Have school vocational education and training programs been successful?

The issue addressed in the research study reported here is whether school vocational education and training (VET) programs have been successful. The study focused on two aspects: Year 12 retention (and its vocational equivalent) and post-school pathways. The data set for the analysis is young people who were in Year 9 in 1998, surveyed for the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY). These data are ideal for this purpose because of their richness in capturing demographic, attitudinal and student outcomes information. The analysis is extended by linking these data with unpublished...  [+] Show more

The issue addressed in the research study reported here is whether school vocational education and training (VET) programs have been successful. The study focused on two aspects: Year 12 retention (and its vocational equivalent) and post-school pathways. The data set for the analysis is young people who were in Year 9 in 1998, surveyed for the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY). These data are ideal for this purpose because of their richness in capturing demographic, attitudinal and student outcomes information. The analysis is extended by linking these data with unpublished NCVER National VET Provider Collection data (2000-2003), enabling a more thorough examination of school and post-school VET activity and offering a comparison between VET in Schools courses and VET courses undertaken post-school. This report first provides some context and looks at the characteristics of those students most likely to participate in school VET programs in Year 11. It then looks at the impact of VET on student retention to Year 12 (or its vocational equivalent). The next section examines whether participation in school VET programs plays a role in successful post-school outcomes, defined as engagement with learning or employment one year out from Year 12, or within the same time frame for those who leave school before Year 12. Then there is an assessment of whether school VET programs establish post-school VET pathways, in particular, whether there is a relationship between the VET courses studied at school and those studied subsequently. Outcomes were looked at in terms of retention to Year 12 and post-school engagement with learning and employment. It was found that VET at school is undoubtedly a clear pathway for some students. In particular, a reasonable number of boys continue in the same field with their post-school vocational studies. However, the fields of education offered at school do not line up particularly well with those offered outside school that are more likely to reflect labour market demands, and girls tend to shy away from the VET subjects they studied at school. In comparing VET offerings inside and outside school, one note of discord is that the school VET subjects are at a lower level, even for the same age groups.