Tag: continuing education

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Educational biographies in Germany: From secondary school general education to lifelong learning?

Author: Harry Friebel, University of Hamburg

Summary:  This article addresses the change in the transitional process from secondary school general education to gainful employment within the framework of societal modernisation processes in Germany.
We analyse the relationship between the options for and restrictions upon individual educational mobility under the conditions imposed by the various socially institutionalised educational segments, which comprise a structure of opportunity.
The database for our study consists in the longitudinal findings of the “Hamburg Biography and Life Course Panel” (HBLP) from 1980 to 2007, which examined the processes of vocational education mobility for a sample of the Hamburg graduating class of 1979.
How do these people manage their educational strategies? What do they experience in terms of vocational education and continuing education within the institutional structure of opportunity? Do the career paths differ after gender?

Keywords: Vocational training, Educational Biography, Vocational training mobility, Continuing education, Vocational education policy, Germany

 

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This article is part of AJAL, Volume 54_2. The entire volume is available in .pdf for purchase here.

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Engaging in continuing education and training: Learning preferences of worker-learners in the health and community services industry

Authors: Sarojni Choy, Stephen Billett and Ann Kelly: Griffith University, Brisbane

Edition: Volume 53, Number 1, April 2013

Summary: Current tertiary education and training provisions are designed mainly to meet the learning needs of those preparing for entry into employment and specific occupations. Yet, changing work, new work requirements, an ageing workforce and the ongoing need for employability across lengthening working lives make it imperative that this educational focus be broadened to include continuing education and training provisions for those already in the workforce. To address this refocusing of the education and training effort, this paper proposes that learning at work, encompassing practice-based experiences supported by both formal and informal workplace arrangements, constitute an effective continuing education and training model for worker-learners in the aged care industry. It draws on data from semi-structured interviews and written responses from 51 workers who show preferences for such a model. Not only do aged care workers like engaging in learning independently and with co-workers and workplace facilitators, they prefer a larger component of courses to be delivered at the work site. The implications of these findings are summarised in this article.

Keywords: continuing education, workforce, workplace, aged-care, worker-learner, work site

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This article is part of AJAL, Volume 53_1. The entire volume is available in .pdf for purchase here.

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The emergence of continuing education in China

Author/s: Xiao Chen and Gareth Davey

Edition: Volume 48, Number 1, April 2008

Summary: This article reports on continuing education in China. It discusses the emergence of the field in the 1980s, the Chinese characteristics of continuing education, recent developments, and limitations. Continuing education became available in China in the 1980s following a change in government policy and economic reform. It caters mainly for training specialist technicians, although the field has recently diversified to include programs for government officials, leaders of public services, teachers and the general public. Continuing education is increasing in popularity due to the developing economy that demands a skilled workforce. However, several problems and challenges limit the field’s development, including inaccessibility (particularly for the general public), out-dated curricula and teaching methods, and limited legislation. These issues need to be addressed if continuing education in China is to develop further, be of high quality and meet the needs of society.

Keywords: China, continuing education, policy, skilled workforce

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