The main purpose of this guide is to provide some ideas for employers of apprentices to provide an environment in which strong informal bases of support can succeed. Formal mentoring is an important aspect of apprenticeships; however, it is also informal mentoring--practices that are difficult to formally nurture--that plays a significant and…

Purpose: This paper seeks to provide an overview of the concept of training needs analysis (TNA), current practice, models and the impact that training needs analysis currently has on nurses in public hospitals in Australia. Thus, the paper should aid future research in the area of TNA of nurses through helping researchers to clarify the…

"Research Messages 2014" is a collection of summaries of research published by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) in 2014 in the context of changing economic, industrial, social and education conditions, organised under the following broad categories: (1) Productivity: to sustain and build Australia's human…

Research investigating the learning and career transitions of those disadvantaged in the labour market has resulted in the development of a four-component model to enable disadvantaged groups to navigate learning and career transitions. The four components of the model include: the self-concept; learning and recognition; career and life planning;…

In response to the worldwide shortage of biostatisticians, Australia has established a national consortium of eight universities to develop and deliver a Masters program in biostatistics. This article describes our successful innovative multi-institutional training model, which may be of value to other countries. We first present the issues…

This publication is part of the study materials for the distance education course, Adults Learning: The Changing Workplace A, in the Open Campus Program at Deakin University. The first part of the document examines the roles, skills, and methods used by facilitators of workplace learning in light of a social action view of learning. The following…

A study examined training and staff development initiatives in Australian industrial and commercial organizations. It was carried out using a questionnaire and structured interview technique with 24 organizations. Larger organizations had their own facilities and trained in-house whereas smaller organizations made more use of Technical and Further…

Society is becoming increasingly aware of the need for education to play a key role in integrating knowledge and understanding about sustainability into practical, vocational skills which can be used in the workplace. Education for sustainability is now a widely accepted concept which seeks to promote and develop sustainability skills and…

A study surveyed 38 rural high school career advisers in New South Wales (Australia) to examine how they promote health careers to high school students. Visits to schools by students enrolled in tertiary health courses and locally practicing health professionals, and health careers site visits were considered to be most effective. Includes…

This report focuses on use of large-scale economy-wide models in Australia for occupational forecasting and their use in the vocational education and training (VET) sector for making decisions about training profiles across occupational areas. Section 2 reviews objectives of VET policy as defined in the legislation and Australian National Training…

This paper, on the returns on investment (ROI) in training, introduces some practical examples for enterprises or organizations wanting to find out whether the money they have spent or intend to spend on training is necessary. It provides strategies for researchers who would like to undertake research in this area. The paper begins by examining…

This publication contains six essays that offer a range of practical and theoretical perspectives on work-related curriculum. It is part of the study materials for the one-semester distance education unit, Curriculum and Competencies, in the Open Campus Program at Deakin University (Australia). An introduction proposes a course design and pedagogy…

This study and evaluation of development education initiatives at the higher or postsecondary level in some industrialized countries has been prepared within the context of the education and information programs supported by Action for Development, a United Nations program. An opening chapter gives background on development studies in general, and…

The labour market is one the most significant markets in modern economies. Today labour embodies increasing amounts of human capital in the form of skills, talents and knowledge. Migration of workers between regions and countries can contribute to efficiency. People are moving from areas in which they are underemployed or unemployed to areas in…

A conceptual framework for school-based vocational education and training (VET) in Australia is based on a United States model. It implies VET has purposes beyond equipping young people with skills. Global themes in VET development are government use of VET as an economic and social policy tool to ensure skilled workforces; provision of VET…