Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development
Abstract Background Vocational education teachers are key participants in the renewal of the Hungarian vocational educational system. Their professional development (as indicated by their learning activities, learning targets and information sources) contains both the input for improving their teach...
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
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SpringerOpen
2018-02-01
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Series: | Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40461-018-0063-x |
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author | Csaba Csíkos Zsuzsa Kovács Orsolya Kereszty |
author_facet | Csaba Csíkos Zsuzsa Kovács Orsolya Kereszty |
author_sort | Csaba Csíkos |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Abstract Background Vocational education teachers are key participants in the renewal of the Hungarian vocational educational system. Their professional development (as indicated by their learning activities, learning targets and information sources) contains both the input for improving their teaching and the findings essential for affecting future improvements. The aim of this questionnaire survey was to explore Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views and judgements on three interrelated phenomena: their learning activities, their opinion regarding the importance of pedagogical knowledge and the efficiency and usage of information sources relevant to their professional development. Methods A total of 1131 teachers from 37, randomly selected vocational education schools completed a questionnaire based on five subscales, each containing five-point Likert-scales: (1) teachers’ learning activities, (2) judgment of their preparedness in pedagogical knowledge, (3) judgment on the importance of their pedagogical knowledge components, and (4) the efficiency and (5) usage of information sources in furthering their professional development. Results All subscales display appropriate reliability (Cronbach’s alpha ranged from .65 to .94). The study provides the descriptive statistical values for each questionnaire item, the relationships between subscales and the connections between the subscales and background variables, such as gender, career level and school type. Conclusion This explorative study possesses theoretical relevance in developing a questionnaire that consists of five reliable subscales, all of which can later be used for either detecting changes in teachers’ views or measuring the effectiveness of intervention programs and professional development training sessions designed for vocational education teachers. The study’s practical relevance lies in its explorative nature: decision makers are provided with ample evidence indicating the potential advantages and obstacles vocational education teachers face in their attempt to work more efficiently. |
first_indexed | 2024-04-13T06:53:06Z |
format | Article |
id | doaj.art-4f4f82fd921b40339794cf0506b15381 |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 1877-6345 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-04-13T06:53:06Z |
publishDate | 2018-02-01 |
publisher | SpringerOpen |
record_format | Article |
series | Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training |
spelling | doaj.art-4f4f82fd921b40339794cf0506b153812022-12-22T02:57:21ZengSpringerOpenEmpirical Research in Vocational Education and Training1877-63452018-02-0110111510.1186/s40461-018-0063-xHungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional developmentCsaba Csíkos0Zsuzsa Kovács1Orsolya Kereszty2Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Primary and Pre-School Education, ELTEFaculty of Education and PsychologyFaculty of Education and PsychologyAbstract Background Vocational education teachers are key participants in the renewal of the Hungarian vocational educational system. Their professional development (as indicated by their learning activities, learning targets and information sources) contains both the input for improving their teaching and the findings essential for affecting future improvements. The aim of this questionnaire survey was to explore Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views and judgements on three interrelated phenomena: their learning activities, their opinion regarding the importance of pedagogical knowledge and the efficiency and usage of information sources relevant to their professional development. Methods A total of 1131 teachers from 37, randomly selected vocational education schools completed a questionnaire based on five subscales, each containing five-point Likert-scales: (1) teachers’ learning activities, (2) judgment of their preparedness in pedagogical knowledge, (3) judgment on the importance of their pedagogical knowledge components, and (4) the efficiency and (5) usage of information sources in furthering their professional development. Results All subscales display appropriate reliability (Cronbach’s alpha ranged from .65 to .94). The study provides the descriptive statistical values for each questionnaire item, the relationships between subscales and the connections between the subscales and background variables, such as gender, career level and school type. Conclusion This explorative study possesses theoretical relevance in developing a questionnaire that consists of five reliable subscales, all of which can later be used for either detecting changes in teachers’ views or measuring the effectiveness of intervention programs and professional development training sessions designed for vocational education teachers. The study’s practical relevance lies in its explorative nature: decision makers are provided with ample evidence indicating the potential advantages and obstacles vocational education teachers face in their attempt to work more efficiently.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40461-018-0063-xVocational education teachersTeachers’ viewsProfessional development |
spellingShingle | Csaba Csíkos Zsuzsa Kovács Orsolya Kereszty Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training Vocational education teachers Teachers’ views Professional development |
title | Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development |
title_full | Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development |
title_fullStr | Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development |
title_full_unstemmed | Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development |
title_short | Hungarian vocational education teachers’ views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development |
title_sort | hungarian vocational education teachers views on their pedagogical knowledge and the information sources suitable for their professional development |
topic | Vocational education teachers Teachers’ views Professional development |
url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40461-018-0063-x |
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