High quality traineeships : Identifying what works
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Comyn, Paul , Kemmis, Ros Brennan , Smith, Andy
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Report
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- Description: This study explores the common features of high-quality traineeships using case studies from the cleaning, child care, construction, retail, finance and insurance, and meat processing areas. The research identifies a range of policy measures that could improve both the practice and image of traineeships. A good practice guide has also been developed to assist in ensuring that all traineeships are of equally high quality.
- Description: 2003007937
How can the expansion of the apprenticeship system in India create conditions for greater equity and social justice?
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Kemmis, Ros Brennan , Comyn, Paul
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Journal of Adult Learning Vol. 54, no. 3 (2014), p.
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- Description: This paper reports on aspects of a recent project carried out for the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, which was designed to feed into the process of updating and expanding India’s apprenticeship system. The apprenticeship system in India is extremely small for the country’s population, even taking into account the high proportion of jobs that are in the informal economy, and is subject to very rigid regulation. Expansion of the system has been seen as vital in order to improve the supply of skills to the rapidly expanding economy, and also to address issues of disparity in labour market participation and equity for certain groups in Indian society. The paper firstly explains how findings about apprenticeship systems from ten other countries, together with analysis of the Indian situation, were used to present options for consideration by the Indian government. It then analyses these options for their social justice and equity implications.
How closely do Australian Training Package qualifications reflect the skills in occupations? An empirical investigation of seven qualifications
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Smith, Andy , Hampson, Ian , Junor, Anne
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Training Research Vol. 13, no. 1 (2015), p. 49-63
- Relation: http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/LP110200888
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- Description: This paper uses evidence from an Australian research project into under-recognized skills in occupations, gathered through industry-level interviews and company case studies, to examine VET curricula. The project, funded by the Australian Research Council, focused on skill in jobs traditionally regarded in Australia as unskilled. As part of the project, the evidence about skill was compared with the relevant qualifications. The qualifications are contained in Training Packages, which form the basis of most formal VET training in Australia. The qualifications for the seven occupations were in three broad industry areas (manufacturing, services and property services) and had all been developed in recent decades, unlike apprenticed trades which have long-standing qualifications and curricula in Australia. The comparison exercise showed some mismatches between the skills that were found in the researched occupations and the content of the qualifications. Some of the issues are believed to have broader applicability beyond these specific occupations and qualifications and thus can provide evidence to improve the design of Training Packages themselves.
- Description: This paper uses evidence from an Australian research project into under-recognized skills in occupations, gathered through industry-level interviews and company case studies, to examine VET curricula. The project, funded by the Australian Research Council, focused on skill in jobs traditionally regarded in Australia as unskilled. As part of the project, the evidence about skill was compared with the relevant qualifications. The qualifications are contained in Training Packages, which form the basis of most formal VET training in Australia. The qualifications for the seven occupations were in three broad industry areas (manufacturing, services and property services) and had all been developed in recent decades, unlike apprenticed trades which have long-standing qualifications and curricula in Australia. The comparison exercise showed some mismatches between the skills that were found in the researched occupations and the content of the qualifications. Some of the issues are believed to have broader applicability beyond these specific occupations and qualifications and thus can provide evidence to improve the design of Training Packages themselves. © 2015 Taylor & Francis.
How do vocational teachers keep up to date with trends in pedagogy and in industry?
- Authors: Smith, Erica
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Book chapter
- Relation: Berufsbildung zwischen Tradition und Moderne: Festschrift für Thomas Deißinger p. 365-379
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- Description: This chapter examines the important topic of the ‘dual professionalism’ of VET teachers in Australia. How, exactly, do they develop further and keep up to date in their industries and in pedagogy? Drawing sub-sets of material from a major national research project, the chapter provides survey evidence from over 900 VET teachers as well as detailed interview data from three case study training providers. The results show a high level of commitment to professional development, both formal and informal, particularly in teachers’ industry areas, sometimes relating to licensing or regulatory requirements within those industries. Some teachers undertook multiple professional development activities each year and were willing to pay for their own development. There was, however, some resistance to development activities that were perceived to relate primarily to compliance with regulatory regimes. The chapter proposes a matrix to represent engagement in types of professional development and then problematise this model through discussion of the resistance and relating it to earlier debates around competency-based training.
