Vocational Learning: Links to Career development

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Vocational Learning Links to Career development

• Col McCowan
• Head, Careers Employment, QUT
• E-mail c.mccowan_at_qut.com
• Web qut.com/careers

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Outline

• Whats in a name
• Vocational Learning
• Career Development
• Research
• Links
• Contradictions/Issues
• Future

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Reports / Actions

• Youth Employment A Working Solution
• Dusseldorp Skills Forum
• Australias Youth Reality and Risk
• Youth Allowance
• Middle Schooling
• ASTF Bright Futures for Young Australians
• JPP A Window into the Future
• NCVER How People Choose VET Programs TAFE Uni or
  Work Choices in Years 10,11 12

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National Goals for Schooling 1.5

• In particular, when students leave schools they
  should have employment related skills and an
  understanding of the work environment, career
  options and pathways as a foundation for and
  positive attitudes towards , vocational education
  and training, further education, employment and
  life long learning

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National Goals for Schooling

• In terms of curriculum
• participated in programs of vocational learning
  during compulsory years and have had access to
  VET in senior secondary years
• develop enterprise skills with maximum
  flexibility and adaptability

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MCEETYA VET Task ForcePartnerships for Growth
Report

• Vocational Learning
• knowledge of the labour market
• specific examples of workplaces
• applications of skills competencies to work
• active workplace learning
• simulated classroom activities

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Vocational Learning

• through the study of work in a key learning area
• studying components in other learning areas
• community and school-industry partnerships
• Career Education and Enterprise Education
• development of key competencies and skills
• using experiential learning real problem
  solving

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VL in Years 9 10

• Principles
• essential element of all curriculum
• accessible to all students
• collaboratively developed with industry
• clearly articulated learning outcomes
• Outcomes
• develop skills competencies...
• understand the changing nature of work
• make informed choices
• future patterns of education, training work

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ASTF Bright Futures Report

• Vocational Learning
• Careers Awareness
• Key Competencies in Years 9 10
• Literacy Numeracy
• Enterprise Education

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Enterprise Education Vocational Learning

• General employability skills
• Enterprise Education
• VET in Schools (incorporating SWL)
• New Apprenticeships (secondary)
• Career Education
• Community partnerships
• Lifelong models
• Business participation models

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MCEETYA VET Taskforce Vocational Education
in Schools

• Key Elements
• Vocational Education Training (accredited)
• Enterprise and Vocational Learning
• Student Support Services (including CE)
• Business Community Partnerships
• Effective Institutional Funding Arrangements
• Monitoring and Evaluation

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Career

• An individuals progression in learning and work
  whereby
• Learning includes formal informal
• Work embraces periods of non-work,
  self-employment, voluntary, community, and life
  roles
• Progression can take place laterally or
  vertically as long as there is a sense of
  development or moving forward

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Career Development

• Is the lifelong process of self-managing learning
  and work
• being adaptive responsive to labour market
• staying current,
• updating skills learning,
• having a comprehensive self understanding,
• being able to respond to new varied tasks

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Components of CD

• Self Opportunity Awareness
  Awareness
• Decision Learning/
• Planning
• Implementation/
• Transition Learning

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CD Interventions

• Career Information
• Career Advising
• Career Counselling
• Career Education
• Career Guidance

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CD Theories

• Trait Factor
• Personality
• Social Learning
• Systems
• Developmental/Life-span
• Decision Making
• Constructivist
• Happenstance

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Developmental/Life-span

• Growth (0-14)
• Curiosity
• Fantasy
• Interests
• Capabilities
• Exploration (15-23)
• Crystallization
• Specification
• Implementation

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Research

• Pre-school
• Years 2 to 6
• Years 6 and 9
• Subject Choice
• Year 6
• Year 10
• Singapore
• Exploration

• Follow up
• Sem 1 University
• Participation
• Subject Choice
• NCVER
• K - 12
• Gysbers
• Sweet

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Research Findings

• CD does go on
• Starts early
• Importance to individuals and nations
• We can influence it positively
• Short term approaches have minimal effect
• We need to begin earlier
• We need a building blocks approach
• It is a critical part of education
• It takes a comprehensive approach
• Its bloody complex!

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MCEETYA National Career Taskforce

• Standards for career professionals
• Quality issues - career information NCIS
• Effective coordination of info/educ/guid
• National coordination NCIS
• Coordination mechanisms sectors/departments/indus
  try/Commonwealth
• The Real Game trials

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Comparison CD and VL

• SELF AWARENESS
  OPPORTUNITY AWARENESS
• CD Personal understanding and assessment
  CD Patterns of participation/requirements
• Developmental stage Course
  and career pathways / options
• VL Participating in skill development
  VL Increase knowledge of world of work
• Exploring/extending strengths
  Broadening networks/personal horizons
•  
•   DECISION LEARNING / PLANNING
  CD Understanding modern decision
  making
• Dealing with influences/indecision
• Career planning / goal setting
•  
• VL Broadening choices/influences
• IMPLEMENTATION / TRANSITION LEARNING
  CD Coping with transitions
• Search / applications
  / preparation
• VL Dealing with
  articulation/requirements

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Comparison of CE and VL

• Career Education____________________Vocational
  Learning
• Dedicated program xxx
• Classroom Based
• Other subject areas xxx
• _________________________________________________
  ___________
• General options / trends xxx
• Information
• Career and course specific xxxxx
• _________________________________________________
  ___________
• In industry settings xxxxx
• Structured Experiences
• In school/community settings
  xxxx
• _________________________________________________
  ___________
• Personal support x
• Individual Assistance
• Guidance and counselling ---
• _________________________________________________
  ___________
• Integrate the process xx
• Coordination / Liaison

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Trends/Contradictions/Issues

• Generation gaps
• Commonplace vs expertise
• Developmental vs Immediate
• Training of Career Practitioners
• Quality Framework vs Outcomes
• Commercial vs Govt (neutral)
• Research (NCVER)
• Specific vs Whole School
• Immediacy vs Big Picture
• Reports vs Action
• Terminology and using existing frameworks
• OECD

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Resurgence

• Cyclic 70/80/90/00
• Careers Taskforce
• NCIS
• The Real Game
• Career Industry Consortium of Australia (CICA)
• Melbourne symposium
• IAEVG
• Reviews including Qld / Kirby Report (Vic)
• Collaboration (CEAV/VETNETWORK)
• KFC