Vocational education and training - VET

In this paper, we present the concept of AI Readiness, along with a framework for developing AI Readiness training. ‘AI Readiness’ can be framed as a contextualised way of helping people to understand AI, in particular, data-driven AI. The nature of AI Readiness training is not the same as merely learning about AI. Rather, AI Readiness recognises the diversity of the professions, workplaces and sectors for whom AI has a potential impact. For example, AI Readiness for lawyers may be based on the same principles as AI Readiness for Educators. However, the details will be contextualised differently. AI Readiness recognises that such contextualisation is not an option: it is essential due to the multiple intricacies, sensitivities and variations between different sectors and their settings, which all impact the application of AI. To embrace such contextualisation, AI Readiness needs to be an active, participatory training process and aims to empower people to be more able to leverage AI to meet their needs.

The text that follows focuses on AI Readiness within the Education and Training sector and starts with a discussion of the current state of AI within education and training, and the need for AI Readiness. We then problematize the concept of AI Readiness, why AI Readiness is needed, and what it means. We expand upon the nature of AI Readiness through a discussion of the difference between human and Artificial Intelligence, before presenting a 7-step framework for helping people to become AI Ready. Finally, we use an example of AI Readiness in action within Higher Education to exemplify AI Readiness.

Changes in the supply of low-skill labor may affect robot adoption by firms. We test this hypothesis by exploiting an exogenous increase in the local labor supply induced by a large influx of immigrants into Danish municipalities. Using the Danish employer-employee matched dataset over the period 1995-2019, we show in a shift-share regression that a larger share of migrants in a municipality leads to fewer imports of robots at the firm-level. We rationalize this finding in a simple model of robot adoption in which robots and low-skill workers are substitutes. As many advanced economies are facing labor shortages, this paper sheds light on the future of robotization.

Despite the long-standing faculty development initiatives for improving teaching skills in the health professions, there is still a growing need for educators who are formally trained in educational theory and practice as health professions schools experience dramatic demand and growth. Graduate programs in health professions education (HPE) provide an avenue for health professions’ faculty continuing professional development to enhance their knowledge and skills for teaching and curriculum leadership roles. There has been a proliferation of certificate, master’s, and doctoral programs in HPE over the last two decades to respond to the growing need for well-prepared faculty educators and program leadership. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe current HPE doctoral programs in United States (U.S.) and Canada.

Conclusions
The workforce shortage facing health professional schools presents an opportunity, or perhaps imperative, for continuing professional development in HPE through certificate, master’s, or doctoral programs. With the current exponential growth of new doctoral programs, there is a need to standardize the title, degree requirements, and further develop core competencies that guide the knowledge and skills HPE graduates are expected to have upon graduation.

In this paper, the perspective of international vocational education and training (VET) providers on the issue of transfer from Germany as a origin country to a specific target country is considered. The existing state of research on the topic of VET transfer has so far been largely located at the macro level. Still, to develop a better understanding of transfer, it is useful to include individual projects on a programme basis in the analysis as their understanding in turn shapes the entire transfer work. The study aims to identify the understanding of transfer of vocational training service providers in internationalisation projects, as well as different types of transfer. Case studies are applied that involve German VET providers, sampled from a German funding line. Based on qualitative and quantitative data, process documents and previous research, in-depth interviews with six project actors are conducted to identify the perspectives and approaches for transfer. Among other theoretical approaches, Dolowitz and Marsh's policy transfer framework and Gessler's levels of transfer form the theoretical framework of the study. In the context of the present study, different understandings of transfer can be attributed. Furthermore, using type-building content analysis, four ideal transfer types, namely imitative Re-Combination, adaptative Specialization, adaptative Re-Combination and transformative Specialization are classified. The transfer itself is determined by the project activity rather than by a pre-determined understanding of transfer on the part of the internationally active VET provider. In turn, the project activity shapes the type of transfer in combination with the project partners in the target country context. The project actors focus on structures and content; the transfer of practices and processes is largely understood implicitly and thus less directly forced.

The metaverse has been recognized as one of the technologies with the greatest potential today. However, the use of the metaverse for educational purposes is seldom discussed. Most educators might be unaware of the features of the metaverse, not to mention the potential applications of this emerging technology. In this position paper, we aim to provide a clear definition of the metaverse. Potential applications and research issues of the metaverse in educational settings are also presented. Moreover, the roles of AI in the metaverse as well as metaverse-based education are discussed. It is expected that, via this paper, researchers from the fields of both computer science and educational technology would have a clear picture of what the metaverse is and how it can be used for educational purposes. More importantly, it is expected that more studies related to metaverse-based education can be reported in the near future.

This study aims to analyze the pedagogical competence needs of vocational lecturers. Learning development problems and needs related to the preparation of vocational lecturers can produce skilled vocational lecturers.

