The Manhattan Transition Center provides supported employment for youth with mild to severe disabilities. Local enclave worksites staffed by teacher/paraprofessional teams place participants in jobs. Under the zero-reject policy, employers and service providers are responsible for participants' personal and work-related growth. (SK)

Case studies of vocational training/adult basic education programs for unemployed British women demonstrate that an explicit vocational focus in developing numeracy and literacy skills gives learners a tangible, practical objective. A noncompetitive atmosphere and feminist perspective also bring better results than many short-term training courses…

The history of the Youth Training Programme (YTP) in Northern Ireland indicates that employers take a very short-term view of training; that YTP is unpopular with youth, parents, and educators and is viewed as a substitute for work; and that YTP fails to provide high-quality training in skills needed in the economy. (JOW)

Three options for competency-based assessment in Australia's national standards system are grades, merit, and end-of-course assessment. Grades are well established; merit has flexibility and provides progressive feedback. All three have advantages and disadvantages. (SK)

Intending to organize a somewhat traditional teacher training program, a high school in Bellmore, New York, partnered with Adelphi University's School of Education and created an innovative program that provides student teachers with a paid, on-the-job internship beyond the 10-week student teaching period. (MLH)

States that revitalizing inner cities requires training and jobs. Illustrates how some companies are meeting the challenge of training inner-city long-term unemployed persons. (SK)

The subjective judgments of 188 government policymakers, counselors, supervisors, co-workers, and others toward employment training for persons with very severe disabilities were investigated. Respondents' reactions to videotape samples of employment training indicated more positive evaluations of students with less severe disabilities but…

Three job training models for young people are (1) emphasis in full-time schooling to age 18, as in Japan; (2) Germany's dual system of apprenticeship and continuing education; and (3) a mixed model as in the United Kingdom, where a small percentage remain in school to age 18 and a proportion enroll in work-based training programs. (SK)

Describes the Japanese system of employment counseling. Focuses on the current situation at the Public Employment Security Office, the problems employment counseling has faced, and future directions in view of the rapid changes occurring in industry and society. Includes an overview of the employment exchange system and a discussion of a…

Challenges of a changing Europe for education and training are new technology and organizational patterns, youth unemployment, professional mobility, and migration. Developments in Italy that exemplify change include literacy for immigrants, work-related education for women, "Green Universities," and transferable skills. (SK)

Industry-based skill assessment and certification should (1) be independent of training providers; (2) use variety of instruments; (3) recognize multiple levels of mastery; (4) promote broad training and continuous learning; (5) be geared to high-performance work organizations; (6) be voluntary; and (7) be flexible to keep pace with technology.…

Documents Shell Oil's success with interactive video training (IVT) and identifies the costs involved in this long-term investment. Provides guidelines for judging the effectiveness of IVT programs. (SK)

Examines the apparent paradox of young English people expressing positive attitudes about what they see as the imperfect organization of youth work-based training. Argues that people in the programs view them as one of their few means of advancement and, hence, rate them positively. Offers suggestions for improving training programs. (DSK)

In a study of 906 employed graduate students, women reported less employer support for their studies, less tuition assistance, and less job training. However, women generally had been employed a shorter time, worked fewer hours, and worked in smaller organizations. (SK)

Crash courses, late-night reading, trusted advisors, and conversations with constituents are re-educating a new breed of superintendent after their years in the military, business, or law professions. Some nontraditional superintendents recruit outside talent for their chief education officers. Many are irritated by rules, but surprised at school…