Newton RCUK-CONICYT Governing the educational and labour market trajectories of secondary TVET graduates in Chile
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Glasgow
Department Name: School of Education
Abstract
Chile has experienced considerable educational expansion over the past few decades as a result of the growing demand for education from individuals and families and the positional competition for qualified jobs in the formal sector of the economy. While in the past TVET policies were designed to offer educational opportunities for disadvantaged youth seeking a quick insertion in the labour market, today the orientations and the objectives of these policies are less clear given the larger number of secondary TVET graduates that pursue tertiary education and combine education and work in their trajectories after schooling. In this context, TVET continues to be a strategic sector for improving the skills of most disadvantaged youth over their life course but the transitions of these young adults from secondary to tertiary education and from education to work are becoming more problematic due to the high stratification of tertiary education supply, the scarcity of qualified jobs in the economy and the poor coordination of public policies targeting young adults.
The project aims to understand the potentially competing, and possibly ambivalent, orientations and objectives of TVET policies in Chile, their compatibility and contradictions with the aspirations of secondary TVET graduates, and their intended and unintended effects on the educational and labour market trajectories of these young adults. An important contribution of the project is the incorporation of the perspective of young adults (their expectations, aspirations and strategies) into the debate on how TVET policies can better support disadvantaged youth in their transition to work. By doing this, the project aims to contribute to the design of TVET policies that better accommodate the demands and needs of vulnerable young populations in changing labour markets and societies, which emphasize the relevance of this kind of research in this particular moment in transitional economies like Chile.
Conceptually, the project is based on three major theoretical perspectives - Cultural Political Economy, Life Course Research and Governance Perspective. The combination of these different systems of thought matches the topic's broad variety of dimensions. The proposed project brings together different disciplinary social scientific approaches, which aim at conceptualising the research questions in adequate ways due to its complexity; further, its drawing from theories and methods from Education Science, Sociology and Political Science purports addressing methodological issues related to the complex dynamics of policy-making by means of an interdisciplinary perspective.
In order to achieve its aims, the study is designed as a multilevel qualitative research at national, local and individual level. At the national level, we will map TVET policies and programs, will review policy regulations, and will interview national policy makers and stakeholders. At the local level, we will conduct case studies that will involve interviews with local authorities, TVET schools, and others. Finally, at the individual level, we will carry out interviews with a typological sample of secondary TVET graduates with different educational and labour market trajectories.
This project expects to expand the research evidence on TVET policies in Chile and their implications for the trajectories of TVET graduates after school. We expect that the evidence produced for the case of Chile will contribute to the debates on how TVET can improve the living conditions and labour market opportunities of disadvantaged youth in middle-income and low-income countries, what is a priority for many development agencies today.
The project aims to understand the potentially competing, and possibly ambivalent, orientations and objectives of TVET policies in Chile, their compatibility and contradictions with the aspirations of secondary TVET graduates, and their intended and unintended effects on the educational and labour market trajectories of these young adults. An important contribution of the project is the incorporation of the perspective of young adults (their expectations, aspirations and strategies) into the debate on how TVET policies can better support disadvantaged youth in their transition to work. By doing this, the project aims to contribute to the design of TVET policies that better accommodate the demands and needs of vulnerable young populations in changing labour markets and societies, which emphasize the relevance of this kind of research in this particular moment in transitional economies like Chile.
Conceptually, the project is based on three major theoretical perspectives - Cultural Political Economy, Life Course Research and Governance Perspective. The combination of these different systems of thought matches the topic's broad variety of dimensions. The proposed project brings together different disciplinary social scientific approaches, which aim at conceptualising the research questions in adequate ways due to its complexity; further, its drawing from theories and methods from Education Science, Sociology and Political Science purports addressing methodological issues related to the complex dynamics of policy-making by means of an interdisciplinary perspective.
In order to achieve its aims, the study is designed as a multilevel qualitative research at national, local and individual level. At the national level, we will map TVET policies and programs, will review policy regulations, and will interview national policy makers and stakeholders. At the local level, we will conduct case studies that will involve interviews with local authorities, TVET schools, and others. Finally, at the individual level, we will carry out interviews with a typological sample of secondary TVET graduates with different educational and labour market trajectories.
