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This book, based on a social survey of secondary education in Australia, provides information on students' achievements in relation to their attitudes and values, their perspectives on issues ranging from jobs to discrimination, and their destinations in relation to their backgrounds. It is presented in five main parts: the first part, 'The machine of the curriculum', describes the hierarchical nature of the curriculum, likening it to an economic system which produces outcomes in the form of access to jobs, careers and further education; the second part, 'Historical progress', analyses the growth in social access to mathematics and sciences, and the mixed pattern in humanities and social sciences; part three, 'Hierarchical curriculum, stratified school system', looks at the reasons why social inequalities still exist in the curriculum; part four, 'The results of school' looks at the destinations of young people after schooling; and the final part, 'Lines of reform', examines how schools can be made more effective in terms of equity and quality. The chapters are: Economy and school; The hierarchy of the curriculum in historical perspective; Creating a working-class space in the curriculum, 1985-1998; Social progress in access to mathematics; Social progress in access to the sciences; Progress or regression in the social sciences and humanities; What makes the hard options hard, and for whom?; Selective schooling and the curriculum; Early leaving; Finishing school and getting a job; Going on to further study; School effectiveness and structural inequality; Vocational education and training in schools; From mass to democratic secondary education. Show less

This study was commissioned by the Victorian Qualifications Authority (VQA) to investigate the qualification and employment pathways of current and former Koorie students in the Victorian vocational education and training (VET) system. The research sought to understand the factors that facilitate or impede personal and vocational development and to identify strategies to promote the achievement of positive educational and employment outcomes. The findings are presented within the context of three major transitions for Koorie people that the VET system supports: re-engagement in education and training for those Koorie people who do not complete secondary education; accessing mainstream TAFE; and accessing employment. The main finding was that 'individual pathways are complex, non-linear and diverse'. TAFE institutes are required to cater for a broad range of needs. The findings of the study have many implications for the design and delivery of VET programs to Koorie people. The report makes a number of recommendations, some of which extend beyond the role and functions of the VQA. The authors suggest that these are referred to the appropriate bodies for further attention. The chapters are: Background and methodology; Qualifications and employment pathways; Re-engaging with education and training; Accessing mainstream TAFE; Accessing employment; Conclusions and implications. Show less

This document provides a review of the literature on the reasons for non-completion, and strategies designed to reduce non-completion, in vocational education and training (VET) and higher education (HE) in Australia. The focus in HE was limited to undergraduate courses. The review aimed to provide a comprehensive account of the Australian experience with supporting data from the United States of America and the United Kingdom. It also investigated the adequacy of current data sources and areas in need of further research. The document includes an executive summary and chapters covering the problems of definition, the adequacy of current data sources, an overview of sources and themes in the literature, studies of reasons for non-completion, reports on strategies for reducing non-completion, and conclusions. An appendix contains notes on patterns of group performance and an extensive bibliography is included. Show less

This study was undertaken to determine the value to students of vocational education and training (VET) in schools programs in New South Wales [NSW], given that the number of students undertaking VET subjects as part of their Higher School Certificate (HSC) has increased dramatically in recent years. In 2005, 52,484 NSW students in Years 11 and 12 enrolled in one or more HSC VET subjects, representing over 34 per cent of the total number of students. Of these, more than 38,000 students were from government schools, which means that slightly more than four in every ten senior government school students enrolled in at least one HSC VET subject in 2005.

The study seeks to add to [the] understanding of how NSW VET in schools programs have benefited students over the longer term by tracking their pathways over the two years following completion of their HSC. It does so by means of a re-contact of VET and non-VET HSC completers from the 2005 HSC cohort, who were first surveyed in 2006 and then re-contacted in October/November 2007. This study provides detailed destinations data of the 2005 HSC cohort (comprising labour market outcomes and study destinations), which allows for an analysis of the pathways taken by VET and non-VET graduates to education, training and work, two years after completing school. It also provides information on school completers' views of their HSC program, and their experience of work placement programs, with a particular focus on the views of VET in schools graduates.

Excerpts from publication. Show less

The On Track project, the research project on which this report is based, is an attempt to provide alternative measures of the success of schools in securing positive outcomes for their students. Schools and system authorities require a more detailed picture of retention and transition, which is important not only for the global management of the large and complex system of post-compulsory education and training in Victoria, but for achieving effective outcomes for individuals. The project seeks to provide a measure or profile of post-school transition which takes into account the range of academic and vocational pathways available and thereby provide a balanced and accurate view of outcomes for students in a range of settings. To achieve this, school leavers who exited Victorian schools from Years 10, 11 and 12 in 2002 were surveyed by telephone in March-April 2003. Data collected were subsequently analysed by the research team in the Centre for Postcompulsory Education and Lifelong Learning at the University of Melbourne. The project found that it is important that the survey itself become an ongoing aspect of the policy process, in order to compare destinations from year to year, measure progress towards the achievement of educational targets and continue to provide schools with relevant and recent data on the postschooling destinations of their students. Stakeholders have made clear during the process of reporting findings that a longitudinal perspective is needed in order to put the findings reported in this survey into perspective.

