All publications

This conference paper was presented to the Third International Congress on Technical and Vocational … Show more

This conference paper was presented to the Third International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education and Training, 13–16 May 2012, in Shanghai. It argues that there are two key factors behind Australia's good record of employment for young people: high levels of post-school education with the consequence that there is not a large cohort of people in their mid-to-late teens flooding on Show less

This paper was presented to the 2011 TAFE Governance and Regulations Forum, 1 March 2011 in… Show more

This paper was presented to the 2011 TAFE Governance and Regulations Forum, 1 March 2011 in Melbourne. Tom Karmel argues that neither a simple definition of vocational education and training (VET) nor qualification levels are helpful. He suggests that VET is distinguished from higher education by different funding and regulatory arrangements, and teaching and learning styles. What confuses the Show less

NCVER commissioned six leading thinkers to offer insights into what is meant by a training market,… Show more

NCVER commissioned six leading thinkers to offer insights into what is meant by a training market, constraints upon that market and the areas for improvement in the system which would allow consumers greater choice. Show less

A history of performance measurement for the vocational education and training (VET) sector,… Show more

A history of performance measurement for the vocational education and training (VET) sector, beginning with the creation of the Australian National Training Authority in 1992 and ending with what we know of the current reforms. As well as discussing the various measures, the paper looks at the challenges that are brought up by indicators and makes some suggestions for indicators for the VET system Show less

This paper was presented at the Skills Australia, Academy of Social Sciences seminar in Sydney in… Show more

This paper was presented at the Skills Australia, Academy of Social Sciences seminar in Sydney in September 2008. This paper examines the demand for training. It concentrates on the factors that affect individual and employer demand, and points out that accredited vocational education and training (VET) need to be considered in the context of extensive use of non-accredited and on-the-job training Show less

It is argued that workforce planning should be built on an understanding of how the labour market… Show more

It is argued that workforce planning should be built on an understanding of how the labour market works and the links between it and education and training. Workforce planning is particularly difficult for the resources and infrastructure industry because the demand for resources is difficult to forecast and the industry is made up of relatively small employers and draws workers from a wide range Show less

The domestic demand for tertiary education (that is, excluding overseas students) is looked at in… Show more

The domestic demand for tertiary education (that is, excluding overseas students) is looked at in this paper. It argues that the concept is problematic because of the dominant role of the government in provision, and discusses the factors that impinge on it: fees, returns to study and demographics. It shows how student demand has been changing and looks at likely trends in coming years. Show less

Lifelong learning means different things to different people. This paper takes a pragmatic approach … Show more

Lifelong learning means different things to different people. This paper takes a pragmatic approach and examines adult engagement with various aspects of Australia's education and training system and the policy framework that underpins the system. It is argued that Australia's policy framework for lifelong learning is relatively weak because the educational framework is very open and does not Show less

This paper was presented to the KRIVET International conference on VET, in Seoul, Republic of… Show more

This paper was presented to the KRIVET International conference on VET, in Seoul, Republic of Korea, during October 2002. Show less