How is the Digitalisation Initiative Affecting Vienna’s Vocational Schools?

Through the Qualification Fund of the AK Vienna’s digi­ta­li­sa­ti­on initia­ti­ve, digi­ta­li­sa­ti­on projects at Vienna’s voca­tio­nal schools were supported — par­ti­cu­lar­ly at those with a backlog in this field. The aim was to enable modern teaching for the skilled pro­fes­sio­nals of the future, improve the quality of training, and make app­ren­ti­ce­ships more attractive.

In 2022 and 2023, the voca­tio­nal schools each received a yearly budget of 24,000 euro for digi­ta­li­sa­ti­on measures. This funding was used, among other things, for the acqui­si­ti­on of digital devices such as notebooks and smart­boards, up-to-date learning software, and digitally con­trol­led machines. A par­ti­cu­lar focus was placed on sup­port­ing app­ren­ti­ces at Vienna’s voca­tio­nal schools.

The eva­lua­ti­on of the funding programme now seeks to determine whether and to what extent the resources provided have con­tri­bu­ted to a more modern, digi­ta­li­sed teaching and learning infras­truc­tu­re for the benefit of the app­ren­ti­ces. Central points of interest include the increased digi­ta­li­sa­ti­on of teaching, the new didactic oppor­tu­ni­ties for teachers, and the students’ per­cep­ti­on of the invest­ments. Furthermore, the study aims to identify addi­tio­nal digi­ta­li­sa­ti­on needs at Vienna’s voca­tio­nal schools.

For the eva­lua­ti­on, carried out by 3s, a document analysis, an online survey, and workshops at five selected voca­tio­nal schools with directors, teachers, and IT cus­to­di­ans, will be conducted and analysed.