Vocational training for people with special educational …aei.pitt.edu/44891/1/30-2003.pdf · European Journal ‘Vocational Training’ ... Special needs students in vocational

Nr. 30 September – December 2003/III ISSN 0378-5068

Europe 123, GR-570 01 Thessaloniki (Pylea)Postal address: PO Box 22427, GR-551 02 ThessalonikiTel. (30) 2310 490 111 Fax (30) 2310 490 099E-mail: [email protected] Homepage: www.cedefop.eu.intInteractive website: www.trainingvillage.gr

European Journal ‘Vocational Training’

No 30 September – December 2003/III

Editorial

2003: The European Year of people with disabilitiesMartin Mulder, Éric Fries Guggenheim

Dossier on ‘vocational training for people with special educational needs’

Vocational training for disabled pupils in an inclusive settingAnnet De Vroey

Higher education entrance exam or craft certificate for disadvantaged adolescentsKarl Johan Skårbrevik, Randi Bergem, Finn Ove Båtevik

New trainer profiles for socially disadvantaged groupsCristina Milagre, João Passeiro, Victor Almeida

Special needs students in vocational education and training in Norway - a longitudinal studyJon Olav Myklebust

Research

Impact of the European Union on the Vocational Training System in GermanyDieter Münk

Measurement of training activitiesGottfried Langer

Section prepared by the Documentation Service with the help ofthe members of the documentary network

Reading selectionAnne Waniart

Dossier

Vocational training for people with special educational needs

CedefopEuropean Centre

for the Developmentof Vocational Training

Europe 123GR-570 01 THESSALONIKI

(Pylea)Postal address:

PO Box 22427GR-551 02 THESSALONIKI

Tel. (30) 23 10 49 01 11Fax (30) 23 10 49 00 99

E-mail:[email protected]

Homepage:www.cedefop.eu.intInteractive website:

www.trainingvillage.gr

Cedefop assists the European Com-mission in encouraging, at Commu-nity level, the promotion and deve-lopment of vocational education andtraining, through exchanges of in-formation and the comparison of ex-perience on issues of common inte-rest to the Member States.

Cedefop is a link between research,policy and practice by helping po-licymakers and practitioners, at alllevels in the European Union, to ha-ve a clearer understanding of deve-lopments in vocational education andtraining and so help them draw con-clusions for future action. It stimula-tes scientists and researchers to iden-tify trends and future questions.

The European Journal 'Vocational Trai-ning' is provided for by Article 3 ofthe founding Regulation of Cedefopof 10 February 1975.

The Journal is nevertheless indepen-dent. It has an editorial committeethat evaluates articles following adouble-blind procedure whereby themembers of the Editorial Committee,and in particular its rapporteurs, donot know the identity of those theyare evaluating and authors do notknow the identity of those evaluatingthem. The committee is chaired bya recognised university researcherand composed of researchers as wellas two Cedefop experts, an expertfrom the European Training Foun-dation (ETF) and a representative ofCedefop's Management Board.

The European Journal 'Vocational Trai-ning' has an editorial secretariat com-posed of experienced researchers.

The Journal is included in the list ofscientific journals recognised by theICO (Interuniversitair Centrum voorOnderwijskundig Onderzoek) in theNetherlands and is indexed in the IBSS(International Bibliography of the So-cial Sciences).

VOCATIONAL TRAINING NO 30 EUROPEAN JOURNAL

Interested in writing an article ... see page 88

Published under the responsibility of: Johan van Rens, Director Stavros Stavrou, Deputy Director

Responsible for translation: David Crabbe

Layout: Zühlke Scholz & Partner GmbH, Berlin

Cover: Panos Haramoglou, M. Diamantidi S.A.Graphic Arts, Thessaloniki

Technical production on DTP: M. Diamantidi S.A.Graphic Arts, Thessaloniki

The contributions were received in or before no-vembre 2003.

Reproduction is authorized, except for commerci-al purposes, provided that the source is indicated.

No de catalogue: TI-AA-03-030-EN-C

Printed in Belgium, 2004

The publication appears three times a year in Spa-nish, German, English and French.

A Portuguese version is also published by andis available directly from

Centre de Informaçaõ e Documentação (CID) Ministério do Trabalho e da Solidariedade Praça de Londres 22Æ P 1049056 Lisboa Tél. (35121) 843 10 36 Fax (35121) 840 61 71 E-mail: [email protected]

For the other languages, see 3rd cover page.

The opinions expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the position ofCedefop. The European Journal Vocational Training gives protagonists the op-portunity to present analyses and various, at times contradictory, points of view.The Journal wishes to contribute to critical debate on the future of vocational trai-ning at European level.

