The decline and fall of classical education signify a hidden group hatred of the tensions affiliated with the higher powers of the mind; they express social and historical tension-evasion, a thirst for inertia, and entropic decline. But isn't aversion to work ordained by entropy? The author concedes that we enrich our minds for the same reason we…

Georg Kerschensteiner is often called the 'father of the vocational school' in Germany. Working in the context of the German Empire in the 19th century, his historical achievement was to design a concept of vocational education that dissolved the opposition between general education and vocational education that had existed since Humboldt. He…

Skill development is the key instrument for achieving the target of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8 in developing countries. The development of human capital in India is of global importance, given the prospects of India being the fastest growing economy of the world and poised to be the country with the largest working-age population in the…

In this paper, we address the debate on local skills ecosystems and informal learning. We use the social ecosystem model as a tool to help us analyse the role played by various actors in learning and skills ecosystems and highlight the role of informal learning in vocational education and training. We draw on the case of craft pottery to discuss…

When Arthur Cohen launched "New Directions for Community Colleges" ("NDCC") in 1973, the focus was on sharing updates and practical advice for those leading and working in community colleges. At the time, scant attention was given to these institutions as most research centered on 4-year colleges and universities. The context…

The purpose of this study is to trace and document the emerging contours of a Vocational Training, Adult Education and Lifelong Learning (VTAELL) space in the EU via an examination of the policy framework built over time in this area over more than six decades, from the inception of today's European Union to the present day. Nineteen key primary…

The philosophical foundation of Bildung in the context of vocational education and training was significantly shaped by Eduard Spranger (1882-1963). However its legacy is not as present today since vocational schools in german-speaking countries today focus strongly on competences. This article sheds light on the emergence of this concept,…

This article explores the position of rural women in Irish society during the period 1930-1960, focusing on their engagement with vocational education. Irish vocational education was organised and delivered in a way that was in keeping with a wider gendered ideology as represented in the policy discourse with gender-segregated training, the…

The paper examines the economic rationale for the provision of technical/ vocational education (TVE) in colonial Ghana. It further highlights some key lessons drawn from the study, particularly, in term of the Ghanaian contemporary search for a more pragmatic policy formulation for TVE. Data were retrieved from primary sources in the form of…

This article describes the origins of learning outcomes-based qualifications in England in the 1980s. It describes the design philosophy and evolution of National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) which are contrasted with content-led frameworks and qualifications such as the English National Curriculum. The design flaws of the NVQ are noted and…

This article presents implications of education and training policies on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) from the pre-colonial Kenya to date based on systematic review of education policies and related literature. In the pre-colonial period the non-formal and informal vocational training was demand driven, relevant and…

Over the past 40 years, global tertiary expansion has been driven in part by the rise of the non-university sector. The growth of this sector, which includes vocational colleges, also contributes to increasingly diverse national higher education systems. Prior research has focused on inter-state variation in national systems, while very few…

The Indonesian labor force remains poorly educated and ill equipped to tackle the growing challenges of meeting contemporary industry requirements. While many countries aspire to equip future generations with the skills, knowledge and attitudes for a future working life, the relationship between the 'world of work' and the current Indonesian…

Career and technical education (also known as vocational education) has been in existence since at least the 19th century as a means of preparing students for employment. However, for much of the 20th century, it also has served to segregate students, even after such segregation was deemed illegal. Robert Kim describes the legal history of career…

VET researchers and policy-makers have historically displayed a keen interest in the future. Two assumptions link VET to the future. The first is that there is a singular object called VET and, secondly, that it can influence a forthcoming state of reality. This relationship is investigated through a rarely utilised post-structuralist discourse…