This report provides a comprehensive model of an optimum apprenticeship program, using survey and interview data to determine the essential characteristics of such a program. The model is intended to serve as a framework for constructing new programs and evaluating existing ones. Subsequent volumes will discuss survey findings in specific trade…

This report describes the early experiences of selected upgrading programs currently underway in American industry. The research focuses on the practical perspectives of these efforts, especially the constraints encountered in program design and implementation, and the various techniques and responses which may overcome these constraints. The…

The second phase of a two-phase study evaluated (through 24 care studies in California, Missouri, Illinois, and New York) the feasibility of implementing an evaluation model of workplace-based retraining programs developed during the first phase of the project in California. The feasibility study addressed two components of an evaluation system:…

Skill Upgrading in Cleveland (SUIC) is one of three manpower training and upgrading organizations which was funded to replicate and further test the High Intensity Training (HIT) model for upgrading underemployed workers. This report is a summary of activities aimed at upgrading low-skill, low-wage workers within a plant setting and with small…

Directed at persons who are not experts in program evaluation or workplace literacy, this handbook provides various options and processes that can be used for formal evaluation of workplace literacy programs. The handbook is organized in six sections. An introductory section acknowledges the weaknesses of any evaluation attempt. In the second…

This publication contains six essays that offer a range of practical and theoretical perspectives on work-related curriculum. It is part of the study materials for the one-semester distance education unit, Curriculum and Competencies, in the Open Campus Program at Deakin University (Australia). An introduction proposes a course design and pedagogy…

Current types of industry-sponsored educational programs, training facilities, and teaching and evaluation methods are described. The history of education and training within the corporate world and the roles of government and unions are traced. Factors that have limited college and industrial cooperation in employee education are also identified.…

This Skills Development Program (SDP) provides a generic set of actions employers could take to ensure that their organization has the work force skills necessary to compete globally today and tomorrow. The guide is organized by the 13 critical steps of the SDP: (1) determine if there is a need for improving workforce skills; (2) set specific…

Training interventions can be evaluated by calculating return on investment (ROI) and cost-benefit analysis. The four-level model proposed by Kirkpatrick is the dominant evaluation model used. Calculating ROI has been a critical issue for trainers and executives, but only a few organizations have implemented the process that is considered as…

These three documents (final performance report, evaluation report, methodology guide) are products of a project through which the Career Advancement Center provided workplace literacy services to two industries in Greenville, South Carolina. The final performance report discusses achievement of objectives, specifically employee assessment,…

This bibliography lists projects, products, learning materials, and other items of interest found in the Literacy Resource Collection in the Human Resource Development Canada Library. Most of the material is available for loan; contact information is provided. The preface appears in both English and French. The 164 materials consist of both…

Cuyahoga Community College's (CCC) Unified Technologies Center (UTC) collaborated with three Cleveland area manufacturing companies in a workplace literacy project. The project provided job-related mathematics and communications programs for 302 employees who needed basic skills upgrading to improve their job performance. The project…

In 1989, Valmont Industries, a global manufacturer of steel lighting poles, center pivot irrigation systems, and other technologies and Metropolitan Community College began to work closely to address the basic skills training needs of Valmont workers. This partnership provided a unique educational opportunity for both Valmont employees and the…

A project developed a model curriculum to be delivered by computer-based instruction to teach the required literacy skills for entry workers in the health insurance industry. Literacy task analyses were performed for the targeted jobs and then validated with focus groups. The job tasks and related basic skills were divided into modules. The job…

This book documents the range of training programs that are being established by employers and unions; assesses porgram functioning and results; and offers insights for practitioners, scholars, and policy makers. An introduction (Ferman et al.) provides a general framework for thinking about union-management training programs and presents an…