Education For Tomorrow S Jobs

Unemployment among young people is a serious and persistent problem in this country. Unemployment rates are especially high among members of minority groups, for high school dropouts, and in economically depressed areas. Vocational education can help to alleviate the problem of unemployment, and a close link between schools and employers can help ensure that vocational education programs are teaching students the skills that employers will need. The public elementary and secondary schools should offer noncollege-bound students a thorough grounding in language skills, reasoning, and mathematics, along with the mechanical and technical skills and work habits that will prepare them for working life. This responsibility should not be shifted to the private sector (although ways employers can help significantly are outlined in this report). Although some vocational education and training programs do improve the employability of their graduates, the quality of vocational education programs is highly variable, and the access of disadvantaged students is not ensured. Expanded collaboration between vocational educators and private sector employers and improved cooperation between vocational education and employment training programs are recommended. Work experience programs should help, as would strengthening the capabilities of vocational education teachers through changes in certification requirements, training, use of part-time teachers, and pay scales. Three policy changes could improve the financing of vocational education: modifications in the formulas for funding programs, strategies for pooling equipment, and supplemental funding for program improvement. Other approaches include experimentation with vocational incentive grants to disadvantaged students and attention to consumer protection in vocational education programs. Selected tables on youth employment and unemployment are appended. (KC)

The ways in which vocational education can be strengthened to contribute most effectively to national education and economic goals are the subject of this book. It discusses changes in the economy and in the nature of jobs that affect the skills needed in the workplace; unemployment conditions, particularly among the young; and the educational implications of these changes and conditions. The book takes a critical look at vocational education, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the system, and makes specific recommendations for its improvement.

Considers legislation to increase veteran educational and vocational training living subsistence assistance; to include disabled siblings of veterans as dependents; to extend the enlistment date for military personnel eligible for WWII benefits; and to extend VA benefits and pensions to American Field Service volunteers.

In his most visionary book, internationally renowned educator Marc Prensky presents a compelling alternative to how and what we teach our children. Drawing on emerging world trends, he elaborates a comprehensive vision for K–12 education that includes new goals, new means, a new curriculum, a new kind of teaching, and a new use of technology. “Marc Prensky—one of the smartest people working in educational reform today—offers us a lucid, inspiring, optimistic, doable, and crucial blueprint for how we can build a future with the schools children desperately need in our modern, high-risk, highly complex, fast-changing, and imperiled world.” —James Paul Gee, Mary Lou Fulton Presidential Professor of Literacy Studies, Regents’ Professor, Arizona State University “Marc Prensky was always ahead of his time. Education to better their world continues this trend in spades. This book is a goldmine and a powerful wakeup call that the future is already here—in pockets right now but a harbinger of what is rapidly emerging. Read the book and make yourself part of the future today. As we are finding in our own work, students are agents of change—in pedagogy, in learning environments, and of society itself. Exciting possibilities await!” —Michael Fullan, Professor Emeritus, OISE/University of Toronto “Marc Prensky’s answer to the question ‘What is the purpose of education?’—that education should now empower youth to improve their communities and the world—would unleash the energy, creativity, and compassion of students and teachers in ways we have never imagined. We need the better world Prensky envisions and we need it now.” —Milton Chen, The George Lucas Educational Foundation “Prensky offers perhaps the most compelling case and model yet articulated by anyone for today’s globally-empowered children. A must-read book for all educators and anyone who cares about education.” —James Tracey, Head of School, Rocky Hill School, RI “Wow. As a takeaway it is good—very good.” —John Seeley Brown “A great book. Filled with ‘food for thought’, common sense, provocative ideas and fun to read.” —Nieves Segovia, Presidenta, Institucion Educativa SEK (SEK International Schools)

This book presents the most comprehensive discussion of emerging trends in higher education in the Asia Pacific, ranging from graduate attributes to integrated workplace learning, with an in-depth focus on work readiness, employability and career development. It draws on the relationship between graduate attributes and employability, as well as vocational training or internship programs. It offers theoretical and empirical analyses that institutions, decision-makers or academics can work on together to enhance job employability. This volume will also include issues such as development of emerging and employability skills, as well as directions for the changing nature in real-world settings. The book consists of contributions from experienced international authors, offering detailed insights for those who want a timely understanding of the latest trends in higher education.