Search Results for
"Vocational education"

This chapter discusses the perspectives and challenges of professional competencies for the tertiary sector with examples drawn from studies of speech pathology and paramedic university professional degree programmes in Australia. While attempts to describe work performance in terms of competencies date from the behavioural objectives movement in the United States in the 1950s (Bowden and Masters 1993), competency-based training (CBT) has been applied to the workforce in the USA since 1967 (Houston 1985), the United Kingdom since 1988 (Burke 1989) and Australia since 1989. In a move to improve the skill levels and develop a better trained workforce, the Australian National Training Reform Agenda focused on explicit, precise descriptions of the skills exhibited in the workplace to determine learning outcomes of vocational education and training (VET) programmes (Mansfield 1989). In the same time frame, Colleges of Advanced education and Institutes of Technology, which provided predominantly undergraduate level educational programmes for several of the professions, were amalgamated with universities to form an integrated national system of higher education in Australia (Dawkins 1988). The central role of workplace competencies in determining the development of curricula and the standards to be expected in training flourished in the VET sector in the 1990s (National Centre for vocational education Research 2000a) but has been less clear in the university sector. Statements of competence, referred to as competency standards in Australia (Bowden and Masters 1993), were developed by 70% of professions in Australia by the end of 1993 (Quartermaine 1994), but in their seminal report on the implications of a competency-based approach for higher education, Bowden and p. ix) a prophetic assertion we do not believe that a full blown competency-based approach to education will become dominant in university courses has been borne out. © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

In its current shape senior secondary vocational education has existed since 1996. Before that date, two types of senior secondary education co-existed: the apprenticeship system and senior secondary vocational education organised in schools. The apprenticeship system offered professional training courses in a great number of branches of industry, and was characterised by a combination of learning in practice and learning in school. Senior secondary vocational education in schools dates from the 1950s, when schools for senior secondary technical education were established. At a later stage secondary vocational schools were also founded for other sectors like economics and social services. © 2009 Springer Netherlands.

Historically, vocational education and training (VET) has driven economic growth and productivity in industrialised nations. As markets become increasingly global and competitive, governments are increasing pressure on VET systems in Australia, Japan and other industrialised countries to produce more highly skilled and employable workers (Anderson 2003). It is clear that global economic change has been the main driver of VET Systems in the recent decades (Keating, Medrich, Volkoff and Perry 2002). Anderson (2003) critiques these recent aims of VET which he refers to as 'productivism'. He calls for VET to prepare workers for an environmentally aware workforce, to ensure an ecologically sustainable future. Anderson (2003) argues that 'productivism' for economic growth is out of date as is 'work' as paid employment because it is separated from other domains of life. In the future, it is essential to realise and develop other life values, as paid employment may become a privilege of the minority (Anderson 2003). © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Workplaces are important sites for promoting the skill development required to meet goals for increasing the number of workers attaining vocational qualifications. Since the earliest training reforms of the 1990s in Australia, one of the most important outcomes has been the (re)-claiming of the workplace as a legitimate learning environment. Current policy imperatives in vocational education and training (VET) in Australia acknowledge the value of lifelong learning and the important role that professionals play in ensuring that quality learning opportunities are available to meet the needs of individuals, enterprises, and industries (Hoeckel et al. 2008). The VET system has expanded and now includes over 3,000 private training organisations as well as technical and further education (TAFE) providers (Harris et al. 2006). Enterprises are increasingly engaging in the process of providing learning opportunities for their staff, drawing on the services of the TAFE sector, private providers and consultants, and, where available, their own in-house capabilities. Many of those now engaged in the process of facilitating learning in the VET sector are drawn from a wide range of occupations. These persons may hold a variety of qualifications (e.g., specific trade, human resource development/management, adult education, and other professional qualifications) and work under a variety of non-teaching awards and conditions (Simons et al. 2007, p. 16). © 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

This chapter discusses individual learning in the workplace in the light of a study of Finnish design engineers' and product developers' learning through their work. The designers' work practices and their learning in the course of these activities are described as perceived by the designers themselves. The chapter also examines their learning through the various individual and social processes ongoing in the workplace. The chapter proceeds as follows: first, phenomenon of workplace learning or learning through work is described. Second, the work of product designers and development engineers is conceptualised on the basis on the recent literature and studies in the field. Third, the methodological choices made in the course of the research process are briefly described and evaluated and the main findings obtained from the different phases of the research process are summarised. Finally, the findings of the study are drawn together. Further ideas for researching designers' learning through their work and how the formal education of designers could be developed in connection with these ideas are offered. In addition, more general suggestions concerning the guidance of workplace learning are given, and the challenges presented by guiding and assessing workplace learning in the vocational education context are examined. Of particular interest in the above-mentioned study is the connection at various levels between learning and work. The results indicate a need for more effective integration between education and working life. Also of interest is the connection between work and learning. The concept of connectivity here is thus approached from two perspectives. First, the need to connect the theoretical knowledge acquired at school with the practical knowledge gained from everyday work practices and, second, the need to see individual and social learning processes at work as linked.©Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.

