It is argued that developing digital abilities is key for today's knowledge society. They facilitate engaging with pervasive information communication technologies and manipulating information. Governments have invested vastly in formal education aimed at developing digital abilities. Policies and directives driving this venture need to be…

In this paper, which takes the form of a dialogue, we discuss the possible directions that vocational education might take in the contemporary social, economic and technological context of the early 21st century. Taking account of the unresolved debates around vocational education internationally and future global economic demands for expertise we…

This paper investigates the realisation of competence-based education (CBE) in vocational education in Indonesia. It examines the extent to which CBE design principles of the Comprehensive Competence-Based Education Framework developed in a Western context exist in Indonesian policy documents and school practices. This study reviews educational…

In the United States, high school career and technical education (CTE) is the primary source of vocational training at the secondary level, and is similar in goal if not form to vocational education and training (VET) worldwide. CTE has evolved in the past decade to place greater emphasis on programmes in Science, Technology, Engineering, and…

Human development and rights-based approaches to education have been gaining support among international organisations and development agencies as alternative frameworks to human capital orthodoxy. While these global trends have been well-documented in the international development literature, there is little empirical evidence into what extent,…

In this article, we illustrate the creation of the education policy paradigm that constitutes the framework of vocational education and training (VET) programmes, and analyse local school representatives' perception of VET in upper secondary schools in Sweden. The education policy paradigm, established through three periods of reform during the…

Upper secondary vocational education in Denmark is based on the apprenticeship model, which is recognised as a valuable route to employment for young people, who are not aiming for higher education. However, the apprenticeship model has a major weakness: it does not provide eligibility for higher education. The purpose of this article is to…

Work-Related Learning (WRL) has been enthusiastically embraced by UK governments since the 1990s as a means of reengaging learners in the final years of compulsory schooling. However, recent years have seen a policy shift away from WRL towards a more academic curriculum for all young people. Drawing on a qualitative study commissioned by the…

The standing of vocational education is salient for how it is perceived by those who sponsor, participate in and work within it and how its provisions are supported and administered. Yet, this standing continues to be intractably low, compared with other education sectors, more so in some countries than others. The consequences for this low…

This paper sheds light on how competence assessment takes place in the Danish Vocational and Educational Training System. It discusses how intentions formulated by the government have unintentional effects when implemented in practice. The qualitative methods used in this study consist of participant observations from my field study of dropouts in…

In 2005, the UK government introduced new vocationally related diploma qualifications. Two-year programs were examined in the summers of 2010 and 2011; initial government hopes for candidate numbers proved largely ephemeral and results were disappointing. This article explores what happened to the diploma's lofty ambitions using the summer of 2010…

The boundaries between vocational and academic post compulsory education have been blurred by students combining vocational and academic studies and by students transferring increasingly between the two types of education. Institutions are also blurring the boundaries between the sectors by increasingly offering programs from two and sometimes…

This study examines the influence of the colonial experience (1945-1997) on the planning of secondary technical education in Hong Kong. Specifically, the origins of secondary technical institutions and their positioning in secondary education are examined. Primary source materials are used as the basis of investigation and analysis, supplemented…

The apprenticeship training system in Germany, where training takes place in both private companies and vocational schools, has traditionally played an outstanding role in the development of young skilled workers. However, particularly since the start of the new millennium, the chances of smooth transition from secondary school to an…

Educational policy is asked to support young people in their successful transition from education to employment. In Switzerland, a two-year apprenticeship with Federal VET Certificate was established in 2002 aimed at increasing the employability of low-achieving school leavers. It is a low-threshold VET programme offering standardised vocational…