This project expects to expand the research evidence on TVET policies in Chile and their implications for the trajectories of TVET graduates after school. We expect that the evidence produced for the case of Chile will contribute to the debates on how TVET can improve the living conditions and labour market opportunities of disadvantaged youth in middle-income and low-income countries, what is a priority for many development agencies today.
Planned Impact
In order to unpack and make an effective impact in the communities involved in policy making, beneficiaries and stakeholders related to VET, the research project contemplates different activities organised according to the main research stages described in the case for support with the aim of improving the participation, voice and engagement of different actors involved in VET by allowing them to contribute to the thinking and making of VET policies, and influence the research process from its outset. For this purpose the research project will implement the following strategies:
Advisory Group
The project will establish an advisory group who will be sent updates on progress and emergent findings of the study and will provide feedback to the research team. The advisory group will receive the updates three times during the course of the project, just before the finalisation of the three stages of the research. The group, who will correspond through electronic means, will be composed by one national policymaker, one representative of the business sector, one international expert in TVET from Latin America, an one official from an international organization. Members of the advisory group will be recruited through our extensive network of professional contacts and will be selected in terms of their ability to feed information into the machinery of policy and practice in a timely manner and to influence agendas in Chile and in other middle-income and low-income countries.
Knowledge exchange seminars and workshops
A series of knowledge events will be organised with different actors interested and working on the development of VET policies such as policymakers and practitioners from different spheres: Ministry of Education; curriculum; Superintendencia de Educación; National Board of Education; National Service of Training and Employment (SENCE); representatives of international organizations -BID; OIT, OCDE-, VET students and workers organizations (e.g. unions). One workshop with national and local TVET policymakers, stakeholders and practitioners will be held in Santiago de Chile during the second stage of the research, and two international seminars with international experts and national policymakers will also be held in Santiago de Chile, one during the second stage of the project and another one during the third a final stage of the project.
Online presence and policy briefs
A project website will be in place from the start of the research and will be updated regularly throughout to provide access to project information, working papers and blog entries. This will be linked to our respective university sites such us the University of Glasgow Centre for International Development and the School of Education Centre Robert Owen for Educational Change. The research team will also maintain a dialogue through a Twitter account that has already been established (@skills4dev) so as to maintain an engagement with interested parties, publicizing project progress and posting more substantial documents as well as seeking responses from those with an interest in the area youth, skills and international development. Three policy briefs and corresponding blog entries will also be published on the project website with the objective of reaching policymakers and practitioners and a non-technical briefing paper will be printed and distributed to key individuals and government departments with an interest in issues around TVET and youth labour market. Two more blog entries will also be published in other websites: one in the Robert Owen Centre blog and another one in the NORRAG blog with the aim to rapidly disseminate information on the research findings internationally. We will also produce press releases to place information in the public sphere at appropriately chosen times. The University of Glasgow has a Press Offices that can help us maximize the impact of our messages.
Advisory Group
The project will establish an advisory group who will be sent updates on progress and emergent findings of the study and will provide feedback to the research team. The advisory group will receive the updates three times during the course of the project, just before the finalisation of the three stages of the research. The group, who will correspond through electronic means, will be composed by one national policymaker, one representative of the business sector, one international expert in TVET from Latin America, an one official from an international organization. Members of the advisory group will be recruited through our extensive network of professional contacts and will be selected in terms of their ability to feed information into the machinery of policy and practice in a timely manner and to influence agendas in Chile and in other middle-income and low-income countries.
Knowledge exchange seminars and workshops
A series of knowledge events will be organised with different actors interested and working on the development of VET policies such as policymakers and practitioners from different spheres: Ministry of Education; curriculum; Superintendencia de Educación; National Board of Education; National Service of Training and Employment (SENCE); representatives of international organizations -BID; OIT, OCDE-, VET students and workers organizations (e.g. unions). One workshop with national and local TVET policymakers, stakeholders and practitioners will be held in Santiago de Chile during the second stage of the research, and two international seminars with international experts and national policymakers will also be held in Santiago de Chile, one during the second stage of the project and another one during the third a final stage of the project.
