jmbe.2022.0015_special_iciebe_retention_vocational_education_parina @journal.mbe

Article

STRATEGIES FOR RETENTION AND COMPLETION IN VOCATIONAL EDUCATION: FACULTY PERSPECTIVES🔗

ESTRATEGIAS PARA LA RETENCIÓN Y FINALIZACIÓN EN LA EDUCACIÓN VOCACIONAL: PERSPECTIVAS DOCENTES🔗

English Full Article Citation
Paper Selected at International Conference on Innovative Education in Business and Economics (ICIEBE 2022)

Author(s)🔗

Parina Yamjal Wellington Institute of Technology & Whitireia Community Polytechnic, New Zealand
Ahmed AL-Sa’di Wellington Institute of Technology & Whitireia Community Polytechnic, New Zealand

https://doi.org/10.35564/jmbe.2022.0015

Abstract🔗

The purpose of this paper is to identify and discuss the strategies for retention and completion in vocational education. We are reporting on one New Zealand polytechnic institution’s experience in improving the retention and completion rate for a one-year diploma in business programme.
A review of relevant literature pertaining to retention and completion strategies in tertiary education in general and for vocational education in particular was performed to understand the factors dominant in dropout decisions of tertiary students and to explore retention and completion strategies from a wider body of knowledge. The review focused on strategies influencing institutional and interactive factors to identify this issue. Further, a qualitative study was conducted; data was collected by conducting one-on-one interviews using open-ended questions to survey the faculty teaching on the diploma programme at a New Zealand polytechnic.
The findings revealed faculty employed a range of practices for improving interaction with students, identifying at-risk students, and providing them with support, creating a collaborative learning environment, and employing a constructive feedback system to improve retention and completion in the programme. This study is expected to assist educators and tertiary institutions in prioritising retention and completion issues and adopting suitable strategies to address these issues.

Keywords
Retention, completion, student success, vocational education, polytechnic

Resumen🔗

El propósito de este artículo es identificar y discutir las estrategias para la retención y finalización en la educación vocacional. Estamos informando sobre la experiencia de una institución politécnica de Nueva Zelanda en la mejora de la tasa de retención y finalización de un programa de diplomatura en negocios, de un año.
Se realizó una revisión de la literatura relevante relacionada con las estrategias de retención y finalización en la educación terciaria en general y para la educación vocacional en particular, para comprender los factores dominantes en las decisiones de abandono de los estudiantes de educación terciaria y para explorar las estrategias de retención y finalización desde un cuerpo de conocimiento más amplio. La revisión se centró en las estrategias que influyen en los factores institucionales e interactivos para identificar este problema. Además, se realizó un estudio cualitativo. Los datos se recopilaron mediante la realización de entrevistas individuales, utilizando preguntas abiertas para encuestar a los docentes que enseñan en el programa de diplomatura, en un politécnico de Nueva Zelanda.
Los hallazgos revelaron que los profesores emplearon una variedad de prácticas para mejorar la interacción con los estudiantes, identificar a los estudiantes en riesgo y brindarles apoyo, crear un entorno de aprendizaje colaborativo y emplear un sistema de retroalimentación constructivo para mejorar la retención y finalización del programa. Se espera que este estudio ayude a los educadores y las instituciones de educación superior a priorizar los problemas de retención y finalización,y a adoptar estrategias adecuadas para abordar estos problemas.

Palabras clave
Retención, finalización, éxito estudiantil, educación vocacional, escuela politécnica

Received
11 May 2022

Accepted
18 June 2022

Copyright
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

Citation🔗

Yamjal, P.; AL-Sa’di, A. (2022). Strategies for retention and completion in vocational education: faculty perspectives. Journal of Management and Business Education, 5(4), 247-265. https://doi.org/10.35564/jmbe.2022.0015

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