Papers by Michaela Brockmann
Successive governments have pledged to enhance the quality of apprenticeship in Britain so as to ... more Successive governments have pledged to enhance the quality of apprenticeship in Britain so as to achieve ‘parity of esteem’ with academic study. Yet, at the same time, the discourse of the academic-vocational divide has dominated the academic, policy-maker and practitioner debates. This paper draws on two recent studies designed to explore the learner identities of apprentices on different apprenticeship programmes: motor vehicle maintenance (level 2) and engineering (level 3). Through this work we are able to explore the role of the academic-vocational divide in identity construction and to challenge assumptions about vocational learners. It will be argued, that, far from being ‘naturally practical’, the young people draw on normative discursive categories in their construction of continuous identities. The findings raise important questions about the UK apprenticeship system as currently conceived, while at the same time drawing attention to the possibility for change.
The British Journal of Sociology, 2006
Drawing on British data from two annual sweeps of the ISSP eight years apart in 1994 and 2002, fo... more Drawing on British data from two annual sweeps of the ISSP eight years apart in 1994 and 2002, for modules focusing on 'Family and Changing Gender Roles', this paper examines the extent to which changes in women's labour market participation, changing ideologies/discourses of gender and changing forms of intimate relationships are affecting the ways in which couples organize household money, and the implications of such changes for recent theories of intimate relationships. The analysis indicates that by 2002, the type of relationship respondents had established, together with their social class position, were both independently related to the ways in which they managed money, after controlling for socioeconomic and cultural or discursive factors. Our findings also provide a degree of support for the thesis of a partial decline in the male breadwinner model of gender, as indicated by small declines in the use of the relatively inegalitarian female whole wage and housekeeping allowance systems which were most likely to be used by married couples and cohabiting fathers, expressing relatively traditional ideologies/discourses of breadwinning -and a slight increase in the use of the partial pool, which was most likely to be used by childless cohabiting couples in which male partners expressed less traditional ideologies of breadwinning and women were in middle-class jobs with incomes high enough to facilitate partially separate finances. We also suggest, however, that in so far as cohabiting couples earning different amounts define equality as contributing equally to household expenditure, it is possible that rather than being associated with shifts to greater equality in access to money for personal spending and saving, the partial pool may be associated with marked inequalities, because it may enable gender inequalities generated in the labour market to be more directly transposed into inequalities within households, despite the decline of traditional discourses of male breadwinning and the increasing importance of egalitarian ideologies of co-provisioning.
This article reports on a study of apprentices in England and Germany designed to explore young p... more This article reports on a study of apprentices in England and Germany designed to explore young people’s learner identities over time and in relation to particular learning environments. The research adopts a multi-method ethnographic approach, combining biographical interviews with multi-site participant observation. The article problematises the notion of participant observation and the possibility of obtaining meaningful data in short-term observations as part of a broader research design. It highlights the importance of the researcher role and the opportunities different roles entail for developing shared understanding and co-constructing meaning. It concludes that the observations yield important findings about the construction of identity in different sites and thus complement
the interview data in enabling the researcher to reconstruct the apprentices’ learner biographies.
Journal of Education and Work, 2012
The paper examines how racism is experienced by Black and minority ethnic staff in social service... more The paper examines how racism is experienced by Black and minority ethnic staff in social services. Departing from previous approaches using pre-determined definitions, the research is based on self-defined incidents of racism. It provides an insight into personal and structural features influencing perceptions and coping strategies, illuminates different forms of racism and examines the relationship between institutional and personal racism.
European Societies, 2002
... unique circumstances have implications for social policy, particularly with regard to social ... more ... unique circumstances have implications for social policy, particularly with regard to social care, and for the ... with older people, and include being able to get around the home and being ... For older ethnic minority migrants, the loss of their role as migrant worker after retirement may ...
Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, 2012
Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 2010
... The biographical interviews, in which the young person is invited to tell their ... workers, ... more ... The biographical interviews, in which the young person is invited to tell their ... workers, something which appears to reflect many English employers' attitudes towards apprentices as ... experience clearly refutes suggestions of smooth transitions guided by habitus and socialisation. ...
Ethnography and Education, 2011
... 17457823.2011.587361 Michaela Brockmann a * pages 229-243. ... A particular focus is on the r... more ... 17457823.2011.587361 Michaela Brockmann a * pages 229-243. ... A particular focus is on the relationship between the social identity of occupations (Goffman 196815. Goffman, E. 1968. Stigma – Notes on the management of spoiled identity , New Jersey: Pelican Books. ...
Ethnography and Education, 2011
This article reports on a study of apprentices in England and Germany designed to explore young p... more This article reports on a study of apprentices in England and Germany designed to explore young people's learner identities over time and in relation to particular learning environments. The research adopts a multi-method ethnographic approach, combining biographical interviews with multi-site participant observation. The article problematises the notion of participant observation and the possibility of obtaining meaningful data in short-term observations as part of a broader research design. It highlights the importance of the researcher role and the opportunities different roles entail for developing shared understanding and co-constructing meaning. It concludes that the observations yield important findings about the construction of identity in different sites and thus complement the interview data in enabling the researcher to reconstruct the apprentices’ learner biographies.
