Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training

How the World of Work Transforms Educational Institutions

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Schools are under increasing pressure to prepare students for the transition to post-compulsory education and vocational training. Beyond the support of the students’ professional orientation, the focus is on students’ learning of soft skills. Based on an ethnographic study in schools of the lower secondary level, the article discusses how in school, autonomy is anticipated in school as a central requirement of the world of work. The analysed counselling interview reveals a narrowing of autonomy to the self-responsible execution of orders.</abstract>

Institut für Forschung, Entwicklung und Evaluation

Institut für Weiterbildung und Medienbildung

Autonomy as Anticipation of the World of Work at School

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">In Switzerland, dual vocational education and training, which is practice- and employment-oriented, is the most frequently chosen path after compulsory education. The analysis of the training provided in the company by the people in charge of the apprentices questions the influences of the world of work on educational practices. The analysis of 80 semi-directive interviews highlights the tension between production and training, the different representations of apprentices, and the impact of these two elements on training practices.</abstract>

Training in Companies: Educational Practices at the Heart of the World of Work

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">How did the upper-secondary specialised school (SpS) establish itself as a school-based pathway to the universities of applied sciences in Switzerland? The sociology of conventions serves to analyse how actors justify and assess this type of school. The analysis of interviews and educational policy documents shows that the specialised school has been a recurring target of criticism from advocates of the VET system. It had to make compromises with the world of work to gain recognition as a pathway to the universities of applied sciences.</abstract>

Establishment of a School-Based Pathway to Universities of Applied Sciences in Switzerland. Conventions of Higher Education Access in Vocational and General Education

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Higher education is a site of contesting visions by actors in politics, science and the economy. This article investigates imaginations of the future articulated around the introduction of data science in Swiss higher education through a qualitative analysis of study programmes, policy documents, and business reports. Universities envision data sciences mainly in reference to economic and technological concepts, which contribute to the coordination of the various actors and thus unfolds specific performative effects in the present.</abstract>

Envisioning Higher Education: How Imagining the Future Shapes the Implementation of a New Field in Higher Education

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The paper addresses the impact of higher education reforms on academic teaching and the concrete implications of the new academic teaching requirements for the professional practice of professors. It explores how labour market requirements change the university from the point of view of professors and how they deal with these changes. The paper draws on 64 interviews with professors from Germany, which were conducted as part of a qualitative study on the consequences of performance evaluation procedures at German universities.</abstract>

Organization Versus Profession? Teaching in the context of higher education reforms from a Sociology of Professions Perspective

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">This article analyses the changes the profession of primary school teacher has been submitted to. It focuses on a device prompted to fight against school failure, called “Personalised Programme for School Success” (PPRE). It shows its propensity to above all reinforce the control on pedagogical practices through a mandatory formalization of those and to standardise the responses commonly held about schooling difficulties while engaging the entire hierarchical chain.</abstract>

Intensification of Teachers’ Work and Bureaucracy: The Example of the PPRE

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">In this article, we examine the extent to which the implementation of results-based management (RBM) affects socio-professional relationships in public schools in Quebec. Our analyses of interview data show that the perceptions of RBM by Quebec teachers and school principals are more divergent than convergent. The observed differences of perception affects the socio-professional relationships between school principals and teachers to the extent that the former have to find adequate strategies to obtain the commitment of the latter.</abstract>

The Implementation of Results-Based Management in Quebec: Between School Principals’ Optimism and Teachers’ Skepticism

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The worldwide implementation of school governance reforms over the last decades has changed the function and roles of school principals. Now identified as key players, these changes expose them to new health risks. International research has established the principalship to be highly demanding and stressful. This study addresses work stress, its main causes and coping strategies among school principals in French-speaking Switzerland. While they are most frequently bothered by time stressors, coping efforts are primarily directed at reducing or preventing conflictual interpersonal relations.</abstract>

School Principals’ Work Stress in an Era of New Education Governance

AHEAD OF PRINT

Volume 49 (2023): Issue 3 (November 2023)

Volume 49 (2023): Issue 2 (July 2023)

Volume 49 (2023): Issue 1 (March 2023)

Volume 48 (2022): Issue 3 (November 2022)

Volume 48 (2022): Issue 2 (July 2022)

Volume 48 (2022): Issue 1 (March 2022)

Volume 47 (2021): Issue 3 (November 2021)

Volume 47 (2021): Issue 2 (July 2021)

Volume 47 (2021): Issue 1 (March 2021)

Volume 46 (2020): Issue 3 (November 2020)

Volume 46 (2020): Issue 2 (July 2020)

Volume 46 (2020): Issue 1 (March 2020)

Volume 45 (2019): Issue 3 (November 2019)

Volume 45 (2019): Issue 2 (July 2019)

Volume 45 (2019): Issue 1 (March 2019)

Volume 44 (2018): Issue 3 (November 2018)

Volume 44 (2018): Issue 2 (July 2018)

Volume 44 (2018): Issue 1 (March 2018)

Volume 43 (2017): Issue 3 (November 2017)

Volume 43 (2017): Issue 2 (July 2017)

Volume 43 (2017): Issue 1 (March 2017)

Volume 42 (2016): Issue 3 (November 2016)

Volume 42 (2016): Issue 2 (July 2016)

Volume 42 (2016): Issue 1 (March 2016)

Swiss Journal of Sociology

The Swiss Journal of Sociology is a generalist journal with the aim to advance academic discussions and scientific knowledge in sociology. It was established in 1975 on the initiative of the Swiss Sociological Association. It is published three times a year by the Swiss Sociological Association, with the support of the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences.  The journal is the leading platform for sociological debates in Switzerland and on Swiss society and its developments. It publishes work on the theory, methods, practice, and history of sociology. Although a central aim of the journal is to reflect the state of the discipline in Switzerland, articles will be accepted irrespective of the author's nationality or whether the submitted work focuses on this country.  The journal is understood as a representative medium of Swiss sociology and therefore encourages contributions from all research areas and from a plurality of theoretical schools and methodological approaches. It neither favors nor excludes any research orientation but particularly aims to promote communication between different perspectives. It publishes innovative and methodologically rigorous articles contributing to the progress of the state of research in sociology. In order to fulfil this aim, all submissions will be refereed anonymously by at least two reviewers. The journal uses a double-blind peer review process.  The journal does not have article processing charges (APCs) nor article submission charges. Rejection rate:   65%   Archiving  Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.  Plagiarism Policy  The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process. 