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Skilled migration is one of the policy levers available to governments to address workforce shortages in the economy. This issue of Focus on explores how skilled migration is utilised by governments globally to address skill and labour shortages; how effective policies and procedures that recognise and validate qualifications and credentials gained overseas can facilitate the integration of skilled migrants and refugees in destination labour markets; and the impact the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has had on skilled migration around the world.

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The Australian government recognises that a strong Australian Apprenticeship system is essential to sustain a strong economy. Accordingly, an Expert Panel was appointed to provide recommendations to the government on possible ways to reform the system to ensure that it can meet Australia’s skills needs into the 21st century. The panel examined apprenticeship training arrangements, including current incentives, and suggested principles and evidence to improve outcomes for both apprentices and industry. The work of the panel was underpinned by a study on related economic costs and benefits, including research undertaken by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). This is one of four reports prepared by NCVER as part of this study. This report focuses on apprenticeships and traineeships from a whole-of-system perspective. It is intended to situate the system within the overall skilling of the Australian workforce and in an international context. The report also looks at the efficiency of the apprenticeship system in terms of the relationship between inputs and outputs. The report is structured around three papers. The first focuses on occupational training and the role that apprenticeships and traineeships play in that, the second provides a comparison of apprenticeship systems in a selection of other countries, and the final paper takes up the efficiency angle. Show less

Australia's technology sector is expected to face a critical digital skills shortage. Currently employing 861,000 Australians, 286,000 more technology workers will be needed by 2025. The Digital Skills Organisation (DSO) has been undertaking work to define the optimal mix of digital career pathways as an initial step in describing and 'codifying' the digital skills sector in Australia. The clear definition of pathways enables national skills priorities to be identified and recognised and for specific pathway actions to be developed and progressed. DSO commissioned the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) to explore current pathways in Australia and internationally into digital jobs.

The current report has examined digital pathways identified from overseas to assess their currency and relevance to the Australian environment with a view to developing a pathways model suitable for Australia. The focus has been on pathways into 'specialist' roles in the digital sector. For this report, six international pathways models were examined. An analysis of these models or frameworks shows that there are several commonalities and differences among the pathways. The analysis of digital skills initiatives occurring across Australia found limited integration of activities or an overarching skills framework in Australia. The initiatives seem to be largely developed independently across the various governments in Australia. The report suggests features that need to be considered in a digital skills pathways model for Australia. It is noted that key priorities in forging pathways for technology careers include developing the skill sets that will sit below each of the broad skill domains, with a focus on areas of immediate skills need, most notably in Cybersecurity, Data Analytics, software development, Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning and Cloud Pathways.

Given the context of what was found in the review of international frameworks and models, and the overview of government initiatives in Australia, the DSO is developing and trialling a world-first Pathways Model. Rather than focussing on specific occupations, the proposed model has four components - purpose, pathways, proficiency and performance - that can be used to define virtually all technology careers. This will provide a signposted journey that leads an individual or organisation to understand the skills needed for careers. Each pathway will be shaped by industry demand and described in a unifying language and taxonomy recognised by all, to help align employers, learners and training providers. The DSO is consulting with industry, the training sector and other key stakeholders on the proposed Pathways Model to test and confirm the critical building blocks needed to move forward.

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The 27th National Vocational Education and Training Research Conference 'No Frills' was co-hosted by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) and New Zealand partners, the Industry Training Federation and Ako Aotearoa on 15-17 August 2018. 'No Frills' is a well-known annual national conference where researchers and practitioners in the vocational education and training (VET) sector come together to present, discuss and share information about key issues confronting the sector. By partnering with New Zealand, this year's conference provided an excellent opportunity to highlight international evidence for benchmarking policy best practice. The conference also provided valuable professional development opportunities to enhance research capacity and capability in the VET sector by incorporating activities on data and research analytics, and research practice. The 2018 conference program focused on Skills for a global future: working and learning together.

Edited abstract from publisher's website.

The available keynote presentation is: Creativity in VET / Lene Tanggaard, Aalborg University, Denmark.

The available Ministerial address is by the Hon Karen Andrews, Assistant Minister for Vocational Education and Skills.

The available poster presentations are: A novel model to overcome technical report writing difficulties for first year engineering students / Md Aftabuzzaman, Melbourne Polytechnic; STEM in the workplace: industry perspectives / Jennifer Earle, University of Tasmania; Australian multi-industry pilot programs - to support better apprenticeship completion rates and employer engagement / Gary Workman, Apprenticeship Employment Network.

