Vocational and Academic Education and Political Engagement: The Importance of the Educational Institutional Structure

It is hardly disputed that educational institutions carry responsibility for the education of democratic citizens through the enhancement of civic and political engagement. Despite the wealth of studies on civic and citizenship education, scholars have not yet examined the relevance of national educational institutional factors. This study examines to what extent elements of national educational systems, in particular early tracking and a vocational orientation, are related to political engagement of young adult citizens. Using pooled European Social Survey data collected between 2002 and 2012 from 24 European countries, and examining electoral participation, political interest, and political activism, it is shown that people educated in vocational programs had lower levels of political engagement than people educated in general/academic education. Moreover, these differences were greater in strongly tracked educational systems relative to comprehensive/untracked systems. These results suggest that educational institutions that differentiate students early and rigidly may form a threat to democratic equality.