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Purpose – This paper aims to examine the employment and training of mature-aged workers, so that suggestions for improving training for mature-aged workers may be offered. Design/methodology/approach – Six expert interviews were carried out by telephone, and three case studies involving company site visits were completed. Each company case study involved interviews with managers, trainers and mature-aged workers. The study was confined to the manufacturing industry. Findings – Mature-aged workers bring many advantages to workplaces and some employers show a definite preference for them over younger workers; but in some cases training needs to take account of lack of confidence and literacy and health issues. However, there is great diversity among mature-aged workers. Research limitations/implications – The research is confined to shop-floor workers in manufacturing, and does not address training of mature-aged managers and professionals. The research is small-scale but provides new insights, and importantly the voices of the workers themselves. Practical implications – The paper identifies managerial and training practices that can immediately be implemented. Originality/value – The paper identifies some issues that can be taken up at a policy level as well as within companies. For example, the preference for qualification-based training at a national level is not necessarily consistent with what mature-aged workers prefer.

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The number of young people commencing apprenticeships and traineeships whilst at school, and monitored by their school, has grown considerably, encouraged by State and Federal governments, since the first participants began in 1997. There has as yet been little research into the nature of the training given to, and learning experienced by, such young people; most published literature has related to organisational issues. This paper reports on a research project funded by the National Research and Evaluation Committee [NREC] into learning and training in school-based new apprenticeships (SBNAs). A questionnaire was sent to a large sample of all SBNAs in three States: Queensland, Victoria and South Australia, using a survey instrument adapted from a previous NREC study, 'School students' learning from their paid and unpaid work' (report indexed at TD/TNC 68.01). The results present an overview of SBNA employment, training and learning practices which will provide an important basis for development of policy and practice in this area.

Published abstract.

The collection of papers is indexed at TD/TNC 73.601. Individual papers are indexed from TD/TNC 73.602 to TD/TNC 73.621. Show less

Until a decade ago there was not much in common between the training which took place in enterprises, sometimes known as Human Resource Development (HRD) and the training that took place with TAFE and other providers of vocational education and training (VET). Over the last decade various measures introduced as part of training reform have changed this relationship and this paper, tracing the changes that have taken place, argues that there is now an area of overlap between VET and HRD, where accredited VET programs are delivered in the workplace, and that this area of convergence appears to be growing. Three enterprise case studies are used in the paper to illustrate the nature of the area of overlap, and to suggest some features which contribute to enterprises' likelihood to engage in accredited training. Show less

Recent reports suggest that expenditure on staff development within the vocational education and training (VET) sector is decreasing. The author takes a critical look at this issue, with regard to VET teachers and trainers and suggests why this may be so. She considers the appropriateness for VET teachers and trainers of staff development models used for school teachers and private enterprises. She also looks at action learning which is currently favoured in the VET sector for staff development. Show less

The role of learning and development specialists has changed radically in the past 20 years. Previously viewed as a necessary cost in good economic times, learning and development professionals have gradually developed an increasingly wide range of specialisms and become key organisational figures as companies increasingly value knowledge generation and innovation as key competitive advantages. This recent study has gathered data from high-level specialists and a broad national member base to build a profile of the current body of learning and development professionals.

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In 2020, the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) 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 eight podcast episodes released during the year. Full of short and sharp insights from each of the guest speakers, it covers off some of the best bits of Seasons 4 and 5.

Edited abstract from publisher's website. Show less

This study provides a comprehensive picture of the way in which employers navigate the Australian training system and establish partnerships with registered training organisations (RTOs). In terms of evolution over the last 20 years three key factors emerge: (1) while the take-up of nationally recognised training by employers has not increased substantially, this type of training is being used in different ways; (2) the nature of the partnerships between RTOs and employers has changed, from a relationship based on fee-for-service provision to one based on long-term mutual collaboration; and (3) a change in the role of the training function and training staff in organisations has been observed.

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In Australia, the workforce in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) as compared to that in other sectors of education is not easy to describe or analyse. TVET practitioners work in a variety of institutions, locations and roles, and do not necessarily see themselves as a coherent body of professionals. This diversity makes it difficult to generalize about practitioners and, more importantly, for governments and practitioners' employers to devise policies and practices that address their required qualifications and professional development. Arrangements among countries vary depending upon the way in which the TVET system is organized, but in general there is some commonality in the ways in which teachers, instructors and trainers can be classified. One way is by their working context (which we may call 'site of training practice') and another is by the extent to which the training they deliver is involved in some way with government-accredited qualifications (which we may call 'formality of training'). A third way is by the extent to which training is a full part of the individual's career (which we may call 'role focus of trainer'). This chapter uses Australia as a case study to examine TVET teachers, trainers and instructors and the ways in which their skills are developed and certified, using these classifications as an organzing framework.