The challenge of skilled workforce shortage is one of the most critical threats to the economic health of many nations around the globe. Skilled labour shortage affects various aspects of construction projects and impact on time, cost and quality of work. Consequently, this may jeopardise the achievement of economic benefits for which such projects are conceived. Nigeria as a country undergoing economic reform needs a productive, competent, and flexible workforce to further her economic development. However, shortage of skilled workforce, not just in terms of quantity but also of quality is the most pressing issue in the nation's construction sector; and is already having serious implications for both businesses and the economy generally. This study aims at examining the problems confronting the vocational education and training of selected skill occupations with the view to determining possible solutions to the current problem. The selected trades for the study are limited to wet trades such as masonry and concrete work. The sample population includes Professional Builders, selected relevant practising skilled operatives, technical/vocational school trainers and trainees. The research methodological approach will embrace both quantitative and qualitative methods and data will be collected from selected states within Nigeria, and in the UK for the purpose of obtaining overview of how developed nations are coping with the same phenomenon and how the UK approaches could be applied to the Nigerian's situation. The findings will provide the tool for developing a workable 'best practice framework' for the vocational education and training of trade operatives working in the nation's construction industry. The research is part of an on-going PhD programme aimed at finding practical solutions to the construction industry's skill shortages in Nigerian; Africa's most populous nation. This paper is being presented at this stage of the research as a theoretical piece prior to data collection.

Historically, learning and work were inseparable during the pre-modern era, whereas during modern era a progressive differentiation took place between work and learning. In the late modern era differentiation has become fragmentation. Learning and work after post-compulsory education are organised in different forms such as educational establishments, teams and processes. Although many examples of separation can be found, these are also increasing example models of integration, from new kinds of apprenticeships to work-based learning, work-related learning, organisational development and so on (Boud, 2005). Nowadays, the fact that knowledge and skills are also provided outside formal education and training, is gradually leading to the formulation of a European educational policy (Tessaring & Wannan, 2004). International comparisons (e.g. Stenström & Lasonen, 2000) of VET systems in the European countries revealed much of variation in how the relationship between education and working life is organised. Described as a continuum, at one end are countries such as Germany and Austria in which working life bears the main responsibility for VET, while at the other end there are countries where vocational education has been strongly school-based. For example, in Finland prior to the turn of the millennium initial vocational education was mainly organised by vocational schools with few links between education and working life. However, in recent years educational policy has emphasised the importance of creating closer relationships between education and industry in countries with as well as those without a school-based VET system. Consequently, since 2001, among the central reforms undertaken in Finnish upper secondary VET has been the incorporation into the curriculum of work-related learning lasting at least 6 months. Efforts to achieve closer cooperation between VET and working life also include what are known as vocational skills demonstrations, a procedure that was in experimental use in educational establishments from 1999 until autumn 2006, when it became established practice (Opetusministeriö, 2004).vocational skills demonstrations are competence-based tests carried out in a work situation or as past work of a process which are designed, implemented and assessed by the education provider in cooperation with representatives from working life. vocational skills demonstrations represent a new form of student assessment, in which cooperation between education and working life plays a central role and which brings together representatives from working life and teachers (Räkköläinen, 2005, p. 21; Stenström, 2001, 2005; Stenström, Laine, & Kurvonen, 2006). Competencebased examinations have been used mostly in countries where vocational education is driven by working life (Eraut, Steadman, Trill, & Parker, 1996; Wolf, 1995). The recent enhancement of the work-related1 learning system in Finland and pilot projects to try out performance-based tests are developments reflecting the current process of change in the relationship between working life and VET. The effort to raise the level of VET participation has made the question of reorganising assessment to meet the demands of both HE institutions and working life an acute one in other European countries as well (Green, Wolf, & Leney, 1999). The aim of this chapter is to describe how work and learning are linked in Finnish vocational education and training with particular reference to skills demonstrations. First, the context of work-related learning is described and everyday learning compared with formal learning compared. Second, the skills demonstration system as part of work-related learning and vocational study programmes in Finland is introduced. Third, the vocational skills demonstration as a tool for improving the interface between education and working life is discussed. This chapter is in fact based on a study the aim of which was to examine students' practice-oriented learning as a part of VET provision in authentic situations in the workplaces (Stenström et al., 2006). The context was the experimental phase of in the introduction of vocational skills demonstrations in Finland. Skills demonstrations were included in all initial vocational qualifications in autumn 2006 (Laki ammatillisesta koulutuksesta annetun lain muuttamisesta 15 July 2005/601). The data were collected by interviewing students in the fields of social welfare and health care and the construction industry (n = 6), their teachers (n = 8), and representatives (n = 6) of enterprises operating in these fields in central and southern Finland.©Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.

