Elena Boldrini & Luca Bausch R&D

1. SCELTOA pilot research-action project about the transition to upper secondary level in Canton of Ticino (Switzerland) Elena Boldrini & Luca Bausch R&D Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training - SFIVET Lugano

2. Agenda • Overview on the project context • Project objectives • Research: design, methodology • Main results • Next steps SFIVET Lugano

3. Context of the project • Swiss national average: 60% of all students coming out of compulsory education decide to enrol in a VET programme • in the Canton of Ticino, however, the reality is quite different: • in 2007 the proportion of students enrolling in selective schools was 18% higher than the national average; • the proportion of students enrolling in vocational schools was 13% lower than the national average (FSO, 2008). SFIVET Lugano

4. Context of the project • In the last 15 years: • selective schools +5% • full-time VET schools +6% • dual VET schools -10% Elab. from "Scuola Ticinese in cifre 2007". USR. P.7. … about the 30% of students in the selective schools abandon this track! SFIVET Lugano

5. Objectives • Wide objective: to influence on the demand for apprenticeship positions by first drawing the assumption that dual-track VET programmes do not enjoy prestige in the Canton of Ticino and that there is very little awareness of the benefits of dual-track • Operative objective: to enhance the appeal and the information process about the VET dual track, by devising and later tentatively implementing some experimental strategies • Micro objective: pilot research to explore possible ambits of intervention • [1] SFIVET Lugano

6. Research design: phase ex-ante • …in order to investigate: • Students’ and parents’ personal perrceptions of the ideal occupation • The status of the decision-making process at the end of lower secondary and vocational indecision (Gati, Krausz, Osipow, 1996) • Decisions, options being considered for the secondary level • Level of familiarity with information sources and their perceived usefulness SFIVET Lugano

7. Research design: phase ex-post • Phase ex-post: second questionnaire to the same students’ sample • (70% responses) • In order to investigate… • Failed attempts and status of the decision-making process one semester after the initial choice was made • Satisfaction about the choice made • Professional representations • 1] SFIVET Lugano

8. The ideal profession • Clear preference for intellectual and scientific occupations: • 11% of parents have an intellectual/scientific occupation • 23.5% of parents wish their children have an intellectual/scientific job • 30.2% of students would like to have an intellectual/scientific job • Disinvestment for administrative/intermediate/services occupations • 15% of parents have an administrative occupation • 7% of parents wish their children have an administrative job • 5% of students would like to have an administrative job SFIVET Lugano

9. The role of the profession in life? SFIVET Lugano

10. Students’ choices Indecision: ~15% To the question: “Do you agree with the training choice of you son/daughter?” 100% parents agreed SFIVET Lugano

11. Possibile difficulties? (R) Lack of Readiness Rm: lack of motivation Rc: chronic indecision Rd: dysfunctional myths (M) Lack of Information Mp: decision-making process Ms: about the self Mm: about occupations Mo: about information sources (I) Inconsistent Infor. Iu: unreliable infor. II: internal conflicts Ie: external conflicts (VI) Vocational Indecision SFIVET Lugano

12. Information sources SFIVET Lugano

13. Important actors in the information process • 90% of students have discussed this choice with parents • 80% of students have discussed with parents several times • Parents are perceived by their children as the most useful “counsellor” • 83% students: the families play a role in the decision vs. 7% of parents SFIVET Lugano

14. Phase 2 • In the second phase the 30% of those who preffered intellectual and scientific profession has decreased to the 15% They now answered “I don’t know” • Those who chose a dual VET track feel “very well about the choice made” for the 42.9% • Those who are in the selective schools feel “very well” for the 17.3% SFIVET Lugano

15. Next steps: SCELTOperativo • Four critical areas have been pointed out • measures to be experimentally implemented • Idealisation and expectations: dysfuntional and irrealistic beliefs about the role of the job in the life and and very high expectations about their future • Career planning: a lack of knowledge about the decision-making process and the various steps, as well as a lack of knowledge about the occupations • Communication and information: students did not make full use of the information sources placed at their disposal by the reference institutions nor felt that these information sources were useful • Organisational and institutional structures: lack of coordinated actionsin terms of collaboration between guidance counsellors, school coordinators, teachers (qualitative data) SFIVET Lugano