An activity theory analysis of Korean secondary vocational education curriculum: A case study of Electronics and Media Meister high school

This study critically analyzes the Korean secondary vocational education system known as Meister high schools with activity theory. By focusing on the main subjects of Meister high school education―teachers and students―this qualitative case study examines how the Meister high school education is implemented. As part of the data-collection process, the researchers conducted in-depth interviews with, and participant observations of, four teachers and four graduates from a public electronics Meister high school ‘A’ and a private media Meister high school ‘B’. The findings reveal that, while a Meister high school education does improve students’ technical and practical skills, the fixed and pre-planned programming of a Meister education contains structural contradictions in terms of developing well-rounded, skilled and employable graduates. However, students and teachers strived to resolve the contradictions by using informal mediations and by reconstructing their curricula, continually adapting and seeking to improve the kind of education offered in Meister high schools. Based on these results, this study provides meaningful implications of secondary vocational education and offers these results as recommendations to this educational system’s continued improvement.