From school to work: Coherence between learning in school and learning in workplaces for apprentices in the Media graphics programme in Norway

Abstract

A key challenge in vocational education and training (VET) programmes is the lack of coherence between the school-based and the enterprise-based parts of learning. This study explores the conditions that are important for the perception of coherence between learning in school and workplaces by interviewing apprentices enrolled in the Media graphics programme in Norway. In addition to the views of apprentices, the study also includes the perspectives of other participants in the vocational education system, such as media teachers and instructors in the workplaces and apprenticeship training office. The interview data revealed that the media education in school had facilitated the students’ learning primarily by allowing them to work on authentic media productions. Despite this, however, some of the apprentices experienced a lack of coherence between learning in school and learning in enterprises, mainly because there were few opportunities to specialise in their chosen vocation in school, and limited cooperation between schools and workplaces about placement periods.