The procedures currently used in the 12 European Community (EC) member countries for certifying the employment qualifications of graduates of full-time vocational education and training programs and/or apprenticeship programs were compared. The comparison, which was based on information obtained from 12 national studies of EC members' education…

Research tested the hypothesis that preemployment vocational education is a major contributor to enterprise productivity, because it raises workers' skills that are then applied in more effective work practices. An intercountry comparisons approach involving Britain and Germany and Britain and the Netherlands or France identified medium-sized…

The high percentage of students failing State Board Examinations for licensure as registered nurses led to provisional accreditation being placed on the nursing program at Alvin Junior College (Texas). Teaching methodology was investigated as a possible contributor to these failures. A review of the related literature indicated that…

The programs developed in Austria, England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden to allow vocational students to acquire qualifications with a dual orientation toward employment and higher education were characterized and compared in a study. Three groups of programs were identified: those extending over an integral part of the…

Five studies assessed the impact on systems and jobs of the recognition of qualifications in the field of the restoration and rehabilitation of the architectural heritage in five countries: Germany, Belgium Dutch-speaking region, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom. A striking feature in all five countries was the insignificant share of initial…

In France and the United Kingdom (UK), procedures have been devised to allow the skills and knowledge acquired through life and work experience to be identified and accredited. In France, achievements from social and working life are identified in two ways: the personal and occupational competencies of workers are evaluated through a "bilan…

The interface between further education (FE) and higher education (HE) in the United Kingdom was examined by analyzing information from the following sources: available literature; all United Kingdom (UK) data sources regarding student enrollment, funding, objectives, and modes of study; interviews with representatives of national bodies concerned…

Reports on the development and recognition of environmental protection qualifications in the chemical and metal industries in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom were synthesized. The synthesis focused on companies' and social partners' current and planned strategies and obligations of companies regarding recognizing…

In both France and Germany, the government, employers' organizations, and unions all participate in defining vocational diplomas based on a national framework of procedures of elaborating and standardizing titles. Important differences between the diploma definition processes in France and Germany may be identified. In Germany, the issue is…

This document examines the transferability of distance learning qualifications within the 16 member states of the European Union and 18 Eastern European countries. Chapter 1 explains the document's structure, and chapter 2 presents basic information about the legal background regulating the recognition of academic and vocational qualifications in…

The 15 chapters in this book deal with varying institutional characteristics of educational systems and their effects on occupational outcomes. "The Institutional Embeddedness of the Stratification Process: A Comparative Study of Qualifications and Occupations in Thirteen Countries" (Walter Mueller, Yossi Shavit) discusses results of a comparative…

The European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) commissioned 12 experts in the vocational training (VT) systems of the individual member states of the European Community (EC) to develop monographs describing the EC members' VT systems and procedures/systems for certifying vocational qualifications. The 12 national studies…

This paper explores educational stratification of unemployment in early labor market career; its institutional embeddedness in specific education and employment systems; and youth unemployment in France (F), the United Kingdom (UK), and West Germany (G), which greatly differ relative to major institutional characteristics of education systems and…

The divergent cultural patterns, philosophies of education, and basic structures of government in Japan and the United States have resulted in distinct differences between the educational systems of the two countries. The national government strictly regulates all aspects of Japanese education (including student achievement levels and the…

Ireland's vocational preparation and training (VPT) program was evaluated to determine its effectiveness in achieving the general/specific objectives specified in Ireland's national development plan, responsiveness to local needs, outcomes, and future challenges. The data collection activities were organized in three phases as follows: exploratory…