implemented in thousands of high schools across the country. Multiple regression was run and results concluded that participation in Career Technical Education significantly impacts grade point average and credit completion rates. However the amount of time in an academy only affected grade point average and the academy students participated in did not have an impact any of the student outcomes measured in this study. Further studies of similar design which measure student outcomes should be performed to confirm or deny the results of this study.

From 2010, the South African vocational skills education is offered by the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) through the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges. TVET colleges need to be transformed in order to empower young learners with the skills required by the various sectors of the economy. The purpose of this study was to assess the implementation of the National Certificate (Vocational) Plant Production module in Training and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges. The sample for this study is concurrent triangulation whereby complementary methods of data sources were brought together to offset each other‘s weaknesses. The sample for this study consisted of participants from three TVET colleges: one deep rural, one semi-rural/semi-urban and one urban in terms of geographical location. A total of 18 participants were interviewed: 2 subject advisors engaged by the colleges, 1 lecturer from college A, 3 lecturers from college B, 2 lecturers from college C, 4 graduates from college B, 3 graduates from college C and 3 employers .Research design for this study has features of both a survey and a case study. The mixed-method approach was applied using document analysis, questionnaires and interviews for data collection. The researcher found out that there is a disparity between the Plant Production guidelines and their implementation and assessment. Among the main reasons for failure to implement the guidelines properly are poor or inadequate infrastructure for doing practical work, high rate of student absenteeism within the investigated categories, and the high drop-out rate at Levels 2–4. To minimize the challenges in offering the Plant Production module, the study recommends that since some colleges cannot afford purchasing large sizes of land to properly implement the Plant Production guidelines, the government and the DHET should link the Primary Agriculture training to the land reform program where students can be trained under the land reform program.

This study is about the state of vocational and technical education (VTE) in Ethiopia with particular focus on the factors governing the demand for and supply of middle level technical skills. Ethiopia is a low income agrarian country with a weak industrial base. Economic growth here presupposes, inter alia, the effective use of technologies. This, in turn, would call for the provision of middle level technical skills for deployment in various sectors of the economy. The theme of the study turns on the observations that: a) there is a chronic shortage of supply of middle level technical skills of various categories in Ethiopia; and b) VTE enrolment and expenditure on VTE are both assuming a declining trend. The burden of the thesis is to explain why VTE enrolment and expenditure have to be on the decline while shortfalls in the supply of VTE-based skills prevail. This problem, set in chapter IV, is investigated with the aid of data obtained from primary and secondary sources. The primary data derive from a sample survey covering a total of 420 individuals, including VTE and non-VTE students and employees. The secondary data were gleaned from a wide range of published and unpublished sources. Chapter V explains the problem set in chapter IV in terms of the prevalence of constraints circumscribing the activities of educational planners. Planners in Ethiopia are acutely constrained by the limited investment resources at their disposal. This, coupled with the fact that VTE is 14 to 19 times more expensive than non-VTE and the absence of any coherent manpower planning, would make planners reluctant to spend more on VTE. The consequence of this policy bias is to deprive VTE of qualified teachers and of adequate teaching facilities, thereby constraining the quality and quantity supply of VTE graduates. In chapter VI, the Problem is explained further in terms of the attitudes of individuals towards VTE and their demand for VTE. Results of the analysis of the survey data show that there is an underlying decline of interest in VTE, precipitated mainly by the socially and economically unattractive career prospects associated with VTE-related occupations. Those already in VTE-related employment are - much unlike their non-VTE counterparts - shown to be given to a high 'rate of frustration', arising from poor remuneration and unfulfilled educational and occupational aspirations. The persistence of frustration would make VTE employees ineffective in their jobs. It would also make entry into VTE less attractive thus constraining the scope for the expansion of VTE-based skill supply. The Preponderance, as at present, of such factors as cultural prejudices against VTE, the failure of the labour market to reflect shortages of skill supply by bidding up wage rates for the relevant skills, and policy restrictions on the vertical and horizontal mobility of labour, would only exacerbate the problem of excess demand over supply with respect to VTE skills. The study indicates the need for liberalisation of the labour market by removing the bureaucratic constraints on its operation, the adoption of policy measures enhancing educational and occupational prospects for VTE graduates, the adoption of cost-effective methods of providing VTE to be able to release resources for purposes of VTE expansion, and the reorganisation of VTE curricular structure in such a way as to make VTE professionally appealing to both employers and students.

Grit, defined as the tendency to pursue long-term goals with sustained zeal and hard work, was shown to predict achievement in academic, vocational, and avocational domains. In 2009, Duckworth and Quinn found that grit predicted student effectiveness in school and the concept of grit was largely unrelated to talent. Grit provided incremental predictive validity for achievement outcomes, particularly in settings of high challenge. From the combination of persistence, self-control, and more broadly, conscientiousness, emerges the concept of grit.

