This document is part of a Bridgespan Group research project that focused on the question: "How could a philanthropist make the biggest improvement on social mobility with an investment of $1 billion?" In answering this question, the authors have sought to understand "what matters most" for improving social mobility outcomes.…

Informational interviews are valuable tools for improving writing, editing, and interviewing skills, and they are also extremely valuable in improving the soft skills that are valued by employers, such as confidence, adaptability, the ability to set and keep deadlines, the ability to manage risk, and so on. These soft skills, this article argues,…

In an effort to develop a more uniform and comprehensive system of national skill standards, the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor have awarded grants to 22 technical committees, composed of representatives from business, labor, and education, in a variety of industries and occupations. These projects will begin proposing national standards…

This inventory contains summaries of current and completed activities sponsored or conducted by local collaborative councils through the Work-Education Consortium Project. The summaries are grouped into ten issue area/process categories: (1) engaging community resources for youth; (2) opportunities for work and service experience; (3) employment…

Explains how the existing workforce in Kazakhstan's oil industry is being upgraded in skills, knowledge, and competencies to bring them up to the standards of the West. Discusses the design phase, including career development plans, training plans, and business plans; job ladders and specifications; assessing skill levels; and an…

These materials represent the Curricular-Career Information Service (CCIS) at Florida State University, a self-directed career planning program especially for the visually disabled, designed to: (1) increase the amount of occupational information available to blind people; (2) provide resources for visually disabled students to increase their…

The Indiana Workforce Proficiency Panel is responsible for identifying a common set of essential and technical skills for success in occupational areas and issuing Certificates of Technical Achievement. Incumbent workers and students can earn certificates in seven areas that are in high demand in Indiana's labor market and offer high-paying jobs…

This two-part project was designed to determine the effectiveness of the staff exchange program in Kentucky. Part 1 of the project involved personal interviews conducted with selected vocational educators who had been involved in the staff exchange program during its six-year history. Also interviewed were the cooperating business and industry…

Because many handicapped students leave high school without a reasonable knowledge of the world of work, a clear understanding of self in relationship to potential occupational pursuits, or a mastery of the basic skills required to function in different occupational roles, the National Center for Research in Vocational Education developed and…

The major purpose of this project was to develop a computerized vocational counseling program consisting of an interactive computer package and a filmstrip series for use by unemployed/underemployed adults, handicapped persons, and prison inmates. Specific project objectives were to (1) determine clients' vocational counseling needs, (2) develop…

The evaluation report for the 1973-74 project year examines Pennsylvania's four major career education projects. The grade 10-14 component at Edenburg focuses on identifying 20 career areas, identifying behaviorally described skills required for the various occupations, developing the required skills through the use of tasks, modules, and units,…

The "Career Approach to Natural Resource Management in Wildlife and Recreation" program has completed its second year at Conrad Weiser High School in Robesonia, Pennsylvania. It is a vocational natural resources course designed to prepare workers in wildlife and recreation management, with strong emphasis on field study and/or…

The Generic Skills studies were designed to provide training specifications that will enable graduates of trades training programs to compete for job placement in a range of occupations rather than in a single occupation. The studies identified a number of trade families, classified on the basis of skills used in work performance, and also…

This report contains excerpts from career education units which were developed by Roanoke City (Virginia) teachers for kindergarten through adult education. Areas presented are (1) career awareness for the kindergarten; (2) a career model for elementary education; (3) a plan for implementing career education concepts in the elementary school; (4)…

The generic skills studies in Canada have as their objectives the formulation of generic skills, the identification of their uses for certain occupational groups, and the preparation of specifications for instructional modules in an attempt to provide greater flexibility to workers, employers, and vocational training programs. Another objective of…