School plays a vital role in readying youths to take on a career. For decades, the People's Republic of China had a socialist egalitarian labour education tradition that prepared Grade 1–12 students for their future occupations.
Objective
This study explores how recent generations of single offspring (only-children hereafter) who have grown up in a socialist market economy and witnessed rapid social transition and stratification perceive labour and occupations, about which little is known. This study examines the relationship between educational factors and youths’ perceptions of occupations.
Methods
This study adopted a mixed methodology approach (questionnaire, interview, and lesson design analysis) to report how educators and youths (aged 15–16) perceived occupation in Shanghai. Researchers surveyed 206 Grade 10 students, interviewed two teachers and six students, and observed five classes related to labour education. The questionnaire data were analysed with SPSS software. Quantitative data were analysed as follows: frequency distribution, means and crosstabs (nominal by interval), t-text were calculated to answer Research Questions.
Results
The findings revealed that youths showed a higher degree of agreement with labour-/occupation-related values and a lower degree of agreement with labour-related practices in life. Factors like student leader experience and parents’ political party membership influenced students’ perceptions of occupation.
Conclusions
This study supplements the extant literature by identifying society-school-individual factors that explain youths’ development of occupation perceptions in China.
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