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

Researchers from 13 different countries participated in this international conference on apprenticeship research. The conference comprised three keynote addresses and three workshops. The keynote papers are: The crowded market: agencies dealing with apprenticeships in Australia / Erica Smith; Apprenticeship systems in the German speaking countries: different logics and policies with respect to full-time VET and higher education / Thomas Deissinger; Apprenticeship (AP) and enterprise-based learning in the Mediterranean region / Helmut Zelloth and Richard Sweet. Papers from the first workshop, ‘Interventions by government and other stakeholders in apprenticeships’, chaired by Erica Smith are: Workplace trainers: provisional principles for an open architecture of professional development / Graham Attwell, Philipp Grollmann and Eileen Luebcke; Towards innovative apprenticeship: the evaluation of the development of integrated regional vocational education and training centres in Hungary / Magdolna Benke; The Italian apprenticeships: the results of the latest reform / Sandra D’Agostino; Competence development through workplace learning: the case of the French vocational baccalaureat from Vocational Lycees and the Maisons Familiales Rurales / Benedicte Gendron, Jean-Claud Floutard, Cecile Gendre and Pascal Varnier; Innovation and the Swiss vocational education and training system / Philipp Gonon; Apprenticeship in the United States: patterns of governance and recent developments / Robert I. Lerman; The long winding road to Ireland’s 1993 national apprenticeship programme / Barry Nyhan; Plural administration in dual systems in selected European countries / Felix Rauner, Wolfgang Wittig and Ludger Deitmer. Papers from the second workshop, ‘Designing optimal conditions for the development of competence through on-the-job learning’, chaired by Peter Schlogl are: Developing tools to support work based competence development / Graham Attwell and Raymond Elferink; The relevance of the dual system to English VET / Michaela Brockmann, Linda Clarke and Christopher Winch; Comparing two cases of trainers’ practice: implications for professional development / Philipp Grollmann and Pekka Kamarainen; Facilitating learners’ motivation and competence development in the workplace: the UK context / Natasha Kersh and Karen Evans; Relations between characteristics of innovative learning environments and competences in secondary vocational education / Regina H. Mulder and Gerhard Messmann; Coaching and collaborative work based learning in Dutch VET: the ‘TEAMstages’ project / Jeroen Onstenk; Occupational commitment and vocational identity / Felix Rauner and Lars Heinemann; Promoting competence development of apprentices through combined workplace and workshop learning / Eduard A. Stoger. Papers from the third workshop, ‘Costs, benefits and outcomes of apprenticeships’, chaired by Lorna Unwin are: Quality and impact of a new apprenticeship approach in the Italian region of Marche / Elmo de Angelis and Ludger Deitmer; Investigating the quality of cooperation of learning venues in countries with little history of cooperation: the case of China and Malaysia / Ludger Deitmer and Ramli Rashidi; Costs and benefits of apprenticeships in the lowest track of VET / Katleen De Rick; Quality of apprentices and training strategies of firms in Switzerland / Marc Fuhrer, Stefan C. Wolter and Samuel Muhlemann; Costs - benefits - quality: the specific profile of Austrian apprenticeship and its future potentials and drawbacks / Lorenz Lassnigg; Costs, benefits and quality of apprenticeships: a regional case study / Felix Rauner, Lars Heinemann, Dorothea Piening and Rainer Bischoff; Certifying professional competence within workplace learning: preliminary suggestions of the project MOVE PRO EUROPE at EADS in Germany / Andreas Saniter and Barbara Burger. Show less

The theme of this paper is lifelong learning and the importance of work as a major site for learning. The paper draws on the results of three research studies, one relating to new full-time workers, one to part-time student workers and one to young people undertaking school-based new apprenticeships. It suggests some reasons why some young people, some types of employment contract and some workplaces appear to offer better opportunities for establishing lifelong learning habits than others.

The volume of collected papers is indexed at TD/TNC 75.267. Individual papers are indexed from TD/TNC 75.268 to TD/TNC 283. Show less