A study was conducted to gain insight into how to persuade those in fields where job opportunities are declining to take advantage of existing retraining programs in order to avoid future displacement. Research was conducted through a series of focus groups in Chicago, Louisville, and Davenport. Participants in these sessions included men and…

A study indicated that the modern manager either lacks the skills basic to effective dictation or the confidence to exercise them. A primary objective in business courses would be to establish dictation as a desired complement to management competencies and skills. Without managers who can dictate, the training of secretaries to take dictation has…

Many postsecondary technical education programs are facing obsolescence and need more than another course or piece of equipment to be effective. Educational institutions must restructure their programs, redesign their laboratories, and retrain their faculty. The business and industrial community is the direct beneficiary of a strong vocational…

In the past, employer-provided, job-specific training for new employees and continuing education for those who wished to advance in their jobs were often sufficient to keep abreast of technological changes. This is no longer the case, however. The substantial monetary and time expenditures associated with retraining programs that are begun only…

Although technology eliminates jobs, it can save and create jobs as well. Technological change also affects the level of skills required of the labor force. Postsecondary institutions need to ensure that the highly educated, highly skilled, adaptable, and creative labor force demanded by employers is available. (JOW)

A study identified alternative models of short-term upgrading and updating training for employed workers in business and industry. In phase 1, a literature review provided the basis for a nine-cell matrix that conceptualized alternative models of industry-based training as a function of the skill level the training addressed and the degree of…

The most striking general features of the Danish education system are these: a high degree of centralization, learner-centeredness, open access, precisely defined conditions of service for teachers, and virtually non-existent training for educational managers. Education is compulsory for children between the ages of 7 and 16 years. Optional…

This book defines career barriers, considers how people react to them, and offers ways to overcome and prevent them. It is geared towards people experiencing career barriers; for students at the start of their careers; for seasoned employees wanting to avoid or be prepared to deal with career barriers; and for managers, human resource…

The way resources are deployed to educate Americans will affect, as never before, productivity, the economy, and the quality of life. To maintain the present standard of living, Americans will be dependent on a continuous infusion of scientific breakthroughs and productivity-enhancing technology. Periodic upgrading of skills will be a necessity…

This study provides a review of the nature and success of programs dealing with excess teacher supply. The causes and effects of teacher redundancy are discussed, and methods of supply and demand planning are examined. Strategies to deal with inservice retraining and programs that present career alternatives are reviewed. Among the solutions…

To provide a common frame of reference, the Michigan Employability Skills Task Force created a working construct of employability skill categories. The draft framework extended beyond academic competence to include interpersonal, group, and adaptability skills. After task force discussions, the initial five skill categories were compressed into…

A study investigated whether instructors in schools with formal staff development programs were more technologically up to date than instructors in schools with less formal programs. The study used existing data from program evaluations of five postsecondary technical institute (TI) instructors. A survey instrument collected data from 120 (of a…

The Professional, Industrial, and Commercial Updating Programme (PICKUP) of the United Kingdom is aimed at improving the performance of British industry through the colleges. In Wales, PICKUP is part of the Welsh Office Education Department. Various factors have encouraged educational institutions to take on PICKUP work: the Education Reform Act…

This report contains findings from a study to examine the impact of Pennsylvania's Customized Job Training (CJT) program upon clients (trainees), business/industry, local education agencies (LEAs), and local communities and the commonwealth. Chapter 1 details study purposes, design, and procedures. Chapter 2 presents a summary description of the…

The research literature on the preparation of young people for work proves that policy recommendations are based on two false premises--academic skills are good substitutes for occupation-specific skills and increases in job turnover and skill obsolescence rates have caused a decline in the return to occupation-specific training by schools.…