Online presence and policy briefs
A project website will be in place from the start of the research and will be updated regularly throughout to provide access to project information, working papers and blog entries. This will be linked to our respective university sites such us the University of Glasgow Centre for International Development and the School of Education Centre Robert Owen for Educational Change. The research team will also maintain a dialogue through a Twitter account that has already been established (@skills4dev) so as to maintain an engagement with interested parties, publicizing project progress and posting more substantial documents as well as seeking responses from those with an interest in the area youth, skills and international development. Three policy briefs and corresponding blog entries will also be published on the project website with the objective of reaching policymakers and practitioners and a non-technical briefing paper will be printed and distributed to key individuals and government departments with an interest in issues around TVET and youth labour market. Two more blog entries will also be published in other websites: one in the Robert Owen Centre blog and another one in the NORRAG blog with the aim to rapidly disseminate information on the research findings internationally. We will also produce press releases to place information in the public sphere at appropriately chosen times. The University of Glasgow has a Press Offices that can help us maximize the impact of our messages.
Publications
Aldinucci A
(2021)
Understanding aspirations: why do secondary TVET students aim so high in Chile?
in Journal of Vocational Education & Training
Bravo P
(2022)
Private-led policy transfer: the adoption of sector skills councils in Chile
in Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education
Valdebenito MJ
(2017)
TVET Local and Regional Dynamics in Chile. A Governance Approach
Valiente O
(2019)
The coordination of skill supply and demand in the market model of skill formation: testing the assumptions for the case of Chile
in International Journal of Lifelong Education
Valiente O
(2020)
Development paradigms in the institutional configuration of vocational education and training in Chile (1964-2005)
in Journal of Vocational Education & Training
Zancajo A
(2018)
TVET policy reforms in Chile 2006-2018: between human capital and the right to education
in Journal of Vocational Education & Training
Description | Our analysis of TVET policies in Chile has shown that: 1) Human Capital approaches have dominated the TVET agenda in Chile until 2014; 2) This agenda showed low levels of policy retention due to the priority given to more conflictive sectors (school quasi-markets, higher education fees); 3) The last Bachelet Government (2014-18) introduced a wider human development approach in TVET agendas with greater concern more equity issues and the right to education; 4) This new agenda has achieved greater policy retention due to the alliance between government and social movements in education; 5) Despite the advancements in the more recent TVET reforms, policy actors have not managed to incorporate the political economy critique of the poor quality of jobs and low demand for skills in the country. |
Exploitation Route | Academic audience: these results are disseminated through a journal article submitted to JVET, a book chapter edited by project Co-PIs and papers presented in the CESE and JVET Conferences. Non-academic audiences: we have disseminated these results among practitioners in an international seminar in Santiago and with high level officials of the Ministry of Education through our participation in the Presidential Advisory Group responsible for the TVET National Strategy 2017-2030 (our work cited in the policy document). |
Sectors | Education |
URL | http://www.tvetchile.org/ |
Description | Citation in Chilean National Strategy of TVET 2017-2030 (page 4) |
Geographic Reach | South America |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in other policy documents |
URL | http://consejoftp.mineduc.cl/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Estrategia-Nacional-de-Formaci%C3%B3n-T%C3%A... |
Description | Lord Kelvin Adam Smith PhD Scholarships |
Amount | £56,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | University of Glasgow |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2017 |
End | 08/2021 |
Title | Database of studies on TVET in Chile |
Description | As a result of a literature review of studies on TVET in Chile, the research team produced and published a database with the the 20 key publications. This 45-pages document provides the details and summarizes the main findings from these 20 studies. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2017 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | This database was included in the syllabus of the University Alberto Hurtado post-graduate course 'Youth and Labour Markets' and widely used by their students. |
URL | http://www.tvetchile.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/ETP-en-Chile-2007-2017-Res%C3%BAmenes-de-textos-... |
Description | Critical Knots in the Management of Secondary Technical and Vocational Education and Training Schools: Challenges for Leadership |
Organisation | Alberto Hurtado University |
Country | Chile |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Judith Jacovkis collaborated in the research as an external expert bringing comparative elements to the national approach developed by the team of the University Alberto Hurtado from Chile, who was lead by Leandro Sepúlveda -and funded by the Centre for Educational Leadership Development (Chile). She elaborated a report attached to the main one for which she used the same analytical elements applied by the Chilean team to explore the characteristics of the leadership models in VET centers in Catalonia. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partners conducted the main investigation regarding different models of leadership in the VET schools in Chile. They created a typology of leadership models through which they explored their leverages and barriers for the development of successful educational trajectories for young people. |
