Employability Versus Capability: European Strategies for Young People

Vocational students’ experiences of power relations during periods of workplace learning – a means for citizenship learning

“…Experiences of power relations at individual level were narrated as part of both positive and negative stories about workplace learning periods, for example in feeling both socially included and excluded. However, the narrations of Experiences of power relations at group level theme were mostly negative, which we interpreted as reflecting hierarchies within and among vocations and trades in education and society at large (Nylund, Rosvall, and Ledman 2017;Schrörer 2015).…”

“…Discussion of the outcome of vocational education often focuses on skills and competences (Schrörer 2015). When capabilities relevant to citizenship are addressed, emancipatory arguments are often highlighted, such as the importance of promoting VET students' acquisition of 'the knowledge that takes them beyond their experience and which they would be unlikely to have access to at home, at work or in the community' (Young 2010, 5-6).…”

“…Besides giving students access to this kind of expansive learning (cf. Fuller and Unwin 2003), the importance of including knowledge that gives the students capabilities for voice is also highlighted ( Bonvin and Laruffa 2018;Schrörer 2015). That is, the importance of young people having a real say in what happens to them and being able to make choices (cf.…”

“…Another is development of the ability to exercise democratic rights -to enact civic power, influence and active (vocational) citizenship. Citizenship competences of these kinds are Forms of knowledges are also discussed by Bonvin and Laruffa (2018), Kjeldsen and Bonvin (2015) and Schrörer (2015), using the concept capability approach. The common perception of researchers that school-based learning better facilitates the broader capabilities that apply to citizenship education is also widely held by politicians and policy-makers, who tend to rely more on academic than workplace settings when seeking to challenge generic issues such as power structures (Schrörer 2015).…”

“…Citizenship competences of these kinds are Forms of knowledges are also discussed by Bonvin and Laruffa (2018), Kjeldsen and Bonvin (2015) and Schrörer (2015), using the concept capability approach. The common perception of researchers that school-based learning better facilitates the broader capabilities that apply to citizenship education is also widely held by politicians and policy-makers, who tend to rely more on academic than workplace settings when seeking to challenge generic issues such as power structures (Schrörer 2015). There has been a discussion about broadening of students' learning in work settings for many years now, with important contributions addressing the issue at vocational education curriculum level (Kjeldsen and Bonvin 2015;Wheelahan 2016;Young 2010).…”