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Purpose: Available literature overlooks the factors that affect employers' opinions of the skills graduates bring to the labour market. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the perception of graduates' skills and the employers' anticipative and remedial strategies. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative multiple case study is used and data were gathered from interviews with human resource managers in ten firms in Portugal. The data set includes information on perceptions of graduates' skills, solutions for the acquisition of skills, hiring and training policies, and practices associated with university-industry linkages.

Findings: Almost all the employers sampled are unsatisfied with graduates' preparation in soft skills and other personal traits. Some report skill shortages and gaps in technical skills that result in training costs. The perception of technical skills varies according to anticipative and remedial strategies. Research limitations/implications: This is an explorative study with a very small sample of firms. However, it is a first step towards further research into whether the perception of graduates' skills is affected by anticipative and remedial strategies implemented by firms within a particular human resource development system.

Practical implications: It is argued that the responsibility for graduates' employability should be shared. Practitioners should learn how to interact with higher education, researchers should profit from insights into typologies of employers' strategies on skill formation, and policy makers should understand that employers are heterogeneous and there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Social implications: Universities, employers and policy makers should understand that the employability of graduates presupposes shared responsibility. Originality/value: The relationship between the strategies employers adopt to access skills and their perception of graduates' skills is a quite underexplored topic.

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This report presents an assessment of the quality and the level of implementation of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) policy in the Western Balkans, comparing results with a previous assessment conducted in 2006 and published in 2007.The report covers Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Kosovo. The assessment framework is based on the European Charter for Small Enterprises (the Charter), a set of policy guidelines endorsed by the European Union Member States and a key component of the European Union Lisbon Agenda. The report covers the 10 policy dimensions included in the Charter. It applies a methodology known as the SME Policy Index, which makes it possible to quantify and compare qualitative policy features. The first part of the report reviews progress by policy dimension. The second part focuses on policies supporting high-growth SMEs. The intention is to provide a comprehensive review of good practices, introduce country assessment methods through two case studies (the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia) and open a debate on what is likely to be a key component of the SME agenda for the next few years. The third part of the report includes stocktaking and progress reviews for each of the seven Western Balkan economies. The key finding is that over the last two years there has been good progress in elaborating and implementing policies supporting small enterprises all across the Western Balkans and there is clear convergence towards the adoption of the policy guidelines set in the Charter. However, progress has been uneven across the 10 dimensions and the seven economies covered by the report.

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

This report presents evidence gathered on the progression of UK-based mature students (those aged over 25 on entry) into full-time and part-time postgraduate taught study. It looks at: their profile and participation; motivations to study; pre-entry activities (in the years between undergraduate study and postgraduate entry); sources of funding; and barriers and challenges faced in taking up study at this level.

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Validation of prior learning (VPL), also referred to as recognition, validation and accreditation of prior learning (RVA), is becoming an increasingly important political issue at both European and international levels. In 2012, the European Council, the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) launched strategic documents and guidelines for supporting its wide implementation. A wide range of resources and experiences to learn from are already available for improving policy making and the quality and credibility of VPL practices. An intrinsic part of quality assurance concerns the level of training of practitioners accompanying the VPL process. Addressing the need for improved practices of adult educators' continuing professional development as well as improved validation processes, this paper presents and analyses practitioners' experiences with a piloted portfolio tool designed to support the validation of pedagogic competencies of trainers in adult education. While the pilot study was carried out in 20 European and two non-European countries, this article picks out and compares feedback from participants in Romania and India, which are both striving to catch up in terms of accreditation of non-formal and informal learning. Based on their findings, the authors' reflections focus in particular on evident challenges for educational policy making in these two very different countries. They also consider related policy measures needed for improving the educational contexts in both countries, both in terms of validation practices and in terms of the professional development of practitioners applying such practices, in line with international trends.

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Purpose: In Germany up until now, there has been very little research on staff development in schools. The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively assess school-based staff development and to describe the interplay between different instruments of staff development (e.g. classroom observations, development discussions) at the school level.

Design/methodology/approach: Considering that different constellations of organizational management tools may be differentially effective in different contexts (see Mintzberg, 1983/1992), an approach that takes a combination of different staff development instruments into account was chosen. Data were gathered from principals of primary and secondary schools in two federal states of Germany. Using regression, cluster analysis, and analysis of variance, the authors examined different instruments and patterns of staff development used in everyday school practice and determined how these affected the professional development of teachers.

