Attitudes of teachers and students towards vocational education.

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to determine the attitudes of teachers and students towards vocational education in the Senior Secondary School phase. The population for the study constituted senior secondary school teachers and standard eight (Grade ten) learners of the Kokstad region in the Eastern Cape Province. 270 teachers and 540 students in the nine districts of the Kokstad region, made up the samples for this research which was conducted in 27 schools. Three schools per district were purposively drawn. The use of questionnaires and interviews provided findings on attitudes towards vocational education. The research was pilot tested in two schools. The objectives of the pilot test were two fold: - to test the appropriateness of the items in the questionnaire and clarity of the wording; - to test the relevance of the open-ended questions, and whether their purpose in eliciting from teachers and students the reasons for their attitudes towards vocational education, was achieved. After each pilot testing session, items in the questionnaire were discussed and rephrased to enhance clarity. Questionnaires were dispatched timeously to both teachers and students with a fair response. Data analysis led to findings, implications and recommendations. One of the findings was that both teachers and students had positive attitudes towards vocational education in secondary schools. They recommended greater inclusion of vocational subjects in the curriculum. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key officials in the Department of Education in the Kokstad Region. Findings from the interviews indicate that the educationists that were interviewed favoured more curricular inclusion of the vocational subjects. Career guidance was recommended as a necessity by the head of the Psychological Services so as to help students in the choice of subjects for their future careers.