Social support at vocational schools by re-educational centers
Introduction
Mareš (2001) talks about social support as an activity with good intentions, which results in a positive response in the recipient of social support and brings him improvement. The subjective assessment of support is an expression of the quality of sources of social support and supportive behavior. Its types are emotional, informational, evaluative and instrumental support. Emotional support deals with providing empathy, love, trust and care. It aims to help cope with feelings, in an effort to relieve anxiety and restore happiness, or at least inner peace. Information support is the provision of advice, suggestions and information that a person can use to solve problems. Assessment support involves providing information that is useful for self-assessment purposes. Instrumental support includes the provision of material assistance and services that directly help a person in need (Heaney, Israel 2008, Burleson 2003).
Supporting the child in the re-education process is aimed at improving self-image, awareness of one's own value (Komárik 1998). The social support provided by the employees of the re-education centers is aimed at mitigating and eliminating the negative form of relations with the environment and peers. a typical effort to achieve goals in the shortest possible time (Slomek 2010). Education at the school at the re-education center is a significant morning reality, where space is created to make available various socially acceptable interpersonal relationships. Supporting the student in all-round development and creating an environment that accepts the student's needs is a condition for possible change. At the same time, other employees, such as a psychologist, a social worker, a social pedagogue, a medical pedagogue, a doctor, and a technical and economic employee, also enter the re-education process. Staying in a re-education center is a stressful change for a young person, and therefore we assume that the perception of social support in schools near re-education centers will differ significantly from the perception of peers in the general population. The riskiest perception of support is among pupils with low well-being and high levels of psychopathological problems (Šeboková 2018). On the other hand, research by Lukšík and Hargašová (2017, In Lukšík, Škoviera, Hargašová, Fico 2017) shows the satisfaction of young adults with the progress they have achieved in re-education centers, with relationships with peers, with family and preparation for leaving the center. Positive connections between social support provided over a longer period of time and the improvement of academic competence and student behavior are confirmed (Dubow, Tisak, Causey, Hryshko, Reid 1991). Research by Simonová (2017) looked at the basic school environment from the perspective of parents. They required the teacher to have a wide range of non-cognitive characteristics, such as a kind attitude, understanding, calm demeanor, patience, justice, kindness, willingness to help students. According to Kosová (2005), the teacher is autonomous in decision-making. He himself assesses what procedures he will choose at work, how he will evaluate pedagogical situations and plan interventions. At the same time, it is bound by goals and content that lead to the uniformity of the used methodological procedures, methods, forms of work. The formal relationship with the student is based on mutual respect from the beginning, when the student respects the teacher for his professional skills, personal qualities, and the teacher respects the student as a person (Petty 2013). Creating a prosperous environment is through a good relationship, communication and trust in the student. A personal relationship is built over months with each student. The provision and perception of supportive support has an individual character, in the course of its provision it changes into a dynamic construct (Demeray, Malecki, Davidson, Hodgson, Rebus 2005). The teacher uses their language and humor in communication with the students. In the learning process, he lets the students independently propose, solve, plan, and make decisions. It is a manifestation of the teacher's trust (Cardarella, Shatzer, Gray et al. 2011). Research by Alkharusi (2010) confirmed that students with a high sense of self-sufficiency perceive the classroom events more positively. For teenagers, a classmate is a source of information for orientation in new situations that are more or less the same for them, they have experience with them, they give him advice. Social support interventions designed to improve students' subjective well-being at school through better perceptions of learning competence are likely to be more effective for those with lower levels of perceived social acceptance. Systematic plans should be implemented in schools to provide school-related social support, especially to strengthen overall competence in different areas (Silva, Morgado, Maroco 2012). Demonstrating support and high expectations towards students is a necessary prerequisite for the development of their cognitive autonomy (Bačíková, Berinšterová 2017).
Research questions and research objective
Based on the definition of social support as the first step of re-education (Komárik 1998), we asked ourselves research questions. How do pupils in secondary vocational schools near re-education centers perceive the support of teachers (master of vocational training), classmates, friends and support from other people at school or in the re-education centre? How often do they receive emotional, informational, evaluative, instrumental support? Is their evaluation the same as that of students in mainstream secondary vocational schools?
