Peculiarities of vocational training and career guidance in families with many children: the case of Lithuania

Abstract

Approximately 35 thousand families with many children live in the Lithuanian rural area. According to structural, functional and social adaptation characteristics, three types of these large families are distinguished: successful families, socially supported families and social risk families. In 2012-2013, qualitative and quantitative research methods were used to investigate the pecularities of education for professional expression of the children from large families. The research shows that the degree of social adaptation of large families and education of children for professional expression and career can be assessed by the following value dispositions of parents: the disposition to care about the future of children; the disposition that education quarantees life quality and possibility to adapt to the social economical changes of life; the disposition of constant motivation of their children to learn; the disposition that it is necessary to help children in creation of life and career strategies based on child‘s ego, where priorities are given to higher level education and the need of continuous improvement of life and learning conditions for children; the disposition that increasing number of children should be based on Christian values; on encouragement of children‘s sociability and individuality by teaching children to know themselves, to identify their aspirations and professional orientations.