Vocation, Technology & Education

Campfire paradox: Reassessing career development and vocational education for financial professionals in the artificial intelligence era

2025-07-02T17:11:29+08:00

Vocational educators and career advisors commonly urge aspiring financial professionals to aggressively embrace artificial intelligence (AI) to secure their future. This paper challenges that prevailing wisdom by introducing the "campfire paradox", a phenomenon where the earliest and most enthusiastic adopters of a new technology face the greatest risk of career displacement. Drawing on a decade of observation of the Internet+ and AI's impact on finance, we argue that this paradox is particularly acute in risk-averse industries. Through comparative case studies, the paper investigates the profound, often negative, vocational consequences for practitioners, revealing how over-specialization in nascent technologies can lead to professional vulnerability. We contend that the core function of finance, prudent risk management, remains a fundamentally human endeavor that current AI cannot yet replace, making those who pivot too quickly prime candidates to be "burned". The discussion extends this cautionary analysis to vocational education, questioning pedagogical strategies that prioritize specific tech skills over developing students' irreplaceable core competencies, such as critical judgment and complex problem-solving. By re-examining the fundamental relationship between technology, labor, and industry demand, this paper provides a critical lens for educators, students, and young professionals. It concludes with strategic advice on building adaptable, resilient careers by engaging with new technologies cautiously while doubling down on enduring human value.

The transformation of Chinese vocational education in the era of globalization

2025-08-13T12:20:41+08:00

Chinese vocational education is encountering multifaceted challenges in the era of globalization. This article reviews the ongoing reform of China's vocational education system against the backdrop of the fourth industrial revolution, national modernization, and the construction of a skill-oriented society. The reform emphasizes updating educational concepts, modernizing the vocational-education system, and transforming school-running models. Key measures include innovating talent-training models, reforming enrollment systems, enhancing teacher quality, establishing governance frameworks, promoting international cooperation, advancing digital transformation, and optimizing the allocation of vocational-education resources. The reform has achieved significant outcomes, such as supporting high-quality economic growth, fostering social equity, improving the education system, and strengthening global exchanges. These efforts align with China's vision of building a modernized vocational-education system that adapts to national development needs.

Bridging the skills gap: Technical and vocational education and training student competencies and labor market alignment in Oman

2025-06-09T13:29:07+08:00

This study investigates the vocational and technical skills of final-year students enrolled in Omani government vocational colleges and the extent to which these skills align with labor market needs. The research aligns with the goals of Oman Vision 2040, which emphasizes workforce readiness and economic diversification. Despite reforms in technical and vocational education and training (TVET), employers continue to report skill mismatches. A quantitative cross-sectional design was used in this study. Four hundred students from eight public vocational colleges were surveyed. A validated questionnaire measured three dimensions: vocational skills, technical skills, and alignment with labor market demands. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Students reported moderate-to-high levels of vocational (Mean [M] = 3.62) and technical (M = 3.55) skills, but perceived alignment with labor market demands (M = 3.40) was slightly lower compared to their reported vocational and technical skills. Although no significant gender differences were found, technical skills differed significantly across specializations, with engineering students scoring the highest. A moderate positive correlation (r = 0.57, P < 0.001) was found between skill levels and perceived labor market alignment. While students perceived themselves to be moderately skilled, gaps remained between the types and levels of skills they possessed, and the specific competencies employers required. Enhancing practical training, integrating soft skills, and expanding work-based learning to improve graduate employability are recommended. This study's insights can inform policymakers and educators aiming to improve TVET outcomes in Oman.

Research on the mechanism to break the barriers in information resource communication for school-enterprise cooperation in vocational colleges with a digital background: A qualitative inquiry based on grounded theory

2025-08-21T09:24:29+08:00

The digital wave is reshaping the ecosystem of vocational education, where deep collaboration between vocational colleges and enterprises has become a critical pathway for cultivating highly adaptable technical and skilled talents. Efficient information communication mechanisms now serve as core variables determining the effectiveness of such cooperation. This study focuses on vocational college teachers, enterprise managers, and internship students engaged in school-enterprise collaboration. Following the procedural grounded-theory paradigm, in-depth interviews, non-participatory observations, and digital document analyses were conducted to construct a "technical support-information interaction-goal alignment-effect feedback loop" theoretical model. The findings reveal that while digital technologies significantly enhance information transmission efficiency and resource-sharing breadth, they also introduce new barriers, such as information overload, delayed feedback, and system heterogeneity. The root causes lie in schools' and enterprises' divergent organizational goals and insufficient technological adaptability, as well as the absence of institutional incentives. Based on these insights, a three-dimensional (institutions-technology-culture) synergy optimization path is proposed, and the "demand-technology-institution" linkage mechanism is further refined, offering a transferable communication governance framework for the digital transformation of vocational education.

