Interviews with 200 training professionals in Australia suggested that the way competence and standards are constituted in competency-based education is not entirely congruent with employer needs. They could be reconsidered in order to represent the nature of vocational knowledge and characteristics of work. (SK)

The Australian approach to postcompulsory education involves professional and academic bodies in defining competencies for higher-level qualifications, resulting in a competency-based qualifications system. (JOW)

Interviews with over 200 people in 8 British and 2 Australian organizations identified 8 features of a healthy learning environment that contributes to organizational capability. Differences emerged between organization-driven and learner-driven learning activities. (Conains 74 references.) (SK)

Tacit knowledge and judgment associated with vocational education requires high levels of expertise on the part of assessors. A new model of competency-based education emphasizes the exchange of tacit knowledge and exercise of tacit judgment on learning, shedding new light on old debates about competency-based education and training. (SK)

In the Australian vocational education and training (VET) context, attention is often given to what youth work training programs should consist of, resulting in less attention on how youth work education and training programs might be imagined, constructed and implemented. In this paper, a particular South Australian youth work training program is…

Describes the status of career counseling in the Australian educational system and discusses developments that led to the implementation of the competency-based approach to career educators' education. (JOW)

Reviews competency-based models developed by the Ontario Society for Training and Development, American Society for Training and Development, Australia's National Training Board, and Britain's Training and Development Lead Body. Suggests an integrated approach that identifies knowledge, skills, and attributes underlying performance without rigid…

A 1995 Australian study found adoption of competency-based training (CBT) in technical and further education was much slower than planned. A 1997 study revealed wide variation in CBT implementation. Over 10 years the system is becoming workable but it is not yet evident whether it is improving the skills of the work force. (SK)

An Australian study assessed the effectiveness of competency-based training (CBT). Key advantages to employers were relevant, job-specific skills; learning and assessing done on the job; standardized outcomes; and accountability. Issues included recognition of the role of expert practitioners, limitations of CBT as workplaces change, and…

Competency-based training is not a singular model; it embeds radically different conceptions of competence, depending on whether delivery and assessment of training incorporate industry standards. Models that maintain a tension between the outcomes and processes of education and training, rather than a focus solely on outcomes, are most…

In the 1990s, the meaning of lifelong learning has shifted to focus on economic rather than social goals. Current policy issues in the development of a training/learning culture include competency-based training, demand-side responsibility for training, increased emphasis on learning in the workplace and the role of workplace trainers. (Contains…

This article discusses advantages and disadvantages of competency-based education and training (CBET), with emphasis on its application to vocational and higher education in Australia. Argues that, although CBET model is suitable for most vocational programs, the very nature of higher education prohibits its use at colleges and universities. (MDM)

The skills and competencies considered key to participation in Australia's society and work force and the process used to identify them were examined against the backdrop of the development of New Zealand's essential skills and generic competency developments in England and Wales, Scotland, the United States, Canada, and Germany. It was concluded…

Competencies are the focal concept in the world of education and training in Australia at this moment in 1993. This book is a collection of papers and has three purposes. First, it aims to provide basic information about education and training. Second, the book aims to explore something of what competency-based education and training looks like in…

The authors report on the use of competency-based instruction as a tool in the professional development of postsecondary occupational educators and industrial trainers in Australia. (Author)