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An increase in the exchange of knowledge, trade and capital around the world, driven by technological innovation has created a globally connected world. Rapid advances in information communication technology has reshaped the style and frequency of global communications and led to an increase in work being conducted online using global, virtual teams. This is driving a need for students, the future work force, to have high level intercultural communication skills and digital literacy to manage working across computers, cultures and time. As it is incumbent on tertiary education to prepare graduates for employability, business and government are putting pressure on tertiary institutions to design authentic learning opportunities that build skills to manage the technology and intercultural communication required to work in this globally and digitally connected world.

The Fellow responded to this new skill demand by investigating international educational approaches to developing graduates' global skills in order to inform a pedagogical approach for training Australian vocational education students in this field. This addressed core policy priorities of the Department of Education and Training which included developing quality education and training systems for [vocational education and training] VET, delivering innovative and quality training that meets current and future industry needs and developing greater employment and further educational outcomes.

The Fellowship research began at the end of 2016 with the Fellow attending two international conferences in the Netherlands; Beezr: Virtual Collaboration across Cultures and COIL: Collaborative Online International Learning Europe, to learn from educators actively conducting global, virtual student collaborations. The Fellow interviewed key speakers at the conferences and gained valuable insights from the presentations into the challenges and benefits of various methodologies for educating teachers and students on how to work with the complexities of different cultures in multiple time zones using new digital technologies. The Fellow also visited tertiary institutions in Belgium to interview practitioners working on strategies for expanding global collaborations. In order to gain understanding of business practices in preparing employees for global virtual teamwork, the Fellow undertook training in business methodologies for identifying and developing intercultural competency in employees to prepare them for working with other cultures.

This report captures the key learnings from the international discoveries and recommends actions for tertiary institutions, government and industry for developing intercultural competency and digital literacy to prepare vocational education graduates for employability in the highly digitised and culturally connected 21st century.

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When members of AUSTAFE, the Australian professional association for managers in vocational education and training (VET), visited the United Kingdom, they were interested in the development of National Centres of Vocational Excellence (CoVEs) and to learn about best practice and understand similarities and differences. CoVEs are tasked to provide for the development of the skills and careers of those already in work as well as to enhance the employability of those entering the labour market. The aim is to secure enhanced vocational learning opportunities in post-16 learning with an emphasis on post-19 provision, to upskill the workforce and develop work-based learning and to increase proactive employer/college engagement for the development of innovation. Show less

Young people are being prepared for employment through VET [vocational education and training] studies both at school and in TAFE. Students with disabilities are actively encouraged to access VET studies delivered by either provider. Within VET, the 'employability' skills are recognised to be of increasing significance, particularly by employers. 'Learning' is identified as one of these generic skills - that is, students need to acquire the skills for learning, particularly for work. Lifelong learning skills are recognised as essential in preparation for a vocation, and should be addressed within VET in Schools modules. This paper reports on a 5-week overseas study tour to investigate various approaches to developing the 'learning skills' component of generic (employability) skills in young VET students - especially those who have a disability. People who are specialists in equity, integration, diversity, vocational learning in schools/polytechnics/institutes, lifelong learning and generic skills - including students - were interviewed in England, Scotland, Ireland, Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy and France. The findings of this study, and the resultant recommendations to the NSW Department of Education and Training, will be discussed.

Published abstract.

Available papers from the 8th Australian Vocational Education and Training Research Association (AVETRA) Conference, 'Emerging futures: recent, responsive and relevant research', are indexed from TD/TNC 81.564 to TD/TNC 81.610. Show less

This report is about career guidance in English secondary schools, and how it could be made better. Career guidance has been much criticised, but what would it look like were it good? To find out, visits were undertaken to six countries [Canada (Ontario), Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, the Netherlands and Ireland] where earlier studies suggested that both career guidance and educational results are good, and discussions held with teachers, pupils and ministry officials. Five independent schools in England were also visited as a result of good anecdotal reports. In addition, a study was made of the available literature on career guidance in state schools. From all this input, a judgement was made on what 'good' career guidance looks like. These judgements are presented in the form of eight benchmarks, identifying different dimensions of good career guidance.

English secondary schools were then surveyed to see how they measure up against the benchmarks, and PricewaterhouseCoopers was asked to do an independent exercise to identify the costs of implementing the benchmarks across the system, resulting in the report 'Assessing benchmarks of good practice in school career guidance'. Drawing on all this work, a set of recommendations about how the English system could improve has been developed. The report focuses on the English system but the benchmarks would be equally applicable to the other nations of the UK. 'Career guidance' has been broadly interpreted to include all those activities intended to assist young people in making decisions about future education, training and jobs.

Edited excerpts from publication.

The appendices are included in a separate document. The appendices are as follows: Appendix one: Reports from the overseas visits; Appendix two: Reports from the independent school visits; Appendix three: Key literature resources; Appendix four: Contributors and consultees; Appendix five: The school survey. Show less

International rankings reveal that investments in formal and non-formal education have clear impact on later proficiency results. A lifelong learning new-comer country Singapore sent a team of adult education experts to Finland so that they could learn more about the Nordic system.

