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This qualitative research study investigates the perceptions of internships by seven students enrolled in a liberal arts program at an urban four-year R1 research institution; the study aims to understand why these students elected to participate in internships for academic credit when they are not required—Moreover, it explores how characteristics of the internships, such as payment or lack thereof, influence their overall perceptions of the internship experiences and value. This study uses Dewey and Kolb’s theoretical frameworks to emphasize the importance of concrete, hands-on approaches to pragmatic, real-world experiences. As we strive to develop an understanding of student’s internship experiences and their role in prepping them for future careers, we must comprehend how these experiences add value to students beyond the classroom.Purposive sampling in a case study methodology, including semi-structured interviews using open-ended questions, was used to dig into each participant’s perceptions of internships. Participants were asked why they elected to complete their internship for academic credit, what motivated them to do an internship, and their overall perceptions of internships, among other topics. The emerging themes were career clarification through internships, career development, and career-related outcomes. Several sub-themes emerged from the interviews, including exploring career interests and career paths, navigating uncertainty around career choices, learning and personal growth, career planning, skills development, and personal development. The participants were also asked whether they think internships should be mandatory for all students; the general census was yes, and they should be incorporated into the curriculum of the institution. / Educational Leadership

Parce qu’elle est intimement liée à l’action professionnelle (Schön, 1983), la pratique réflexive est souvent associée aux stages d’enseignement qui ponctuent la formation initiale des maîtres. Parmi les dispositifs de soutien à la pratique réflexive en stage d’enseignement, l’interaction en ligne semble particulièrement pertinente dans la mesure où : (1) elle permet de répondre à la dispersion géographique des enseignants-stagiaires (Karsenti, Lepage et Gervais, 2002) ; (2) elle couvre un potentiel sociocognitif (Depover, Karsenti et Komis, 2007) susceptible d’être mis au profit du développement de la pratique réflexive. Pourtant le rapport entre l’interaction en ligne et la pratique réflexive, bien qu’il semble positivement perçu lorsqu’il est évoqué (Barnett, 2002 ; Zhao et Rop, 2001), reste toutefois peu abordé dans la littérature scientifique et peu problématisé au niveau théorique. Or ce rapport pose question dans la mesure où la pratique réflexive réfère à un processus intra-personnel alors que l’interaction en ligne est inter-personnelle par définition. Ce paradoxe apparent est à l’origine de la présente recherche, dont l’objectif général consiste à mieux comprendre le rapport entre la pratique réflexive et l’interaction en ligne en stage d’enseignement. En vue de répondre à cet objectif, nous présentons le cadre conceptuel de la pratique réflexive interactionnelle, lequel a été élaboré par un arrimage de la théorique de la médiation sémiotique (Vygotsky, 1962) à la pratique réflexive (Schön, 1983). La méthodologie mixte à dominante qualitative pour laquelle nous avons opté a inclus la participation de trois groupes d’enseignants-stagiaires de quatrième année en enseignement secondaire (N=34) et leurs superviseurs respectifs (N=3). Puisqu’il s’agit d’une thèse par articles, les résultats obtenus auprès des trois groupes d’enseignants-stagiaires sont présentés dans trois articles distincts. Le premier d’entre eux s’attache à examiner comment la pratique réflexive se construit dans l’interaction en ligne des enseignants-stagiaires. Les résultats empiriques auxquels il donne lieu indiquent que deux types d’interaction (interaction inter-personnelle et interaction intra-personnelle) semblent intervenir conjointement dans le processus réflexif des enseignants-stagiaires. Dès lors, nous sommes amené à proposer une bonification du cadre conceptuel de la pratique réflexive interactionnelle en passant d’un mouvement circulaire du processus réflexif à un mouvement binaire. Ayant ainsi précisé le processus réflexif propre à la pratique réflexive interactionnelle, l’article 2 vise à établir les limites de cette dernière et à en déduire les