Introduction
There are several rural localities in Braila county where small entrepreneurs develop businesses that become successful, so there is a constant need to correlate the needs of these entrepreneurs with a series of qualifications/specializations in the education system (Dragut, 2011; Sannikova et al., 2022; Schleyer et al., 2002; Waldron et al., 2020). As long as there are entrepreneurs in the field of public catering, the educational units in the respective locality or in nearby localities should provide for the respective specialization/qualification in the schooling plan (Eugene et al., 2021; Hemphill & Marianno, 2021; Lopes et al., 2020; McLeod & Rosén Rasmussen, 2021; Wang et al., 2020). If, for example, a car service or several are established, it is preferable that at least in a nearby area there is a school that trains students in this field in collaboration with the respective economic agent/agents. Similarly, for food industry units, for example: bakers, pastry chefs, confectioners, etc., the nearby school/schools should provide education for that field. The collaboration between the school and the economic agent is done throughout the schooling period because the practical training courses take place, preferably after the 9th grade, only within the economic units, precisely so that the students can put into practice the concepts learned and the economic agent has the opportunity to guide, form, monitor and, upon completion of studies, after obtaining the qualification through a specialized exam, to be able to hire, of course, selecting the most suitable graduates (Cimellaro et al., 2022; Machekano et al., 2017; Rabbani et al., 2016; Romanazzi, 2021).
Currently, the labor market in Braila county, but also in other counties, has a very large lack of specialists in many fields: electrical, mechanical, public catering, food industry, construction, etc. that is precisely why school units, especially those where there are economic agents in the area, it should provide for the qualifications/specializations that are needed in the schooling plan for each year. In fact, every year, between October and December, according to a methodology approved by the Ministry of Education, the economic agents are the ones who prepare specific requests for the schools in the area, through which they highlight the need for the training of specialists in the field in which they operate. Thus, the school collaboration, more specifically technological high schools, is very close with economic agents because high schools with a technological profile train specialists in different fields who will apply the concepts assimilated to the economic agent where he will also learn the ones necessary for the job in the practical fields.
Obviously, the success of a business depends on specialists who perform the tasks in the job description, and it is obviously also ensured by efficient management. So the correlation between high-performance management and well-trained, capable specialists, eager for success, is guaranteed to lead to success. At the same time success, the coverage of deficiencies on the labor market must also be supported by financial motivation, so the financially motivated specialist, with the possibility of personal and especially professional development, will be a capable employee, involved, open to new things, motivated to contribute to the good of the team, implicitly the company in which he is employed. This also depends on the counseling and professional orientation during the studies, and a well-done counseling can be directly observed on the job because the employee works with passion, because when a person works in the desired field, he is supported, he is motivated professionally and financially, one could say that success is guaranteed.
Learning management involves self-regulation by the student, adult student of his own learning. Self-regulation of learning involves motivational aspects (emotions, behaviors, directing and maintaining motivation for learning) and strategic aspects (techniques and strategies used to increase learning efficiency).
Thus, students’ motivation is strongly influenced by the characteristics of the classroom learning environment. Environmental characteristics originating from teachers influence students’ perceptions of content value. Students’ perceived goals influence strategy use, task preference, class attitude, subject self-perceptions. Motivation is what influences current achievements along with future expectations and intentions.
The objectives regarding the correlation of qualifications from school units with the labor market are:
– Evaluation of existing challenges within schools in rural areas,
– Development of the methodological framework for evaluating students’ motivation,
– Testing and validation for different types of educational motivation,
– Classification of learning motivation,
– Identifying solutions for sustainable learning and improving motivation and learning for the development of rural areas.
– Carrying out internships at economic agents in the rural areas where the educational institution is located.
Material and method
Rural development largely depends on institutional management and implicitly on educational management. As long as a rural area is well represented educationally, it has all the chances for a harmonious development from all points of view and obviously attracts new investors depending on the qualifications, respectively the specializations of the nearest educational units.
From this point of view, a rural area in Brăila county, namely Măxineni commune, was analyzed – from the point of view of institutional management and obviously educational. The locality of Maxineni in Braila county is an example of good practice in terms of institutional management and the correlation of qualifications/specializations within the high school in the locality with the labor market.
There are other localities where this correlation is attempted by establishing dual professional education, such as Gradistea or Viziru in Braila county, to meet the needs of economic agents. But nowhere is the correlation done as well as in the town of Maxineni.
Analyzing the evolution of the “Matei Basarab” technological high school in Maxineni, one can see the permanent concern to respond to the needs of the community.At the end of the 19th century, the Măxineni commune was part of the Marginea de Jos area of the Râmnicu Sărat county and had only the village of residence, with 1393 inhabitants. In the commune there was a steam mill and a mixed school with 90 students, founded in 1878. The only church in the commune was the one at the Măxineni monastery, built by the ruler of the Wallachia Matei Basarab in 1638. At that time, on the current territory of the commune, the Corbu commune (in the same area) and the Latinu commune, in the Vădeni area of Brăila county, also operated. The commune of Corbu included the hamlets of Corbu and Chioveanu, with a population of 1540 inhabitants. There was a church built in 1868 by the inhabitants and a mixed school with 73 students (including 9 girls), opened in 1870. The Latinu commune included the villages Latinu Vechi (founded in 1836) and Latinu Nou (where they moved in 1861 inhabitants of Latinu Vechi following the floods produced by the Buzău river), having a total of 601 inhabitants. A church dating back to 1865 and a mixed school with 26 students functioned in the Latinu commune.