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One way of reducing natural resource consumption is to install new technology into buildings and homes (e.g. geothermal heating systems, biomass boiler heating systems and grey water recycling). As this technology is still in its infancy in Australia, there are a limited number of tradespeople who are sufficiently skilled to provide advice and services. There is, therefore, a need to increase and improve education in the use of renewable energy, and to develop training programs that incorporate sustainable trade practices. The overseas component of the Overseas Applied Research Fellowship Program, in Ireland and England, allowed for investigation into the use of renewable energy heating systems and grey water recycling technology in the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland, where there have been rapid advancements in 'green' plumbing practices.

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Training has not been readily available for Australian egg producers and their staff for more than a decade. There was a time when extension programs and skills training were more readily available to producers via state agencies; however, the system 'had a great fall' and is essentially in pieces with respect to resources, delivery mechanisms to producers and available funding. The purpose of this fellowship was to review selected international models for the delivery of skills and associated resources for contemporary egg production with a view to strengthening the Australian program and establishing an international network of experts and resources. Following a review of the current challenges of the skills and knowledge development program, two key training related issues emerged: (1) those within the production system (resources to assist the skills development of workers); and (2) those associated with the delivery of skilled training to support the needs of the industry (administration and implementation of the program).

The aim is to provide an ongoing and flexible training program that covers all aspects of the supply chain - up-skilling and providing qualifications for the range of people working in the industry, from farm hands and shed managers (certificates II to IV) to quality assurance and operational managers (certificate IV to diplomas). The preliminary focus of this report is on egg production; however, other poultry industries (for example, chicken meat industry, turkey industry and duck industry) are expected to directly benefit from the insight provided. This report is also expected to benefit other small and geographically dispersed industries that need to develop or review training programs. The report concludes with a series of recommendations directly related to the outcomes of the fellowship research and the insights gained.

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Australian manufacturers, especially small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs), cannot compete with low-cost manufacturing countries. The high cost Mittelstand companies in Germany, recognised as world leaders in engineering, practice many of the skills required for a successful manufacturing industry of the future. Research has identified that Australian manufacturing SMEs would benefit from better management and leadership skills and this report discusses the potential to use Mittelstand management practices as a benchmark to improve these skills. After a four week trip to Germany to interview selected stakeholders, 12 recommendations were made to the Australian Manufacturing Industry. The two major recommendations considered to be essential to fostering the enhancement of skills in Australian Manufacturing SMEs include: (1) the development of a customised management and leadership skills package in preference to 'generalised' management courses currently on offer; and (2) using the Offensive Mittelstand model as a framework, develop a 'business assessment tool' suitable for Australian manufacturing SMEs.

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With the need to focus on design-driven innovation it has become evident that there is a need to implement fashion knitwear into education nationally. Knits are a huge part of the apparel market of today that sees comfort as a priority as opposed to a previous world of non-stretch apparel. Hence, Australia must strive for a skilled fashion knitwear workforce that understands the technical skills, but more importantly has a design-driven focus; that is, can work backwards from the design and price point of the finished product whilst also designing within the technicalities and limitations of the machinery. Previously knitwear has been taught within the textile design and development sector of education, focusing on technology as opposed to designing fashion product. With industry supporting the need to train fashion knit specialist designers it is evident that knitwear must be included within the current fashion design programs nationally.

The Fellow visited universities that are leaders in the delivery of knit specialisation education to investigate current teaching strategies in fashion knitwear. Universities visited included Nottingham Trent, De Montfort and Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in the United Kingdom and Hong Kong Polytechnic and Hong Kong Design Institute in Hong Kong. Information gathered will be incorporated into teaching and learning strategies in textiles, clothing and footwear (TCF) education nationally that will inevitably lead to increased innovation in the Australian TCF industries knitwear sectors, thus ensuring Australia a more competitive edge internationally.

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Brickwork education in Australia relies on the use of traditional learning techniques, particularly around the theoretical aspects of the trade. This challenges many students who have low literacy and numeracy levels. However Australian students, irrespective of their ability levels, are becoming more and more technology savvy. As a result students are less likely to engage as fully as is needed with paper based teaching methods. Tertiary education institutes in the UK have recognised this issue and have been developing ways to re-engage trade based students in the learning process. A number of UK colleges have developed interactive computer programs that simulate bricklaying techniques and reduce the reliance on the need to read, understand and follow written instructions. The author undertook a study tour of a number of UK colleges to understand how 'virtual bricklaying' learning methods are used to encourage students with low literacy levels to engage fully in the learning process. The Fellowship focused on the need to understand: the benefits of and opportunities to replace traditional teaching methods with technical based learning resources; how to successfully implement virtual learning resources into the trade classroom to realise all potential benefits; and the limitations of virtual learning resources (VLRs) and any lessons that have been learned from the UK experience. The author draws out a number of practical recommendations for relevant stakeholders to support the successful use of 'virtual bricklaying' learning methods within apprenticeship programs.

Edited excerpts from publication.

The International Specialised Skills Institute (ISSI) is an independent, national organisation that works with Australian governments, industry and education institutions to enable individuals to gain enhanced skills and experience in traditional trades, professions and leading-edge technologies. Fellows travel overseas and, upon their return, are required to pass on what they have learned through a detailed report, recommendations for improvements and delivering training activities. Show less