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Research indicates that the proliferation of social media has widened a participation gap, also known as the digital divide, which affects mainly the low skilled and the low educated, because they are not media literate enough to use digital information in an effective, helpful and strategic way. [It is assumed] that social media use contributes to employability and sociality and media literacy complements a basic set of skills. [For] the low skilled and low educated who lack media literacy, [this] contributes to their precarious situation and increases a participation gap. In [this] study, [the authors] are especially interested in the role media literacy can play in in coping with flexibilization and deregulation of employment and competing for jobs.

[The study found] that self-presentation and self-profiling are important literacy practices, involving knowledge and skills related to participation in social and economic contexts and understanding of the relations between sociality, employability and networks. Media literacy is best approached as hands-on, situated and experiential, taught in a democratic and critical fashion and related to the attitudes and perspective of the low educated and the low skilled. There is however no clear answer what the complementary role of informal learning is and how literacy related skills and knowledge demanded for lifelong learning may change during the life course. It is also important that policies focussing on inclusion and participation broaden their perspective beyond individualistic notions and consider the influence of structuralizing mechanisms that create inequality and extend their explanations beyond those framed by economic theories, models and categories.

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An intuitively appealing approach to increasing the flexibility of vocational education and training is to delegate choices on instruction, such as the selection of learning tasks, to students. However, empirical evidence shows that students often do not have sufficiently developed self-directed learning skills to select suitable tasks. This article describes the Informed Self-Directed Learning (ISDL) model, which depicts three information resources supporting students’ process of task selection and helping them to develop important self-directed learning skills necessary for effective task selection: (1) a structured development portfolio to support and develop their self-assessment skills; (2) a description of task metadata to help them compare and select suitable tasks; and (3) a protocol for giving advice, which explicitly demonstrates how to use performance results to select suitable tasks. Furthermore, the ISDL model proposes that as students further develop their self-directed learning skills and improve their task selections, the frequency and/or level of detail of given advice gradually diminishes and the choice of available tasks increases.

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According to the results of the [Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies] PIAAC study, too many adults are not able to acquire basic reading skills. This influences their individual lives, besides their economic and social wellbeing, negatively (OECD, 2013). In accordance with current research results and trends, adult literacy seems to gain less attention than is required. To prevent the problem of poor reading skills among adults, the approach to adult literacy has to be changed. A more diverse approach, which includes the role of emotions in the learning process and the practical implication of new technologies, might provide a valuable contribution to detect literacy skills among adults and design a suitable learning environment for improving their reading skills.

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The purpose of this study was to investigate to what extent student-perceived parental involvement predicted academic motivation in vocational education and training (VET) students. The sample comprised 2108 young adults participating in a VET institute. Thirty-three items were developed to measure student-perceived parental involvement in VET, as no appropriate questionnaire was available for this educational setting. This questionnaire was analysed with factor analyses which resulted in a new, short, and valid questionnaire with 10 items to measure parental involvement on five indicators. Consistent with prior research, parental involvement significantly predicted motivation in VET students. Three out of five parental involvement indicators were found related to motivation. Specifically, two indicators were positively related to motivation: (1) parent-child educational discussions, and (2) parental aspirations and expectations. The indicator 'reinforcement of learning at home' was negatively related to motivation. These findings provide additional evidence for the significance of parental involvement based upon its link with students' motivation in a VET context.

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In vocational education, workplace simulations (WPS) have been implemented to ensure a better connection between the educational setting and the labour market. Moreover, WPS are supposed to motivate students and promote self-directed learning. So far, however, not much is known about the way students experience these WPS. The aim of the present exploratory case study was to investigate students' perceptions and preparedness for WPS and explore what factors they perceive to be relevant for their learning in these simulations. Forty students from three different pre-vocational secondary schools participated. Semi-structured group interviews were conducted, and thematic analysis was used to examine the qualitative data. The results revealed that authentic WPS can increase student motivation and engagement. Learner characteristics regarded as relevant in WPS were motivation, responsibility, independence and discipline. For students, the presence and guidance of the teacher played an essential role in their working and learning effectively. They felt limited in making choices to direct their own learning. Assessment criteria were not transparent enough for students. Concluding, we found that students perceived factors closely related to self-regulated and self-directed learning to be relevant for their learning; however, these learning activities and processes have not yet been sufficiently promoted and supported in the investigated vocational schools. The study highlights design dilemmas for vocational practice and offers indications in how to match both learning environmental characteristics and teacher support tailored to learners' needs.

