Australia's agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry represents about 5% of the nation's total employment and growth in the last 10 years has averaged only about 0.3% per year. In 1996, it was estimated that 4.7% of government-funded training was directed toward this industry. A 1997 employer satisfaction survey indicated that 11% of…

Australia's cultural and recreational services industry encompasses radio and television broadcasting, motion pictures, theatre, music, other performing arts, and sports and services to sports. Only 2.5% of the nation's labor force is employed in the industry. The sector has a particularly high level of part-time employment (over 40%). Employment…

The nature of basic computer occupations has changed greatly since the early 1980s. The changes reveal a shift in the respective roles of the sectors of industry associated with computer services (manufacturing and industrial computing). The service sector has adopted the procedures of industry in terms of organization, methods, and quality,…

Data that were originally gathered during the 1978-1990, 1994, and 1996 Scottish School Leavers Surveys were subjected to a secondary analysis to identify the qualifications, characteristics, and choices of high-attaining female school leavers. The following were among the key findings of the analysis: (1) on average, young women from all social…

The effectiveness of a preemployment program that was initiated at Robert E. Abbott Accelerated Middle School in Waukegan, Illinois, was examined through a follow-up survey of the program's graduates. The survey population consisted of all 176 individuals who had participated in the preemployment club since its inception in 1994 (28 individuals…

This study is designed to improve understanding of the supply of and demand for information technology (IT) workers in America and contextual issues surrounding that topic. Chapter 1 examines aspects of the political context concerning IT workforce issues. Chapter 2 outlines a way to distinguish IT workers from a much larger class of workers whose…

Student level factors influencing the employability of technical and further education (TAFE) graduates over time were examined. Student Outcomes Survey (SOS) data were collected from 4,673 South Australian 1998 TAFE graduates and 2,819 South Australian 1999 TAFE graduates. Some students were employed (part time or full time), whereas others were…

An ongoing research project in Australia is focused on the concept of the transfer of competence across different working situations. It establishes a framework for learning that is student-centered and that integrates the concepts of activity theory, expansive learning, communities of practice, and multiple intelligences. Perceptions of those…

Australia's new information technology training package emphasizes assessment occurring in the workplace or in a simulated work environment. The options available to Australia's technical and further education (TAFE) institutes in delivering institutionalized training to meet this requirement were explored. The following four options were…

A survey of "STW [School-to-Work] Partnership Effectiveness and Sustainability" was conducted as part of a larger evaluation of the entire STW efforts in West Virginia. The findings of the study, drawn from responses from 51 STW directors, 53 businesses, and 11 labor organizations, include the following: (1) the partnership concept is…

This paper is designed to provide the reader with a map of how government funding of post-16 education and training provision in Great Britain operates, with a particular focus on Training and Enterprise Council (TEC) and Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) funding streams. It also outlines some consequences current funding arrangements have…

A project aimed to use United Kingdom full-time undergraduate student work experience as the vehicle for development of the students' skills to improve their subsequent employability upon graduation. It took an employer-led approach to develop a model transferable to other employers and higher education (HE) institutions. Arrangements were made…

Since 1996, Arizona has been building a comprehensive statewide system of school-to-work opportunities for students from kindergarten through college, supported by a School-to-Work (STW) implementation grant from the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education. After 3 years, a public opinion poll of a 2,200-person random sample drawn from parents,…

This brief provides information about the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998, how it will be implemented in the greater Phoenix, Arizona, area, and the program's relevance to business. The brief also discusses the current work force development system, including information on these five areas of interest: (1) what the literature says about…

This book presents empirical evaluations of the effects of different types of training programs in East Germany. Chapter 1 presents an overview of labor, the study objectives and results, and discussion of causality and the identification problem in evaluation studies. Chapter 2 examines point estimates of the effects of two types of continuous…