Competence importance and acquisition: comparing qualified and non-qualified vocational teachers

Experiencing a teacher shortage, Sweden has allowed vocational teachers to gain employment without teaching qualifications. In this context, a population of non-qualified vocational teachers has emerged, a group of people rarely captured by national statistics and previous research. This study aims to shed light on the profile of non-qualified vocational teachers. By highlighting the potential differences between qualified and non-qualified teachers, with reference to competence, this study identifies competence they perceive as important (importance scale), as well as competence they think they have developed during their work (achievement scale). The data collection was realised with a questionnaire, focusing on a 27-item competence set that teachers evaluated. According to findings and concerning importance, statistically significant differences were found for nine items, with the majority of them being direct learning outcomes of formal teacher education. Regarding achieved competence, statistically significant differences were reported for 17 items. Non-qualified teachers evaluated these items lower than qualified ones, showing that they perceive these competencies as underdeveloped. In conclusion, non-qualified vocational teachers expressed underdeveloped competence in comparison to qualified, which can have implications in the formation of their teacher identity and the values they promote to their students.