How lower-level and vulnerable workers benefit from employers' engagement with the national qualification system in Australia
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Smith, Andy
- Date: 2006
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at ACREWiKCL 2006, Socially responsive, socially responsible approaches to employment and work p. 1-22
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How vocational education and training researchers use theory in their research
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Clayton, Berwyn
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Training Research Vol. 10, no. 3 (2012), p. 251-258
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- Description: This paper is a preliminary investigation of the place that theory plays in vocational education and training (VET) research. Vocational education and training is an academic discipline, whose theory base has not previously been analysed in detail. The VET research community considers itself to be somewhat undervalued both by the broader education discipline in Australia and by some stakeholder bodies. Yet the community and its experienced researchers have a high reputation overseas. It could be that a better articulation of the theoretical framework within which we work, and the bodies of knowledge upon which we draw, may lead to a greater utilisation of our work by the broader scholarly community and, importantly, by relevant policy-makers. © eContent Management Pty Ltd.
- Description: 2003010685
How workplace experiences while at school affect career pathways
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Green, Annette
- Date: 2005
- Type: Text , Book
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- Description: How experiences with the workplace while at school affect young people after leaving school is the subject of this report. The experiences include those gained through work experience, school-based New Apprenticeships, part-time work and vocational placements in VET in Schools programs. Specific areas explored include the views of young people on the value of the various workplace experiences; for example, in relation to their staying at school and their post-school-to-work plans and pathways.
- Description: 2003006165
ILO survey report on the National Initiatives to Promote Quality Apprenticeships in G20 Countries
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Tuck, Jacqueline
- Date: 2018
- Type: Text , Technical report
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- Description: While the level of educational attainment has been rising globally in the past decades, in many countries education and training systems struggle with adapting to rapidly changing skill needs in the fast evolving labour market. The resulting skills mismatch exerts upward pressure on youth unemployment rates with young people opting for jobs that do not match their qualifications which in turn limits their salary and progression prospects. At the same time, businesses, in particular small and medium-sized enterprises, face critical skills shortages as they seek to expand. Unemployment affects youth almost three times more than adults. As such, it is crucial to implement measures to improve the employability of young people. It is in this context that the International Labour Office (ILO), with the support of the JPMorgan Chase Foundation, launched the Skills that Work Project: Improving the Employability of Low and Middle-Skilled Workers in February 2017. The project aims to promote quality apprenticeships as an effective means to provide young people from diverse backgrounds with labour market relevant skills, and exposure to the work environment and a smoother transition into employment. Quality apprenticeships are known to facilitate the school-to-work transition of youth as they offer employer-led skills development opportunities that lead to nationally recognised qualifications. As a result, policymakers increasingly rely on apprenticeships to address skills mismatch and youth unemployment. In fact, the G20, L20 and B20 have committed to promote apprenticeships. In this light, we believe it is timely and helpful to take stock of good national initiatives to improve apprenticeships and make the knowledge widely available as part of our continuous efforts to support evidence-based policymaking. The project also provides support to the design and implementation of quality apprenticeship programmes by providing a concise set of key information and practical tools. It is our hope that this report contributes to the promotion of quality apprenticeships by facilitating policy discussions and enhancing our knowledge base of various initiatives that have been tested in the G20 Member States.
Informal training and learning in Australian firms : the need for a new perspective
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Smith, Andrew
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Training and Development Vol. 27, no. 3-4 (2023), p. 442-460
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- Description: This paper examines the use of informal training for workers, by Australian companies and other organisations. Using survey data, it reports the prevalence of informal training and also the utilisation of different types of informal training. Differences are found by employer size, particularly for the different types. By examining qualitative responses, it is found that employers' perceptions of informal training are often not those reflected in existing literature. The paper therefore argues for a new definition of informal training which is comprehensible to employers and workers alike, so that more, and more reliable, research can be undertaken. © 2023 The Authors. International Journal of Training and Development published by Brian Towers (BRITOW) and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Intermediary organizations in apprenticeship systems
- Authors: Smith, Erica
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Report
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- Description: Intermediary organizations in apprenticeships are those which act on behalf of, link, or mediate between the main parties - apprentices and employers. An intermediary organization in apprenticeship systems is thus one that undertakes one or more of the following activities: employs apprentices as a third-party employer; trains apprentices as part of a specific arrangement with groups of employers; or undertakes other apprentice support activities on behalf of an employer or a specified group of employers. This discussion paper highlights different ways of classifying intermediary organizations, provides examples of different types of intermediary organisations and examines the different roles they can play to support the effective operation of apprenticeship systems. In particular, the report includes brief case studies of intermediary organisations in Australia, India, England.
