1.23 Million Students Will Fail to Graduate in 2008;
New Data on U.S. Congressional Districts Detail Graduation Gaps
Report Finds State-Level P-16 Councils Are Increasingly Popular but Often Lack Support,
WASHINGTON
Tag: Skills Shortage
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US Publishes – Diplomas Count 2008
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HECS for TAFE ?
Merit, yes… Although assumptions about future returns are predicated on current labour-force structures? The debt/liability is permanent! Jobs… not so much?
HECS for TAFE: the case for extending income contingent loans.
In this paper, a case is argued for introducing an income contingent loan to the VET sector. The economic underpinning is similar to the Higher Education Scheme (HECS) which is identified as a useful guide. It is established that there is significant returns from a VET qualification.
For example, diplomas and associated diplomas are associated with rates of return of around 8-10 per cent per annum for men, and about 10-14 per cent per annum for women. These statistics are comparable to those investments that are usually cited for undergraduate higher education degrees. [edna education news]
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Aus IT – Anyone?
Spur on IT whiz-kids and reclaim the clever country. Alan Noble, Engineering Director of Google Australia and NZ, outlines issues facing the IT sector in Australia, stating that there is a need to encourage IT careers and retain Australia’s brightest IT professionals.
Earlier this month it was revealed that the Australian annual IT deficit had reached $21 billion, with hardware and software imports of $26 billion. Enrolments in IT courses at universities have declined.
Those IT students who do graduate are highly skilled and coveted. But many are relocating overseas to pursue lucrative careers and opportunities.
The Australian, 4 May 2007. [edna education news]
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Knowledge Drought
The knowledge drought intensifies.
Australia’s advancement as a society will continue to be hampered by our poor esteem for knowledge.
[Source: On Line Opinion]
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Education is key to productivity
Ross Gittins, writing in The Age asserts:
OUR miracle economy is running out of spark. The rapid productivity improvement of the 1990s has not continued into the noughties.
Between 1998 and 2004, growth in multi-factor productivity dropped to a below-trend 1 per cent a year, compared with 2.1 per cent during the 1993 to 1998 growth cycle.
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VET Systems and New Skills
This paper reports on a Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) project that explored policies, programs and other initiatives by Australia’s states and territories to support innovation, and to build VET capability to respond to its effects on skill needs. The project was undertaken in late 2003-early 2004.
The project examined the range of initiatives adopted by the states and territories, their rationales and objectives, funding and major features. Similarities and differences between the approaches and the various emphases being given to different aspects of VET, to types of skills and innovation and to VET-industry relationships are highlighted as well as best practice approaches.
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Building capacity in Australian industries
Ken McKay argues building the skills base along with research and development are the key issues to drive productivity.
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Improving Participation – DSF Report
Report from BCA and DSF published. Anyone interested in the question of youth participation in education and training is sure to be interested in this latest report from Access Economics, jointly commissioned by the Business Council of Australia (BCA) and the Dusseldorp Skills Forum (DSF).The Dusseldorp Skills Forum commissioned Access Economics to test the merits of the economic case for increased policy emphasis on youth participation specifically in relation to the Government’s own work on inter-generational issues.
Their findings are documented in The Economic Benefit of Increased Participation in Education and Training.
While the study is based on detailed economic modeling, the report itself is very accessible. Its clear language and explanations open the door to some very important findings.
By way of example, the research found that the effect of increasing school and training retention rates among 15-24 year-olds from the current 80 per cent mark to 90 per cent would:
- have the same positive impact on the economy as increasing Australia’s total migrant intake by 180,000 over the period to 2040;
- have a similar economic impact as increasing the workforce participation rates of older workers by 6.6 percentage points – from nearly 53 percent to 59.5 percent; and
- boost annual GDP by 1.1 per cent (equivalent to $9.2 billion in today’s money) by 2040 – representing an extra $500 a year per Australian in today’s money.
This report advances the analysis and modeling of the information used in the Treasury Working Paper: A Note on Educational Attainment and Labour Force Participation in Australia and The Intergenerational Report 2002-03.
Accompanying the Access report is a brief policy paper from the BCA and the Forum putting several suggestions forward in the light of the report’s findings.
The Economic Benefit of Increased Participation in Education and Training and the accompanying policy paper are both available online at
http://www.dsf.org.au or http://www.bca.com.au.
[Source: DSF]
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Disabilities and Skills Shortage
Australia’s hospitality industry is facing a critical skills shortage.
However, the Geelong-based cafe and gourmet catering service dal (previously Dial-A-Lunch) is enjoying solid growth through a business model based on employing and training skilled people with disabilities. dal employs and provides a variety of training and employment programs for people with special needs. Employees develop industry skills on-the-job and receive further training at the Gordon Institute of TAFE. Employers seeking information on hiring people with a disability can use the website www.jobable.gov.au as an information resource.