Four practical, easy-to-use management tools are presented which address data management needs and aid in managing things and people in a competency-based vocational education program. They are the task listing, the learning package, the time card, and the student performance agreement. (LRA)

Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of competency based instruction. Points out that, while not a cure-all, individualized instruction is one of the best available teaching tools. (JOW)

Effective learning on modular courses depends on prior mastery of learning-to-learn skills; integration of academic and work knowledge to overcome fragmentation; use of the spiral curriculum concept; and adequate time for practice and feedback before summative evaluation. (SK)

A combination of self-directed learning and teacher-directed learning provides a rich and flexible learning experience and accommodates various teaching styles. The key to a successful mixture is the appropriate use of criterion-referencing and normative-referencing for learner evaluation. (JOW)

Because preparing people for the world of work remains the primary purpose of vocational education, the behaviorist approach is the preferred learning theory on which to base vocational instruction. Other instructional activities aligned with behaviorism that are regularly used by vocational educators are active responding, required practice, and…

Because of lack of time and a dearth of specific programs, vocational education administrators have difficulty in acquiring additional education. Three major steps have been taken to remedy this situation: (1) research has been conducted to identify and verify the competencies important to vocational administrators; (2) competency-based modules…

Because of an expressed need for staff development for vocational education administrators, research was conducted to identify and verify the competencies needed by vocational administrators; competency-based modularized materials were developed to address those competencies; and a variety of competency-based training program strategies were…

The National Center for Research in Vocational Education's performance-based teacher education (PBTE) materials have been widely adopted and have had a marked impact on vocational instructor training and staff development. It has been found that the cooperative development procedures, extensive field testing, and the numerous institutional, state,…

Both the National Council for Vocational Qualifications (NCVQ) and Open College Networks or Federations (OCNs) have the objective of creating nationally coherent frameworks of qualification and training in Britain. However, they are very different organizations and have distinct, though potentially complementary, roles. Issues where the two…

The theory of scientific management was established as a way to increase workers' productivity. The following are among the key principles underpinning scientific management: task simplification and division of labor boost productivity; management must control the planning of work down to its minutiae; and remuneration should be based on output.…

The New Zealand Qualifications Authority was established to develop a consistent approach to the recognition of academic and vocational qualifications. The National Qualifications Framework was designed following surveys of a number of sectors: universities, colleges of education, polytechnics, private training firms, schools, businesses, unions,…

This document is intended to generate discussion about the plans of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority for developing a National Qualifications Framework. The document begins with an explanation of the qualifications framework in Maori and in English. A guide to reading the document points out its organization and the inclusion of diagrams…

This document contains 10 papers about and from a national forum that was conducted by the Adult Literacy and Numeracy Australian Research Consortium (ALNARC) to gather various perspectives on the inclusion of literacy and numeracy standards in Australia's national training packages and to discuss research about the implementation of training…

The six state-based research centers of the Adult Literacy and Numeracy Australian Research Consortium (ALNARC) investigated the effects of inclusion of literacy and numeracy standards in Australia's national training packages and the standards' impact on the quality of learning and work outcomes. The six ALNARC projects, which used a case study…

This book, aimed at mathematics and vocational educators and researchers, analyzes the historical, sociological, and practical elements of mathematics within vocational education against the emerging impact of technology. Focus is on the current situation of mathematics within Australian vocational and technical education and how that might be…