conditions d’efficacité, dans la perspective de son opérationnalisation en contexte de stage d’enseignement. Quatre types de limites sont identifiés (limites académiques, sociales, développementales et interactionnelles). Ils donnent lieu à certaines conditions d’efficacité, ce qui permet de compléter le cadre conceptuel de la pratique réflexive interactionnelle par des considérations liées à son opérationnalisation en stage d’enseignement. Enfin, l’article 3 a pour but de déterminer le rôle de l’interaction en ligne pour la pratique réflexive des enseignants-stagiaires. Il s’agit donc de « confronter » l’interaction en ligne à d’autres soutiens à la pratique réflexive des enseignants-stagiaires, en vue de déterminer sa place. Il en ressort que l’interaction en ligne semble jouer un rôle secondaire mais néanmoins positif, tant pour la pratique réflexive des enseignants-stagiaires que pour d’autres dimensions du stage d’enseignement tels que la dimension sociale ou la dimension psychologique et émotionnelle. Finalement, des recommandations à l’intention du milieu de formation et des pistes de recherches futures sont offertes en conclusion. / Since it is tightly linked to professional action (Schön, 1983), reflective practice is commonly associated with teaching internships that generally punctuate initial teacher training programs in North America. Among the devices supporting reflective practice during teaching internships, online interactions seem particularly relevant since: (1) they help overcome the geographic scattering of student teachers (Karsenti, Lepage and Gervais, 2002); (2) they have a sociocognitive potential (Depover, Karsenti and Komis, 2007), likely to contribute to reflective practice development. However, the relationship between online interaction and reflective practice, even though it looks positive when mentioned, remains hardly addressed in the scientific literature and little problematized at the theoretical level. Yet, this relationship raises questions since reflective practice refers to an intrapersonal process whereas online interaction is, by definition, interpersonal. This apparent paradox instigated this research. The general objective is to better understand the relationship between reflective practice and online interactions during teaching internships of student teachers. To achieve this objective, we present the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice developed through the association of semiotic mediation (Vygotsky, 1962) with reflective practice (Schön, 1983). The mixed-methodology that we have chosen, though qualitatively prevalent, included the participation of three student teachers groups in the forth year of secondary teaching (N=34) and their academic, university supervisors. We decided that the results obtained from the three student teachers groups ought to be presented in three separate research articles (chapters 6, 7 and 8). The first one aims at examining how reflective practice is built through student teachers’ online interaction. The empirical results indicate that two types of interactions (interpersonal interaction and intrapersonal interaction) seem to intervene jointly in student teachers’ reflective process. Consequently, we improved the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice by moving from a circular movement of the reflective process to a more binary-like movement. After having refined the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice in the article 1, the second article aims at establishing its limits and success factors. In doing so, we aimed at informing its implementation in teaching internships. Four types of limits were identified (academic, social, developmental and interactional limits). They lead to four success factors, which leads us up to complete the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice. Finally, the third article aims at determining the role of online interaction for student teachers’ reflective practice. In other words, this meant “confronting” online interaction with other devices supporting student teachers’ reflective practice in order to better understand its role. It appears that online interactions seem to have a secondary but nevertheless positive role for student teachers’ reflective practice but also for other aspects of teaching practicum, such as social, psychological and emotional aspects. We finish by suggesting some recommendations aimed at initial teacher training stakeholders, as well as future research perspectives.