In 1925, the commune of Măxineni had 1259 inhabitants and the commune of Corbu— 1065; both were part of the Măicănești area of Râmnicu Sărat county. The Latinu commune included the villages of Gurgueți, Latinu Nou, Latinu Vechi, Oancea and Voinești, with 652 inhabitants; it was part of the Silistraru area of Brăila county.
In 1950, Măxineni and Corbu communes were arrondissement of Măicănești district of Putna region and then (after 1952) of Galați region. In 1956, they moved to the Brăila district of the Galati region, a district of which the Latinu commune was a part since 1950. In 1968, the communes of Latinu and Corbu were abolished, and the villages of Corbu Nou, Corbu Vechi, Latinu and Voinești, which composed them, were transferred to the commune of Măxineni.
According to the scriptures, the school in Măxineni was founded in 1878, in the old hearth of the village of Măxineni. initially, it functioned as a primary school, then as a seven-year general school, becoming, later, in 1963, the “Matei Basarab” High School. initially, it functioned as a theoretical high school with a real profile, the first promotion consisting of two classes of 44 students each. In 1976, the high school became a school unit with 10 years of compulsory education. In 1989, the high school was re-established, with only one class, which went into liquidation until 1992, and in the period 1992-1995, it functioned as a general school, with a mechanization class. In 1995, the fish farming profile high school was re-established based on 180 statements from the residents of the neighboring communes and villages. Currently, it operates with four primary classes, four secondary school classes, one direct rate high school class, one progressive rate high school class, two reduced frequency high school classes, two arts and crafts classes and one complementary year class. The high school has laboratories for biology, informatics, geography, chemistry, literature, modernly equipped, according to standards.
The “Matei Basarab” Technological High School in Măxineni has in its structure Măxineni Kindergarten, Latinu Primary School, Latinu Kindergarten, Corbu Nou Secondary School, Corbu Nou Kindergarten, Corbu Vechi Primary School.
The school with grades I-VIII “Timotei Petride” operates in Latinu village. in the relative geographical dictionary it is specified that between the villages, being mud and mud, people called the locality “Letinu”, hence the current name. The Latin school was founded in 1863 and the courses were taught by the logophate Ene Cristescu. in 1882 he was appointed a full-time teacher, it was a school for adults and had a well-planted school kindergarten. The commune was completely distracted by the war, neither the church nor the school, nor the town hall, not a single house remained standing. The school was rebuilt again in 1920, another building was added. In 2002, the school entered a program for the rehabilitation of rural schools through the World Bank, making an investment of 180,000 lei, of which 9,000 from the local fund. The school was equipped with modern furniture, the entire building was strengthened, five classrooms out of the existing seven were renovated. Currently, the school with classes I-IV Latin has a staff of 47 students and 3 teaching staff. At the proposal of the Brăila County School Inspectorate, on June 6, 2003, the school was named after Professor Timotei Petride, the son of the priest Sava Petride who rebuilt the Latinu church.
The kindergarten in Latinu village operates in the building of the former veterinary dispensary which was taken over by the Măxineni City Hall. The building was built in 1952.
Maria Simizeanu, in 1935 financed the construction of the school in Corbu.
Currently, the Matei Basarab Technological High School in Măxineni has approximately 400 students, and the following specializations: technological sector, profile: Natural resources and environmental protection, specialization – food product analysis technician profile: Technician, specialization – technician in the leather industry. These product specializations come in economic products from the area, more precisely or dairy factory, Paraurlact SRL and a leather factory, EMMGI PROD SRL, thus the educational offer is correlated with the needs of the labor market in the area.
Analysis and Results
An example of good practice in order to develop institutional management in the rural environment is represented by the educational institution from the commune of Măxineni which comes with an educational offer correlated with the labor market S.C Paraurlact SRL was established in August 2013. It was born as a small milk processing factory to bring to the market high quality dairy products from 100% natural milk collected from farms in the area.
Analyzing the turnover and the number of employees from 2013 until 2021 (Figure 1), a significant increase can be observed:
Figure 1:Years turnover and the number of employees, S.C Paraurlact SRL
Source: Own processing
Observing the number of employees and the turnover starting from 2019, the increase is obvious, a fact that is obviously also due to the graduates of the Technological High School specializing in food product analysis technician, especially since the school unit runs practical training courses within the company, some of the graduates being current and obviously future employees. Analyzing the evolution of the turnover and the number of employees of the company EMMGI PROD SRL, Maxineni observed the following (table2):
Figure 2:Years turnover and the number of employees, EMMGI PROD SRL, Maxineni
Source: Own processing
Observing the number of employees and the turnover, it is obvious that the graduates of the Matei Basarab Technological High School, with the specialization of technician in the leather industry, can have a guaranteed job after completing their studies and obtaining the qualification certificate, especially since the school unit takes place within the company’s practical training courses.
Conclusions
Through the analysis made regarding the turnover, the evolution of the employed staff, of the two companies in the area of Măxineni commune, Brăila county, it is obvious that the educational offer is very well correlated with the labor market demand. This represents a real benefit for the population, for reducing some employer expenses, which can reduce transport expenses, for ensuring better working conditions and satisfactory wages. This fact denotes a constructive institutional but also educational management, with many benefits, with added value that attracts the development of the rural area.
It is obvious that rural areas always have more potential than urban areas. Economic agents from rural areas can motivate schools much more and can have much better, more involved employees, because a smaller collective usually means more involvement, compatibility, sustained effort and obtaining good, very good and often exceptional.
The school and the economic agent are the main actors and their collaboration determines the prevention and elimination of most deficiencies and the coverage of all requests for sustainable development.
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