This publication provides summary information about the publicly-funded vocational education and training (VET) sector in Australia. Information is presented for 1999, with the inclusion of 1998 figures for some tables. The information is based on data collected under the Australian Vocational Education and Training Management Information and…

This publication reports on a forum on competency based training (CBT) research in Australia. Section 1 contains biographies of presenters and panel members. Section 2 presents an overview of the research and highlights key findings. Summaries follow of each of the five key projects. "The CBT Decade: Teaching for Flexibility and…

Drawing on data collected in a national evaluation, this paper explores the contribution of Frontline Management Initiative (FMI) to the practice of management learning in selected enterprises in Australia. (A competence-based management development strategy, FMI places learning in an organization and links management performance to the…

Guidelines for the development of the University of Utah's externships and clerkships in community, hospital and clinical pharmacy practice are discussed. Topics include competency guidelines, curriculum, preceptor selection criteria, site selection, and preceptor and student evaluation. Behavioral objectives, library recommendations, and rating…

Discusses educational standards, core curricula, competence models, school autonomy, school evaluation, and from input-to output-control as important catchwords in the present education and school policy debate. Points out that the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) has triggered a new educational debate in Germany that calls for…

Describes an interactive computer program written to provide accurate and immediate feedback to students while they are processing experimental data. Discusses the problems inherent in laboratory courses that led to the development of this program. Advantages of the software include allowing students to work at their own pace in a nonthreatening…

A variety of beliefs and practices central to middle schools may cause special difficulties for gifted learners. Such practices often focus on potentially competing goals of student competencies versus student excellence and include such practices as heterogeneous grouping, cooperative learning, and an absence of clearly defined middle school…

Reviews the history of postdoctoral programs in dentistry and medicine, focusing on postdoctoral general dentistry education, and describes the changing health-care environment in which future dental professionals will practice, relating the dental postdoctoral experience to that in medicine. A strategy is presented to prepare dental practitioners…

A discussion of dental education focuses on what constitutes competency-based education and how such a curriculum is designed. Topics addressed include desirable learning events at various stages in the learning continuum; program components; definition and assessment of outcomes; interdisciplinarity; focus on the entry-level practitioner's needs…

The results of a survey of 158 teachers and 969 students at 2 elementary and 2 middle schools revealed that middle school teachers and students perceived the school culture as more performance-focused and less task-focused than did elementary school teachers and students. (MDM)

Candidates at schools of education accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) will be expected to show mastery of their fields' content knowledge and demonstrate that they can teach effectively. Administrators will have to demonstrate skill in creating an effective learning environment. (MLH)

The article examines the reasons why the United Kingdom's approach to vocational education is more confused and impoverished than ever, despite its central importance to contemporary society. Instead of celebrating skill and vocational knowledge, the United Kingdom has embroiled itself in tortuous debates about parity of esteem, while…

For more than 20 years, the benefits of international mobility for students have been taken for granted. Now, policy makers and educators have started to realize that internationalization and globalization do not magically happen by sending ever higher numbers of students abroad. The quality of international mobility has taken center stage of the…

Building the evaluation capacity of K-12 schools is clearly an important goal for the field of evaluation, especially in the current educational environment, which is dominated by issues of accountability and high-stakes testing. The focus on student achievement has forced schools to become more data-driven as they attempt to analyze test scores…

This study aims to develop and evaluate competency-based web learning material (CBWLM) for the college practicum Microprocessor Laboratory. After using the CBWLM for 8 weeks, this study investigates CBWL's learning effects and self-directed learning aptitudes (SDLAs) as well as exploring the influence of SDLA on learning effects based on the…