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The authors examine factors that influence young people’s plans to complete Year 12, their aspirations to commence university study in the first year after leaving school and their expected occupation at age 30. They also examine the extent to which the occupational aspirations of teenagers align with their actual job outcomes a decade later. The findings in this report demonstrate just how important parents and peers are in relation to young people’s aspirations. The findings also indicate that the aspirations of 15-year-olds are somewhat unrealistic. By age 25 years, which is the age until which data are available for analysis, a significant portion of young people fall short of what they set out to achieve occupationally. However, this does not mean that they cannot achieve their desired occupations at a later stage in life.

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The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which vocational education and training (VET) is providing individuals with a second chance in education. 'Second chance VET' refers to opportunities in education taken by individuals who have not followed the conventional academic pathway of school completion followed by post-school study. Two groups are looked at. The first group consists of young early school leavers aged up to and including 24 years who have not completed a non-school qualification. The second group consists of adults aged 25 years and over who have not completed a non-school qualification. The paper examines three research questions: (1) How important is second-chance education within the VET sector?; (2) What proportion of the relevant population avails themselves of the opportunity?; (3) What are the outcomes of those who do undertake second-chance education? The study found that: the percentage of VET students who can be characterised as second chance is very substantial (41% of publicly funded VET students in 2004); females access second-chance VET at higher rates than males; second-chance students enrolled in VET are less likely to undertake higher-level qualifications (certificate IV and higher) compared with other students enrolled in VET; and the percentage of the second-chance population actually completing an award is low, in particular for the completion of VET qualifications at certificate III or higher. Show less

Improved educational outcomes are seen as a key lever for addressing the disadvantage faced by Indigenous Australians. Poor educational outcomes have been observed at all levels of education, from early childhood through to tertiary education. While the increase in school retention rates of Indigenous Australians in recent years is encouraging the more critical issues are whether there have been improvements in educational performance at earlier years for Indigenous students and the extent to which educational performance at say, Year 10, is flowing through to education outcomes such as Year 12 completion.

The data used in this project come from the Longitudinal Survey of Australian Youth (LSAY), including both the 2006 and 2009 student cohorts. The first wave of each LSAY is the [Programme for International Student Assessment] PISA survey. One of the advantages of PISA scores is that they allow overtime direct comparisons and between-cohort comparisons. The subsequent waves of LSAY allow [the authors] to follow the students throughout their compulsory education and beyond. The latest wave of LSAY was released in 2013 for the 2012 wave of both cohorts. The 2009 cohort has (mostly) left school in the last LSAY observation window. This makes it the first year when a full comparison between the 2006 and 2009 cohorts can happen. The data allow [the authors] to conduct a full set of comparisons between Indigenous students and non-Indigenous students in the two cohorts up to their choice of tertiary education.

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In this interview, Steve Davis talks with co-author Tom Karmel about this report which uses data from the 2006 cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) to investigate how schools influence tertiary entrance rank and university enrolment over and above young people's individual background characteristics. A point of discussion was the authors' finding that schools do matter and although young people's individual characteristics are the main contributors to university entrance, the school characteristics are responsible for almost 20 per cent of the variation in tertiary entrance rankings.

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Purpose - The aim of this paper is to compare the performance of area-based vs individual-level measures of socioeconomic status (SES). Design/methodology/approach - Using data from the longitudinal surveys of Australian youth (LSAY), a multidimensional measure of individual SES is created. This individual measure is used to benchmark the relative usefulness of socio-economic indexes for areas (SEIFA), a geographic set of measures often used in Australia to assess the SES of individuals. Both measures are compared in terms of classification bias. The effects of using the different SES measures on participation in post-compulsory education are examined. Findings - SEIFA measures perform satisfactorily with regard to the aggregate measurement of SES. However, they perform poorly when their use is aimed at channelling resources toward disadvantaged individuals. It is at the individual level that the analysis reveals the shortcomings of area-based SES measures. Research limitations/implications - While region based measures are relatively easy to collect and utilise, we suggest that they hide significant SES heterogeneity within regional districts. Hence, the misclassification resulting from the use of regional measures to direct support for low SES groups creates a risk for resource misallocations. Originality/value - The finding that region-based measures are subject to significant misclassification has important research and policy implications. Given the increasing availability of individual-level administrative data, the paper suggests that such data be used as a substitute for geographic SES measures in categorising the SES of individuals.

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In this paper the authors explore the relationship between social capital at age 15 and participation in education and training at age 17. Using data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2003 cohort, the analysis shows that social capital does play an important role in influencing educational participation. For both males and females, participation in school-based activities is found to have the greatest influence on participation in education and training, followed by the strength of the relationship students have with their teachers. Of particular interest, the authors find that social capital influences educational participation over and above the effects of background characteristics such as parental education and occupation, geographic location, cultural background and academic achievement.

