DEVELOPMENT OF A GUIDELINE PROTOTYPE FOR STUDENT SUPPORT IN VOCATIOANAL EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS TO PROMOTE EMPLOYMENT OF STUDENT WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

Abstract

This present study aims to develop and propose a guideline prototype for student support that fits the context of the vocational education institutions to promote employment of students with special needs. To design the prototype, research design principle of Design Thinking (DT) was employed. The target participants included students with special needs, their parents, and personel from five vocational institutions in Thailand. The study was conducted in three phases. In phase 1, “Emphasize”, qualitative methodology was used to gather experiences of the participants. In phase 2, “Define” and “Ideate”, results of phase 1 was used to define the problems and brainstorming solution ideas with experts from related fields. In phase 3, “Prototype” and “Test”, the team analyzed the data from phase 2 and incorporated the result for prototype designing. The prototype, then, was implemented with the participants. The results from the “Test” procedure, were used to revise the prototype so that it become more completed and ready to present. It was found that the prototype consisted of 2 main components: A training program for enhancing teachers’ competencies in providing supporting for students with special needs and an implementation process toward sustainability. The training program in this research consisted of the training content designed to match the teachers’ needs and the planning toolkits for career goal settings; need analysis and student supports; curriculum and instruction modification; and progress monitoring. The includemplementation process includeincludeed 5 steps: 1) basic training, 2) buy-in and team building, 3) intermediate training, 4) initial implementation, and 5) coaching and evaluation. The final prototype was proposed with an aim to increase the quality of supports for students with special needs for career in vocational colleges.