Learning and development practitioners : identity, profession and future trajectory
- Authors: Barratt-Pugh, Llandis , Hodge, Steven , Smith, Erica
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources Vol. 58, no. 2 (2020), p. 220-246
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- Description: The increasing focus on learning and innovation within organisations has significantly changed perceptions and practices of learning. It has also generated an increasingly diverse and growing network of learning and development practitioners (L&D), constructing an emerging identity that is critical to organisational growth. Our study of nearly 800 Australian L&D practitioners explored their working roles, relationships, and development needs, in a contested environment. Our purpose was to explore how L&D practice has changed; if a professional identity for L&D practitioners is emerging; and what development needs L&D practitioners have. The practitioner responses from this study are used to model the emerging themes of L&D practice, substantiate the emergence of a ‘quasi-professional’ identity, and indicate the imperatives that underpin professional development frameworks. This knowledge provides a foundation for reconceptualising the learning and development practitioner domain. © 2018 Australian HR Institute
Learning at a distance: How distance education students use their learning materials
- Authors: Smith, Andy , Smith, Erica
- Date: 2005
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at What a difference a pedagogy makes: Researching lifelong learning and teaching, Third International Conference, Centre for Research in Lifelong Learning p. 522-529
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Learning to be drier in dryland country
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Campbell, Coral
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Journal of Adult Learning Vol. 49, no. 3 (2009), p. 520-543
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- Description: This research project, part of a much larger study, considered how people in regional communities learnt to deal with the impact of reduced water availability as a result of drought or climate change. The communities in the Mallee-Wimmera region of Victoria, Australia, were the focus of this study and a range of local people from different sectors of the communities were involved in interviews, which became our main data source. We recognise the limitation that not all viewpoints could possibly be accessed in the participant selection process. The resultant data indicated that significant changes were being made to local practices as a result of the learning taking place and that there were a range of processes which enabled adult learning across the communities.
- Description: 2003007933
Learning to control : Training and work organization in Australian call centres
- Authors: Smith, Andy , Smith, Erica
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Industrial Relations Vol. 50, no. 2 (2008), p. 243-256
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- Description: The organization of work in call centres has been the centre of study and debate for a number of years. This article explores the adoption of nationally-recognized training (based on formal qualifications) in Australian call centres, which is now becoming quite widespread, and its relationship to work organization and human resource management practices. The article draws on a national research project that explored the take up of nationally recognized training by Australian employers. A number of call centres were included in this study that forms the basis for the present article. One of the major attractions for call centre employers, apart from the financial incentives involved in adoption, is the close fit between nationally recognized training and work organization. Because of its on-job nature, such training fits the close quantitative controls that characterize almost all call centres. Because of its integration into the workplace and into work organization, nationally recognized training seems to be moving human resource management processes towards an increased emphasis on employee development.