The available presentations are: Research informing policy and practice in foundation level workplace training programmes / Anne Alkema, Industry Training Federation; Graduate profile outcomes Levels 1-6 / Helen Anderson, New Zealand School of Tourism; e-Assessments for learning: supporting learning as becoming / Selena Chan, Ara Institute of Canterbury; Towards a high-quality training and adult education in Singapore: preliminary findings on adult educators / Zan Chen, Institute for Adult Learning, Singapore; From school to VET: how do students transition and how can we help them? / Michelle Circelli, NCVER; Pedagogically framing VET online / Deniese Cox, Griffith University; Augmented reality training for welding / Geoff Crittenden, Weld Australia; Professionalising our practice / Karen Dymke, Thoughtfulworks; Literacy, social skills and the fourth industrial revolution / Lesley Farrell, University of Melbourne; Measuring 'soft skills' in young Australians / Cameron Forrest, NCVER; The aspirations for vocational education and training of students in regional and remote locations / Leanne Fray, University of Newcastle; Delivering a diploma of community services (alcohol and other drugs and mental health) in the remote town of Katherine (NT): a case study / Xenia Girdler, Global Reconciliation; Factors affecting modern apprenticeship completion in Scotland / Malcolm Greig, Skills Development Scotland; Australian VET policy: processes, stakeholders and issues / Hugh Guthrie, Centre for Vocational and Educational Policy, MGSE, University of Melbourne [the full paper is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 133.215]; Development of a contemporary model of personal vocational practice: its potential for students in vocational education and training / James Harrison, Otago Polytechnic; Skills for women tradies in regional Australia: a global future! / Stacey Jenkins, Charles Sturt University; Is vocational training failing to prepare fitness students for employment and future study? / Daniel Jolley, Curtin University;

Integration of life skills in government run TVET system (case from Kenya) / Ndungu Kahihu, CAP Youth Empowerment Institute [the full report is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 133.684]; I am capable: learner capability secondary tertiary context / Andy Kilsby, Otago Polytechnic; Factors influencing teachers' international enactment of Australian VET curricula / Louise King, Charles Darwin University; Demand for vocational skills: insights from internet job vacancies / Patrick Korbel, NCVER; Competing priorities in vocational education: teachers adapting to reforms / Patrick Locke, University of Sydney; 21st century skills for work and life and a move to the greening of economies for sustainable development / Rupert Maclean and John Fien; Show me the money! VET funding in the past and into the future / Kelly Marshall, NCVER; Unpacking VET completion: how do we arrive at VET completion rates, with a special focus on what is driving the likelihood of VET completion / Brad McDonald and Adrian Ong, NCVER; Video assessment of undergraduate midwifery students' practice skill / Carolyn McIntosh, Otago Polytechnic; Making a job versus getting a job, the future of work has changed! / Don McLaren, Telford Agricultural Institute; Working around the words: tutor strategies and the tutor voice / Emma McLaughlin, Wellington Institute of Technology; Right skills. Right time? The $4 billion annual cost of over-qualification affecting one in four Australian workers / Silvia Munoz, SkillsIQ; Australian VET courses for international students / Steve Nerlich, Australian Government Department of Education and Training; The role of VET in shaping the aspirations of Indigenous secondary school students / Sally Patfield, University of Newcastle; Developing tomorrow's skills and building community: innovations from Australia's adult and community education providers / Don Perlgut, Community Colleges Australia; The student as researcher / Henry Pook, Holmesglen; Harnessing existing skills and experience of recently arrived migrants and refugees: implementation and assessment of a novel student support program which informs on study and work pathways / Craig Poole and Christine Jolly, TAFE Queensland;

Youth Guarantee pathways and profiles: the role of foundation-level VET in preparing young people for employment / Adelaide Reid, Community Colleges New Zealand; International VET students 2017: demystifying the international VET training market / Marc Ruediger, NCVER; How do Australian youth find careers information? / Peta Skujins, Apprenticeship and Traineeship Information Service; Jobs Queensland / Caroline Smith, Jobs Queensland; Enterprise registered training organisations: training and learning practices / Erica Smith, Federation University Australia; The new work order / Alex Snow, The Foundation for Young Australians; Women in trades: how women have succeeded in trades where they are traditionally under-represented / Kylie Taffard, BCITO Lead Organisation in Women in Trades Research Consortia; The buried N in LLN: the challenge of numeracy and maths, crucial foundation skills for a global future / Dave Tout, Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER); Analytics and insight: developing a tool to support building and construction apprentices' completion / Karen Vaughan, NZ Council for Educational Research; Work, innovation and learning in SMEs / Silin Yang, Institute for Adult Learning, Singapore; Slicing VET data differently: tropical seasonality and evidence-based policy / Don Zoellner, Charles Darwin University.

The available workshops are: Research and statistics at NCVER: the who, what and how / Genevieve Knight and Michelle Circelli, NCVER; and VOCEDplus: telling the VET story / Radhika Naidu, NCVER; The importance of VET practitioner research capabilities and networks - pros and cons in contemporary times / Linda Simon and Melinda Waters, Australian Vocational Education and Training Research Association (AVETRA).

The 'No Frills 2018' discussion paper 'Skills for a global future' is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 131.19. Show less

This guide provides access to over 300 Australian and international English language information resources related to research in the field of vocational education and training. The portal was decommissioned in September 2012.

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This year's conference theme was 'Skilling Australia's current and future workforce'.

The available keynote presentations are: Jobs and Skills Australia and the VET sector / Peter Dawkins; The changing world of work: what's the role of VET? / Danielle Wood.