Findings: Five staff development patterns could be identified. With regard to the extent of professional development activities of teachers, these patterns have been proven to have a different impact. Furthermore, the use of the different staff development patterns seems to be heavily dependent on the type of school.

Research limitations/implications: Further research would be needed that examines if the three most relevant staff development patterns identified in this study can also be proven to be effective with regard to somewhat 'harder' criteria than the extent of professional development activities of teachers. Such criteria could be teachers' teaching skills or even student achievement.

Originality/value: The current study is the first to examine staff development in German schools systematically. The results provide some good leads for further studies in this area.

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Labour administrations face major challenges in today's rapidly changing world of work and this monograph examines how they are coping with globalisation, modernisation and political and financial constraints while still contributing to their countries' economic and social development. The book is presented in two main parts. The first part contains the following three chapters: 'A state of upheaval' which outlines some major developments that have changed the foundations of public administration, the new operating conditions for public administration and the new challenges for labour administration; 'Trends in modernization' which highlights general trends relating to labour administration activities in different countries, covering the historical background, changes in the institutional framework, policy implementation, human resource management, the contribution made by information technology, partnerships, funding and evaluation systems; 'Making improvements' which examines the changes taking place in society covering the parameters of change, quality management and assessment in the labour administration system. Part two contains 27 case studies which analyse labour administration practices in the areas of labour (informal sector, occupational health and safety, wage guarantees and clandestine labour), employment and vocational training (information for users, information and forecast systems on the labour market, information and vocational guidance for jobseekers, placement, skills assessment, retraining of workers, development of training, structuring informal labour, employment and business creation, and employment in small and medium-sized enterprises), industrial relations (collective disputes, individual disputes, collective bargaining, and countries emerging from armed conflict), and evaluation (evaluating the work of labour administration and its components). Show less

The Competency Testing Project undertook for the Scottish Association of Young Farmers' Clubs (SAYFC) a small scale evaluation of three tests which were seen to be representative of their proficiency test provision. This report stems from that evaluation.

Related reports are indexed at TD/TNC 87.1826 and TD/TNC 87.1827. Show less

This paper reviews evidence on young people in Europe and the US making the transition from school-to-work before and after the 2008 Great Recession. Taking a macro-level perspective, similarities and differences in education and employment experiences across different European countries are described, considering the role of different institutional support systems in 'scaffolding' young people's transitions to independence. It is argued that the 2008 financial crisis brought with it reduced employment opportunities for young people and accelerated pre-existing trends towards prolonged education participation and precarious employment. There are, however, considerable variations across different countries, highlighting the role of social institutions in supporting young people during the school-to-work transition. Transition systems that created bridges between education and employment are associated with lower national levels of youth unemployment, while young people coming of age in less-protective transition regimes suffered highest levels of youth unemployment, high levels of temporary employment and not being in education, employment or training (NEET).

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This publication aims to contribute to better understanding of vocational education and training (VET) in Slovakia, providing an insight into its main features and highlighting recent VET policy developments. The Slovak economy is largely driven by manufacturing and could benefit from more diversification to make it less sensitive to economic shocks and more skill-intensive jobs, encouraging innovation. VET has traditionally played a strong role, responsible for around two-thirds of graduates at upper secondary level. But qualifications do not always match labour market needs. A 'dual' VET scheme was introduced in 2015-16 as one way to address mismatch. First results show greater involvement of employers in VET: it is now in their interest to attract learners and to deliver job-relevant training. The government also intends to promote VET at higher levels to make it more attractive.

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This report argues that a highly skilled science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) workforce will be required to underpin the UK’s ability to build an innovative, knowledge-intensive economy. The report, taking the perspective of the business sector, examines three aspects of this issue: (1) the importance of STEM skills for economic growth and higher living standards; (2) improving rates of progress on building STEM skills; and (3) creating the ‘pipeline’ for improving the STEM skills supply. The key recommendations are: expanding STEM education to include vocational pathways, particularly apprenticeships, but also retraining of the existing workforce; widening the pipeline of young people making it to skilled STEM work, especially women; developing joint solutions across and between businesses for ongoing training; and aligning higher education funding with the STEM strategy.

The report argues that a long-term strategic government commitment to improving the STEM skill supply will provide the environment for businesses, universities and the education and training system to partner in investing in skills.

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