The purpose of this study was to compare the relative grittiness of students from two different high school settings. The first of these was a non-traditional technical high school. The second was a traditional suburban high school. One hundred students from each high schools took the Grit-S survey to determine their level of grit. It was found that students attending the non-traditional high school and students attending the traditional high school had no statistically different level of grit. However, students from the non-traditional technical high school had an observably higher level of self-reported grit. Teachers and administrators were interviewed to determine their perceptions about grit. Qualitative analysis of their responses rendered three commonalities. The first theme was a definition of grit rooted in persistence and self-motivation. The second theme was the need for adults to model grit for the benefit of their students. The third theme was a lack of difference between the genders in perceived grit or academic prospects.

This dissertation expanded on the research of Grit and Student Performance as it relates to students who attend a non-traditional technical high school and students who attend a traditional high school. There was a lack of previous research comparing these two distinct types of high schools. After the data was gathered and analyzed no significant differences were found. This dissertation provides ideas for future research and its results may possibly change attitudes about students in both high school settings.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2015.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A perennial challenge facing public technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges in South Africa is that the majority of staff, while technically qualified to do the work that forms the contents of what they teach, are either not professionally qualified educators, or are professionally qualified as educators in other educational sectors. For TVET lecturers, the development of their teaching skills, like their professional identity, relies primarily on informal development by line managers, other members of staff or themselves. This study examines how professionally underqualified lecturers employed at TVET colleges in the Western Cape develop their teaching skills, inter alia, by being mentored by managers, experienced members of staff or themselves by asking the question: in what ways do mentoring processes within a college contribute to the incorporation of staff into a college?. Flowing from the primary research question this study sought to identify the nature and forms of institutional level mentoring, as well as the related use of language and power. This study is framed within the critical paradigm, applying a methodological framework developed by Fairclough (2010) and a combination of methods of analysis. At a micro level a form of analysis designed by Fairclough (1989; 2001) is used. The results are classified by means of a Foucauldian-based methodological framework developed by Keevy (2005). Mentoring has become popular as a term to describe informal learning in a wide variety of settings, including business and education. As a result of the popularity of the term, publications on a wide array of aspects related to informal learning have been produced. Periodically, however, criticisms of mentoring have surfaced, which fundamentally challenge its standing as an academic discipline. Such critique prompted this research project: to question whether or not mentoring was, what Fairclough calls a social wrong. Challenging the assumption that mentoring is a social wrong forms a point of departure for this study. A broad analysis of literature about mentoring is presented with the aim of identifying what Foucault calls, its ethical substance. The established ethical substance of mentoring is extrapolated into a schema indicating various broad descriptions of mentoring. The broad descriptions are used in an analysis of mentoring practices in a professional work environment suited to the application of current mentoring practices, one in which has not yet been formally applied in staff induction programmes: namely, public technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges. In addition to challenging the assumption that mentoring is a social wrong, the study, significantly, the neo-liberal notion that mentees are passive recipients of knowledge. Findings from this study indicate, significantly, that new lecturers develop themselves as lecturers by unconsciously using mentoring methodologies, in the absence of formal mentoring programmes. In contrast to many international institutions, where mentoring programmes are mandatory, the lecturers interviewed in this study were not constrained by the managerialist ideology of neo-liberalism and were empowered by the mentoring with which they were involved. This study provides insights into how professional mentees learn, who they learn from and how they use what they have learnt in their own development, and how this contributes towards an understanding of the nature of adult learning in the workplace. Literature reviewed in this study includes a wide range of publications on the topic of mentoring, including education publications, business management publication and translations of the two original texts on the subject, namely Homer’s Odyssey and Fenelon’s Adventures of Telemachus. Key educational publications consulted include the translated works of Plato and Freire. Publications on social critique include the works of Fairclough and Foucault.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die kwessie rakende personeel wat tegnies gekwalifiseerd is om die werk, wat die vakinhoud van hulle lesings vorm, te doen, maar wat nie professionele onderwysopleiding het nie of in ander opvoedingsvelde gekwalifiseer is, is ’n uitdaging waarmee tegnies en beroepsgerigte onderwys en opleiding (TVET/TBOO) colleges voortdurend te kampe het. Hierdie dosente steun grotendeels op hulself, lyn bestuurders of ander personeellede om hulle onderwysvaardighede op ’n informele wyse te ontwikkel. Hierdie studie ondersoek die maniere waarop dosente met onvoldoende professionele kwalifikasies by (TVET/TBOO) colleges in die Wes-Kaap hulle eie vaardighede ontwikkel deur onder meer die mentorskap van bestuurders en ervare personeellede. Dit word gedoen aan die hand van die volgende vraag: “Op watter wyses dra prosesse van mentorskap binne ’n kollege by tot die inkoporering van personeel.” Hierdie studie poog om, na aanleiding van die primêre navorsingsvraag, die aard en vorm van mentorskap op die institusionele vlak te identifiseer sowel as die meegaande gebruik van taal en gesag. Hierdie studie is benader vanuit die kritiese paradigma met die toepassing van ’n metodologiese raamwerk soos ontwikkel deur Fairclough (2010) tesame met ’n kombinasie van analitiese metodes. ’n Metode van analise wat Fairclough (1989; 2001) ontwikkel het, is op ’n mikrovlak toegepas en die resultate is daarna geklassifiseer met Keevy (2005) se Foucault-gebasseerde metodologiese raamwerk. Mentorskap word wyd gebruik as ’n omvattende begrip om informele leer in diverse kontekste aan te dui. Dit sluit die sakewêreld en onderwys in. Die gewildheid van die begrip het ’n wye verskeidenheid publikasies betreffende informele leer tot gevolg gehad. Daar is egter deurentyd kritiek op mentorskap wat die fundamentele waarde daarvan bevraagteken. Dit is hierdie kritiek wat die navorser genoop het om te vra of mentorskap wel ’n “maatskaplike wandaad” is soos wat Fairclough dit noem. Die vertrekpunt van hierdie studie is die veronderstelling dat dit wel so is. ’n Oorsigtelike analise van literatuur betreffende mentorskap word voorgelê met die doel om dit wat Foucault die “etiese substans” noem, te identifiseer. Die bepaalde etiese substans van mentorskap word geëkstrapoleer tot ’n skema wat verskeie breë definisies van mentorskap aandui. Hierdie breë definisies word dan gebruik in ’n ontleding van mentorskap in ’n professionele werksomgewing, wat geskik is vir die toepassing van bestaande mentorpraktyke, maar waar dit nog nie formeel in personeelinduksieprogramme ingesluit is nie: naamlik (TVET/TBOO) colleges. Hierdie studie bevraagteken nie net die aanname dat mentorskap ’n maatskaplike wandaad is nie, maar ook die neo-liberale siening dat diegene wat gementor word die ontvangers van kennis is en dui daarop dat nuwe dosente hulself ontwikkel, weens ’n gebrek aan formele mentorprogramme, deur die onbewuste gebruik van mentormetodes. In teenstelling met baie internasionale instellings waar mentorprogramme verpligtend is, is die dosente met wie daar onderhoude gevoer is nie aan bande gelê deur neo-liberale bestuursideologieë nie en is bemagtig deur die mentorskap waarin hulle betrokke was. Die studie gee insigte in hoe professionele persone wat mentorskap ontvang, leer, van wie hulle leer, hoe hulle dit wat hulle leer in hulle eie ontwikkeling toepas en hoe dit bydra tot ’n begrip van die aard van volwasse leer in die werkplek. Die literatuur wat in hierdie studie geraadpleeg word, sluit ’n wye spektrum van publikasies oor die vakgebied van mentorskap in. Dit is onder meer onderwys- en sakebestuurpublikasies sowel as vertalings van twee oorspronklike geskrifte rakende die onderwerp, by name Homeros se Odusseia en Fénelon se Avonture van Telemachus. Die vertaalde werke van Plato en Freire is onder die opvoedkundige sleutelbronne wat geraadpleeg is en bronne oor maatskaplike kritiek sluit die werke van Fairclough en Foucault in.

