Search Results for
"Vocational education"

This study investigated the effect of performance-based versus competence-based assessment criteria on task performance and self-assessment skills among 39 novice secondary vocational education students in the domain of nursing and care. In a performance-based assessment group students are provided with a preset list of performance-based assessment criteria, describing what students should do, for the task at hand. The performance-based group is compared to a competence-based assessment group in which students receive a preset list of competence-based assessment criteria, describing what students should be able to do. The test phase revealed that the performance-based group outperformed the competence-based group on test task performance. In addition, higher performance of the performance-based group was reached with lower reported mental effort during training, indicating a higher instructional efficiency for novice students. © 2010 The Author(s).

Commissioned by NHS education South Central (NESC) Postgraduate Dental Deanery, this work provided an external, independent formative evaluation of the Dental Therapists vocational Training (TVT) scheme in its first year of operation. Undertaken between March-September 2009, the evaluation engaged with all those involved in the TVT scheme: the newly qualified dental therapists (n = 9; group discussion and questionnaire; portfolio extracts) and interviews with their trainers (n = 9), Associate Postgraduate Dental Dean and TVT Scheme Adviser. Most of those on the scheme did not feel well prepared for work at the point of initial qualification and benefitted from enhancement of confidence and skills. Although the number of treatments undertaken by each of the trainees varied considerably, there was commonality in terms of treatment types. Benefits for trainers included the opportunity to work with a dental therapist and develop a better understanding of their role. They praised the trainees' skills with nervous patients and children and their preventative work. A therapist on the team released the dentist for more complex treatments. Challenges related to the recruitment of trainees and trainers, the relative lack of knowledge about the work of dental therapists, concerns about maintaining the range of therapy skills and issues about UDA (unit of dental activity) distribution. There was widespread support for a mandatory TVT scheme. This scheme could be improved by providing further guidance on the amount and type of clinical experience required. © 2010 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.

This paper presents some of the findings of an evaluation of the development of the first fourteen 14-19 Diplomas in England. It focuses on the question whether the government's aim to develop the new qualifications in an employer-led way has been fulfilled. In order to answer this question, the paper evaluates the contributions of employers in the Diploma development process, the strategies used to engage employers and employers' satisfaction with the outcome. The paper concludes that while employers have had a significant role in defining the content of Diplomas, they have been by no means leading or driving the overall process of qualification making. Due to the complex nature of the qualification system and the need for collaboration of a variety of actors, the role of employers may more accurately be described as key partners in the development process. © 2010 Taylor & Francis.

A Levy-Grant Scheme (LGS) has existed in the UK construction industry since 1964 to provide financial support for companies undertaking training activities. Despite the support of the LGS for various training activities, notably apprenticeships, the construction industry continues to suffer from both labour shortages and an underinvestment in training activity when compared to other sectors in the economy. This situation raises the question as to whether a LGS is an effective means for supporting training activity. This paper thus presents an in-depth review of the case for and against a UK construction LGS. It is argued that the LGS on its own is insufficient to alleviate labour shortages and poor participation levels in training. Moreover, if the LGS is to continue enjoying the support of employers it is important that levy payers (in particular) see the value of the scheme as integral to their business activities and do not regard it as a mere tax. The demonstration of the real value of the LGS becomes imperative when considering the current economic climate where companies are working with tighter budgets. © 2010 The vocational Aspect of education Ltd.

What can arts-based learning offer to adult, work-related education? A study was undertaken that explored the benefits of learning with the arts for professional development of an adult learner in Australia. The individual experiences of nine adults who participated in arts-based workshops to build work-related skills were examined using the contextual model of learning where the personal, sociocultural and physical contexts were considered. To determine the potential for professional development, the participants' perceived learning outcomes were examined against the list of the skills valued in the modern workplace. The adult learners who participated in this research found learning with the arts to be engaging, enjoyable and productive. The study highlighted the potential benefits that learning with the arts could bring to the workplace which included increased motivation to learn, creativity, strengthened confidence and improved communication skills. © 2010 The vocational Aspect of education Ltd.

Reporting on research into two major employers recruiting to the financial services industry, this article draws on data collected from interns, recruitment professionals and graduate employees in their first year of employment. It poses a number of strategy- and outcome-related questions in an attempt to determine whether recruitment advisers are acknowledging a new breed of undergraduate with various skills and diverse histories. The research, involving two large employers, 172 trainees and their personnel managers, set out to explore the impact of life experiences on employment opportunities in the financial services industry. The evidence reveals that despite the fact that graduates entering the labour market have changed, becoming more diverse in terms of age, gender, previous education experience, interest and ambition, employers in the industry still recruit from the elite specifically in terms of their fast track to leadership programmes, known as internships. © 2010 The vocational Aspect of education Ltd.

This article explores teaching assistants' (TAs) perceptions of suggestions that English schools should encourage large numbers of 'low-achieving' school leavers to become apprentice teaching assistants. It reports on a piece of qualitative research that aimed to capture teaching assistants' views of these proposals. Semi-structured interviews were utilised to enable 44 TAs to express their views. These individuals were all enrolled on a foundation degree programme at a new university in the North of England. The findings of this research suggest that established teaching assistants' reactions to apprenticeships are likely to promote a learning environment where an already restricted form of apprenticeship experience will be subject to further constraint. This article highlights the risks that vocational education and training (VET) of this type poses in terms of reproducing gender and class-based inequalities. It further maintains that diluting the meaning of apprenticeship learning to meet ambitious governmental targets potentially endanger the integrity of this form of learning. © 2010 The vocational Aspect of education Ltd.

From the end of World War II until the early 1970s, vocational education and training (VET) in Australia was surprisingly static and resilient to government-led reform, due to the dominance of industry and union power. Following the oil shocks of 1973 and associated unemployment and declining union power, there have been calls on the federal and state governments to adopt a more proactive approach to dealing with quality assurance in the VET sector. In recent times, private registered training organisations (RTOs) are increasingly being used by federal and state governments to directly address the unemployment problem through programs such as the Productivity Places Program. As a result, an examination of quality assurance in the VET sector is increasingly important. This paper reviews the evolution of VET in Australia and examines what impact policy reforms have had on quality assurance in VET, identifying some opportunities and challenges facing the Australian VET sector in the changing global economy. © 2010 The vocational Aspect of education Ltd.

The paper questions the link that policy-makers assume exists between qualifications and access to employment in the creative and cultural (C&C) sector. It identifies how labour market conditions in the C&C sector undermine this assumption and how the UK's policy formation process inhibits education and training (E&T) actors from countering these labour market conditions. It demonstrates how non-government agencies ('intermediary organizations') are creating new spaces to assist aspiring entrants to develop the requisite forms of 'vocational practice', 'social capital' and 'moebius strip' (i.e., entrepreneurial) expertise to enter and succeed in the sector. It concludes by identifying a number of: (a) new principles for the governance of E&T at the national level; (b) pedagogic strategies to facilitate 'horizontal' transitions into and within the C&C sector; and (c) skill formation issues for all E&T stakeholders to address. © 2010 Taylor & Francis.