Context: The persistent low female participation in male-dominated trades and VET courses is not attracting a high level of public attention and policy action. There are determined, albeit ad hoc actions by advocates to raise awareness of the economic and social benefits that can result from increased female participation in the male-dominated…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore some of the issues affecting successful employment outcomes for young women in male-dominated careers, focusing on those generally accessed via a traditional Australian apprenticeship model. Current patterns of participation in trades-based fields of education and training reinforce the highly…

An Australian study of 62 women in traditionally male-dominated areas of vocational education found most teachers and male classmates were unsupportive, and the atmosphere was generally oppressive. Sexual discrimination and harassment, isolation, pressure to perform were typical. The women were strong-minded and successful, and most support came…

A survey of Year 12 Australian students in coed private (n=105), coed public (n=57), and all-female (n=78) schools revealed a relationship between gender-role identity and traditional/nontraditional career choices; occupations were more gender neutral, but blue- and pink-collar jobs remain stereotyped. Type of school did not influence girls'…

A study traced changes in preferred occupation over a period of 5 years, from Year 9 (approximately age 14) to the first year beyond high school, for over 3,000 Australian students in a sample of 22 government schools. Reasons for changes in preference were probed in questionnaires administered annually. Interviews of a subsample of students and…

A study of 118 adult women students, with children, in 3 Australian universities found 3 major factors in withdrawal: socioeconomic class (lack of family support for mother's study, lack of money, domestic responsibilities, lack of needed skills); nontraditional major (economics, business, law); and age (younger students because of family or…

The conference recorded in this document covered a wide variety of themes and consisted of keynote addresses, research presentations, and workshops. The following keynote addresses are include: "Some Recent TAFE National Centre Research and Development in Australian Vocational Education" (Hall); "Vocational Teacher Education:…

The conference recorded in this document covered a wide variety of themes and consisted of keynote addresses, research presentations, and workshops. The following workshop presentations are included: "Vocational Education in a Developing Country" (Theron); "From the Technical to the Critical: A New Agenda for Vocational Education…

This publication is comprised of 12 position papers from the National Equity Workshop held at the University of Technology Sidney (Australia) at which participants summarized their positions on the way equity should be understood, their views on the strengths and weaknesses of current vocational education and training (VET) policy, and what they…

The position of women in South Australia's process manufacturing industry was examined, and the implications of the study findings for the vocational education and training (VET) sector were discussed. Of the 393 companies to which surveys were sent, 136 (35.8%) returned valid responses. Of the 8,000 people employed in the industry, only 26.1%…

The participation of women in vocational education and training (VET) in Australia in 1996-1999 was examined. Data for the analysis were obtained from annual national VET data collections and relevant reports. The analysis focused on the following areas: general trends, fields of study, qualifications, areas of learning, module outcomes,…