Search Results

Over the life of the five year 'Pathways to Sustainable Employment' (PASE) project, a range of methodologies are being used to examine the way in which individuals understand and negotiate access to employment, and how employers obtain and manage labour, in an increasingly tight labour market. Objective two of PASE has a demand-side focus concentrating on the strategies and expectations of employers in organising labour supply and this report provides a descriptive analysis of the opinions of 170 employers in five industries (construction, education, hospitality, retail and manufacturing).

Excerpts from publication reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

An opinion survey was conducted on the various aspects of training viz., Management's Attitude, Selection Process, Quality of Training, Impact on Individuals, Impact on Productivity and Post-training Assessment in different categories of banks in Coimbatore. A sample of 154 respondents from 24 banks revealed that by and large the employees of different categories of banks (Nationalized Banks, Corporate Banks, Private Banks and Foreign Banks) appeared to be satisfied with most of the aspects of the training programmes. Nevertheless, the attitudes of the employees towards the various components of training differed based on gender, position, age, educational background and experience.

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

Social capital is often seen as a form of community capacity building. Little is known about how it is used by or impacts on young people. This study reports on a project in which rural young people identified relevant items for a social capital scale, and administered a questionnaire concerning social capital and other social issues. The study revealed that there are important differences in the meaning of social capital among young people.

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

User Choice was introduced in Australia from January 1998 for New Apprenticeships, its aim being 'to increase the responsiveness of the vocational education and training system to the needs of clients through the encouragement of a direct and market relationship between individual providers and clients'. The Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) assisted the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) in coordinating the development of relevant User Choice resourcing arrangements for implementation by mid-2004. This assistance involved the documentation/mapping and analysis of the User Choice resourcing arrangements operating at state and national levels along with relevant industry opinions. This working paper outlines the existing User Choice arrangements operating at state and national level as at 31 March 2004, referring particularly to how priorities are determined. It describes the existing priority determination processes and outcomes, organised by reference to each state and territory, followed by the situation at national level, and by the situation from the perspective of employer and employee organisations.

A complementary paper analysing the User Choice resourcing arrangements in March 2004 is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 82.114. Show less

In this article, we are interested in what kind of opinions people belonging to different generations have on work experience and formal education. Mannheim’s theory on generations is used as a general frame of reference. The questions asked in the article are: is education appreciated more by young people who have been able to participate in it on a large scale, or by older people to whom further education often remained an unfulfilled dream? Do older people put more emphasis on work experience, because on average they have much more work experience than schooling? The starting point of the article is that the changing educational circumstances have arguably shaped the thinking and world view of generations, and their opinions on formal education and work experience. In addition, the value of education as a currency on the labour market has changed continuously.

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

'Adults learning' is published 10 times a year and provides a forum for debate on all issues affecting adult learning in the UK. This issue includes the following articles: 'What I want from the new government' (p. 8-14), in which several leading players in adult learning and some regular contributors to 'Adults learning' outline their ideas about the most important tasks for the ministers in the new UK government; 'In the driver's seat' by Paul Stanistreet (p. 19-21), which reports on a project that is helping members of gypsy and traveller communities to pass their driving theory test and, in the process, to improve their literacy skills; 'A better deal for vocational learners?' by Howard Newby (p. 22), in which the author gives his views on the proposal for further work on developing Lifelong Learning Networks to bring colleges and higher education institutions together to deliver improved progression for vocational students. Show less

The objective of this study is to expose the significant events undergraduate student nurses reflect on during clinical experiences as they learn to become nurses. The findings of this study identify that students' interpretation of, and learning in the clinical context is influenced by an interplay between the patient, registered nurse (RN) and the student's construction of themself as a nurse. Significant to the study and not previously identified is the way students enter the emotive life-world of the patient's experience. The study confirms that the RN makes a considerable difference to the student's experience. Furthermore, students begin to construct a personal identity of becoming a nurse through a process of developing confidence, confirmation of nursing practices and assimilating knowledge. Insights into what influences students learning in the clinical setting, how they interpret events and begin to build a repertoire of reflective exemplars provides clinical staff and educators with valuable information to design meaningful clinical learning experiences that will assist students to become nurses.

Excerpts from published abstract. Show less

The paper reports a small-scale research on the predisposition of adult ESOL [English for speakers of other languages] learners in a further education college to the components of autonomous learning. The research is based on the perception that there is an untested assumption that all students will react positively to the concept of autonomous learning and by implication are positively predisposed to it. Using questionnaire survey administered among 20 selected students and supplementing this with a focus group discussion, the research sought to test this assumption in the context of ESOL students. Towards achieving this, the research sought the reaction of the subjects to various components of autonomous learning. The findings indicate that students in this group are to a large extent negatively predisposed to many of the components of autonomous learning. It concludes with the injunction that teachers should not assume that all students would be positively predisposed towards autonomy because of a number of reasons ranging from the psychological to the historical. It suggests that a lot of work needs to be done in order to bring these students around to accepting the usefulness of autonomous learning.

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

This study was undertaken to address the lack of current information based on direct research with employers on how they want publicly funded training to be improved and whether it represents value for money from their perspective. Although other sources were used, the focus was on surveying the direct views of private and public sector employers and employers' organisations in England. Four themes emerged from the research: (1) employers want a simple way of getting advice on the best skills training for their staff; (2) employers want training that meets their business needs; (3) employers want incentives to train their staff more; and (4) employers want to influence skills training without getting weighed down by bureaucracy. The report is divided into these four themes and details the findings, illustrating them with case study examples. The methodology included a representative telephone survey of 508 private sector employers in England, discussions with relevant people and organisations, visits to seven further education colleges and 25 private and public sector employers, and a literature review. A panel of people with experience in skills development advised on the methodology, commented on the emerging findings and provided advice on the report. The report concludes with recommendations, outlining a course of action that, based on the research, it is expected most employers will support. Show less

This report contains the findings of a research study commissioned by the Guidance Council to inform the future development of information and guidance (IAG) services in the UK. It is a comprehensive follow-up to the first Market & Opinion Research International (MORI) study undertaken in 2000 and its primary aim is to assess how the public's perceptions of IAG provision have changed since the first study. The research consisted of a literature review, a pilot survey and a large-scale face-to-face survey of the general public. The report analyses the relevance and perceived benefits of IAG, and suggests how provisions can be improved to meet the changing needs of adults. The research indicates that users are still generally very satisfied with IAG services currently available. One concern is that, although provision has expanded rapidly over the past four years, use of IAG has fallen slightly over this same period of time. The evidence suggests that the same, or very similar, groups are being excluded, or at risk of being excluded, as reported in the earlier survey. Employers continue to be seen as the most useful source of IAG, although the Internet has increased in importance. Demand for IAG remains tightly connected to demand for new skills, a new job and career progression. Targeted strategies are proposed to promote wider access and take-up of IAG services. The report presents its findings under the following topics: general attitudes towards learning and skills development, and perceptions of IAG services; awareness of different sources of IAG; levels of use of IAG and the nature of IAG interventions, including employer provision; satisfaction with IAG process and outcomes; unmet need for IAG provision; IAG service priorities and gaps in provision; image of IAG services; scope for expansion of services; and public willingness to pay for IAG. Show less