Abstract

This study is a series of the empirical study, the Excellence of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Institutions, which has investigated the association between four premise factors (competent teachers, relevant curricula, effective leadership, and school-industry linkages) and school performance. The purpose of the study is to provide recommendations to individual institutions who seek to develop strategies to improve their internal and external efficiencies as well as provide policy makers with empirical evidence to help develop new TVET policies that increase schools’ responsiveness to industry demands and reduce skills gap. The study assessed (1) whether or not the select school Busan National Mechanical Technical High School (BMT) possesses four premise factors; (2) how these factors contribute to the enhancement of school outcomes, and (3) which factor has the most influence in differing contexts (e.g. TVET policy, labor market conditions, social demands) and times. The selection criterion was the school’s high graduate employment rate. The study gathered data via multiple resources, including school publications, survey, and interviews. As for the survey, 555 out of 600 students and 107 out of 113 teachers responded. The interview was conducted with 10 students, 10 specialty teachers, the principal, and one vice principal. The interview style was an in-person, one-on-one with structured, open-ended questions, where each interviewee was sequestered separately in a closed room for 60 minutes. After coding the raw data, certain themes emerged. The findings suggest that BMT possesses all the stated premise factors, and the factors directly or indirectly influence the graduate employment rate via the enhancement of employability. Additionally, the most influential factor can be altered based upon various contexts and times.

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