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This bulletin summarises the findings of a research project on how to improve the status of vocational education and training (VET) so that it can be viewed a more worthwhile and viable post-school option by both young people and those who influence their decision-making about post-school pathways. The relatively low status of VET and the occupations it serves is a significant impediment for realising VET's economic and employment goals. This status influences young people and parents' decision-making about post-school pathways, and government, community and employer support. In an era of high aspiration, VET is often seen as an option only for those unable to secure university entry. This perception can lead to mismatches amongst the kinds of skills young people are learning and employment opportunities, with what employers seek in employees, and potentially lengthy and sometimes unproductive tertiary education experiences.

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Changing personal and societal sentiments about the status of vocational education and the occupations it serves requires information, education, action at societal and local levels and will, inevitably take time. With entrenched issues such as the standing of occupations and the education systems that they serve, it is more likely incremental and focused initiatives are required to bring about this change. It has been consistently identified that there are 'zones of influence' shaping young people's decision-making about postschool pathways. These zones comprise the aspirations and advice of parents, the intended and unintended press of schoolteachers, the views of peers and suggestions arising from within the community. Consequently, advising and shaping young people's decisions about postschool pathways, including an informed and impartial consideration of vocational education, are not restricted to those students alone. Instead, it is necessary that those comprising these zones of influence also need advice and information so that young people's decision-making can be supported by informed and impartial advice.

A series of workshops with teachers and administrators, and presentations to policy and practitioner groups were used to evaluate the findings from focus groups and interviews, and a national survey that are elements of an Australian study. Those events were directed to identify how key institutions of government, schooling, vocational education institutions and industry could work to shape these zones of influence in ways that promoted broader and more informed considerations about post-school pathways, including vocational education. This led to strategies that could be used to reshape and enhance the standing of vocational education as a worthwhile post-school pathway across these zones of influence. These strategies were proposed as being directed broadly to inform that decision-making, and that includes perspectives, aspirations and interests of school students, parents, teachers, other familiars and members of the community, who in different ways shaped those perspectives.

This chapter sets out some initiatives that might be enacted by government, schools, employers, and teachers to offer experiences and informed and impartial advice about potential post-school pathways through engaging with the zones of influence.

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Understanding what constitutes learning across working life and how negotiating worklife transitions can be best supported has never been more important for working age adults, their workplaces and communities. The kinds and frequencies of changes in occupational and workplace requirements have consequences for personal goals, workplace viability and communities' economic and social wellbeing. Hence, for both individual and societal purposes we need to elaborate the goals for and processes of that learning and what constitutes educative worklife experiences. Drawing on a three-phase investigation of adults' worklife learning the kinds and qualities of the educative experiences directly or indirectly guiding, supporting and extending individuals' learning and development are elaborated. This includes pathways of experiences across working life: personal curriculums. The paper reports and discusses the data from: (i) worklife narratives and follow-up interviews, and (ii) 18-month monitoring of work and learning of a cohort of workers. It furthers the case for viewing lifelong learning and lifelong education as being distinct and seperate phenomena, the interdependence among the contributions of adults, their educational experiences and those provided by their communities, leading to the explanatory concepts of personal curriculum and educative experiences to illuminate and elaborate learning and development across working life.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner.

Forthcoming article first published online 15 June 2023 by Taylor and Francis. Show less

The concept of employability extends beyond initial occupational preparation into the ability to remain employable as, inevitably, occupational capacities and workplace requirements change frequently across working lives. Hence, the need to continually learn to remain occupationally current and respond to changing workplace requirements becomes paramount. The evidence suggests that much of that learning arises through individual efforts and the support of co-workers through work activities. So, there is a need to understand how that learning can be supported to sustain employability across lengthening working lives.

Drawing on an Australian study, reported here are perspectives from managers and workers in diverse workplaces about current modes of continuing education and training and about how workers are assisted with their learning to meet personal needs and those of employers. Employers want an occupationally current workforce that can meet specific workplace needs; workers want the capacities to remain employable, which may extend to advancing their careers elsewhere. The data indicate differences in perceptions about what is being provided, how frequently the provisions are used, and the worth of its certification. Whilst the findings indicate shared concerns about the importance of learning, there were clear differences in views about the models and processes used to support that learning. Across both sets of informants can be seen distinctions between 'training solutions' and 'learning solutions'. A more nuanced analysis suggests that the training solution is appropriate and effective at some point in workers' worklife trajectories but in other circumstances, learning through practice is proposed as being more efficacious.

