Asserts that enormous public resources are being expended to teach over specialized disciplines that are useless in a market economy. Calls for educational changes including updated curricula and training materials in economics; inservice education and retraining; and a national network of entrepreneurial education. (CFR)

In 1978, the two-year colleges of general and professional education (CEGEP) of Quebec were charged with taking on a more vigorous role in the economic development of the province. To formalize this new orientation, a number of vocational education and applied research centers were created, each specializing in a particular key technology. Centers…

A study obtained early information on the effects of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 on states' efforts to develop and implement effective systems of school-to-work transition. Systems in eight states were studied: California, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Oregon, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. State leaders understood the need…

As California's community colleges move into the 21st century, they face the challenges of providing access to affordable, high quality education and becoming sources of economic renewal for the communities they serve. To the measure that they address these issues, the colleges will become key assets for solving the economic and social problems of…

This report is part of the Investing in People Project, in which states worked to develop and implement work force preparation and training strategies to meet the challenge of a competitive global economy. The choices that states, firms, and individuals must make in order to enjoy a high standard of living are discussed. In order to achieve a high…

Chile lacks a sufficiently trained work force of forestry professionals to support the economic growth. Chile's basic economic comparative advantages have been availability and low cost of land, high growth speed of species used in plantations, and a low-cost labor force. Economic development has brought a rise in labor costs and consequently a…

An international consultation meeting was organized to identify major issues and priorities in the formulation of technical and vocational education (TVE) policies and strategies and to propose guidelines and format of future regional case studies. Participants submitted country reports focusing on issues considered essential to the development of…

Analysis of recent developments in vocational education and training in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe brings out certain common problems. On the economic level, Hungary, Poland, Estonia, and Lithuania are undergoing a profound crisis. Consequences for training have included the closing of many company schools or workshops, absence of…

This report proposes that state economic development policy and resources, and state personnel, with their knowledge of and access to the business community, can contribute to the intertwined issues of competitiveness and poverty. Following an introduction, chapter 2 examines four related issues: poverty, income equity, welfare dependency, and the…

To assist the Competitiveness Policy Council in drawing up this report, four of the Council's eight subcouncils were asked to provide their assessment of recent federal initiatives and to make any new recommendations that seemed appropriate. The participating subcouncils were Critical Technologies, Public Infrastructure, Trade Policy, and…

In 1989-90, a national survey was conducted to assess the scope and nature of contract training and other economic development activities at community colleges and technical institutes. The survey was sent to a random sample of 246 community colleges, requesting information on the colleges' workforce and economic development activities in 1988-89.…

This report is a primer on the multifaceted issues that state legislators are likely to confront under the rubric of human resource development. Chapter 1 proposes a philosophy: enabling every citizen to become a productive member of the 21st century economy is in a state's best interest both socially and fiscally. Chapter 2 focuses on the premium…

One of the most important strategies for promoting economic development is providing educational opportunities for entry into and advancement within the work force. In support of this strategy, Kansas public community colleges and vocational-technical schools have expanded their offerings to include customized training for businesses and…

Nigeria's National Open Apprenticeship Scheme (NOAS) is aimed at giving vocational skills to unemployed youth and helping them to be self-employed or get gainful employment. NOAS is targeted at Nigerian men and women aged 15-25. Minimum educational requirements vary by trade; course duration ranges from 2 months to 3 years. The number of trainees…

The nine papers in this monograph, written by members of the University Council for Research in Human Resource Development, respond to the following questions: What is the most important organizational issue of the 1990s, and what human resource development (HRD) research questions might be generated from this issue? The papers are as follows: (1)…