Abstract

This study focuses on the school–work connection from the perspective of curriculum design. The aim was to uncover considerations underpinning the design of learning environments in vocational education. The research took place in the Netherlands. A focus group methodology was chosen to elicit designers’ considerations, which generally remain largely implicit. These considerations concern the designable elements of learning environments: epistemic, spatial, temporal, and social elements. Design considerations were uncovered at each of the aggregation levels of a curriculum. At the macro-level, considerations referred to the connectivity between the contexts of school and work. Based on these considerations, different designs were chosen along the school–work continuum. At the meso-level, another continuum was found: the complexity in terms of practices involved in the learning environment. At the micro-level, concrete design considerations were revealed that designers take into account to strengthen the school–work connection. Thus, design considerations at three levels were made explicit. Moreover, the need for alignment between the designable elements and the curriculum levels became more apparent, leading to a deeper understanding of curriculum design for vocational education. This paper adds understanding of ways to strengthen the school–work connection and design future-proof vocational curricula.

摘要

本研究从课程设计的角度关注学校与工作的联系。目的是揭示支持职业教育学习环境设计的考虑因素。该研究在荷兰进行。选择了一种焦点小组方法来引起设计师的考虑，这些考虑通常在很大程度上仍然是隐含的。这些考虑涉及学习环境的可设计元素：认知、空间、时间和社会元素。在课程的每个聚合级别上都发现了设计注意事项。在宏观层面，考虑是指学校和工作环境之间的联系。基于这些考虑，学校选择了不同的设计。在中观层面，发现了另一个连续体：学习环境中涉及的实践的复杂性。在微观层面，揭示了具体的设计考虑，设计师考虑加强学校与工作的联系。因此，明确提出了三个层次的设计考虑。此外，可设计元素与课程层次之间的一致性需求变得更加明显，从而导致对职业教育课程设计的更深入理解。本文增加了对加强学校与工作联系和设计面向未来的职业课程的方法的理解。可设计元素与课程层次之间的一致性需求变得更加明显，从而导致对职业教育课程设计的更深入理解。本文增加了对加强学校与工作联系和设计面向未来的职业课程的方法的理解。可设计元素与课程层次之间的一致性需求变得更加明显，从而导致对职业教育课程设计的更深入理解。本文增加了对加强学校与工作联系和设计面向未来的职业课程的方法的理解。