This article explores the state of skills development for smaller enterprises in South Africa through a consideration of two recent empirical studies of very small and micro enterprises (VSMEs--those with 2-10 employees). It provides new evidence about the complexity of the VSME sector and the mixed performance of state attempts to engage with it…

The Illinois Community College Board provided more than $3.3 million to community colleges during fiscal year 2008 to provide workforce and economic development services through their Business and Industry Centers. The workforce development activities conducted under this grant include customized job training on campus or on-site at a business;…

As part of a review of its Small Business Management courses and seminars, William Rainey Harper College in Illinois conducted a study of students currently enrolled in spring 1995 and students who had enrolled from fall 1993 to fall 1994 to determine the students' characteristics, the effectiveness of marketing efforts, and students' perceptions…

Functional illiteracy is an urgent problem for the U.S. business and industrial communities. Employers can uncover literacy problems among employees by conducting analyses of the literacy tasks needed on the job and assessing the basic skill levels of their work force. The design of a basic skills training program should be based on clearly…

An international meeting explored work on business start-up undertaken jointly by CEDEFOP (European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training) and France's Agence Nationale pour la creation d'entreprise. One opening presentation (Melis) addressed the basic idea underlying the research: to identify and highlight the role of training and…

Apprenticeship is the main avenue to self-employment in micro-enterprises and thus a cornerstone of informal sector development in West Africa. Survey results for Ibadan, Lome, Dakar, Niamey, and other cities demonstrate that apprenticeship as practiced by informal sector artisans is often very similar from one country to the next. Dropout rates…

This teacher resource manual is a support document developed to assist teachers responsible for Enterprise and Innovation courses; it is intended to be used in conjunction with the corresponding program of studies in the curriculum for Alberta, Canada. The manual has been developed to assist classroom teachers by providing the following: (1)…

Rapid changes in manufacturing technology and procedures have created a need for additional training for manufacturing workers. Traditional postsecondary vocational training is generally perceived as not adequately meeting this need because vocational training programs quickly become obsolete in the face of rapid workplace change. Customized labor…

A project was undertaken to develop a guide to help small business programs select good education and training programs for their staff. An initial step was a review of literature related to adult education and training in small business and training evaluation. The initial plan was to have the guidebook be specific to a given industry or other…

This instructor guide for a unit on business operations in the PACE (Program for Acquiring Competence in Entrepreneurship) curriculum includes the full text of the student module and lesson plans, instructional suggestions, and other teacher resources. The competencies that are incorporated into this module are at Level 1 of…

This instructor guide for a unit on operations in the PACE (Program for Acquiring Competence in Entrepreneurship) curriculum includes the full text of the student module and lesson plans, instructional suggestions, and other teacher resources. The competencies that are incorporated into this module are at Level 2 of learning--planning for a…

This instructor guide for a unit on business management in the PACE (Program for Acquiring Competence in Entrepreneurship) curriculum includes the full text of the student module and lesson plans, instructional suggestions, and other teacher resources. The competencies that are incorporated into this module are at Level 3 of learning--starting and…

This instructor guide for a unit on financial analysis in the PACE (Program for Acquiring Competence in Entrepreneurship) curriculum includes the full text of the student module and lesson plans, instructional suggestions, and other teacher resources. The competencies that are incorporated into this module are at Level 3 of learning--starting and…

A project was conducted in Dudley Metropolitan Borough in the West Midlands, England, to determine needs for engineering training in the face of declining industry and to halt the decline in industry and enrollment in the three colleges in the area. A project leader was chosen and a team trained in 3 weeks of workshops on market research, training…

One of a series of units on business issues designed for secondary school students, this packet focuses on the farmers' cooperative corporation, a particular type of business organization created to increase farmers' control of the production and marketing of their goods. Two separate sections consist of a teacher's guide and student materials.…