Research on the goal setting model of vocational education

Abstract

The goal setting model in vocational education remains a purely academic subject, which has recently become attractive for its promise of added value and the need for goal oriented training. This paper further seeks to review the literature on goal setting in vocational education, the current research around it, and the notable gaps present in it and finally present a completely new alternative on how to put such goals into practice. Even though it is a recent trend among scholars, a literature review of the past five years of high impact journal articles shows a pattern of goal setting in different studies that is difficult to define. While some scholars are of the opinion that goals should be set during the learning process with learners as the focus of learning, others insist that the basic focal point should be the industry. This exposes the existing lacunaa which demands a more broader and balanced perspective. In order to mitigate this, we undertook a mixed methods approach involving surveys $(n=500)$ and focus group discussions $(n=20)$ with key stakeholders in vocational education including students, instructors and employer representatives. Use of structural equation modeling analysis on the quantitative data provided showed that a combination of student centered and industry centered goal setting practices were able to predict student engagement, performance and employability. While the study has been driven primarily by quantitative methods, the qualitative data obtained using focus groups has provided much more information on how these relationships work and what factors contribute towards the relationships self- efficacy, relevance and feedback. On the basis of these conclusions, the authors suggest a novel goal setting model, which is based on student-centered and industry-aligned practices and continuous feedback support. This model can assist vocational education institutions in strategizing more effective goal setting interventions, resulting in better student outcomes and enhanced workforce preparedness. Though this is a ground-up approach, it is urgent to ensure that further research tests this framework in several studies and assesses its relation to careers in the long term.