Determinants of students’ school-identification in secondary vocational education

Abstract

This article reports on a study regarding the school-identification of 1819 first-year students in secondary vocational education. We measured the school-identification of these adolescents and used the perspective of self-regulation to define three blocks of potential determinants, including the students' personal goals (1) their appraisals of the school and classroom (2), and their peer-and home-identities (3). One other block included students' personal characteristics, such as general ability (i.e., course-level) and gender (4). In a two-wave regression procedure we investigated the contributions of the four blocks of potential determinants in explaining students' school-identification. The first wave showed three key-determinants, including students' appraisals of teacher-expectation and course-utility and the extent to which they felt alienated from their school. Of secondary importance were students' relational identities, with peer-identity being more important than home-identity. Personal goals were the least important determinants. The second wave showed how the key-determinants were explained by the students' appraisals of mutual-support, and involvement, fairness, humour, learning-support, reward and personal respect of their teachers. Elaborate interpretations of the results are provided in the discussion.

Protective factors and resilience in adolescents: The mediating role of self-regulation

“…Results indicated that girls and students from regular (non-vocational) courses experienced better home environments and had higher resilience levels and impulse control. These results are consistent with previous research, which reported lower self-regulation skills for boys and students who attended vocational courses (Buckner et al, 2009;García del Castillo & Dias, 2009;Jonker et al, 2010;Koning & Boekaerts, 2005;McCabe & Brooks-Gunn, 2007). Nevertheless, the existence of gender-related differences in resilience is not consensual in the literature, with some studies indicating that girls and boys react differently to adversity and others concluding that no differences between adolescent girls and boys exist (for a review, see Coleman & Hagell, 2007).…”

“…At social level, some studies indicate a negative correlation between self-regulation and peer rejection, problematic or antisocial behaviours with peers (Tangney, Baumeister, & Boone, 2004;Trentacosta & Shaw, 2009), but a positive correlation with the involvement and inclusion in the community (Stenseng, Belsky, Skalicka, & Wichstrøm, 2014;Stillmand & Baumeister, 2013). At school level, self-regulation has been positively related to school achievement (Boekaerts, 2005;Duckworth & Seligman, 2005;McClellan & Cameron, 2011;Zimmerman, 1990) and higher levels of self-regulation have been found in students from regular or non-vocational courses when compared to students who attend vocational courses (Jonker, Elferink-Gemser, Toering, Lyons, & Visscher, 2010;Koning & Boekaerts, 2005).…”

Associations between vocational students’ perceptions of goal structures, mastery goals, and self-efficacy in five subjects—practical relevance as a potential mediator

“…In accordance with these theoretical propositions regarding the psychological mechanisms through which mastery goal structures engender mastery goals, an extensive body of empirical evidence supports the robust link between mastery goal structures and students' mastery goals (for a meta-analytic review, see Bardach et al under review). Nonetheless, while mastery goals and how they relate to educational outcomes have previously been investigated in vocational education (e.g., de Koning and Boekaerts 2005), the link between mastery goals and mastery goal structures has not yet been addressed. Vocational education prepares students for different professions.…”