The Dutch VET system is under constant pressure to respond to a changing economy. It has been adapting to fundamental changes in job demands as well as to a strongly growing number of vocational students. The qualification system has been thoroughly restructured and various vocational learning paths and school types (the apprenticeship system and school-based vocational education; initial and adult vocational education) are integrated into a single vocational education and training (VET) system. New content as well as new didactics for vocational schools have been implemented to respond better to the needs of a changing economy and labour market. Regional VET Colleges are developing from industrial training centres into innovative learning centres, in order to prepare students better for working life and lifelong learning. In order to reach that objective, the challenge facing the Dutch system is making qualification structures, educational targets and new educational practices, like problem-based learning, more convergent, rather than the current state of tension or even contradiction. In this context, apprenticeships were rediscovered in the late nineties, but with new learning and working arrangements and with new connections between school and work-based learning. Apprenticeship has become part of an elaborated system of vocational education, which includes two main pathways with different combinations of school and workplace learning. With the expansion of the objectives of vocational education to include effective problem solving on the job and work process knowledge, workplace learning has become more important. However, the quality of workplace learning remains a topic of heavy debate. There are two main issues: the quality of workplace learning and the connection between workplace and school-based learning as part of the integrated development of vocational competences. The first is tackled by updated regulation, by government as well as by national bodies and employer organisations, designed to uphold the quality of training in apprenticeship in terms of content, guidance and assessment. New contentand didactics at school, as well as different and more intensive patterns of interaction between employers and vocational schools, are being developed to improve the connection between learning in school and in the workplace. Working together, employers and vocational schools strive for high-quality outcomes. The aim of this chapter is to describe workplace learning in the Dutch VET. An additional focus is on the quality of the connections between workplace and school-based learning.©Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.

Dual apprenticeship training is a form of education at the upper secondary level, taking place in vocational school as well as in firms. Therefore, the willingness of firms to offer apprenticeships is a necessity for the functioning of this part of the educational system. Although it is likely that the economic climate has an impact on the firm's supply of apprenticeships, little is known so far about the impact of the business cycle on the number of apprenticeship programs offered. Using panel-data of Swiss cantons from 1988-2004, we find that the influence of the business cycle is statistically significant, but small in size. Instead, supply of apprenticeship programs is driven to a much greater extent by demographic change. © 2009 Sense Publishers.

Traditional formal education has often been accused of being disconnected from the learning of real working life competencies. Recent studies have shown that students may feel that formal education is 'too theoretical', and graduates often claim that they do not possess the competencies needed to do their jobs (e.g., Mora, Garcá-Aracil, & Vilas, 2007; Stenström, 2006; Tynjälä, Slotte, Nieminen, Lonka, & Olkinuora, 2006; van der Velden, 2006;). A similar criticism often levelled by entrepreneurs and employers is that the slow process of formal education hinders it from responding to the acute needs of working life (e.g. Billett, 2007). The content and pedagogical practices of formal education programmes may not serve the needs of current jobs. To overcome these problems, some employers have adopted an old - but until recently largely forgotten - practice of educating workers in the workplace. This 'education on demand' may be realised through different models, varying from close co-operation between formal education and industry to the traditional dual system of vocational education and training, as in Germany, or to specialised training programmes organised wholly by companies themselves (for more on corporate universities see, e.g. Andresen & Lichtenberger, 2007; Rademakers, 2005). The goal in all these models is to bridge the gap between education and work, and to provide students with real life experience so as to better equip them with the skills and knowledge needed in productive working. The aim of this chapter is to examine a specific example; the company-based training of shipyard workers. Our assumption is that training carried out in an authentic work environment, and its close vicinity in the company school, could provide a promising starting point for realising the connectivemodel of work experience (Griffitths & Guile, 2003; Guile & Griffiths, 2001) described in Chapter 2 of this volume. Thus, we examine whether features of the connective model are present in a shipyard metal industry course run by the company in the workplace.We also examine company-based training from the expertise development point of view and analyse how the transition from novice towards expert begins and proceeds in a workplace-based training programme carried out in a combined classroom and authentic work environment. In our analyses we draw on ideas from two different directions of research: classical studies of expertise and studies of conceptual change. This is a novel approach to vocational development. We start by discussing the theoretical viewpoints and previous empirical findings of expertise research that supports the idea of providing education and training in the workplace.We also discuss possible problems related to workplace training.We examine the development of expertise from different complementary perspectives and describe expertise as a complex phenomenon composed of cognitive, social, and bodily aspects. In the second part of this chapter we present empirical findings from a study conducted in the shipbuilding industry where future employees are trained in the company's own school and in an authentic production environment.©Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.