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Investigating issues associated with and strategies for enhancing the standing of vocational education necessarily involves engaging with a range of perspectives, insights and suggestions. This includes those who organise and implement educational experiences, those who enact them, and also those who directly influence the decision-making of young people, as well as those young people themselves. Of course, such a venture means capturing and comparing, contrasting and evaluating those perspectives. As insights and perspectives need to be captured in some detail, qualitative approaches to data gathering and analysis are essential. On the other, quantitative analysis is required to identify patterns across cohorts of informants and analyse their weightings and rankings. Accordingly, this chapter sets out the rationale for and approaches adopted in an investigation about enhancing the status of vocational education and the occupations it serves in Queensland, Australia.

The investigation comprised an initial round of focus groups and interviews with school-age students, teachers and parents, students in vocational education institutions and their teachers (Phase 1). A careful analysis of focus group data, interview transcripts and surveys gathered through these interviews were then used to develop a survey that was administered nationally (Phase 2). That survey extended the scope of the study and the range of informants and provided a platform for quantitative analysis and comparisons of perspectives and suggestions of distinct cohorts of informants. Then, in Phase 3, suggestions about enhancing the status of vocational education were identified through a series of focus groups with school administrators and teachers. Weighting to sets of suggestions about what government, industry, schools, and teachers might do to offer well informed and impartial advice and engage with information about potential postschool pathways were analysed.

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This book of readings brings together the results of a body of research on the funding and financing of vocational education and training (VET) in Australia presented at a research forum hosted by the National Centre for Vocational Education and Research (NCVER) in late 2003.

There is widespread belief amongst many Australian commentators that Australian employers do not provide their employees with enough training. In recent years this belief has led to calls for the re-imposition of compulsory levies on employers to ensure that they spend more on training. This belief is largely based on the analysis of data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), particularly data on training expenditure. In this chapter the authors challenge this interpretation of the data and make the case that Australian employers do not spend much less than their international counterparts on training for their employees and that the way to get employers to invest in training is not through the use of compulsory levies.

The book of readings is indexed at TD/TNC 84.03; individual chapters are indexed from TD/TNC 84.21 to TD/TNC 84.29. Show less

As part of a three-year program of research, the authors are investigating how the training system might be more effective in providing continuing education and training across workers’ lives, since the tertiary education and training sector is currently geared to entry-level training; that is, getting young people ready to enter the labour market. This working paper sets the scene for the next stage of research. It provides a description of current models of education and training which offer a framework for understanding the continuing learning needs of Australian workers. Show less

In 2021, we invited expert vocational voices from the vocational education and training (VET) sector to share their views, stories, experiences and insights on a range of hot topics. This podcast is a roundup of interesting snippets and research findings from across the four podcast episodes released during the year. Full of short and sharp insights from each of our guest speakers, we cover off some of the best bits of Season 6.

Edited abstract from publisher's website. Show less

Many countries are becoming increasingly reliant upon an aging workforce. Yet, much literature positions older workers as 'last resort' employees, held in low esteem by employers whose preference for youth extends into decision-making about workplace engagement and support. As part of a broader study on maintaining the competence of older workers, we investigated the extent to which a group of employees in Australia aged 45 or more perceived they were discriminated against because of their age, including access to training, promotion opportunities and job security. Against expectations arising from the literature, informants reported little in the way of explicit age-related bias in their employment, opportunities for advancement and further development. Although the informants have particular characteristics and featured paraprofessional and professional workers, the contrast is noteworthy between what is reported in the literature and often premised on surveys, and our data were based on interviews. The findings indicate a need to be wary of making easy generalizations about the extent to which older workers per se are discriminated against in the workplace, while at the same time acknowledging that such discrimination exists, and perhaps for particular kinds of workers. In addition, we found a range of nuanced responses that suggest there are tensions between discriminations policies and practice that are a challenge for human resource development professionals.

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

The VET Development Centre offers customised professional development services and programs, on a fee-for-service basis, across the Victorian vocational education and training (VET) sector. The evaluation reported in this document focused on three objectives to identify and provide evidence: (1) relating to the benefits to practitioners as a consequence of participating in the VET Development Centre's Professional Learning Program; (2) that there are improvements in their teaching and learning practice as a consequence of attending the programs; and (3) of practitioner pathways from the programs into further professional learning opportunities, whether accredited or non-accredited. The findings will be considered when planning and delivering future activities of the VET Development Centre.

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