School–industry collaboration in technical and vocational education for the professional development of women in the aquaculture sector

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.62697/rmiie.v5i4.448

Keywords:

Vocational education and training, school-enterprise linkage, gender equity, professional development, aquaculture

Abstract

Technical and Vocational Education and Training is a strategic mechanism for aligning training with the needs of the productive sector, although gender gaps persist that restrict female participation in technical activities such as aquaculture. The aim of this research was to design a pedagogical school-enterprise linkage strategy from Vocational Education and Training, oriented towards strengthening the professional development of women in the aquaculture sector. A mixed approach with a quantitative predominance was adopted, with a non-experimental, field, cross-sectional and descriptive-correlational design, structured in three phases: diagnosis, proposal design and validation. Quantitative data were collected through a structured Likert-scale survey applied to 141 participants linked to the Aquaculture Engineering program of the Technical University of Manabí, Sucre extension, and were complemented with semi-structured interviews with the Faculty authority and with women teachers of the academic staff. The reliability of the survey was estimated with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient, which reached a value of 0.919, and the qualitative information was analysed by categories and integrated through triangulation. The diagnosis showed broad recognition of the value of the linkage and of women’s technical competence, together with weaknesses in the permanent communication between university and enterprise and a perception of gender equity that differed markedly according to respondents’ sex, a finding that the interviews confirmed from the institutional perspective. On this basis, a pedagogical strategy with an inclusive approach was designed and validated by expert judgement, whose components directly address the identified gaps. It is concluded that the proposal is relevant and feasible for strengthening the professional opportunities of women in aquaculture.

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Published

2026-10-01

How to Cite

Vélez-Zambrano, M. A., & Guzmán-Hernández, R. (2026). School–industry collaboration in technical and vocational education for the professional development of women in the aquaculture sector. Revista Mexicana De Investigación E Intervención Educativa, 5(4), 139–151. https://doi.org/10.62697/rmiie.v5i4.448

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 4 (2026): El futuro de la educación: inteligencia, innovación y humanidad (octubre-diciembre)

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Artículos

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Copyright (c) 2026 María Alexandra Vélez-Zambrano, Ramón Guzmán-Hernández

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