D. Tech. (Business, Faculty of Management Sciences) Vaal University of Technology / The purpose of this study was to develop strategies to improve Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Swaziland. It has been 68 years since the TVET education was introduced in the country, but it has slowly been coming forth, especially in providing for the needs of society and industry. For this reason, the researcher wanted to find out what could be delaying the progress of the TVET system by developing some strategies to improve this aspect of training. The fundamental research questions were based on the strategies that could be developed to improve the TVET system in Swaziland and the importance of ensuring pre-service and in-service training for special target groups. It was worth mentioning that since the TVET policy had been officially launched and implemented, different stakeholders who would be expected to fully support and understand what the policy entails would recognise its functions. The policy states that skills training should be introduced in the school system at the earlier years of starting the school system to create awareness and love for various skills at an early age. In addition, it is imperative that the country give priority to the TVET versus the academic education as it had been proved through the unemployment rate that the jobs are actually shrinking whilst the work in the market is in abundance. Hence, there was a need to strategise methods of successfully implementing the TVET policy in order to benefit the government’s efforts in the aims and objectives set in the policy The study aimed at examining the challenges faced by the country in implementing the policy so that it could effectively address the TVET education in the most positive and successful manner. The main findings form part of the important basis of the study by providing evidence of research phenomenon that it is anticipated to denote. The findings of the study were discussed according to the participants’ responses collected during focus group interviews and individual in-depth interviews. Further developments for TVET improvement of the study showed the findings portray that there is a need to improve resource efficiency strategy and the private sector/industry should provide support to TVET students, via internships, attachment of identified relevant training staff, sharing of equipment or the provision of training programmes.

Este estudo é resultado de pesquisa realizada com coordenadores e ex-coordenadores de projetos de parceria universitária financiados por meio do Programa CAPES/Brafitec (Brasil-France Ingénieur Technologie). Um dos programas mais consolidados da Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES), o Brafitec viabiliza a formação de redes de cooperação entre Escolas de Engenharia do Brasil e da França. O Programa é resultado da parceria da CAPES com a CDEFI (Conference des Directours d’Écoles et Formations d’Ingénieurs) e, desde sua criação em 2002, já beneficiou 5.220 alunos brasileiros e 2.273 franceses por meio de 204 projetos financiados. Esta pesquisa objetiva avaliar a contribuição do Brafitec para: a internacionalização dos cursos de engenharia no Brasil; o reconhecimento recíproco de créditos; e a geração de oportunidades de prática profissional por meio de estágios em laboratórios e empresas no Brasil e na França. / This study is based on a survey conducted with coordinators and former coordinators of university partnership projects funded within the CAPES/Brafitec Program (Brazil-France Engineer Technology). One of the most successful programs of the Brazilian Federal Agency for the Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education (CAPES), Brafitec enables the creation of cooperation networks among Brazilian and French Engineering Schools. The Program resulted from the agreement between CAPES and CDEFI (Conference des Directours d’Écoles et Formations d’Ingénieurs) and, since its establishment in 2002, it has benefited 5.220 Brazilian and 2.273 French students within 204 financed projects. This research aims to evaluate Brafitec’s contribution to: the internationalization of engineering courses in Brazil; the mutual recognition/transfer of credits; and the establishment of work experience opportunities through internships at laboratories and companies in Brazil and France.

Many law students are required to take first-year writing courses. With the increased emphasis in legal education on practical skills training (Sullivan et al. 2007), legal writing scholars have begun exploring how these writing courses equip students with practical skills (Felsenburg and Graham 2010; Cauthen 2010). However, these scholars have not explored how summer internships serve as opportunities for students to practice the skills they gained in the classroom. Following the lead of writing studies scholars who examine the transition from classroom and workplace writing (Russell and Fisher 2009; Devitt 2004, Wardle 2004; Winsor 1990), this study explores how the genres students learned in legal writing classroom prepared them for internship writing. This study reports results from interviews of eight students who completed 15 internships during the 2014 and 2015 summers. The main findings indicate that students who performed well in the legal writing course eventually served in litigation-based internships. These students perceived a high rate of transfer from classroom to workplace writing. By contrast, students who struggled learning the legal writing classroom genres eventually accepted non-litigation internships where their writing tasks bore little resemblance to those of the classroom. Tellingly, both groups of students were not trained or mentored on how to write during internships because they were expected to be strong writers already. Therefore, these findings suggest that legal writing scholars need to better prepare students who are not pursuing litigation careers or who accept non-litigation internships. This support is vital because students' future internship and career options were deeply connected to their performance in the legal writing course.