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In a large-scale top-down innovation operation in the Netherlands, workplace simulations have been implemented in vocational schools, where students are required to work independently and self-direct their learning. However, research has shown that the success of such large-scale top-down innovations depends on how well their execution in schools matches the theoretical plans and goals. Given that teachers play a crucial role in translating innovative concepts to educational practice, their perceptions of teaching in these environments may provide useful information about how to best match the goals of workplace simulation to its execution. In this interview study, [the authors] therefore focussed on teachers' views of designing instructional material and providing pedagogical guidance in workplace simulations. Twenty teachers belonging to six teams participated. The results reveal that teachers face difficulties on both aspects and it became clear that the top-down innovations influenced their daily practice. Old routines and spontaneous and immediate reactions determined much of the teachers' approaches to implementation, and it appeared that they were not yet sufficiently prepared to help students develop metacognitive skills. Furthermore, self-regulation and self-direction among students are not sufficiently promoted and supported in workplace simulations. Teachers often experienced a deep conflict between maintaining control and letting go. [The] results point out that teachers need to be supported and guided during the implementation process of any top-down innovation, so that they learn how to adjust their teaching to the new requirements of workplace simulations. It seems important to ensure that teachers are also well skilled for reflecting on their own practices.

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This paper focuses on two increasingly important issues in teacher education: the design of more skill-based education and the involvement of students by means of peer assessment. Ninety-three student teachers were trained in one important peer-assessment skill, namely ‘defining performance criteria’. This training, which consisted of four peer-assessment tasks, was integrated in an existing course. Half of the group was trained in the skill of ‘defining criteria’ (experimental groups) and the other half was not (control group). By working on the peer-assessment tasks, student teachers in the experimental group learned to define performance criteria for a course content-related product. The effects of the training on students’ ability to define criteria and the effects on the content-related skill were examined. Findings show that the student teachers from the experimental group scored significantly higher on the use of criteria, but did not surpass the control group on the content-related task performance.

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Workplace simulations (WPS), authentic learning environments at school, are increasingly used in vocational education. This article provides a theoretical analysis and synthesis of requirements considering learner skills, characteristics of the learning environment and the role of the teacher that influence good functioning in WPS and foster students’ learning. WPS appeal to students’ self-directed learning (SDL) and self-regulated learning (SRL) skills, as students are required to work and learn independently in these settings. To achieve individual learning, the environments should be adaptive to the learners’ needs. Furthermore, the teachers should support learners to become competent in the domain but also guide them to become self-directed learners. To do so the interaction between the student, the teacher and the environment is of importance. The proposed model depicts the different elements and their relations.

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The aim of the present empirical study was to explore students' self-regulated learning behaviours in vocational education and training and to describe the micro processes associated with planning, monitoring and evaluating during practical learning tasks. The 18 participants were well-performing students from upper secondary vocational education. We collected data from observations, interviews and self-reports to gain detailed insights into students' behaviours and thoughts during practical task performance. The results reveal that most of the students planned their time and resources, but did not develop elaborate plans to regulate their learning behaviours. They monitored their work carefully and adjusted when necessary. When evaluating, students focussed more on work outcomes than learning processes. The results also showed that the students' actual behaviours corresponded with self-reports on internal regulation, with three students overestimating their internal regulation. This study sheds light on an underexplored context and population regarding self-regulated learning. Though the well-performing vocational students engaged in self-regulation, their self-regulating behaviours were led by a combination of hands-on activities and evolving work outcomes. Thus, it was the emerging performance and experiences that triggered their learning. Although self-regulated learning behaviours in vocational education and training were present, we conclude that instructional support needs to be developed and empirically tested to actively facilitate and foster vocational students' learning by doing and reflection.

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The ever-changing requirements of working life require individuals to develop their competencies throughout their life cycle. This lifelong learning paradigm requires a renewed vision concerning assessment in which, besides formal learning, informal and non-formal learning experiences are also recognized. To support this lifelong learning paradigm, procedures have been developed worldwide to assess and credit prior learning experiences (APL). While research on APL stresses the importance of a high-quality standard, so far the literature has applied only a psychometric quality framework. However, from the perspective of APL, where, besides prior knowledge and skills, competencies need to be measured, it is more appropriate to use a combination of the psychometric and edumetric quality criteria. This article will analyze and describe the relationship between quality criteria and the characteristics of APL. The results have revealed that quality criteria based on both are fundamental for APL, but that some criteria are more recognized than are others. Based on this analysis, design guidelines for APL have been formulated.

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