Literacy is a social practice central to sharing of knowledge and skills in the workplace. Workplaces increasingly demand workers who take on multiple roles and share and manage knowledge in new ways, so high levels of worker literacy and worker collaboration are increasingly important. Workplace training must facilitate development of active and…

Historically, the roles of the public and private sectors in VET have been characterized by the following broad stages: (1) unstructured and unregulated VET; (2) supply-driven, state dominated VET; and (3) market-driven VET. More recently, the combined forces of globalization, technological change, and liberalization of markets have forced…

To investigate affective dimensions of adult literacy development more systematically, researchers conducted a qualitative comparative analysis of four women participating in an adult literacy program in Istanbul, Turkey. The contrastive study chose two participants who completed the course; each was matched with a participant who had dropped out.…

This book presents an argument for supporting single-sex education. It examines the history and politics of gender and schooling; philosophical and psychological theories of sameness and differences; findings on educational achievement and performance; research evidence on single-sex schooling; and the legal questions that arise from single-sex…

Student-level data were collected in 5 states California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, and Oregon and analyzed to build understanding and improve the role of community colleges in adult education and literacy. The states illustrate the degree of diversity in governance systems and local provider systems and allow for comparative analyses by provider…

Traditionally characterized by a mixed human capital and human skills and resources model, the German education and training system has come under pressure from structural changes in economy and society. The emerging "new economy" is more than the sector of information technology industries. Beyond global action and rapid exchange of…

This document launches a wide public consultation with all those involved in and with an interest in the European Union's (EU's) education, training, and youth programs called Socrates, Tempus, Leonardo da Vinci, and Youth for Europe. It is the first step toward preparing the new generation of programs to start in 2007 and will inform the…

This report (written in Spanish) of the National Council on Disability (NCD) describes the nation's progress in advancing public policies to increase the inclusion, empowerment, and independence of people with disabilities in light of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The report covers December 2000 through December 2001. It reviews…

This paper outlines the skills and learning challenges that Canada faces to ensure it meets its skills and learning requirements for the 21st century. It proposes a series of national goals and milestones against which progress can be measured over time and reported on regularly to Canadians. Following an introduction, Sections 2-5 discuss the…

This booklet is designed to offer preschool staff who are working with children with special needs a process for supporting children and families through the transition to kindergarten. It begins by discussing the teachers role as a partner to parents of children with disabilities. A timeline is then presented for planning a child's transition to…

This paper compares the influence of state policies on gender roles and women's empowerment in China, India, and South Korea. In 1950, these newly formed states were largely poor and agrarian, with common cultural factors that placed similar severe constraints on women's autonomy. The three countries followed very different paths of development,…

Models of workplace learning and principles for funding workplace learning in Australia were identified through case studies and a literature review. A diverse array of workplace-based approaches to delivering nationally recognized qualifications were identified. The following were among the nine funding proposals formulated: (1) funding…

A study examined the experiences of some 1.4 million American defense industry workers, displaced in the wake of the Cold War, as a way of reviewing and evaluating national policies toward worker adjustment and re-employment as they have evolved in the 1990s. The study found that the federal government, through the Department of Labor,…

This paper surveys European and United States approaches to public funding for post-compulsory education and offers an analytical framework describing how the funding is allocated, with a particular focus on identifying the principles that governments use to determine access to public funding for post-compulsory education. The study identifies two…

Globalization is an evolving concept characterized by economic, technological, social, and political dimensions. Vocational education and training (VET) practitioners and the VET system must make more conscious efforts to lead thinking about the social dimension of globalization. The mission of Australian VET today is largely couched in economic…