As technical and vocational education and training (TVET) continue to occupy a prominent position in Africa’s development, addressing the growing concerns about young women’s under-participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related TVET has become urgent. This paper draws on the critical capability approach of vocational education and training (CCA-VET) to critique the TVET policy discourse on the participation of girls and women in STEM-related TVET. The paper employed the practical argumentation approach, a critical discourse analysis approach to achieve the paper’s aims. The paper’s central thesis is that for education policies to transform young women’s under-participation in STEM-related TVET, it is urgent to move beyond human rights-based, and human capital approaches to adopt a comprehensive theoretical approach, such as the critical capabilities approach. The paper concludes that breaking this hegemony of human rights and human capital approaches to TVET policy can be achieved by re-conceptualising TVET policy discourses. The re-conceptualisation of TVET policy discourses can be achieved by admitting the critiques of these dominant theories that underpin most TVET policies and then adopting the CCA-VET as a better alternative approach to framing TVET policies.

This article explores the determinants of the transition from higher education to work, analysing the time it takes college graduates to obtain their first job in Spain. To estimate the exit rate to employment of university graduates, we use parametric and nonparametric analysis of duration models. We have incorporated unobserved heterogeneity using frailty models to account for misspecification or omitted covariates. The results show that after graduation, men are more likely to obtain employment than women. Our results also show that graduates of private universities gain their first jobs sooner than graduates of public universities. Furthermore, we found that those graduates who have previous work experience and those who start looking for a job before the end of their degree programme are likely to obtain a job sooner. In addition, Arts and Humanities graduates have the greatest difficulty in finding work. Finally, the results suggest that graduates who have international experience and those with expert knowledge of communication are more likely to obtain employment.

This study aims to analyze the effect of e-learning on VET learning, the factors that support the success of e-learning, and the role of e-learning in practical learning performance. This type of research was a quantitative study with a meta-analysis approach. A total of 18 articles on e-learning in VET learning were selected as samples. The 18 articles were taken from the journal of Sinta accredited (the national index in Indonesia). The data is analyzed by determining the effect size value. The main finding of this study indicates that e-learning has a significant influence on VET learning. This result is obtained by measuring the average effect size value of 18 articles which is 0.344 > 0.25, categorized as a significant effect category. Another interesting finding is that the effect of e-learning in VET learning is only on the learning outcomes of particular theoretical and performance learning, increased motivation, and increased interest. For performance learning, not all can be accommodated by e-learning, only practical learning using computer and internet media such as digital simulation learning and WEB programming. Whereas in conventional performance/practical learning, e-learning cannot be used as the primary form of learning. The limitation of this study is the low number of studies on the use of e-learning in VET learning. As a result, this study provides a less broad representation. A meta-analysis on the effect of e-learning on VET learning is undoubtedly an exciting study. The reason is that almost all forms of VET learning are performance learning (practical learning). Therefore, e-learning in VET practical learning is a new study that can be developed.

In the face of constant and rapid development achieving a work–life balance requires highly qualified and motivated professionals who can deal with stress and the demands of the future. In response, by facilitating school- and work-based learning, upper secondary vocational education and training (VET) prepares and qualifies adolescents for professional practice. In relation to VET, two fundamental salutogenic concepts can explain how humans cope with stressful and demanding situations: Sense of coherence (SOC), which entails comprehensibility, manageability and meaningfulness, and general resistance resources (GRRs), theorised as resources within individuals themselves (i.e., internal) and/or in their surroundings (i.e., external). Against that background, in our study we aimed to identify and explore which GRRs contribute to SOC among apprentices in VET and how they influence work-based learning. 

Methods: Data were collected from 11 VET student in Norway at three time points—at interviews during their final semester of school-based learning (i.e., spring 2020), at interviews during their work-based learning (i.e., spring 2022) and, for register data, following their completion of trade certificates (i.e., autumn 2022). The students' experiences of work-based learning as apprentices formed the basis of this study's analysis. The stepwise deductive–inductive method was used to generate and analyse the data. 

Findings: The apprentices' GRRs emerged in emotional, cognitive, physical, professional, social, relational, material and cultural dimensions. Identification and utilisation of GRRs were both individually and socially conditioned. The apprentices were able to identify, both consciously and unconsciously, internal GRRs to further identify external GRRs, and vice versa. Each identified GRR appeared to affect at least one, if not all, of the three components of SOC. 

Conclusion: Salutogenic VET can provide personal, social, environmental and physical resources (i.e., GRRs) that ensure coherent learning experiences. For that reason, by supporting VET students in identifying GRRs, teachers and supervisors can promote their SOC and work-based learning and thereby prepare them to be highly qualified and motivated professionals. 