Academic adaptation: Mediating the relationship between intercultural sensitivity and life satisfaction in international postgraduate students in China

2025-05-19T13:02:54+08:00

Since 2017, China has emerged as the third-largest destination globally and the largest in Asia for international students. However, a significant structural imbalance exists among these students. This study investigated how intercultural sensitivity affects life satisfaction among international postgraduate students in China, with a specific focus on the mediating role of academic adaptation. Using survey data from 444 students across four universities in Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Chongqing, this study employed structural equation modeling to examine these relationships. The findings show that intercultural sensitivity positively predicts both academic adaptation and life satisfaction, and that academic adaptation partially mediates this relationship. This study offers important implications for improving international students' educational experiences in China by enhancing intercultural competence and academic support mechanisms.

The impacts of school leadership styles on teacher satisfaction in vocational education

2025-09-01T15:04:16+08:00

This study investigates the impact of principals' leadership styles on the job satisfaction of vocational school teachers in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It examines four leadership styles—transformational, democratic, autocratic, and laissez-faire—using a quantitative descriptive design. A sample of 195 teachers was selected through simple random sampling. Data were collected via a questionnaire and analyzed in SPSS. The results showed that democratic and transformational leadership style had significant positive effects on teacher job satisfaction, while autocratic and laissez-faire styles did not show positive effects. The findings underscore the importance of inclusive and visionary leadership in enhancing teacher satisfaction and institutional effectiveness. They also have implications for leadership training and policy reforms in Pakistan's vocational education sector.

Expanding notions of competence in recognition of prior learning assessments of candidate artisans in South Africa

2025-03-31T15:20:53+08:00

In South Africa, a recent policy initiative is under way to certificate unqualified artisans through recognition of prior learning (RPL) assessment of those who have work skills and experience but lack formal qualifications required to take the official national trade test. This article is based on a larger empirical study to investigate South African RPL practitioner perspectives and practices in light of formal policies, in settings where RPL for uncertificated artisans was being conducted, in order to understand how these candidate artisans were being assessed and how evidence of competence was being evaluated. Findings revealed that practitioners assessed only a limited range of competencies required for modern work environments, and that consequently the type of assessment being conducted was also limited to traditional methods. It was evident that more innovative assessment of a wider scope of competencies is needed.

From classroom to workplace: Leveraging best practices in teacher training for apprenticeship curriculum design

2025-03-31T10:28:34+08:00

This study examines how integrating deliberate practice, a spiral curriculum, and structured theory-to-practice alignment can improve apprenticeship outcomes, based on a model from the Level 5 learning and skills teacher (LST) apprenticeship. Using a mixed-methods approach, the research compares two cohorts: one following a traditional curriculum and another engaging with a redesigned model emphasizing scaffolded learning and retrieval practice. Findings indicate a significant improvement in end-point assessment (EPA) success rates, with distinctions rising from 25% to 100%. Apprentices in the revised curriculum reported increased confidence, deeper learning, and greater workplace adaptability. The study highlights the value of Rosenshine's Principles of Instruction and Cognitive Load Theory in structuring learning experiences to enhance skill acquisition and assessment performance. Despite a small sample size, external validation from Ofsted supports the findings. The study suggests that a well-structured curriculum can strengthen vocational education and calls for further research into its application across apprenticeship programs.

Vocational teachers with industry experience: Transforming expertise into effective teaching

2025-03-31T14:23:19+08:00

This study investigates how industry-experienced teachers transform their expertise into effective vocational education and training (VET) teaching in China. Using qualitative methods, including preliminary interviews and a three-month field study with classroom observations and in-depth interviews of 12 teachers in mechanical and automotive engineering, it finds that production-background teachers more readily transfer practical expertise, while research and development (R&D) teachers face challenges. Expert teachers effectively frame tacit knowledge through abnormal scenarios—a key mode of expertise transformation—aiding student learning. Production-experienced teachers also motivate students better due to their understanding of workers' mindsets. The research suggests that VET schools prioritize hiring production-line professionals for their directly applicable expertise.

The practice and development of Competence Measurement professional competence assessment

2025-03-31T15:11:35+08:00

This article introduces the practical development of Competence Measurement (COMET) professional competence assessment, aiming to evaluate work-based learning outcomes in vocational education and training (VET). It is found that, compared to traditional exams, advantages of COMET lie in reflecting competence levels and cognitive characteristics, identifying relationships between teacher competence and training quality, guiding curriculum reforms, and reducing the cost of assessment. The primary challenge in promoting COMET in China at present is the high demands on organization and management, which have dampened VET institutions' enthusiasm for participation. It is suggested that efforts should be made to leverage digital technologies to enhance the quality and reduce the costs of assessment.