Orientamento e crisi economica: la ricerca-intervento con le classi terze di un Istituto Tecnico per Geometri del Nord Italia

Abstract

Vocational Guidance and Economic Crisis: Action-research with Third-year Students of a Technical School for Surveyors in Northern Italy. 

The article reports the example of an action-research carried out in 2011 for educational guidance purposes with third-year students of a technical school for surveyors in northern Italy. 184 students took part in the action-research: 22.1% females and 77.9% males, aged 16 (modal age) to 18 years. During the action-research, four instruments were administered, one of which containing the research questions on the chosen school, the post-diploma situation, family and self-image in 5 and 10 years’ time, the results of which are reported in the article. The results show that 18-25% of the respondents intended to continue with their studies. Only 25% of the respondents said they saw themselves as students in 5 years time, while none saw themselves as such in 10 years time, even if 46% of the respondents reported that their parents wanted them to continue with their education. On the other hand, 33-52% said they intended to find a job immediately on leaving high school while 40% said they saw themselves in a steady job in 5 years time and 71% in 10 years time, even if only 33% of the respondents thought their parents wanted this immediately. Doing both things, studying and working, was taken into account by only 5-11% of the respondents. The percentage was 5% when students considered these things in 5 years time, and 0% in 10 years time. Finally, 12-44% of the respondents said they did not know what they would do after high school.