Recent college graduates are clearly facing significant labor market challenges and statistics show that college graduates will more likely find themselves unemployed or underemployed rather than gainfully employed in the current job market. The purpose of this study was to examine the career identity development of non-public high school seniors taking a career preparation program involving internships within all career pathways, not just those requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher. Individual interviews were conducted with ten students, the program director, and four site coordinators to gain the insight from their experiences with the career development course. Results from this study indicated that students experienced a high level of student engagement in the program, exposure to real-world experience in careers, and meaningful relationships with adults who participated in the program. Findings in this study also indicated how self-awareness and self-confidence gained from participating in the program lead to the development of a positive career identity. This study can be used to inform schools and school districts of the value of internships on the development of career identity.

Parce qu’elle est intimement liée à l’action professionnelle (Schön, 1983), la pratique réflexive est souvent associée aux stages d’enseignement qui ponctuent la formation initiale des maîtres. Parmi les dispositifs de soutien à la pratique réflexive en stage d’enseignement, l’interaction en ligne semble particulièrement pertinente dans la mesure où : (1) elle permet de répondre à la dispersion géographique des enseignants-stagiaires (Karsenti, Lepage et Gervais, 2002) ; (2) elle couvre un potentiel sociocognitif (Depover, Karsenti et Komis, 2007) susceptible d’être mis au profit du développement de la pratique réflexive. Pourtant le rapport entre l’interaction en ligne et la pratique réflexive, bien qu’il semble positivement perçu lorsqu’il est évoqué (Barnett, 2002 ; Zhao et Rop, 2001), reste toutefois peu abordé dans la littérature scientifique et peu problématisé au niveau théorique. Or ce rapport pose question dans la mesure où la pratique réflexive réfère à un processus intra-personnel alors que l’interaction en ligne est inter-personnelle par définition. Ce paradoxe apparent est à l’origine de la présente recherche, dont l’objectif général consiste à mieux comprendre le rapport entre la pratique réflexive et l’interaction en ligne en stage d’enseignement. En vue de répondre à cet objectif, nous présentons le cadre conceptuel de la pratique réflexive interactionnelle, lequel a été élaboré par un arrimage de la théorique de la médiation sémiotique (Vygotsky, 1962) à la pratique réflexive (Schön, 1983). La méthodologie mixte à dominante qualitative pour laquelle nous avons opté a inclus la participation de trois groupes d’enseignants-stagiaires de quatrième année en enseignement secondaire (N=34) et leurs superviseurs respectifs (N=3). Puisqu’il s’agit d’une thèse par articles, les résultats obtenus auprès des trois groupes d’enseignants-stagiaires sont présentés dans trois articles distincts. Le premier d’entre eux s’attache à examiner comment la pratique réflexive se construit dans l’interaction en ligne des enseignants-stagiaires. Les résultats empiriques auxquels il donne lieu indiquent que deux types d’interaction (interaction inter-personnelle et interaction intra-personnelle) semblent intervenir conjointement dans le processus réflexif des enseignants-stagiaires. Dès lors, nous sommes amené à proposer une bonification du cadre conceptuel de la pratique réflexive interactionnelle en passant d’un mouvement circulaire du processus réflexif à un mouvement binaire. Ayant ainsi précisé le processus réflexif propre à la pratique réflexive interactionnelle, l’article 2 vise à établir les limites de cette dernière et à en déduire les conditions d’efficacité, dans la perspective de son opérationnalisation en contexte de stage d’enseignement. Quatre types de limites sont identifiés (limites académiques, sociales, développementales et interactionnelles). Ils donnent lieu à certaines conditions d’efficacité, ce qui permet de compléter le cadre conceptuel