The report 'The destinations of school leavers in Victoria: on track 2004' is indexed at TD/TNC 84.166. Show less

This report documents the results of the statewide survey of the destinations of students who completed Year 12 in Government and non-Government schools across Queensland in 2004. The survey results show the initial study and work destinations of young people after completing school. The survey was conducted in order to assist: parents and the wider public to know the achievements of students and to appreciate the range of options available to students; schools to review and plan their services for students, especially in the senior years of schooling; school systems to review their education policies as they affect the transition from school to further study and employment; and training bodies, universities, business and industry, local government and regional planners to plan their services. The pathways of Year 12 students have been categorised into 10 main destinations, in which those who were both studying and working are counted as studying. Key findings are that: more than 90 per cent of Year 12 completers were studying or in paid employment; about two-thirds (67.5 per cent) continued in some recognised form of education and training in the year after they left school; almost as many were studying vocational education and training (VET) as university degrees (30.8 per cent and 36.6 per cent respectively); the majority of campus-based VET students were studying at Certificate IV level or higher (8.7 per cent); almost one in six (16.0 per cent) were undertaking employment-based training, either as an apprentice (9.1 per cent) or trainee (6.9 per cent); and one in three (32.4 per cent) did not enter post-school education or training, and were either employed (25.9 per cent), looking for work (4.6 per cent) or neither working, seeking work or studying (2.0 per cent). Show less

The re-shaping of the Australian senior secondary landscape in recent years and the emergence of a new space for vocational knowledge within Australian senior secondary certificates of education have been underpinned by a national focus on raising retention rates and achieving Year 12 or equivalent attainment rates in the context of a diversifying senior secondary cohort, and on delivering effective training to meet the skills needs of the growing economy. Absent from this policy agenda is a focus on the efficacy of the expanding vocational education and training (VET) in Schools. At the core of this discussion are the impacts of ongoing tensions between the instrumentalist labour market role of VET in Schools programs and the expectation that an equitable senior secondary landscape should respond to the education and training needs of all students. Despite rapid growth, low achievers and socioeconomically disadvantaged learners remain the dominant participants in VET in Schools programs, and pathways for these students into post-school education and training or full-time employment remain weak. This paper draws on the views of students, teachers, and policy-makers to examine the ways in which vocational programs are delivered within the different curricular contexts of VET in Schools across Australian senior secondary education systems.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

This study is based on a three-year longitudinal survey of young people undertaken between 2000-2002. It investigates young people’s participation in vocational education and training (VET) and the benefits they derive from it, focusing on post-school VET. The authors conclude that while the role of VET grows in importance, it is confronted with many challenges. The VET sector does not reach all whom it might help. Of those who do enter VET, many are low achievers or discouraged learners, and perceptions of TAFE as a sector influence the extent to which school completers undertake VET and lead to skewed intake patterns in both social and ability terms. The chapters are: Introduction: an overview; Young people’s participation in VET: a social analysis; From school to post-school VET; Employment outcomes of VET; From VET to further education; Conclusion. Show less

A variety of data sources exists for monitoring student progress through the post-compulsory years and into tertiary education, non-college vocational training, and the labour market and for evaluating the effectiveness of institutional arrangements. This report describes: systems in place for reporting on student pathways; pathways' monitoring and expenditure effectiveness; accessibility and comparability of state education data; adequacy of existing data for monitoring student progress and for evaluating institutional arrangements; and alternative models. In regard to the latter, this study identified two main criteria for improving the quality of data available for policy development. They are that: (1) data must be generated and must be accessible at the geographical level at which administrative authority is exercised; and (2) data must be collected at the student group level, i.e. by socio-economic status, ethnicity, gender, Aboriginality, locality, in order to target policies more effectively and to monitor their impact. It is essential that qualitative data on 'the student perspective' be gathered, along with curriculum and assessment data. Show less

This report documents the results of the statewide survey of the destinations of students who completed Year 12 in government and non-government schools across Queensland in 2005. The survey results show the initial study and work destinations of young people after completing school. The survey was conducted in order to assist: parents and the wider public to know the achievements of students and to appreciate the range of options available to students; schools to review and plan their services for students, especially in the senior years of schooling; school systems to review their education policies as they affect the transition from school to further study and employment; and training bodies, universities, business and industry, local government and regional planners to plan their services. The pathways of Year 12 completers were categorised into 10 main destinations and respondents who were both studying and working were reported as studying for their main destination. Key findings are that: more than 90 per cent of Year 12 completers were studying or in paid employment; about two-thirds (65.3 per cent) continued in some recognised form of education and training in the year after they left school; nearly four in 10 were undertaking a university degree (36.7 per cent); approximately three in 10 (28.6 per cent) were studying vocational education and training (VET); more than half of the campus-based VET students were studying at Certificate IV level or higher (7.1 per cent); over one in seven (15.1 per cent) were undertaking employment-based training, either as an apprentice (9.0 per cent) or trainee (6.1 per cent); and one in three (34.7 per cent) did not enter post-school education or training and were either employed (27.3 per cent), looking for work (5.7 per cent) or neither working, seeking work or studying (1.7 per cent). Show less