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A
Synthesis of Studies in Vocational Education from 1993 to 1998
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| Dr.
Krismant Whattananarong
The purpose of this study
was to analyze theses and dissertations in vocational education completed
by graduate students from the Faculty of Technical Education, King
Mongkut’s Institute of Technology North Bangkok, from the year 1993 to
1997, and to synthesize the outcomes in order to make suggestions for
vocational education reform. The contents of the research studies
were divided into five areas. There were 36 studies in the area of
curricula and instruction, 45 studies in administration and management, 14
studies in social services, 169 studies in development of instructional
media, and 39 studies in others which related to vocational education and
training. There were 303 studies used in this study. They were
analyzed by a method of qualitative analysis by the researcher. The
results revealed that in the area of curricula and instruction, most
vocational teachers held a bachelor’s degree with over 5 years of
teaching experience. They had had no work experience related to
their teaching subjects. Effectiveness of curricula and teaching
were rated at a good level. However, the curricula were not
flexible, lacked revision, were obsolete, and not fitted to the needs of
employers. The certificate-level graduates preferred further study
to work. The problem students were those who were unsatisfied with
their field of study. But they had no alternative. In the area
of administration and management, the administrators in different regions,
age groups, and with different work experience stated different opinions,
thoughts, and management patterns. Vocational institutes under the
Department of Vocational Education had no plan to gain income from other
sources to support their education management. Unknowledgeable
personnel and lack of adequate and continued training in working
procedures caused the crucial problems in administration and management.
In the area of social services, there were not many activities.
Vocational institutes provided some vocational training to gain income and
for career development. Most research studies were in the area
of educational media development. There were many usable media
developed for vocational teaching and training in all levels and
disciplines. The instructional media employed value of a quality
sufficient to provide learning achievement both higher than and equal to
usual instruction. For the others, the studies showed that employers
preferred hiring employees who had high work ethics and good attitudes
toward work over those who were high knowledgeable and skillful.
There was less cooperation between government vocational institutes and
private sectors. The teachers who had a degree in engineering quit
their teaching job for a higher paid job. Lack of funding was still
cited as the major cause of problems. The results of this analysis
revealed the situation of vocational education in Thailand during the
transitional period from a booming economy to a recession. The
results of most studies did not show the impact of economic recession on
vocational education. The vocational institutes under the Department
of Vocational Education showed no sign of changing and adapting themselves
to the changing socio-economic situation of the country and of the world.
For the suggestions of vocational reform in Thailand, the vocational
education system should be designed to correlate with national products,
the labor market, and the economy of the country in which it needs more
cooperation from many sectors. Vocational education institutes
should show a higher sensitivity in adjusting themselves to the changing
society. They should be flexible to manage under a clear policy.
The curricula should focus on educating students to become good citizens,
self-reliance, and to make them employable with international standard
vocational qualifications.
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