de la pratique réflexive interactionnelle par des considérations liées à son opérationnalisation en stage d’enseignement. Enfin, l’article 3 a pour but de déterminer le rôle de l’interaction en ligne pour la pratique réflexive des enseignants-stagiaires. Il s’agit donc de « confronter » l’interaction en ligne à d’autres soutiens à la pratique réflexive des enseignants-stagiaires, en vue de déterminer sa place. Il en ressort que l’interaction en ligne semble jouer un rôle secondaire mais néanmoins positif, tant pour la pratique réflexive des enseignants-stagiaires que pour d’autres dimensions du stage d’enseignement tels que la dimension sociale ou la dimension psychologique et émotionnelle. Finalement, des recommandations à l’intention du milieu de formation et des pistes de recherches futures sont offertes en conclusion. / Since it is tightly linked to professional action (Schön, 1983), reflective practice is commonly associated with teaching internships that generally punctuate initial teacher training programs in North America. Among the devices supporting reflective practice during teaching internships, online interactions seem particularly relevant since: (1) they help overcome the geographic scattering of student teachers (Karsenti, Lepage and Gervais, 2002); (2) they have a sociocognitive potential (Depover, Karsenti and Komis, 2007), likely to contribute to reflective practice development. However, the relationship between online interaction and reflective practice, even though it looks positive when mentioned, remains hardly addressed in the scientific literature and little problematized at the theoretical level. Yet, this relationship raises questions since reflective practice refers to an intrapersonal process whereas online interaction is, by definition, interpersonal. This apparent paradox instigated this research. The general objective is to better understand the relationship between reflective practice and online interactions during teaching internships of student teachers. To achieve this objective, we present the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice developed through the association of semiotic mediation (Vygotsky, 1962) with reflective practice (Schön, 1983). The mixed-methodology that we have chosen, though qualitatively prevalent, included the participation of three student teachers groups in the forth year of secondary teaching (N=34) and their academic, university supervisors. We decided that the results obtained from the three student teachers groups ought to be presented in three separate research articles (chapters 6, 7 and 8). The first one aims at examining how reflective practice is built through student teachers’ online interaction. The empirical results indicate that two types of interactions (interpersonal interaction and intrapersonal interaction) seem to intervene jointly in student teachers’ reflective process. Consequently, we improved the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice by moving from a circular movement of the reflective process to a more binary-like movement. After having refined the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice in the article 1, the second article aims at establishing its limits and success factors. In doing so, we aimed at informing its implementation in teaching internships. Four types of limits were identified (academic, social, developmental and interactional limits). They lead to four success factors, which leads us up to complete the conceptual framework of interactional reflective practice. Finally, the third article aims at determining the role of online interaction for student teachers’ reflective practice. In other words, this meant “confronting” online interaction with other devices supporting student teachers’ reflective practice in order to better understand its role. It appears that online interactions seem to have a secondary but nevertheless positive role for student teachers’ reflective practice but also for other aspects of teaching practicum, such as social, psychological and emotional aspects. We finish by suggesting some recommendations aimed at initial teacher training stakeholders, as well as future research perspectives.