This thesis is situated in the history of British debates over the relationship of technical and vocational schooling to capitalism. It analyses the impact of 'new vocational' policy initiatives on English education from the 1970s, using an approach termed 'historical ethnography.' Using this methodology, it draws on ethnographic studies of the Technical and Vocational Education Initiative (TVEI) between 1985 and 1992.
My argument is that TVEI represents the most recent manifestation of a long history of educational policies that have systematically produced and ordered the social relations of class in an educational form. In this vein, I argue that the technical and vocational curriculum can be seen as an integral site within the English educational State for the production and formation of class relations within schooling. TVEI, I assert, was central to such a process through its capacity to concert and co-ordinate the social relations and practices of secondary schooling around the concept of enterprise, which acted as an organising device for management/administration, teaching, learning, and most crucially, the formation of individual subjectivities. Understood this way, we can see how TVEI effected reforms that contributed to the formation of clusters of social relations that produced class in new ways.
I show how this process emerged under TVEI through my ethnographic studies of enterprise, school-based management, business studies, and assessment. What each study reveals is how TVEI worked to effect a generalised shift in the culture of schooling away from the post-war social democratic politics of education, to that of a 'managed market' and enterprise culture. In this respect, I argue, TVEI prefigured many of the reforms that were to flow from the Education Reform Act (1988).

