Projects

Source: Enterprise Career Education Foundation Ltd.

Funded by the Enterprise Career Education Foundation Ltd (ECEF), this project involves a collaboration between the Youth Research Centre and the Educational Outcomes Research Unit at the University of Melbourne. The project was developed in consulation with ECEF during 2001. Part of the work for this stage involved the producation of an extensive literature review of young people's conceptions of school, work, career and life. The review was undertaken in recognition of the fact that the ways in which young people relate to work, education and career have changed over the last decade or more. Career does not necessarily have the same meaning to young people that it does to the older generation. Drawing on the findings of the review, the research team have proposed an extensive research program involving a national survey of young people and interviews with young people.

The resesarch found that young people need generic and reflective skills to assist them to negotiate their work. Young people mentioned generic skills such as communication, time management, group work, synthesis of information and problem-solving in a wide range of personal situations. These generic skills are developed in all areas of their lives, including work, school and leisure, and are often applied to other parts of their lives. Young people favoured an integrated approach at school and wanted schools to help them make sense of their own life experiences and the changing world of which they are a part.

Contact: Helen Stokes and Johanna Wyn