Projects completed 2006 and 2007

Project Title

On Track 2005 – The Destinations of School Leavers in Victoria

Duration

Mar 2006 - Dec 2006

Commissioned/funded by

Department of Education and Training, Victoria

Researchers

Richard Teese, John Polesel, Tanya Nicholas, Sue Helme

Abstract

Since the first large-scale study in 2003, more than 100,000 post-compulsory school leavers have participated in the On Track survey, providing valuable insight into their post-schooling destinations and pathways the year following their exit from their education provider.  Through their participation in this survey, respondents have facilitated our understanding of the many factors which today play a role in navigating young individuals towards a range of post-compulsory outcomes, and which lend assistance to successful transitions into education, training and employment pathways.

On Track is designed to provide a valuable tool for guiding program policies both at the government and school level and at a local or regional level.  It enables schools to monitor how their students fare in a context of rapid labour market change and complex educational pathways.  It is thus possible for schools to see, for example, how many exiting students are working, but also undertaking training, and how many are in tertiary study, but also have a job.

On Track also collects background information on students, so that the destinations of particular sub-groups can be considered – for example, those of Indigenous students.  Transition differences between regions in Victoria are also documented.  This information is valuable not only for schools, but also for the Local Learning and Employment Networks (LLEN), regions, VET providers, particularly TAFE institutes and for government agencies.

Project title

Next Step (The destinations of Year 12 school leavers in Queensland)

Duration

Feb 2006-Oct 2006

Researchers

Richard Teese, John Polesel, Sue Helme, Tanya Nicholas, Kira Clarke

Commissioned/funded by

Department of Education and the Arts, Queensland

Abstract

The Next Step survey is aimed at assisting:

• Parents and the wider public to know the achievements of students and to appreciate the range of options available to students
• Schools to review and plan their services for students, especially in the senior years of schooling
• School systems to review their education policies as they affect the transition from school to further study and employment and;
• Training bodies, universities, business and industry, local government and regional planners to plan their services.

The survey, commissioned by the Queensland DE&A as part of the School Reporting initiatives, supports the State Government’s Education and Training Reforms for the Future (ETRF), which aim to have every young person learning or earning.

Project Title

ACE Longitudinal Project (2003-2006) Stage 3

Duration

2003-2006

Commissioned/funded by

ACFE Division of the Department of Education and Training

Researchers

Richard Teese, Anne Walstab, Veronica Volkoff

Abstract

This is stage three of a three year research project designed to identify the benefits of ACE to key groups of clients, increase the profile of the ACE sector and provide strong research data to support the case for increased government funding for ACE programs.  The project with obtain a fuller picture of the sector’s “community reach” by analysing individual student characteristics and relative participation, and comparing this with the census characteristics of each region.

Stage One Report:

http://www.edfac.unimelb.edu.au/EPM/EORU/publications/oct2005/CommStudies.pdf

Stage Two Report:

http://www.edfac.unimelb.edu.au/EPM/EORU/publications/oct2005/ACEConnects.pdf

Project title

Circles of Professional Research Practice: a community studies approach to researching strategic issues in ACE

Duration

July 2005-May 2006

Researchers

Anne Walstab and Veronica Volkoff

Commissioned/funded by

Department of Education and Training (DET) Victoria for ACFEB

Consortium/Partners

Preston Reservoir ACE organisation

Abstract

This project is designed to provide opportunities fro ACE organisations and practitioners to raise their awareness of relevant research, to reflect on and apply research outcomes to their own situations and to develop good research practice applicable in ACE operational settings.

Project Title

A Well-Skilled Future: Tailoring VET to the Emerging Labour Market (ANTA Objective 1 Research Program)

Duration

2005-2006

Commissioned/funded by

Funded by ANTA and administered through NCVER to run through to end of 2006.

Researchers

Richard Teese, Jack Keating, Stephen Lamb, Anne Walstab, Veronica Volkoff, Kira Clarke

Consortium

In collaboration with the National Institute of Labour Studies, Flinders University, South Australia

Abstract

The NILS-CPELL consortium was selected from a large, nationally competitive field for its innovative approach and the track records of partners in economic and vocational education research.  CPELL’s contribution involves mapping VET participation across Australia, identifying barriers to participation, examining the operation of the VET sector in range of regional settings, studying the responsiveness of the sector, and documenting the forecasting and planning processes use in VET sectors across Australia and overseas.  In 2005, CPELL undertook program 5 of the overall project -  ‘Understanding VET’s current and adaptive capacity’, which considers how VET already has systems for the identification of emerging skill shortages and under-represented groups. These will be evaluated in the light of the conclusions being derived from Programs 1-4.  The aim of this program is to investigate the responsiveness of the VET sector to the twin imperatives of changing industry and individual needs, including the ways in which these are experienced in different community settings.

Project Title

The VCE: social access and transition effectiveness

Duration

2006-2007

Commissioned/funded by

ARC Linkage Grant

Researchers

Richard Teese and Stephen Lamb

Abstract

Education authorities in Australian face difficulties in reforming school programs to make them both equitable and effective in terms of learning experiences and outcomes.  This project examines the extent to which young people from different family backgrounds access different “locations” with the curriculum, the quality of their instructional experience, and the post-school destinations connected with the places they held in the curriculum.  The broad objective is to make the curriculum much more transparent with respect to its underlying social patterns and process, and thus to make it more accessible to the remedial action of both teachers and curriculum and assessment authorities. 

Project Title

Education and Equity: International Perspectives on Theory and Policy

Duration

2006

Researchers

Richard Teese

Abstract

Three-volume book set for Spinger/Kluwer.  In 2006, Kluwer Academic Publishers (now Springer) will publish a three-volume book series on educational inequality.  The series represents a major opportunity for scholars around the world to communicate their research findings and to assess progress in public policy.  Contributions will be international in scope, covering both developed and developing worlds.  The key questions for the series are—do we have a better understanding of the origins of inequality today (account taken of changes in the forms of inequality), and are our policies more soundly based?
Volume 1 will cover macro-social perspectives on educational inequality—long-term trends in policy and outcomes, and over-arching views of policy and research/theory.

Volume 2 includes contextual studies of inequality—the focus is on how inequalities operate in particular geographical or institutional contexts, including emerging as well as persistent forms of inequality.

Project title

How does VET delivery vary by System and School and what are its effects

Researchers

Funded by

An LSAY Analysis Grant, Department of Education, Science and Training

Consortium/Partners

University of Western Sydney

Abstract