The aim was to analyze from the point of view of pupils in classes of secondary vocational schools at re-education centers (sample set), how they perceived the supportive social support provided by social sources and to compare it with the perception of pupils in classes of secondary vocational schools of mainstream education (control set).
Research Files
The object of the sample research was 98 students, who in the school year 2014/2015, 2015/2016 were students of the first and second years of two-year study courses of secondary vocational schools at re-education centers. Their number represented 90.74% of the basic set (N 108). They were attended by all pupils present in the re-education centers at the re-education centers in the Bratislava, Banskobystricky, Nitra and Trnava self-governing regions. The age of the respondents was in the range of 16 to 18.1 years, the average age was 16.7 years.
The control set of students of mainstream secondary vocational schools represented the same number of respondents as in the sample set, i.e. j. 98 respondents (N 98). Pupils attended secondary vocational schools in Banskobystricky, Bratislava, Nitra, Trnava and Prešov self-governing regions. The age of the respondents ranged from 16 to 17.8 years, the average age was 16.4 years.
Respondents with mental disabilities were not included in both sets. This information was given to us by the class teachers at the beginning of the data collection.
Research method
We used the questionnaire method to determine the level of social support provided. The collection tool was the Social Support Questionnaire for Children and Youth. The authors of the questionnaire are Malecki, Demaray and Elliott from 2000. This questionnaire was translated and modified independently by three persons, Komárka, Ondřejová and Mareš in 2002. The authors of the Czech manual of the Social Support Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents are Mareš and Ježek (2005). Mareš created the definitive Czech version. The manual, which includes the questionnaire, was provided to us with the kind permission of Professor Mareš. In the presented research, the method was focused on determining the perception of social support among adolescents from four sources - a teacher (master of vocational training), a classmate, a friend and people at school/re-education center. The questionnaire contained 48 items, which were structured into four areas of twelve items each. The statements in the areas belonged to one of the four supportive types of social support, namely emotional – expressing trust, care, empathy; instrumental - tangible help, service; information - advice, information, proposal; and evaluation - information that is beneficial for self-evaluation. Respondents answered individual statements using a multi-level scale in the dimension "how often" they receive support from the source (6-point Likert scale 1= never, 6= always). For each type of supportive support for one source in the frequency dimension, one respondent could get a minimum of 3 points, a maximum of 18 points, the average was 9 points.
A parametric t-test for independent groups was used for statistical comparison of data in sets, which compares differences between groups. The significance levels at which we assessed the significance of the differences were by default α = 0.05, respectively. α = 0.01. In case the calculated p-value was higher than the determined level of significance, the answers were statistically identical between the analyzed groups. In case the calculated p-value was lower than the established level of significance, we identified a statistically significant difference between the groups.
Interpretation of results
As part of the research questions, we wanted to find out how students in secondary vocational schools near re-education centers perceived emotional, informational, evaluative, instrumental supportive support from teachers (master of vocational training), classmates, friends and other people in the school/re-education center? Was the perception significantly different from that of students in mainstream secondary vocational schools?
The aim was to analyze from the point of view of pupils in classes of secondary vocational schools at re-education centers (sample set), how they perceived the supportive social support provided by social sources and to compare it with the perception of pupils in classes of secondary vocational schools of mainstream education (control set).
Tables 1 to 4 show the average values achieved in each of the four types of supportive support obtained from a group of students from secondary vocational schools at re-education centers and the same values obtained from students from secondary vocational schools in the mainstream of education. Differences in each type of supportive social support between groups were processed by a parametric t-test. The standard deviation characterized the fluctuation of individual values around the arithmetic mean. Statistically significant differences in the frequency of support provided between the sample and the control group were confirmed in the case of social sources – teacher (master of vocational training), classmate, people at school (re-education center).