This thesis was devised to explore my central interest in finding out empirically how individuals learn to become Vocational and Technical Education (VTE) teachers in Brunei. This study was based on a case study of twelve participants which includes five males and seven females undergoing a one year full-time Post Graduate Certificate Technical Education course in Brunei. Each participant was interviewed twice: once at the beginning of the course and once at the end of the course. My main empirical findings show that social relationships in learning situations are important with regard to becoming a VTE teacher in Brunei. Within different learning situations, individuals were also proactive in taking control of their own learning. In addition, my findings illustrate that most, if not all, student teachers have learned and changed towards the end of the teacher training course. The process of becoming a VTE teacher could logically be seen as two separate stages; choosing and learning to become a VTE teacher. One of the thesis objectives was also to understand the relationship between career decision-making and learning in relation to the Brunei VTE teachers. Drawing from Hodkinson et al.'s (1996) careership theory and Hodkinson et al. 's (2008) integrated theory of learning cultures and cultural theory of learning, I conclude that the two stages are integrated in practice and should be viewed as an on-going learning process called an individual learning journey. Based on my empirical findings, I also conclude that Hodkinson et al.'s (2008) learning theories need to be extended in order to fully understand social relationships, individual agency within learning cultures and to take into account that learning cultures change even within the same learning situation when individual position and roles change. This thesis concludes by identifying some implications for research and practice that arise from the findings of this study.

Thesis (MTech (Quality))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011.
Education is undoubtedly of great significance to everyone, and as a consequence countries are working hard to ensure that their educational systems are responsive to their socio-economic needs. In search for competitive advantage, institutes of higher learning throughout the world are focussing their attention in ensuring the provision of quality academic programmes. Botswana's public technical colleges are no exception. In recent years, the government of Botswana through Department of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (DTVET) has stepped up its efforts to expand and transform technical and vocational education in that country. In spite of these investments, studies show that the quality of training is still a serious concern. This study aims to explore the extent to which the Botswana institutions implement quality management systems. Critical areas and attributes where institutions should focus their efforts in relation to quality are explored. To achieve the objective of the study, both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies were used. The case study research method was employed to investigate issues which have affected the capacity of the institutions to implement quality management systems. Data was gathered from students, teachers and the college management team members by means of a self-administered questionnaire. This study hopes to contribute to the existing body of knowledge by providing insights into the implementation of quality management systems in the training institutions in Botswana.

This thesis undertakes the collection, analysis and evaluation of information concerning the development of vocational and technical education in Zambia and Zimbabwe. Tracing the history of vocational education from 1900, the work emphasises the separate racial provision of education, including vocational, until both countries approached their respective Independence periods. Six years after Independence, vocational and technical education in Zambia occupied a focal point in the country's attempt to firstly achieve an economic transformation and secondly, absorb the growing number of unemployed school leavers from the system of general education. After abolishing the system of apprenticeship, government vocational institutions became the major point of training for formal sector employment skills. Yet this inner reform has been diluted largely by an economy unable to sustain the high recurrent costs reqUired by institutional training. The most striking feature of vocational and technical education in Zimbabwe is how little the structure has changed from the preindependence period. Whilst the racial balance of trainees has moved in favour of Africans, early political rhetoric in favour of changing the approach to skill training has failed to materialise. Conservat i ve forces in both countries have managed with assistance from external aid programmes to retain a formal system of vocational and technical education very similar to that which existed before independence. Educat ional provision for those who have dropped out of school or are unemployed is grossly deficient. In conclusion, the thesis proposes three act ion ar ea s: emphasising a closer partnership of public and private sector training institutions which will tackle the issue of making better use of existing institutional capacity and expanding more directed opportunities for skill training. linking national development goals with wellresearched and developed national vocational curricula rather than the perceptions or overseas examination syst ems: ensuring better coordination between the education/training system and the ongoing requirements of the employment system and making training more sensitive to sectorial needs, particularly towards the majority of people who live and work in rural areas.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how career technical education (CTE) deans implement crucial changes in their programs to keep up with industry standards required by external agencies, the Perkins grant, and the advancements of technology. Deans must make top-down, lateral, as well as vertical change to implement improvements successfully, and to implement or to create new policies. The participants discussed the unique nature and background associated with CTE and their perceptions of the distinct skill sets that may be unique to leading career education programs.

Little research exists exploring this phenomena and this study could prove invaluable to the CTE field in recruiting, training, and developing current and future CTE Deans. The findings of this study suggest that in order to meet their goals in implementing program changes, CTE deans need to be skilled in the use of referent power, relationship-building, and a participative leadership style. In addition, skilled practitioners must have strong relational skills that emphasize collaboration, persuasion, and determination to lead change successfully. These findings can assist human resource departments in the hiring of effective deans of CTE divisions.