Articles

Synergetic Approach Model for Improving Vocational Education: Characteristics, Guidelines and Applications

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The main purpose of vocational education is to prepare students for their future professional development, including the acquisition of skills and competencies necessary for the labor market. The research aims to present a model that gains effectiveness of applying a synergetic approach for improving vocational education. The synergetic approach could be an innovative pedagogical concept in VET that creates an open educational environment utilizing the application of different approaches and teaching methods. Basically the model proposed combines the change in curricula, the use of learning resources for practical teaching and the change in the way of assessment as kernel guideines for achieving better student outcomes. The ensuing benefits of applying a synergetic approach in VET are related to the possibility that vocational education is required to meet the needs of the contemporary labor market, as well as it answers to the expectations of society to prepare young people for their successful employment in industry. Other benefits are related to the possibility of restructuring the learning content, using various teaching methods, formative assessment, acquisition of permanent knowledge, as well as acquisition of skills for critical evaluation of information and self-evaluation of the achieved results to increase motivation. In synergetic learning, the content of the learning materials differs significantly from those traditionally used in vocational training, and the teacher has the opportunity to adapt the learning content to the needs of the specific student.

The Post-Socialist Socio-Spatial Transformation in Tirana, Albania

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The overwhelming majority of Albania’s urban population is located in Tirana, a city with a very dynamic socio-spatial reality, resulting as an entry point for people from various origins, including multicultural rural societies, and has significant concentrations of finance and other economic activities. Urban areas demonstrate the dynamics that impact society from many angles, including those related to technology, economics, demographics, and culture, via a diverse and changed perspective. Since 1991, there has been a growing separation between classes, genders, and regions, as well as between individuals and vulnerable groups, due to a lack of social protection and governmental measures for these groups and individuals, and the unrestricted power of the free market. Today, there is a noticeable improvement in the real pattern of social group concentration. This paper focuses on various divisions of social groupings in Tirana, how they are reflected in the city’s everyday life, and how they trend to the fragmentation of contemporary urban regions. In order to comprehend the change over time and transition patterns of Tirana from sites of production to places of consumption, the process method is modified by concentrating on the main stakeholders. The background of enhancing cities’ mobility and competitiveness demonstrates the interaction between different social groups and different living patterns in Tirana. The study also shows the socio-spatial pattern of the new city. The significant level of social fragmentation in Tirana is evident from analysis that only investigated a certain percentage of the city’s social groupings. The new master plans predicted in the city will help to overcome the issue.