Learning to work in a global economy: How countries use apprenticeship systems to assist school-leavers
- Authors: Kemmis, Ros Brennan , Smith, Erica
- Date: 2013
- Type: Text , Conference proceedings
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Links between concepts of skill, concepts of occupation and the training system : A case study of Australia
- Authors: Smith, Erica
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Book chapter
- Relation: Vocationalism in Further and Higher Education : Policy, Programmes and Pedagogy (Routledge Research in Education series) Chapter 6 p. 65-77
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- Description: This paper explores the nexus between the concepts of vocation and of occupational identity and their links to the training system. Vocational education and training (VET), and apprenticeship systems in particular, have grown from concepts of occupation. It is self-evident that VET prepares, or upskills, people for work, and therefore the training must relate to job roles, whether broadly or narrowly defined. However, the processes by which students receive training that is high quality, rigorous and government-funded are not clearly defined. One yardstick that can be applied is that training is much more likely to be privileged (in terms of training provision, rigorous curriculum and government funding) when a job is considered to be an ‘occupation’. The development of occupational identity is taken for granted, for example in traditional ‘trade’ apprenticeships in Australia or the UK trainers and teachers, employers, trade unions and policy makers share a commitment to the apprenticed trades as distinct and valuable occupations. What are the implications of these issues for the training system as a whole? In Australia, as in the UK, the availability of qualifications has kept pace with the structural changes in the economy as a whole (i.e. with the relative shift to service industries), yet some occupations and some qualifications are less respected than others. This paper uses recent research carried out in Australia to show the potential effects on workers and their access to training of conceptions of ‘worth’ in work.
Living in a 2.2 World: ERA, Capacity Building and the Topography of Australian Educational Research
- Authors: Seddon, Terri , Bennett, Dawn , Bobis, Janette , Bennett, Sue , Harrison, Neil , Shore, Sue , Smith, Erica , Chan, Philip
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Technical report
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- Description: Early in 2011, the Australian Association for Research in Education (AARE) and the Australian Council of Deans of Education (ACDE) established a joint working party to create a strategic plan for strengthening national research capacity in the field of Education. This proposal followed the publication of Excellence of Research in Australia (ERA) 2010 results, which revealed that the national average weighting of Australian research in Field of Research 13 (FoR 13) - Education was well below the 'world standard' rating of 3.0. Moreover, the 2010 ERA data demonstrated that we had no up-to-date picture of who is involved in educational research, what their strengths are, or how they relate to one another. As an input into strategic research capacity building in Australian educational research, this project begins the process of documenting who 'we' are as educational researchers. The research described within the report used an ecological model to address the project's overarching question, which was: What is the topography of Australian educational research?
Making training core business : Enterprise Registered Training Organisations in Australia
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Smith, Andy
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Vocational Education & Training Vol. 61, no. 3 (2009), p. 287-306
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- Description: This paper examines the Australian phenomenon of Enterprise Registered Training Organizations (RTOs). These are organizations that do not have training as their main business but that are accredited to deliver training and award qualifications, primarily to their own workers. Although Enterprise RTOs have been in existence in one form or another for around 15 years they have not been previously examined in the scholarly literature. The paper uses qualitative and quantitative data from two recent research projects to describe the nature and experiences of these RTOs and their workers. The findings are analysed using a framework recently used in an evaluation of the pilot of a similar English scheme: quality concerns, resource intensiveness, impact on the training market, and restriction to larger firms. The paper concludes that enterprise RTOs have been beneficial to workers and companies alike, although not without problems, and that the Australian system appears to present fewer risks than the proposed English system.
- Description: 2003007575
Managing apprentices and managing PhD students: Current concerns and transferable tips
- Authors: Smith, Erica
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: The value and voice of VET research for individuals, industry, community and the nation
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- Description: Apprenticeships and doctoral studies share many characteristics in common, such as the length of the ‘training contract’, and there has been considerable policy attention to both forms of ‘contracted training’ recently, with similar issues raised such as completion rates, timely completion, quality and so on. Companies that manage large numbers of apprentices or trainees face similar challenges to universities that manage large numbers of PhD students. The paper analyses four in-depth interviews drawn from larger research projects - two interviews with company managers responsible for apprentices and trainees, and two with Deans of Graduate Studies at Australian universities, who oversee the management of PhD students. The key points of policy documents in both areas are used to analyse the responses. Differences and similarities in management systems are highlighted, and good practices that could be transplanted between the two environments are identified.
Neighbourhood houses and men’s sheds, adult learning in community spaces. Transforming the future of education : the role of research
- Authors: Smith, Erica , Ollis, Tracey
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: AARE 2022 International Conference of the Australian Association for Research in Education, Adelaide, 27 November-1 December 2022, AARE 2022 International Conference proceedings
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