Table 1 Analysis and comparison of the frequency of provided social support from the source - teacher (master of vocational training) according to the type of support
The teacher and the master of vocational training are sources of social support, with whom students meet every day at school and at vocational training from the first day of their stay in the re-education center. Pupils receive all types of supportive support. By evaluating the obtained data, we found a significant difference between groups in one of the four types of supportive support in the dimension of the frequency of support provided by the source of social support teacher/master of vocational training (Table 1). Emotional support from authorities at school is rated higher on average by pupils in schools near re-education centers (A.M. 10.83) than pupils in mainstream schools (A.M. 9.50), statistical significance is at the significance level of 0.01. Emotional support is a manifestation of the teacher's closeness, sensitivity, understanding and interest in him in solving school educational problems, in managing discrepancies in knowledge. From the point of view of pupils, authority support is provided in all types of support in schools. There is no difference between the type of support provided, such as instrumental, evaluation and informational support. Educators are more often interested in them, treat them fairly and don't mind when their students ask questions during lessons. They will almost always explain things they don't understand, provide them with information, help and show them how to solve tasks. They are often praised when they succeed in something. The rating across the whole set for all types of support is higher than average, which means that they receive informational, evaluative and instrumental support from authorities often, almost always when they ask for it.
Table 2 Analysis and comparison of the frequency of provided social support from the source - classmates by type of support
Pupils of both the selection and control group expressed their opinion at the source, my classmates, about how often they receive emotional, informational, evaluative and instrumental support from them. By evaluating the obtained data, we found a statistically significant difference between groups of students in terms of the frequency of supportive support provided in all its types by classmates. Pupils of both sets rate information support the highest on average (A.M. 12.08 and 10.47). Classmates often advise each other, inform each other about new things and guide each other when they don't know how to proceed in an activity. Average values statistically significant at the significance level < 0.01 showed in informational, evaluation and instrumental support. The average values show more frequent support provided by classmates in the sample group (A. M. 12.08 - 11.48) than the average values in the control group of students (A. M. 10.47 - 9.15).
The higher variability of the standard deviations points to the heterogeneity of the group in the evaluation of the types of support provided by classmates.
By evaluating the obtained data, we did not find a statistically significant difference between the groups of students in terms of the frequency of the type of support provided for a friend as a source of support (Table 3). Pupils in both sets rate emotional (A.M. 12.55 and 12.46) and instrumental support (A.M. 12.31 and 12.42) the highest. Both sets showed similar, but lower average values in the provided informational and evaluation support (A.M. 11.88 – 11.07).
Table 3 Analysis and comparison of the frequency of provided social support from a source - a friend according to the type of support
For the source people in the school or in the re-education center, we found a statistically significant difference between groups of pupils for all types of support (table 4).
Table 4 Analysis and comparison of the frequency of provided social support from the source - people in the school/re-education center according to the type of support
Pupils in the selection group rate supportive support in all its types higher than pupils in the control group. Their average rating is in the range of 10.17 to 11.09 points and in the control group in the range of 8.51 to 9.64 points. We noted the highest difference between sets in instrumental support (p .004 = < 0.01). On this basis, we can predict that the re-education center has a good connection of supporting sources of social support from the school and extracurricular environment. The employees form a social network, where each expert provides the student with a degree of supportive social support resulting from his professional competences.
Discussion and Conclusion
The known fact represents the current average experience of the educational reality of pupils aged 15 to 18, which is realized in classes at secondary vocational schools. Pupils in schools at re-education centers rate the frequency of provided supportive support higher in all statistical indicators of significance than pupils in mainstream schools. The data point to the need to further achieve positive changes in relationships with the fulfillment of educational goals. Červenka (2018) in interviews with employees of re-education centers (educational institute) profiled the relationship as a means, goal and opportunity. In the relationship between a teacher and a student with problematic behavior, it is important to look at the student as a personality and not as a problem student in terms of perspectives for life. In the re-education center, there is constant professional awareness among the supporting sources of social support. The employees form a social network, where each employee provides the student with a degree of supportive social support resulting from their professional competences. It arises for future research to find out what is the relational importance between resources and perceived social support by pupils.
The presented study showed that both groups receive supportive social support in all its types from all social sources. We find significant differences between files in some of its types. Considering the aim of the study and the performed data analysis, we can state that the studied adolescent population in re-education centers has a higher level of perception of supportive support - emotional, informational, evaluative and instrumental from classmates and professional staff than it is for students in mainstream secondary schools. There is a significant difference in the perception of emotional support among teachers, when pupils in schools near re-education centers perceive it as being provided more often than pupils in mainstream schools. Future research could explore the level of relationships between social support and other variables using multiple research methods.
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