Increasingly, people are looking for education and training options that are more affordable, flexible, can quickly open doors to good jobs, and--ideally--pave the way for further educational attainment. Businesses also want to hire workers with the skills needed for jobs in growing industries. Non-degree credentials (NDCs) can often meet these…

This Special Report examines four principles for state leaders to consider as they develop or evaluate financial aid redesign reform efforts. The financial aid redesign principles, identified through a Thinkers Meeting that included experts from across the country, fall into four areas: Financial aid programs should be student-centered,…

Competency-based education (CBE) has garnered significant attention lately from reformers and policymakers. Put simply, CBE awards credit based on what students have learned rather than how much time they spend in class. Competency-based programs identify specific competencies, develop assessments to measure mastery of those competencies, and then…

"Accelerating Opportunity" responds to the nation's growing need for improved pathways from Adult Basic Education (ABE) to credentials of value in the labor market. It builds on promising practices developed in "Breaking Through," an initiative of Jobs for the Future and the National Council for Workforce Education, and…

Various forms of participation in postsecondary education by students with intellectual disabilities have received increased attention from the field of special education over the past decade. This review of literature from 2001 through 2010 builds on a similar review conducted by Neubert, Moon, Grigal and Redd (2001) to determine whether there…

The impact of national education policies on programme design practice in post-compulsory education tends to be marginalised in scholarly literature. This paper reviews and analyses the literature to explore how neo-liberalist discourses introduced in tertiary education and qualifications policies in New Zealand since 1989 continue to influence…

Postsecondary noncredit education has become increasingly common; many community colleges now enroll more noncredit than credit students. Much of the growth has occurred in workforce instruction and contract training, programs are noted for their role in meeting shifting workforce demands and providing skills in a way that is flexible and…

Hermods, the largest correspondence school in Sweden, was established in 1898 and has offered university-level courses since 1953. In 1973, a policy was implemented allowing any university department in Sweden to offer one or more of its courses as distance courses. At present, three forms of university-level distance education are available in…

This article reflects upon three issues of policy and purpose of vocational education: (1) providing equality of educational opportunity, (2) the goals of the field, and (3) interpreting the goals for postsecondary preparatory programs. Focus is on postsecondary programs. (CT)

U.S. high school students' lack of preparedness has serious implications for the economy and prosperity. For most of the nation's history, manufacturing workers with modest formal education could earn decent wages. For roughly 60 percent of the jobs in today's labor market, at least some postsecondary education is needed, and that percentage is…

A study analyzed the role of state governments in implementing federal education and job training policies and in designing and implementing their own policies. A framework was developed for understanding policy instruments used to promote education and training objectives: mandates, inducements, capacity-building, and system-changing. Each type…

A study focused on the development and preliminary validation of a framework for effective vocational education programs serving students with special needs. An initial framework composed of 20 program components was posited from an analysis of recent, rigorous studies of vocational education programs serving disabled, disadvantaged, and limited…

In 1980, the Ontario Ministry of education published "Issues and Directions," a set of initiatives drafted in response to the effects of declining school enrollments in Ontario. This publication is a retrospective report, looking back at the initiatives set out in "Issues and Directions" and reporting on their results as of…

This comprehensive admissions model is designed to assist school personnel on both the secondary and postsecondary levels in the State of Missouri with the admission and selection of students for vocational programs. Presented in flow chart form with an accompanying outline to describe its various steps, the model addresses the following stages of…

This document contains eight papers examining different aspects of categorization, divisions, and choice in further education (FE) that were commissioned during a study of tripartite pathways (for example, academic, vocational and applied) in education and training for 16-19 year olds in the United Kingdom. The following papers are included:…