The economic growth in the tourism industry is changing the structure of labour markets, increasing the level of competitiveness and thereby creating a need for improved labour productivity and a more flexible workforce. Education and the creation of employment are among the key priorities of the South African government. This process can be successful only if companies raise performance and productivity standards through the enhancement and development of skills. To succeed in the rebuilding process, it is imperative that the various stakeholders interact to establish the composition of the relevant skills and qualifications required. Consequently, the growth of job opportunities in the tourism sector has uncovered various challenges, including gaps in the areas of education, training and development. These gaps have resulted in low levels of productivity and are currently creating unsatisfied expectations for students and job providers. Hence, it is a priority of government to develop quality Learnerships and Internships in South Africa to improve skills and the qualifications of the tourism workforce. Employers are increasingly conscious of the value for money from their investments in training and are demanding that training be more deliberately aligned with the strategic needs of their organisations. However, the tourism industry is still complaining that learners are not adequately prepared for the workplace and the learners believe that they have sufficient knowledge to meet the needs of the industry. The purpose of this research was to analyse the skills expectations of learners versus employers: the case of the Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport SETA (CATHSSETA). To achieve this aim, the following objectives were set: to analyse literature concerning human resource management with the main focus falling on training, to contextualise the current tourism education environment in South Africa, to compare the differences in skills expectations between learners and employers in the tourism industry and, lastly, to draw conclusions and make recommendations regarding the skills expectations in tourism education. This was achieved by conducting quantitative research by means of a structured questionnaire that was distributed to 202 employers and 1023 learners on the CATHSSETA database. The questionnaires were linked and captured on an online program named SurveyMonkey. The application of SPSS, descriptive statistics, Factor Analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, ANOVA and t-tests resulted in indicating various significant differences between skills expected by employers and skills presented by learners. These statistical analysis methods were used to demonstrate the gaps between the skills expectation of the role players. It was surprising to find that significant differences existed for most skills with the biggest gaps on self-reliance and people skills. The employers’ survey reflected that a priority for employers is customer orientation and learners’ willingness to learn. In all instances, employers expected learners to be better skilled than was the actual case. The results suggest that the learners are unable to adhere to the current demands of the industry. It was also found that learners rated their own skills much higher than the perception of employers. The results of this study can be used to assist CATHSSETA in improving their current training programmes to ensure they meet the needs of the broader tourism industry. It can also be used as a guideline for any training institution for improving the current tourism training programmes. This will contribute to the overall quality and sustainability of the tourism industry. / Thesis (MCom (Tourism Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

The economic growth in the tourism industry is changing the structure of labour markets, increasing the level of competitiveness and thereby creating a need for improved labour productivity and a more flexible workforce. Education and the creation of employment are among the key priorities of the South African government. This process can be successful only if companies raise performance and productivity standards through the enhancement and development of skills. To succeed in the rebuilding process, it is imperative that the various stakeholders interact to establish the composition of the relevant skills and qualifications required. Consequently, the growth of job opportunities in the tourism sector has uncovered various challenges, including gaps in the areas of education, training and development. These gaps have resulted in low levels of productivity and are currently creating unsatisfied expectations for students and job providers. Hence, it is a priority of government to develop quality Learnerships and Internships in South Africa to improve skills and the qualifications of the tourism workforce. Employers are increasingly conscious of the value for money from their investments in training and are demanding that training be more deliberately aligned with the strategic needs of their organisations. However, the tourism industry is still complaining that learners are not adequately prepared for the workplace and the learners believe that they have sufficient knowledge to meet the needs of the industry. The purpose of this research was to analyse the skills expectations of learners versus employers: the case of the Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport SETA (CATHSSETA). To achieve this aim, the following objectives were set: to analyse literature concerning human resource management with the main focus falling on training, to contextualise the current tourism education environment in South Africa, to compare the differences in skills expectations between learners and employers in the tourism industry and, lastly, to draw conclusions and make recommendations regarding the skills expectations in tourism education. This was achieved by conducting quantitative research by means of a structured questionnaire that was distributed to 202 employers and 1023 learners on the CATHSSETA database. The questionnaires were linked and captured on an online program named SurveyMonkey. The application of SPSS, descriptive statistics, Factor Analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, ANOVA and t-tests resulted in indicating various significant differences between skills expected by employers and skills presented by learners. These statistical analysis methods were used to demonstrate the gaps between the skills expectation of the role players. It was surprising to find that significant differences existed for most skills with the biggest gaps on self-reliance and people skills. The employers’ survey reflected that a priority for employers is customer orientation and learners’ willingness to learn. In all instances, employers expected learners to be better skilled than was the actual case. The results suggest that the learners are unable to adhere to the current demands of the industry. It was also found that learners rated their own skills much higher than the perception of employers. The results of this study can be used to assist CATHSSETA in improving their current training programmes to ensure they meet the needs of the broader tourism industry. It can also be used as a guideline for any training institution for improving the current tourism training programmes. This will contribute to the overall quality and sustainability of the tourism industry. / Thesis (MCom (Tourism Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.