Oxford Review of Education, 2008
The structure of vocational education and training (VET) is in transformation. Work- based learni... more The structure of vocational education and training (VET) is in transformation. Work- based learning in particular has become critical in policy initiatives for increasing participation in education and training and for enhancing levels of knowledge and skills appropriate for ever more complex work environments. In addition, major projects are increasingly seen as drivers for providing work-based learning opportunities for young
Journal of European Industrial Training, 2008
Purpose -This paper aims to explain the distinction between educational standards and learning ou... more Purpose -This paper aims to explain the distinction between educational standards and learning outcomes and to indicate the problems that potentially arise when a learning outcomes approach is applied to a qualification meta-framework like the European Qualification Framework, or indeed to national qualification frameworks. Design/methodology/approach -The methods used are documentary, political and conceptual analysis, with some reference to empirical work carried out in relation to other projects. Findings -It is found that there are substantial differences between learning outcomes and standards with large educational and political implications. Furthermore, the "pure" form of learning outcomes approach contains a design flaw, which makes its coherent implementation problematic.
Journal of Education and Work, 2010
... occupation. It is shown how the current proposals mark a potential step backwards and a depar... more ... occupation. It is shown how the current proposals mark a potential step backwards and a departure from the principles of the 1944 Education Act by ignoring general and civic educational elements in young people's formation. Above ...
As demands for meaningful work experience are becoming more critical, particularly in the light o... more As demands for meaningful work experience are becoming more critical, particularly in the light of recent policy initiatives, the ability to provide an integrated system of work-based VET in England is becoming increasingly problematic The paper highlights the problems associated with provision, including the assimilation of vocational education to training in a narrow sense and the lack of an integration of the different elements of work-based VET, above all apprenticeships. The work-based VET route in England is shown to have particular weaknesses due to: the generally low status of VET; its governance and especially the lack of representation of employee interests; and the growing difficulties of obtaining employer engagement. Whilst the latter aspect is part of a European-wide phenomenon, in other respects the English system remains distinct. Drawing on secondary material and on evidence from our current research related to qualifications and skills in England, Germany, France and the Netherlands, the paper shows that the English VET system has much to learn from continental systems in overcoming its weaknesses.
Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 2009
The development of the European Qualification Framework (EQF) as a means of assessing the relativ... more The development of the European Qualification Framework (EQF) as a means of assessing the relative status of qualifications across the EU is described, together with its fundamental design characteristics, particularly the adoption of a 'learning outcomes' approach. Ways ...
Journal of European Social Policy, 2001
... As the stay of migrants had only ever been regarded as temporary, there are no policies to pr... more ... As the stay of migrants had only ever been regarded as temporary, there are no policies to provide for their long-term settle-ment in general, nor for ... Older migrants and social care in Austria Michaela Brockmann and Mike Fisher, National Institute for Social Work, London ...
Journal of European Industrial Training, 2009
Purpose -Though the notion of competence is common terminology in European VET policy at national... more Purpose -Though the notion of competence is common terminology in European VET policy at national and supra-national level, understandings vary widely, both across countries and within. The particular conceptions of competence adopted in the EQF are themselves problematic and the framework allows for a variety of interpretations. The purpose of this paper is to clarify those applied in the EQF and the vocational education and qualifications systems of particular European countries and to contribute to the development of a transnational understanding of the term, one which is compatible with a rapidly changing labour market. Design/methodology/approach -Drawing on evidence from work funded by the Nuffield Foundation entitled "Cross-national Equivalence of Vocational Skills and Qualifications", the paper explores the various conceptions of competence in the EQF and the national systems -in particular in the sectors of construction, ICT and health -of England, Germany, France and The Netherlands. Findings -Interpretations are located on a continuum from the comprehensive occupational model traditionally found in many European countries to the task-focused model of the English NVQ system. Research limitations/implications -Much developmental work involving all stakeholders is necessary to arrive at a commonly agreed conception. A broad understanding of competence would relate to the potential of labour, itself determined through the occupational capacity embodied in the qualification. Practical implications -Zones of Mutual Trust need to be based on transnational categories of VET. Originality/value -The value of the paper is in seeking to go beyond identifying differences by developing transnational categories and suggesting the nature of Zones of Mutual Trust for implementing the EQF.
Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 2010
The paper arises from my PhD thesis on the learner biographies of retail and motor vehicle mainte... more The paper arises from my PhD thesis on the learner biographies of retail and motor vehicle maintenance apprentices in Germany and England which explores the interrelationship of social structures and individual agency in identity formation over time and in particular learning environments. The paper reports initial findings, focusing largely on the English case study of motor vehicle apprentices. It challenges common assumptions of young people in vocational education in England as second‐chance learners being socialised into pursuing low‐status occupations and invites reflection on the particular model of apprenticeship in England and its role in shaping young people's identity.
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Papers by Michaela Brockmann
the interview data in enabling the researcher to reconstruct the apprentices’ learner biographies.
the interview data in enabling the researcher to reconstruct the apprentices’ learner biographies.