This study provides insights into international students’ perspectives of preparing for entry into employment in the Canadian workforce. From a human capital perspective, international students are valuable resources for the Canadian labour market and other countries where populations are in decline. However, most research on international students has focused on their initial transition experience, and available research on their employment experiences is often limited to the post-graduation transition. International students need to build their capacity for employment concurrently while they are studying, gaining local work experience. In this article we present an analysis of critical incidents collected from international students which highlights five key barriers in their experience of the Canadian work context, including policies and procedures, competition and economic conditions, challenges for navigating local cultural norms, language abilities, and their personal life circumstances. The discussion draws connections between international student recruitment and their longer-term goals for residency in Canada, with recommendations for bridging policies and services.

Drawing on the literature on resilience in education, this article explores personal characteristics, abilities and behaviours that enable vulnerable students and apprentices to succeed in education and training. Despite high dropout rates in vocational education and training (VET) in most countries, little research on resilience in vocational contexts exists, and there is no general understanding or conceptualisation of resilience in VET. The study is based on qualitative interviews with eight adolescents from lower socioeconomic backgrounds who were identified as being at risk of not completing upper secondary education. The adolescents were interviewed the first time during the school-based part of their education (year 2) and the second time during apprenticeship training (year 4). Our findings show that commitment to learning and perseverance, self-regulated learning, goal orientation, self-efficacy and help-seeking are important resilience promoting factors in a vocational context that may serve to enhance resilience among students and apprentices in VET. The study discusses the role of learning environments in school and in the workplace in resilience in VET.

Efforts to create career learning environments which provide students with work experience, skills for making choices and career guidance dialogues, appear to stagnate in vocational education and training (VET) institutions in the Netherlands. In this case study we explore how teachers and their managers make sense of career guidance. We found varying views of career guidance, which may be contributing to the stagnation. Dialogue between teachers and managers is crucial in coming to a collective sense-making of career guidance, and a transformational management style seems to instigate sense-making and ultimately change. A collective sense-making of career guidance may be an area that needs to be examined for new possibilities of transforming behaviours relevant to providing career guidance to students.

The Metaverse has been the centre of attraction for educationists for quite some time. This field got renewed interest with the announcement of social media giant Facebook as it rebranding and positioning it as Meta. While several studies conducted literature reviews to summarize the findings related to the Metaverse in general, no study to the best of our knowledge focused on systematically summarizing the finding related to the Metaverse in education. To cover this gap, this study conducts a systematic literature review of the Metaverse in education. It then applies both content and bibliometric analysis to reveal the research trends, focus, and limitations of this research topic. The obtained findings reveal the research gap in lifelogging applications in educational Metaverse. The findings also show that the design of Metaverse in education has evolved over generations, where generation Z is more targeted with artificial intelligence technologies compared to generation X or Y. In terms of learning scenarios, there have been very few studies focusing on mobile learning, hybrid learning, and micro learning. Additionally, no study focused on using the Metaverse in education for students with disabilities. The findings of this study provide a roadmap of future research directions to be taken into consideration and investigated to enhance the adoption of the Metaverse in education worldwide, as well as to enhance the learning and teaching experiences in the Metaverse.

The paper analyses the potential and the limitations of emerging sectors with potential for formal jobs creation, the opportunities within them to support transition to the formalization of workers and economic units and recommends types of policies that could support their potential for T2F based on recent countries’ experience. 

This paper describes current trends and issues in implementing micro-credentials. The Covid19 epidemic, combined with the increasing cost of higher education; employer concerns about graduate skills and competencies; increasing inequities in access; and student frustrations about lack of job opportunities have all been a catalyst for universities, colleges, independent credentialing agencies, and leaders of national qualification frameworks to rethink the broader credentials continuum in terms of open education and micro-credentials. Students desire more options at lower costs to combine their education and training for jobs.  Employers want entry-level employees with better skills and capacity to learn. As a result, major colleges and universities are now actively engaged in granting and/or recognising micro-credentials. Standardising qualifications based on time competencies is an essential requirement for credit transfer among institutions. Micro-credentials are important in ensuring the acceptance and stackability of credentials from different institutions, while providing employers with a secure and unalterable permanent digital record of applicants' abilities to perform skills of high value in the workplace. The OERu (Open Educational Resources universitas) provides an example of how one international consortium is supporting SDG4: Education for All by implementing micro-credentials allowing for maximum transferability among institutions in different countries. The lesson for strategic leaders is simplicity. Micro-credentials should be well Integrated into current institutional programs, rendered easy-to-use with clear validation metrics, providing a value-added benefit for all stakeholders.  A list of recommendations to institutions, governments, UNESCO and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) is provided.

The rapid changes in digital and ecological innovation and its penetration into the socio-economic system have placed skills at the centre of training systems. The European Union's human-centred approach to transition, accompanied by the growing demand for more fluid and smart types of learning, requires immediacy, flexibility and personalisation of training. Innovation and digitisation in vocational training play a key role in the broader green and digital transitions, as well as in the recovery and resilience of a post-COVID-19