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"education"

One of the traits which distinguish the German dual system of vocational education and training (VET) from most training systems in the world is the voluntary contribution of companies towards it, in both practical and financial terms. Obviously, the craft sector is a training segment within the dual system where the importance of practical experience is more strongly emphasised than the systematic approach underlying all modern training schemes. However, the overall supply of training placements in the German system decreased during the 1990s. Although the crafts have fared comparatively well, this tendency is now starting to also affect the sector. Being a sector with seemingly less attractive job prospects in small businesses and a comparatively low net cost per apprenticeship, the crafts face problems in terms of social selection as well as challenges with respect to the modernisation of training contents and instruction methods. The crafts are a sector with predominantly male participation and mainly absorb school leavers with lower secondary school qualifications. In this context, one of the questions for the Dual System and its uniform training practices might be whether the rapidly expanding services sector, with similar “small-business” features, will be able or willing to follow the “training philosophy” that originated in the craft sector — and which is still seen as the “backbone” of the German Dual System of training. © 2001, MCB UP Limited

The paper relates to separate initiatives based on a common philosophy that higher education needs to be more relevant and responsive to the real learning needs of individual students and their employers. In particular, the authors describe how the learning paradigms facilitate the alignment of the career aspirations of the learner with the strategic Human Resources needs of employers, how pre-existing learning is evaluated as a foundation for further learning, how learners are made more aware of their own learning, and how the cultural changes in both academia and business impact on an improved overall approach to learning and development of people. To achieve real quality of learning, it is argued, it is necessary to address both specific learning objectives and the nature of the relationship between the learner, business and academia. © 2001 Taylor & Francis Ltd.

This paper surveys the development of various approaches to quality that are essentially learning-centred: • In the Schools sector: a brief overview of the Victorian Quality in Schools project; • In Higher education: work in progress at two Australian universities (Victoria University of Technology and Swinburne Universities of Technology in Melbourne); and • In Vocational education and Training: work in progress in re-orienting the policy approach to Quality towards a more flexible and learning-centred model. This paper will argue that when looked at from the perspective of the individual learner, there is a strong case for student learning to be placed at the very heart of Quality Systems in all sectors of education, and also therefore in related sectoral Quality Assurance programs and processes. © 2001 Taylor & Francis Ltd.

Lifelong learning has become a frequently repeated mantra of national planning and policy agencies in Australian Vocational education and Training (VET). Critics claim the use of the term is rhetorical rather than a real commitment to the principles and practices of lifelong learning. A review of research indicates that real progress has been made in implementing some aspects of lifelong learning in VET, but that contemporary practice falls far short of internationally agreed principles of lifelong learning or even the sector's earlier experience with the similar concept of recurrent education. Current policy settings impose too many barriers to the adoption of lifelong learning in VET and need comprehensive reform.

The selection of students for the health professions is typically a very competitive multi-staged process that includes assessment of both cognitive abilities and personal qualities. The need for reliable and valid assessment measures is obvious. This review of the health professions literature examines the evidence to support the use of various selection tools. It is clear that pre-admission overall grade point average (GPA) is the best predictor of academic performance in all of the health professions; however, the relationship between pre-admission GPA and clinical performance is less clear. The Medical College Admission Test is a good predictor of performance of medical students in terms of in-course grades and licencing examination scores but a similar test does not exist in the other health professions. Controversy remains as to the value of personal interviews and written submissions as selection tools, although it is clear that training of assessors and explicit rating guidelines enhance their reliability and validity. Ongoing research is needed to find more reliable and valid ways of assessing non-cognitive characteristics of applicants.

Multiskilling, or cross training, can enable students to gain the knowledge and skills to become proficient practitioners. This article describes a multiskilling course designed to increase dietetics students' awareness of diverse healthrelated skills and to enhance their ability to develop new skills for future practice. Allied health professionals lectured on and demonstrated cardiopulmonary resuscitation, stress management, dysphagia and swallowing evaluation, adaptive feeding devices, exercise testing, monitoring of vital signs, and multi-department management. Results of course-evaluation surveys distributed to the students (n = 12) on the last day were extremely positive, with an overall mean rating of 1.07 on a scale of 1 (highest) to 4, indicating that the course included appropriate information, assignments, and evaluation mechanisms. This study provides preliminary evidence that a didactic experience can enhance students' awareness of other allied health professions. Through "hands-on" activities, students can become more confident in their knowledge and in the skills needed to function effectively as members and leaders of healthcare teams.

Many young people entering the workforce are not well prepared to meet the demands of a dynamic work environment. Students with disabilities benefit from work-based learning activities as much as, if not more than, their non-disabled peers. Unfortunately, many school-to-work programs in high school and cooperative education and internship programs in college do not fully include students with disabilities, a group that represents an increasing proportion of today's school population. The University of Washington conducted a three-year project to help students with disabilities head toward successful careers by using a holistic and collaborative approach. Besides the students served, the team includes staff from precollege and postsecondary educational institutions, parents, mentors, employers, and community service providers. A post-work-experience survey was developed to answer the question "What impact do work-based learning experiences have on career-related attitudes, knowledge, and skills for students with disabilities?" Participants reported considerable benefit from their work-based learning experiences. They gained motivation to work toward a career, learned about careers and the workplace, gained job-related skills, learned to work with supervisors and co-workers, and developed accommodation strategies.

The learning preferences of three hundred and thirty eight technology students enrolled in sub-degree programs at an Australian institution of Technical and Further education were tested using the Canfield Learning Styles Inventory (CLSI). The results have been interpreted in a learning preferences framework and provide supportive evidence for the preferences factors of print-nonprint, collaborative, dependent, and autonomous learning identified by Sadler-Smith & Riding (1999). Although the research focussed on learning preferences the analysis also indicated support for the Wholist-Analytic cognitive style proposed by Riding & Cheema (1991). Gender differences were shown for the Interest subscales of the CLSI. Age-group differences were shown for several Conditions of Learning and Modes of Learning subscales. Implications for the design of training programs, and the skills that may need to be developed in technology learners to enable effective use of flexible delivery, are also discussed.

This paper examines curriculum and assessment policy in Australian vocational education and training. Throughout the 1990s curriculum and assessment policy in Australia has been enacted through demand-side market oriented policies. Training policy has focused on the development of a competitive national economy through centralist policies for competency-based training, which emphasize the development of standard outcomes of training to meet industry needs and requirements. Competency-based training is conceptualized into dichotomies that reflect a rational orientation based on an underlying positivistic approach in which facts and values, means and ends are separated as rational, managerial mechanisms of control. An alternative coherentist view of pragmatic problem-solving approaches to curriculum and assessment policy is advocated. In this framework the tentative and evolutionary nature of theory are acknowledged. Rather than a concern for universal solutions, pragmatic evolutionary approaches are concerned to develop an enduring capacity in the system to recognize and deal with shared problems, issues and dilemmas.

Background. This study was performed to assess radiotherapy education among family physicians. Methods. A questionnaire evaluating radiotherapy training and knowledge was given to participants of a palliative care conference. Results. Thirty-four physicians completed the survey (71% response rate). Major deficiencies in radiotherapy education were identified and 88% of respondents stated that they did not have adequate knowledge. Only 33% had received formal training in radiotherapy and the majority (77%) thought that they would benefit considerably from continuing medical education. Conclusions. Better education about radiotherapy is required for family physicians and could lead to increased patient referral for such treatment.