Incorporating HCP 197-i/xiii, session 2003-04

This open access book analyzes the main drivers that are influencing the dramatic evolution of work in Asia and the Pacific and identifies the implications for education and training in the region. It also assesses how education and training philosophies, curricula, and pedagogy can be reshaped to produce workers with the skills required to meet the emerging demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The book’s 40 articles cover a wide range of topics and reflect the diverse perspectives of the eminent policy makers, practitioners, and researchers who authored them. To maximize its potential impact, this Springer-Asian Development Bank co-publication has been made available as open access.

A recurrent theme of the Government's education policy has been the need to improve skill levels in the workforce. In this light this report looks at the Government's proposals for the provision of education between the ages of 14-19 and the work of the Working Group on 14-19 Reform. One of the clear conclusions is that the whole education experience is significant for a child, not just one particular part and that the labour market really requires young people who are literate, numerate and work prepared. On the subject of the proposed unified diploma to replace GCSEs and A levels, the Committee understands why the Government thought its introduction would be a risk but it nevertheless urges to the subject to be kept under review. However the burden for change does not solely rest with the government, employers must also engage with the process to help devise a system that meets their needs.

Our economic recovery and long term prosperity depends on people who are not only highly skilled but also appropriately skilled for the changing economy. In this respect skills policy must be based on the twin objectives of wider and more flexible access to skills training and a greater focus on the evolving nature of the skills required for the modern world. This report outlines policy proposals in line with these objectives. The aspects covered include: Promoting skills for economic prosperity; expanding apprenticeships; responding to businesses and key sectors; equipping adults for future jobs; raising business investment in workforce productivity; improving training in a simpler system. The ultimate goal is that 'three-quarters of people should participate in higher education or complete an advanced apprenticeship or equivalent technician level course by the age of 30'

The dramatic shift in the American labor market away from manufacturing and the growing gap in earnings between high school and college graduates have contributed to a sense of alarm about the capacity of the nation's schools to supply adequately skilled graduates to the work force. The role that schools can or should play in preparing people to enter the world of work is hotly debated. In an effort to nurture the important and ongoing national dialogue on these issues, the Board on Testing and Assessment asked researchers and policymakers to engage in an interdisciplinary review and discussion of available data and implications for assessment policy. Transitions in Work and Learning considers the role of assessment in facilitating improved labor market transitions and life-long learning of American workers. It addresses the apparent mismatch between skill requirements of high-performance workplaces and skills acquired by students in school, the validity of existing assessment technologies to determine skills and competencies of persons entering various occupations, and ethical and legal issues in the implementation of new testing and certification programs. The book also examines the role of assessment in determining needed skills; developing ongoing education and training; and providing information to employers, prospective workers, and schools.

Skills are central to the capacity of countries and people to thrive in a rapidly changing world. Recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic will require countries to co-ordinate interventions to help recent graduates find jobs, reactivate the skills of displaced workers and use skills effectively in workplaces.