Transforming vocational schools - digitalisation in school development

The increasing impact of digitalisation on everyday life and the workplace requires new digital competencies to facilitate the socio-economic participation of citizens. One major avenue to support young people in the changing world is through education. This thesis therefore examines the development of vocational schools in the context of digitalisation. Theoretical considerations about school quality and models of school development form the basis for a multi-perspective research approach, including the five main stakeholder groups in Germany’s dual system of vocational training, namely students, teachers, school leaders, parents and training companies. The thesis focuses on the development of schools as organisational units which operate in a larger educational context. In the third chapter, curricular standards are investigated as external influence factors using a text-mining approach. The chapter examines in which ways these standards correspond to national requirements and how they can provide guidance for stakeholders at the school level. The fourth chapter focuses on the situation of teachers when school leaders decide to introduce digital practices into a school’s routines. The fifth and sixth chapters combine the interpretation of quantitative and qualitative data in a mixed-method approach to emphasise the relationships between stakeholders and different areas of school development, especially during a phase of distance learning. Practical implications of digitalisation for the development of vocational schools are derived from the research work in chapter seven. These include the significance of a shared vision, clear cooperation strategies and a manageable number of educational tools. Furthermore, the need to review the established models of school development in the context of digitalisation and the characteristics of vocational schools is discussed. This thesis claims that it is insufficient to view digitalisation merely as an influencing factor on the different fields of school development. Through new modes of exchange, digitalisation fundamentally transforms the relationship between the stakeholders of development at vocational schools. The way education, organisation, personnel, cooperation and technology interact is transforming at the qualitative, quantitative, spatial and temporal level