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Thirteen opinion pieces were released in 2010: (1) 'Lifting the lid on the issues confronting TAFE providers and their workforce' by Hugh Guthrie (released 22 April); (2) 'ACE: re-engaging young learners for success' by Alison Anlezark (released 23 April); (3) 'Traversing the education sectors and the Australian Qualifications Framework' by Ron Mazzachi and Ashlea Bartram (released 11 May); (4) 'Have green skills become browned off?' by Tom Karmel (released 24 May); (5) 'Credentialing everyone: is it realistic or necessary?' by Michelle Circelli (released 21 June); (6) 'Staying on course: making learning relevant' by Ashlea Bartram (released 16 July); (7) 'Would you like to dance? creating partnerships in adult literacy' by Bridget Wibrow (released 16 July); (8) 'The impact of VET in schools on young people's intentions and achievements' by Nhi Nguyen (released 1 September); (9) 'What's in a completion rate?' by David Roberts (released 6 September); (10) 'The future of VET: a medley of views' by Peter Shergold (released 24 September); (11) 'Is higher education vocational?' by Tom Karmel (released 30 September); (12) 'Contemplating the future of VET' by Karen Webber (released 14 October); (13) 'Diversity and excellence: prompts from the history of the tertiary education sector' by Francesca Beddie (released 18 October). Show less

This proposal is to develop a [vocational education and training] VET qualification, the Diploma of Professional Studies, that utilises existing training packages and also incorporates literacy, numeracy and digital competence skills. It is proposed that a stipend set at the Youth Allowance rate be incorporated. The qualification would be delivered only on a full-time basis, thus providing a substantive alternative to an apprenticeship or university degree (and resulting in high completion rates). The qualification would take two years (three years for nursing). The stipend would be available to all full-time students undertaking a VET diploma, including the proposed professional diploma in government identified high priority areas. It would be available to students who are not in receipt of other Commonwealth/state government allowances. The key target group is 18 to 22 year-olds who are not going to university. These students may have been disadvantaged because of the disruption to their education caused by the [Coronavirus Disease 2019] pandemic. They are a high risk group who could fall into unemployment.

The proposed diploma enables a student to exit at different stages. Each exit point enables students to leave with a qualification in a high demand employment area. A course outline in education and early childhood development is provided as an example. A student who completes a professional diploma would have the necessary underpinning skills and knowledge to proceed with credit into an applied higher education degree and/or employment. A critical component of the diploma is assessable work integrated learning (WIL). External assessment, particularly for literacy and numeracy skills to level 3 are part of the structure of the qualification. The proposal relies on state and Federal government co-operation. Implementation issues are discussed.

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Vocational education and training (VET) is very important for young people in South Australia. This paper seeks to establish how important. The paper focuses on two broad groups: (1) those who complete 12 years of schooling and then continue their education in VET; and (2) those who choose an alternative pathway and leave school before year 12 but continue their education in VET. As well as describing the VET activities of these students, the year 12 retention rate education indicator is scrutinised. This indicator has been commonly used to measure the success of a school system in providing young people with a sound educational foundation. Apart from the statistical issues surrounding this measure, it fails to recognise that VET provides an alternative pathway. It is not argued that mere attendance at VET provides an equivalent education to the completion of year 12, however it is argued that completion of a certificate III or better is certainly equivalent to completing year 12. If the number of a cohort that leaves school and subsequently studies for such a qualification could be added to the year 12 retention it would provide an arguably better based indicator of educational achievement. The proportion completing a certificate III or higher qualification, having not completed year 12 is estimated. A further dimension explored is the importance of VET for young people across regions. Considerable comment has been made about poor educational outcomes in some regions of South Australia and it is hoped that the data presented here will assist in an understanding of the issue. The paper is presented in three sections. First, young people in VET are described: what they are doing, what their educational backgrounds are and what they achieve after leaving VET. The second section focuses on indicators, particularly a proposed 'equivalent' year 12 retention rate. Finally, the regional dimension is considered. It should be noted that the analysis only takes account of those students enrolled in the publicly funded sector. Students who pay fees at private providers are not included in the data. Show less

Ten opinion pieces were released in 2009: (1) 'Adult Literacy Research Project: what we have learnt' by Michelle Circelli (released 1 March); (2) 'Work-life, low pay and vocational education and training' by Barbara Pocock (released 16 March); (3) 'Welfare to work, does VET make a difference?' by Tom Karmel (released 24 April); (4) 'Implications of the economic downturn for vocational education and training' by Tom Karmel (released 25 May); (5) 'Keeping informal learning informal' by Sian Halliday Wynes (released 1 July); (6) 'Rejuvenating the art of teaching and learning' by Francesca Beddie (released 17 July); (7) 'Putting the V-E-T in R and D' by Francesca Beddie (released 27 July); (8) 'Teaching TAFE teachers: is a certificate IV up to the challenge?' by Tom Karmel (released 9 October); (9) 'Is vocational education and training keeping up with the Joneses?' by Tom Karmel (released 10 November); (10) 'Young people: finding their way in a new era: summary of key findings of the policy forum' by Tom Karmel (released 25 November). Show less