School4Work

School4Work is a project involving partners OsloMet Department of Vocational Teacher Education, Fafo, Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung (BIBB) and the regional education authorities in Oslo kommune and Viken fylkeskommune. The project is about vocational students' transition from school to apprenticeship. It aims to generate knowledge about the conditions that affect the transition, particularly emphasising what vocational teachers can do to facilitate it. Fafo participates in two work packages, one on what vocational teachers do to prepare students for apprenticeships and one on employers' decisions to offer apprenticeships, and leads the latter.

In Norway, the transition from school-based education to apprenticeships is a crucial step in the transition to work for vocational students. School4Work aims to develop knowledge about the mechanisms and dynamics of the transition from the school-based part of VET to apprenticeship. The project will contribute new insight into the processes at school, the placement process and the decision-making processes within firms when hiring (or not hiring) apprentices. With the generated knowledge, School4Work ultimately aims to develop vocational teachers’ competencies for facilitating students’ transition from the school-based part of VET to apprenticeship. The project employs a variety of methods: personal interviews, group interviews, vignettes, surveys and analysis of registry data.