The available presentations are: Structuring lessons to engage learners in different modalities of teaching and learning / Md Aftabuzzaman and Fiona Wahr; TED and TEL at TAFE SA / Marina Borrello; Wellbeing, diversity and decent work: skilling young people in traineeships for Australia's construction industry / Seth Brown; He Hunga Hanga Matou: building people through work-based learning / Greg Durkin; School career development practitioners and the future of VET STEM careers / Melanie Evangelista; Treading water?: effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on youth transitions / Cameron Forrest; So many frameworks, so little time: a cross-sector approach to understanding and addressing digital literacy, skills and capability in the Australian context / Anitza Geneve; VET delivery in regional, rural and remote Australia: barriers and enablers / Tabatha Griffin and Upekha Andrahannadi; Respect and equality: working with TAFE to prevent violence against women / Sehar Gupta; Queensland Workforce Strategy 2022-2032: a holistic approach to strengthening Queensland's current and future workforce / Brett Hall; Longitudinal analysis of student training activity in VET / Michelle Hall and Melinda Lees; Chatting with the future: are you current in 'AI machine learning in vocational education'? / Olivija Komadina and Bruna Sefrin; Best practice blended learning for disadvantaged VET learners / Melanie Kyle; Skilling for the green transition: reframing the role of Australia's VET system for climate and environmental action / David Longley; Womin Djeka: welcome to putting the spotlight on educational and industry currency to support and deliver future skill needs / Julia Makin; Supporting students with disability in VET / Darlene McLennan and Gabrielle O'Brien; Planning for the future sustainability of the health workforce through VET education to employment pathways / Vicky Meyer and Toni Kely-Brown; Future skills: advancing understanding of skill needs in the Victorian economy / Hiba Molaeb and Simon Parker; International VET students: the COVID-19 recovery / Steve Nerlich; How can we build a workforce of teacher-qualified VET practitioners for Australian secondary schools? / Karen O'Reilly-Briggs; Deadly health training / Janine Oldfield; Social and emotional learning for VET (in the Australian context) / Joe Pagnoccolo; Accelerating veteran pathways with VET / Julie Pisano, Eric Parnis, Garry Hargreaves and Michael Bassham; The 'modernisation' of construction: the future of work and training in the 'digital age' / Henry Pook; Contextualisation of VET to pathway disadvantaged groups to employment: the Tamaiti Whangai model in action / Hinemoa Priest and Susan Luke; Harnessing symbiotic relationships between the adult learner, the LMS, and the VET practitioner / Sarah Sabell; Attracting young women to trades apprenticeships in construction / Christina Scott-Young, Jessica Borg and Naomi Borg; Training of VET teachers and trainers: an absence of governance? / Erica Smith; Partnering with industry to skill the agricultural workforce of the future / Michelle Smith; Why don't young people want to pursue careers in retail and hospitality? / Darryn Snell, Richard Robinson and Erica Smith; Constructing women: investigating the influences on career development educators when advising young women on construction trades / Kylie Taffard; Where's the front door?: an investigation into workforce entry points within the construction and infrastructure sector / Kylie Taffard and Nina Herriman; Client diversity and educational practitioner pedagogical choices / Rachel-Leigh Taylor; The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on VET / Daniella Trimboli and Melinda Lees; TAFE NSW Industry Innovation: cultivating effective skilling eco-systems in healthcare and manufacturing industries / Nerida Volker, Alison McDonald and Peter Schreiner; Measuring the benefits of foundation skills training in adult community education: evidence, gaps, challenges / Anne Walstab and Esther Doecke; Beyond the standard: motivators of high performing RTOs / Joanne Waugh.

The available pre-recorded video presentation is: Forging dynamic capabilities of training providers for the development of a resilient workforce / Zan Chen.

The available workshop presentations are: VOCEDplus: same great content, great new look / Tracy Gamlin; Maximising value from NCVER's VET data / Nicole O'Malley and Martin Smolka; Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth: data user workshop / Ronnie Semo. Show less

Innovation, from high profile scientific discoveries to lower profile changes in processes or practices, is crucial to Australia’s economic development. However, its impact on the wider community is usually relatively small. Promotion of innovation across all sectors is required to produce the biggest changes. This report focuses on the roles of the vocational education and training (VET) sectors of Finland and Singapore - countries with strong track records in innovation. It argues that a whole-of-government approach supporting a national innovation system could benefit Australia. Further, the national VET sector is ideally placed to have a more direct role in the promotion and diffusion of smaller scale innovations provided incentives in the form of specific funding are put in place. This activity could also enhance the sector’s links with business, particularly small to medium sized enterprises and those in regional areas. The contents are: Key messages; Executive summary; Innovation: Australia’s comparative performance; Innovation and vocational education and training: key findings from country case studies; Implications for vocational education and training in Australia; Appendix 1: Finland: new linkages between vocational education and training and a national innovation system; Appendix 2: Singapore: the high skills path to a knowledge economy; Appendix 3: List of interviewees on Australia’s national innovation system and the implications for vocational education and training. Show less

The 21st No Frills Conference had more than 70 presenters participating within six breakout sessions over two days and eight pre-conference workshops. The program featured eminent international and national speakers and presentations that covered a broad range of research pertinent to the tertiary education sector. This is the guide to all the sessions and other events forming this year’s conference.

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