Since September 11, 2001, New York City (NYC) has lost over 130,000 jobs, unemployment in the boroughs is around 9% and unemployment benefits have run out for many. NYC has long neglected workforce development, viewing it as a social service to distribute federal funds and train entry workers for dead-end jobs. To create a workforce system from…

Properly conceived and implemented new initiatives are essential to improving schools and communities. Such new initiatives usually are pursued as projects, pilots, or demonstrations, with temporary funding and staffing. When the funding ends, more often than not much of what has been developed disappears. Sometimes this is appropriate (e.g., when…

Vocational and technical training in Singapore has a relatively short history. Only after Singapore became independent did the need to formalize a national system of training to support the labor force needs of industrialization become evident. Singapore's first vocational institute was established in 1964. The system has experienced several…

This document synthesizes reports on quality issues and trends in vocational education and training (VET) in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. Discussed in the report's five sections are the following topics: quality concepts and their application to VET (VET in Europe, quality concepts and their application…

This paper is the result of a request from the European Commission Directorate General XXII for an in-depth study into the vocational education and training system in one of the countries of the New Independent States of Mongolia. This document examines those parts of the Kyrgyz education system with direct links to Vocational Education and…

Studies of vocational education and training (VET) students' movement into higher education (HE) typically show that VET students granted admission perform at least as well as other admitted applicants; however, such students are often less likely to gain admission in the first place. A move toward competency-based training (CBT) and a concomitant…

Current school improvement tools are largely piecemeal and often lack credible supportive evidence. Knowledge Work Supervision (KWS) is built on the premise that schools must develop the capacity for sustaining districtwide improvements. Chapter 1, "The Past Before Us Is Not the Future," summarizes the key elements of the four phases of…

The Assessment Tools for Adult Education project was designed to provide training and support to staff of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Adult Basic and Literacy Education (ABLE) funded programs to help them use assessment tools and procedures to document the learning gains of the adult students they serve. The following candidate assessment…

The massage therapy profession is currently engaged in a competency-based education movement that includes an emphasis on promoting massage therapy research competencies (MTRCs). A systems-based model for integrating MTRCs into massage therapy education was therefore proposed. The model and an accompanying checklist describe an approach to…

A systems approach to changing labor market performance requires a substantial and enduring commitment to the task of change. A systems reform framework has been developed that is based on a dual-customer approach, with a focus on improving labor market outcomes for both low-income people and their employers. The objective is to change the labor…

This proceedings document includes papers presented at a conference on children's mental health, systems of care, and research. Papers are grouped into 11 chapters which address the following topics: (1) program and system evaluations (nine papers); (2) managed care in children's mental health (six papers); (3) accountability and information…

This booklet is intended to help local workforce investment boards (WIBs) frame ongoing discussions in their communities about workforce needs and how to meet those needs. The booklet begins by explaining why the United States needs a new workforce system. The following new leadership roles for WIBs are discussed: (1) articulate changing workplace…

This Community Perspective Series document includes statements about young people in the new economy of Toronto made by three participants in the October 2000 annual general meeting of the Toronto Training Board. "A Hitchhiker's Guide to the New Economy" (Olivia Chow) suggests that training programs available to young people are…

In the context of the United Kingdom's further education (FE) system, continuous professional development (CPD) can be considered to include study for further qualifications and formal and informal in-college development programs. The tradition has been for teachers to determine their own development. In situations where resources to support…

Law and policy regarding vocational education and training (VET) in Australia was systematically examined to explore these three hypotheses: (1) Australian law and policy on VET have not evolved in a systematic manner; (2) they also do not provide a coherent and internally consistent program for VET in Australia; and (3) they do not provide…