This report describes the background and links among education, training, labor market, economy, and society. Part 1 deals with the statutory, institutional, and political background to vocational education and training (VET), steering of VET systems, funding, and performance of VET systems and the European context. Part 2 discusses research on…

Key players in U.S. and Canadian vocational education and workforce training resemble each other. Motives from cultural values, ethics, or personal gain drive players' interaction. The U.S. government is increasing availability of grant funding but influencing policy by stipulating conditions on grant monies. In Canada, the federal government is…

To determine the differences between the professional attitudes of full- and part-time instructors, this study was conducted on a national sample of community college faculty. The study's research design examined the attitudes expressed by faculty members on five dimensions discerned from the sociological literature on professionalism: knowledge…

The AIM (Assessment, Instruction, Mastery) system is a performance-based assessment that was developed in Oregon. The AIM system was piloted by 83 volunteers and staff from 18 volunteer-based programs to assess the system's usefulness as a means of collecting and aggregating data on student progress in adult literacy and similar programs in…

This booklet discusses some consequences of internationalization for national training systems from the standpoint of the following two broad approaches often taken by international organizations: (1) the human capital ideology, which assumes human capital is an appropriate basis for education policy; and (2) the human rights and human development…

A total of 29 representatives of government departments, financial organizations, career guidance organizations, and researchers and career and financial guidance, practitioners from across the United Kingdom discussed the similarities and differences between the fields of career guidance and financial guidance, and explored whether closer links…

In the past few years, union activists and some policymakers have increasingly portrayed part-time work as problematic for a worker. According to statistics compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the part-time "problem" is more rhetoric than reality. Only 17% of U.S. workers are classified as part-time. Of those 17%, 15% are…

In 1992, the U.S. Departments of Defense and Education jointly created a new high school program aimed at encouraging at-risk youth to remain in school until graduation. The program, which is a marriage of the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) and the comprehensive high school reform initiative known as career academies, was called…

The data presented in this National Education Association report provide facts about public educational resources committed by local, state, and national governments for state and local affiliates, researchers, policymakers, and the public as a tool to examine public education services. Regardless of state-by-state variations, improvements in…

A study investigated ways employers and their apprentices and trainees perceive how these employees' English language and literacy (ELL) skills affect their learning and performance in the workplace in the current context of New Apprenticeships. The research design and methodology involved sending an opinion survey to a stratified random sample of…

This document contains three papers on human resource development (HRD) in Asia. "The Experiences of HRD Professionals Participating in Continuing Professional Development in Taiwan" (Yu-Shu [Jason] Chen) reports on a study that was based on the method of hermeneutic phenomenology and conducted to describe and interpret the experiences…

This symposium on human resource development (HRD) and small manufacturers consists of three presentations. "Toward a Model of Technical Assistance for Small Manufacturers: The Role of Performance Technology" (Dale C. Brandenburg) reviews literature documenting the need for technical assistance to small manufacturers, especially as it…

The academic achievement of students in health occupations programs at High Schools That Work (HSTW) sites in 1996 was compared to academic performance levels at HSTW sites in 1994. Health occupations students at HSTW sites improved their average reading scores from 269 in 1993 to 278 in 1996. During the study period, the gap widened between HSTW…

The academic achievement of students in family and consumer sciences programs at High Schools That Work (HSTW) sites in 1996 was compared to performance levels in 1994. Family and consumer sciences students at HSTW sites significantly improved their average reading scores (from 261 in 1994 to 269 in 1996). The percentages of family and consumer…

The effects of work-based learning on student achievement were examined by analyzing data from the 1996 High Schools That Work (HSTW) assessment. The comparison focused on the experiences of 12th-graders in structured work-based learning programs and 12th-graders with after-school jobs. A larger percentage of students earning school credit for…