Productivity is a central issue these days in any discussion about the economy. However, there is much more talk about productivity than there is real knowledge. We need a clear understanding of what direction productivity improvement efforts will take and what efforts are required to retrain the existing work force. (SSH)

Educational and occupational training programs initiated in times of high unemployment are actually designed to maintain social control of the unemployed. Current efforts by the Australian government to educate young, unemployed school leavers wrongfully shift the blame for unemployment away from the economy and onto the work force itself.…

Describes the role of North Carolina's 58-campus community college system in workforce training to meet expanding industries' needs. Reports on state coordination of training programs and funding methods. Explains ways of securing training equipment and facilities, the relation of these training programs to other college programs, and…

National developments and ways national dental manpower analyzes and forecasts may affect a dental school's determination of its entering class size are discussed. Health manpower development, dentistry changes, projections of supply and demand, forecasting, weaknesses in forecasts and predictions, and dental school use of national analyses are…

A Committee of Inquiry into Education and Training, established to investigate the provision of Australian educational facilities and services and the relationship between the labor market and the educational system, is discussed. The committee considered flexibility in education and training, apprenticeship, accessibility of education and…

Describes an approach to academic advising based on the concept that the advisor's role is to increase the student's human capital. Outlines five categories of personal characteristics that add to a worker's human capital (formal education, adult education, on-the-job training, health, geographic mobility), noting issues in each category that…

Discusses the growing importance of international education for job preparation. Describes activities planned or underway at Florence Darlington Technical College in South Carolina aimed at internationalizing the campus under four broad categories: resource development, awareness development and information dissemination, faculty and staff…

Project Refocus, the University of Missouri Kansas City's long-term, cross-sector collaborative project brings together business, labor, government, and higher education to address changing employment needs and retraining of laid-off workers. The program's 15-year evolution, activities, achievements, and lessons learned are described. (Author/MSE)

Discusses the development and trends of the "Shadow College," a flexible and responsive set of programming options that exists at the periphery of most two-year institutions. Reviews the Shadow College's relationship to regular collegiate programs and offers guidelines for evaluation of this alternative educational system's…

Current Population Survey data indicate that in 1991, only 40% of rural workers had received training on current jobs. Less educated, minority, and Southern rural workers were particularly unlikely to receive training. The nonmetropolitan training rate rose modestly, 1983-91, but less rapidly than the metropolitan rate, suggesting that fewer rural…

While research universities house many distinguished scholars and serve an important role, there is a significant mismatch between the doctoral students they produce and the kinds of jobs available for new faculty, for which the students are presumably being groomed. Over-reliance on the research model of doctoral education inhibits the…

Describes the objectives of a national study on workforce training conducted to determine needs for such training and results of community college efforts. Reports preliminary findings for 70 colleges, indicating that employers expressed considerable need for workforce training and were generally satisfied with the quality of programs. (AJL)

Describes the need for schools to develop partnerships with businesses and presents five model projects designed to stay ahead of the job market and create new jobs. Provides follow-up data on two of the models. Lists common elements of successful programs and provides tips on developing partnerships. (AJL)

A study compared the attainment of national vocational qualifications (NVQs) in Scotland and other U.K. regions. Data from the Labour Force Survey and case studies indicate that Scotland underperforms England in the attainment of NVQs, suggesting improved performance in the achievement of academic and traditional vocational qualifications in…

The present British government claims that its policies have transformed the economy and reversed its decline. This paper suggests that reforms have been guided chiefly by short-term political expediency and in compliance with the government's market forces ideology. A-levels need reforming to avoid serious shortages of professional skills.…