Teachers in secondary vocational education: The current state of the professional group
Introduction. Pedagogical employees of secondary vocational education are a special socio-professional group, which is subject to significant changes under the influence of educational and social environment. Accurate sociological description is needed to evaluate the challenges the group may face. The aim of the article is to characterize the current state of the group of pedagogical employees of secondary vocational education and evaluate the challenges it may face with further functioning. Methods. The article uses general scientific methods: theoretical analysis, secondary data analysis, as well as applied methods of sociological research: standardised interviews of teachers and trainers. Results. The obtained results outline the features of socio-professional group of teaching staff of secondary vocational education system and give an idea of its actual state. Knowing the current functions of the professional group enables the risks of further development of pedagogical employees of secondary vocational education system be evaluated. The scientific novelty lies in capturing the current state of the group functioning, revealing the risky aspects of its further functioning. Practical significance. The results of the study can be used to develop recommendations for the work with the professional groups of teachers of secondary vocational education system, as well as secondary data in the implementation of research on similar topics. Funding. The work was carried out within the state task of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation “The Pedagogical Workers of Professional Education and Science: Recruitment, Professional Adaptation and Social Representation” (applied research, № 073-00104-22-01).