This study provides new evidence on the inter-relationships between Indigenous Australians' association with their traditional culture and their engagement with vocational education and training.
This report examines whether expansion in education has led to credentialism in the workforce. The authors employ the ‘ORU’ model to compare the required level of education for a job and the actual level which is held by an individual in that job. This model defines an individual as being over-educated (O) for their job, having the right level of education (R), or being under-educated (U). Credentialism is then measured against the benchmark ‘right’ level for older cohorts. Findings show that younger cohorts will suffer from credentialism to the extent that more of them are over-educated compared with the older cohort. The ‘bite’ of credentialism is then measured by the wage penalty associated with this over education. However, the penalty is a modest one and on the whole additional study results in skills which are rewarded by higher wages.
This paper assesses the fitness-for-purpose of the existing Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) instruments as a source of information on the determinants of youth transitions in Australia.
In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher Mike Dockery about his report on 'Education and happiness in the school-to-work transition'. Using data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), this report examines the relationship between education and happiness. The report finds that undertaking vocational qualifications such as an apprenticeship has a positive impact on happiness both during the training period and after completion. For university graduates, however, happiness declines following completion of their study.
Education is generally seen as enhancing people's lives. However, previous research has reported an inverse relationship between education and happiness or satisfaction with life: as education level goes up, happiness goes down. Using data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), this report examines the relationship between education and happiness. The impact of factors such as family circumstances and personality traits are also considered. The report finds that undertaking vocational qualifications such as an apprenticeship has a positive impact on happiness both during the training period and after completion. For university graduates, however, happiness declines following completion of their study.
In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher Michael Dockery about his report, 'Cultural dimensions of Indigenous participation in education and training'. This study provides an important innovation to the existing literature by explicitly attempting to measure 'cultural attachment' and its relationship with post-compulsory education and training.
This study provides an important innovation to the existing literature by explicitly attempting to measure 'cultural attachment' and its relationship with post-compulsory education and training.
Successive Australian governments over the last 20 years have focused on providing employment programs which support Indigenous people into their jobs. This report finds that the effectiveness of such programs has rarely been rigorously evaluated against their diverse objectives. It highlights a recent shift in policy toward strict employment outcomes, making programs easier to evaluate, but also cautions against applying the same 'mainstream' objectives to all Indigenous communities.
This study analyses the role of traineeships in the transition from school to work, using data from a sample of a group of young Australians who were in Year 9 in 1995. This group of young people has been surveyed each year from 1995 to 2002. The characteristics associated with participation in a traineeship are examined, as are the labour market outcomes. It was found that young people who undertake traineeships between the ages of 15 and 21 years do better in the labour market than those who leave school and do not undertake any post-school education and training.
This report investigates factors that influence the decision-making process of applicants and the outcomes of post-school applications using the 2001 Survey of Education, Training and Information Technology. It finds that inability to obtain any place at a university or vocational education and training institute in 2001 was very low, but considerably higher in terms of getting a place in a preferred course at a preferred institution. The report adds to the understanding of what is known about the prevalence and causes of unmet student demand for tertiary education, a sensitive issue which is often not well understood.
The aim of this study is to discover whether it is beneficial for all young people to complete school. It provides estimates of the benefits of additional years of schooling for young people assessed as non-academically inclined. Evidence shows that further years of education can be detrimental to some young people. The report concludes that policy makers should ensure reasonable alternatives such as job openings, traineeships and apprenticeships are are not ignored and that the varying needs of all young people are met. Research report no. 38 This report, published by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), is part of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) research program.
The transition from school to work continues to be difficult for some Australian school-leavers and youth unemployment remains high. This report looks at the methods used by Australian school-leavers to find employment, focusing on the social processes involved. The aim of the report is to assess various relationships. In particular, the relationship between schooling, social background and job finding strategies and the connection between the method used to find work and the quality of work obtained. It also assesses the importance of informal methods of job seeking behaviour in helping young people find employment. Research report no. 37 This report, published by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), is part of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) research program.
This report uses the Australian Bureau of Statistics Business Longitudinal Survey to explore relationships between training, innovation and firm performance of Australian businesses with less than 200 employees.
This report examines trends in occupational mismatch in the metal, building, vehicle and electrical trades and questions whether the process of award restructuring has created incentives for unskilled blue collar workers to pursue skill-based career paths in the trades. The report examines the reasons for high attrition rates by qualified workers from their trade as well as the motives behind employers' decisions to hire unqualified workers to do trade work.
This book reports an attempt to replicate, for Australia, overseas survey results on the payoff to enterprise training. Some of the results are: * Australian firms provide extensive training for their incoming employees and capture nearly all the resulting productivity gains. * The profitability of firms is directly related to the amount and quality of training that they provide. * The profitability of training is particularly high for training that is highly specific, rapidly accomplished and related to the introduction of new technology. * Informal learning is regarded by many businesses as superior to formal classroom training in terms of its impact on profitability and productivity.