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This eight page booklet offers a brief summary of the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) research report ‘Qualitative impact of training packages on vocational education and training clients’ (indexed at TD/ANTA 82.163). Show less

This chapter discusses the changing and emerging characteristics of work, work practice and work requirements, and their consequences for vocational education. Changing patterns in work and working life are proposed as comprising: (1) the kind of work available; (ii) how individuals participate in work; (iii) what constitutes competence within that work; and (iv) those participating in work. The consequences for vocational education are systemic in terms of the kinds of occupations that need to be developed, variations in and complexity of work requirements, shifts in employer/employee relations, and the demographic shifts in those who will need to be supported by vocational education. The chapter examines these patterns of change to work and working life, and discusses policy and curriculum practice associated with each. Overall, it argues that the changes to work make it more demanding, and the frequency of change in work and how work is carried out demands careful, comprehensive and targeted preparation and on-going development. Moreover, with broader participation in the work force and longer working lives, the arrangement for this preparation and on-going development will need to be targeted, differentiated and sustained.

Published introduction.

The book from which this chapter is taken is indexed at TD/TNC 100.51. Individual chapters are indexed from TD/TNC 100.52 to TD/TNC 100.244. Show less

A complex set of relational factors shape adult students' transition to higher education. Through accounts provided by adult vocational education students, a set of related interdependencies between what the university and other forms of support (e.g. family, friends) afforded these students and their agency, capacities and engagement were identified as shaping their transition to higher education. Bases for these students' engagement in their studies were found in their intentions and previous experiences that together shaped how they construed what is afforded by the university and other sources of support. Consequently, beyond what universities provide to support these transitions, considerations for promoting successful student transition into higher education necessarily require accounting for students' experiences, access to different kinds of support outside the university and their previous experiences. Therefore, rather than proposing general prescriptions about what universities need to do to promote successful transitions, [these] complex factors likely [play] out in quite person-particular ways. All of this reinforces the view that successful transitions to higher education are quite individual processes, and not just wholly dependent upon what educational institutions provide, and those affordances need to be [informed] by and aligned with different kinds of student needs.

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

This report provides an overview of the entire Australian workforce based on the methodology used in the American study titled 'Education for what? the new office economy' by Anthony P. Carnevale and Stephen J Rose (an executive summary of this study may be found at TD/INT 54.13). Data from five Australian censuses (1976, 1981, 1986, 1991, and 1996) have been analysed to provide a time series profile of the Australian workforce, focusing on types of functions instead of just where people work or what occupation they have. The project report reveals relationships between what people do, how much they earn, and how educated they are.

Section 1 details the rationale behind the functional approach taken to analyse economic activities and the workforce. An overview is provided of the trends on the total workforce for the past twenty years, and presents findings on employment share, and the education and earnings of workers in the various function groups.

Section 2 explains the job level analysis (elite, good, and less-skilled) in greater detail and presents findings on employment share, education and earnings in terms of these categories.

A booklet containing highlights of this report may be found indexed at TD/ANTA 59.01. Show less

The ‘ABC of VET 2002’ series contains 10 leaflets, each providing an overview of one aspect of vocational education and training (VET) in Australia. The titles are: Australian National Training Authority [ANTA]; Australian Quality Training Framework [AQTF]; A fair go for everyone: making training equitable; Flexible learning; National marketing strategy for VET: meeting client needs; Skilling up Australia: VET’s role; Training: it pays to stay; Training packages; Training package support material; VET research. Show less

This publication provides overviews of the 14 Victorian projects funded by the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) as part of the Demonstrating Best Practice in Vocational Education and Training (VET) project. A diverse range of organisations and a diverse range of best practice approaches are documented here by the organisations who undertook the projects. Show less

This paper examines the nature of the non-English speaking background (NESB) client experience of migration, education, training and employment to better understand the position of this client group in vocational education and training (VET). It also provides a platform for discussing any actions necessary to improve the VET experience of clients from NESB. The chapters are: Context of migration experience; Employment experience; Vocational education and training experience; Barriers to equity: constraints on access, participation and outcomes. Problems of methodology and definition are included in the appendix. Show less

This paper discusses theorising and empirical work which proposes that the dispositions underpinning cognitive activity need to become more central to deliberations about how individuals think about and engage in skilful vocational practice. Such activity has consequences for how and what is learnt, as well as individuals’ ongoing development. Having reviewed ideas about the dispositional underpinnings of skilful knowledge, the paper reports a study examining how individuals construct knowledge associated with their vocational practice. This study provides tentative findings about the source of dispositions and their role in vocational activity. The paper concludes by advancing some implications for instruction. Show less

Today, Australia holds a position of strength in the global economy. This has been achieved through embracing change, robust growth and a focus on productivity improvements. Vocational education and training has made an important contribution by increasing the skills of Australian workers, which has delivered higher productivity and more innovative work practices. As in many countries a number of changes are also evident in Australia: the developing knowledge-based economy and the growing services sector. The impact of these changes is causing a sea change in skill requirements for Australian industry, as demand for traditional skills in some industries is now being overshadowed by demand for skills to create, organise and apply knowledge and to work with others to do so. The borders of occupations are blurring with the diffusion of technology across industries. Application of new technology impacts on the shelf-life of skills, necessitating accelerated skills development. The other long-standing trend - that of part-time exceeding full-time job gains - is also expected to continue. To ensure that Australia's workforce is at the cutting edge of these developments, the Government, through the ANTA [Australian National Training Authority] Board, needs strong and robust advice from industry about its future skill needs. In 2003 the ANTA Board took two initiatives to strengthen the advice from industry - the launching of a National Industry Skills Forum of industry leaders and the creation of 10 new Industry Skills Councils. The ANTA Board wants to work in partnership with businesses to meet the demand for skills in traditional and emerging industries. [Included as attachments: Australian National Training Authority Act 1992; National Industry Training Advisory Bodies: brief description and scope].

Published abstract. Show less

There are growing expectations that tertiary education graduates will be ready for working life, that is, possessing the capacities to participate effectively in an occupational practice in a specific work situation. Yet, graduates are often unprepared to fulfil this expectation. In response, tertiary education increasingly includes workplace experiences (i.e., practicums, internships, and work placements). It is necessary to understand these experiences' efficacy and their optimisation to promote work-life readiness. Drawing on students' experiences of internships, this paper discusses what constitutes the value of internships in post-secondary diploma courses in Singapore.

A quantitative analysis of interview data identified the contributions afforded through these experiences in workplaces - students' intentional engagement, and their readiness for working life. Central here is how these contributions promote the development of the adaptability required for effective participation in contemporary working life. The analysis identifies challenges including students' adapting to new work environments, navigating workplace practices, and developing occupational capacities. Workplace supervisors' and host educational institutions' support suggests interns' adaptability can be enhanced by promoting the relations between the support they received, on the one hand, and their engagement with challenges during internships, on the other. These findings offer an understanding about the experiences and outcomes of interns' learning through workplaces and offer implications for supporting and augmenting transitions into working life.

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