As the need for educated workers in the workforce grows at the national and state level, educating low-skilled adults is one way of addressing the skills gap. Adult education programs offer low-skilled adults an opportunity to increase basic academic skills and prepare for college and career. Today, transitioning students from adult education…

The narrative of the "skills gap," or the notion that the United States economy suffers because employers are not able to find job applicants with workplace-ready skills (e.g., American Society for Training and Development 2012), has become an influential rallying cry in higher education funding circles in recent years. It is with these…

One possible reason for ambiguous findings regarding changes in work skills is the way work skills are defined and measured. Five conceptual bases for defining work skills are illustrated in the research literature: abilities of individuals, behavior requirements of jobs, ability requirements of jobs, behaviors exhibited at work, and abilities…

The scenarios project set out to develop a tool to improve understanding of vocational education and training (VET) systems in the linked contexts of economic and technological change; changes in society, work, and the labor market; and changing training/skills environment. Other key attempts at the European level to generate European scenarios…

This document contains three papers from a symposium on approaches to research in human resource development (HRD). "HRD, Feminism, and Adult Education: A Foundation for Collaborative Approaches to Research and Practice" (Yvonne M. Johnson) identifies common interests among HRD professionals, feminists, and practitioners in the field of…

This document contains three papers from a symposium on characteristics orientation, needs, and expectations. "Characteristics Orientation of Emerging Professions: Implications for Research, Policy, and Practice of Continuing Professional Education" (William H. Young, Margot B. Weinstein) reports on a qualitative study that examined…

These proceedings begin with the schedule, conference committee membership lists, and detailed agenda of the 1998 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development, which explored the relationship between learning and performance. Presented next are papers grouped by the conference's 35 symposium topics, which are as follows: university…

This document contains 18 papers from the partnership for vocational education and training (VET) section of an international conference on VET for lifelong learning in the information era. The following are papers are included: "School, TAFE (Technical and Further Education), and University Links, in Pursuit of a Seamless Pathway"…