A study of joint apprenticeship programs in six basic construction trades by the Center for the Study of Human Resources of the University of Texas at Austin indicated that apprenticeship is an increasingly vital and effective training source. (Adapted from a 1974 Industrial Relations Research Association conference paper.) (EA)

The gap between evaluation theory and practice can be closed through a concrete system for effectively evaluating a training program to ensure that it contributes to an organization's success. The Training Effectiveness Evaluation (TEE) system can be applied to any training program in industry. It consists of three major elements: (1) an…

Discusses the strengths and limitations of television as a training device for business and industry. Notes that the effectiveness of television depends upon factors such as how closely the program content is related to specific training objectives, the characteristics of the trainees, and how well the instructor integrates the television…

A study of participation in training had as subjects black and white employees who were 17-24 years of age, not enrolled in school from 1966 to 1969, and who received company-sponsored training. Most of the employees were in lower socio-economic status jobs. Some 19% of the black youths received some pretraining, while approximately 10% of the…

Discusses the changing nature of vocational education in the community college, offers models and strategies for organizing and delivering vocational education, and presents evidence on program effectiveness and outcomes associated with student participation. Notes that for some vocational education approaches--for example, tech prep--little is…

Three major types of occupational training programs in Texas were analyzed to reveal their strengths and weaknesses and the extent to which each had succeeded in resolving the dilemmas common to all forms of occupational training. These dilemmas were effectiveness and relevance, the purpose and content of training, and targeting. Firm-based…

This study is directed to the question of whether an intervention strategy based on relatively concentrated amounts of basic education and on-the-job training is sufficient to make it possible for a large, non-union, private firm to assimilate disadvantaged females into its regular, blue-collar work force. It is concluded that the National…

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…

Mass production, introduced into the factories of the United States in the early 1900s, required workers who were trained to be cooperative, loyal to the company, and possessed specific job skills to operate the machinery. To produce these workers, American corporations turned away from the educational programs of the public schools, and began to…

Presents case study on personal computer teleconferencing to compare its cost effectiveness with that of on-site training. A model is described that uses a checklist for decision making in three areas: (1) initial considerations, (2) planning considerations, i.e., design elements, and (3) technical considerations, i.e., review and selection…

The Washington State Job Skills Program (JSP) was established by the legislature in 1983 as an economic development incentive to provide customized, quick-start training to meet the employment needs of new or expanding businesses in the state. Funds are granted to public and private educational institutions to train people for new jobs, prepare…

A project conducted by Northampton Community College established an automated manufacturing training center for use by industry in eastern Pennsylvania. The center assists small and medium-size manufacturing firms in evaluating and integrating off-the-shelf technology to make them more competitive in the global marketplace. Comprehensive services…

This book, which contains the proceedings of the first in a series of annual Policy Forums on Employability Development conducted by the National Center for Research in Vocational Education, is an examination of the contributions of the key training institutions in the United States to the preparation of young workers for work. Focusing on…

A project was designed to produce a broad description of current mining training programs and to evaluate their effectiveness with respect to reducing mine injuries. The research strategy was built on the ranking of mines according to the effectiveness of their training with an effective training effort being defined as that training which is…

Recent Australian research provides a solid body of evidence that training investments can yield very high levels of returns for firms across a range of sectors. It highlights these important factors about returns on investment (ROI): ROI come in many forms; immediate ROI are highest when training is highly focused; measuring ROI is not always…