Relationship between Brazilian Vocational Education and Furniture Design Sequential Course

Abstract

This study focuses on Vocational Education and Training – VET – the so-called sequential courses in Brazil. The problem might be the lack of identification between the real needs of the labour market and the workforce or whether the links between them represent a new social order. The objective of this paper is to present the results of a case study about the Furniture Design Sequential Course conducted at a University in Southern Brazil. The methods consisted of structured observation, questionnaire and semistructured interviews applied to students and employers, as well as document analysis. Some aspects are studied such as (i) issues related to the students’ reasons for taking the furniture design sequential course and their judgement of its effectiveness in preparing them for the labour market; (ii) employers’ knowledge of the course, with their judgement of its effectiveness in relation to standards of quality and production, and required skills from students; (iii) the structure of the course and the skills taught as well as their relation with the skills considered necessary by the labour market, as indicated by the students. The results of this research show that the sequential courses are in their infancy and it is not possible to conclude if this type of course presents a new social order. However, it is possible to see that sequential courses need to be studied before being implemented.