Attitudes of Students towards Vocational Education with Reference to Chennai City

Vocational education prepares the students pursue a group of vocations which has the employment capability instead of going to colleges and institutions of higher level for further education. The present study aims to understand the attitudes of secondary students towards vocational education in Chennai district of TamilNadu India. A sample of 158 students was selected from schools in Chennai city. The students were interviewed and their attitudes towards vocational education were measured using a five point Likert-type scale. The researcher developed the tool to measure the attitude of students towards vocational education. The reliability and validity of the tool was found.   Thirteen attitude statements pertaining to vocational education were administered to the subjects and their agreement or disagreement was documented. From the results it was evident that the students had moderate (uncertain) attitudes towards vocational education. There exist a statistically significant difference among male and female in their attitude towards vocational education.  Male students preferred vocational education program more than female students. Birth order, number of siblings, parents educational status, family type and maternal employment doesn’t influence the attitude of students towards vocational education. It is reported that majority of the students weren’t aware about the vocational courses, its scope , eligibility, opportunities and scholarships available. Hence it is suggested that Career guidance to be given to orient the students towards vocational courses at secondary level for successful career choices.