Impact | Internal Report not published yet |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Critical Knots in the Management of Secondary Technical and Vocational Education and Training Schools: Challenges for Leadership |
Organisation | Alberto Hurtado University |
Country | Chile |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Judith Jacovkis collaborated in the research as an external expert bringing comparative elements to the national approach developed by the team of the University Alberto Hurtado from Chile, who was lead by Leandro Sepúlveda -and funded by the Centre for Educational Leadership Development (Chile). She elaborated a report attached to the main one for which she used the same analytical elements applied by the Chilean team to explore the characteristics of the leadership models in VET centers in Catalonia. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partners conducted the main investigation regarding different models of leadership in the VET schools in Chile. They created a typology of leadership models through which they explored their leverages and barriers for the development of successful educational trajectories for young people. |
Impact | Internal Report not published yet |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Meeting with Ministry of Education officials |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | The leading team in TVET of the Chilean Ministry of Education wanted to have a two-hour meeting with our research team to get feedback in relation to the first draft of the National TVET Strategy. The research team raised serious doubts about the sustainability of some of the proposed reforms (i.e. the national qualifications framework) and asked for initiatives to strengthen capacity at local and regional level to govern the supply and demand of skills. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | http://www.tvetchile.org/tvet-chile-se-reune-secretaria-educacion-tecnica-mineduc/ |
Description | Participation in the Presidential Advisory Board for the National Strategy of TVET 2017-2030. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | We were invited to present our work on TVET Policies to the Presidential Advisory Board for the National Strategy of TVET 2017-2030. We stressed the importance of defining the goals of the TVET strategy from a wider human development perspective and not just through the traditional narrow human capital perspective. We also talked about the lack of capacity in regions to govern the supply and demand of skills, and the insufficient individualised support to disadvantaged TVET students in their post-school trajectories. The resulting national strategy acknowledged our contributions. See page 4 of the document: http://consejoftp.mineduc.cl/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Estrategia-Nacional-de-Formaci%C3%B3n-T%C3%A9cnico-Profesional-febrero-2018.pdf The document was handed by the Advisroy Board to the President of the Republic. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | http://consejoftp.mineduc.cl/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Estrategia-Nacional-de-Formaci%C3%B3n-T%C3%A... |
Description | Project newsletter number 1 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | First number of the project newsletter with details of the project, news and links to our work. 62 people received the project newsletter. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | https://us15.campaign-archive.com/?u=6dc66a05cafb2ab846086c27b&id=020ef7a8df |
Description | Project newsletter number 2 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Second number of the project newsletter with details of the project, news and links to our work. 121 people received the project newsletter. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
URL | https://us15.campaign-archive.com/?u=6dc66a05cafb2ab846086c27b&id=ce930e5ff3 |
Description | TVET in Chile: A debate about the necessary policy reforms |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | This one-day international seminar discussed TVET Policies in Chile in relation to three focal themes: 1) National reforms 2) Local and regional governance 3) Post-school trajectories. We organised three roundtables around the three focal themes of the seminar. Academics (from Chile, the UK, Canada and Argentina) and government officials delivered presentations in the three roundtables and responded to questions from the audience. The seminar was attended by more than 80 people, mainly teachers and head teachers from vocational schools. Most of the questions from the audience revolved around the implications of national reforms for the allocation of public resources to vocational schools and the disjuncture between the policy provisions and the needs of disadvantaged students. Attendees showed great interest in the results of the project as recorded by a satisfaction survey. All the presentations and summary of debates are available on the project website: http://www.tvetchile.org/seminario-analizo-experiencias-politicas-educacion-tecnico-profesional/ The sessions were recorded and are all available in youtube: Roundtable 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMYe2OhZwoQ Roundtable 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8lDTkqwIqA Roundtable 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqVlmSFXArU |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008,2017 |
URL | http://www.tvetchile.org/seminario-analizo-experiencias-politicas-educacion-tecnico-profesional/ |
Description | TVETCHILE Project website |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The bilingual project website includes information on: objectives and research design of the project, team members, publications, activities and news. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016,2017,2018 |
URL | http://www.tvetchile.org/ |