Editorial committee:

Chairman: Martin Mulder Wageningen University, The Netherlands

Steve Bainbridge Cedefop, Greece Juan José Castillo Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain Jean-Raymond Masson European Training Foundation, Italy Teresa Oliveira Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal Hilary Steedman London School of Economics and Political Science,

Centre for Economic Performance, United Kingdom Ivan Svetlik University of Ljubljana, Slovenia Manfred Tessaring Cedefop, Greece Éric Verdier Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS),

LEST/CNRS, France

Editorial Secretariat:

Erika Ekström Institutet för arbetsmarknadspolitisk utvärdering (IFAU), Sweden

Ana Luisa Oliveira de Pires Universidade Nova de Lisboa, PortugalGisela Schürings European Training Foundation, Italy

Editor in chief:

Éric Fries Guggenheim Cedefop, Greece

Cedefop


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Table of contents

Editorial

2003: The European Year of people with disabilities ..........................................Martin Mulder, Éric Fries Guggenheim


Vocational training for disabled pupils in an inclusive setting ...........................Annet De VroeyInclusive education is growing. But in order to continue inclusion in all life domains,including labour, vocational training will have to follow.

Higher education entrance exam or craft certificate for disadvantaged adolescents ................................................................................Karl Johan Skårbrevik, Randi Bergem, Finn Ove BåtevikThe article reports on measures that are necessary to be taken by the upper secondaryschools and the apprentice system in order to help disadvantaged students obtain an A-level exam or a craft certificate

New trainer profiles for socially disadvantaged groups ......................................Cristina Milagre, João Passeiro, Victor AlmeidaThis article presents a case study designed to identify innovations in forms of trainerprofiles that are particularly adapted to the needs of socially disadvantaged groups.

Special needs students in vocational education and training in Norway - a longitudinal study ............................................................................Jon Olav MyklebustThis article is based on a longitudinal study in which special needs students were fol-lowed for four years through their upper secondary education. The study focused on stu-dents taking vocational courses, to find out which conditions help vocational studentsto achieve the required level of qualification.

Research

Impact of the European Union on the vocational training system in Germany ..................................................................................Dieter MünkAnalysis of the effects of globalisation and internationalisation as well as of Europeanvocational training strategies on the German vocational education and trainingsystem.

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40


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Errata

The article by Professor Jean Guichard of the Paris Con-servatoire National des Arts et Métiers entitled “Aims and is-sues in guidance counselling” published in last year’s May/Au-gust issue No 26 of the Journal (2002/II) was accompa-nied by a photograph not that of the author. Such an errorhas never before occurred and we offer Professor Guichardour sincere apologies. The photograph that should have ac-companied the article appears here.

The mistake was immediately corrected in the electronic version of the Journal issue con-cerned, which can be downloaded in English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanishfrom our European Training Village website:http://www2.trainingvillage.gr/etv/publications/publications.asp?section=18

Measurement of training activities .........................................................................Gottfried LangerThe methods for measuring training activities, adequate for application in the privilegedsegment of governmental organisations and other big organisations are less suitable forunprivileged population and organisation segments. This study presents a possibility forbridging this gap with a new ratio called ‘TrainingActivityDegree’.

Reading selection

Europe International ...............................................................................................

From the Member States .........................................................................................Anne WaniartSection prepared by the Documentation Service with the help of the members of the documentary network.

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75

As Viviane Reding, the European Commis-sioner responsible for education and culture(1) reminds us in the press dossier of June2003 on the European Year of People withDisabilities, ‘in 2003, 37 million Europeansare living with a disability, that is, one citi-zen in ten.’

Europe responded to this situation early on.In its founding treaty, the European Com-munity made a commitment to carry out ap-propriate actions to combat various formsof discrimination, especially towards thosewith disabilities, and to guarantee them equal-ity of access to training and employment.This intention was reaffirmed in 2000 at theLisbon European Council, and then incor-porated in 2001 into the employment guide-lines.

The starting point for this concern is with-out a doubt to be found in the democraticand egalitarian ideals that underpinnedthe creation of the European Union. Thefundamental idea is that in response to dis-ability, which may be perceived as a ran-dom injustice afflicting certain members ofthe social corpus, society must react collec-tively in order to overcome such mischancein accordance with the principle of mutualrisk, by overcompensating for disabilitythrough positive discrimination.

However, in the context of an ageing soci-ety, the age pyramid of which is precariouslybalanced on a very narrow base, and a pop-ulation of working age that is continuallyfalling in relation to the overall populationwhich it supports through its work, the is-sue of employing people with disabilitiesgoes beyond the simple matter of fine prin-ciples and human rights. It becomes an eco-nomic and social necessity. It is increas-ingly obvious that while society must do allin its power to integrate people with dis-abilities, this is not simply because they needsociety, but more particularly because soci-ety needs their contribution to the collectiveeffort to produce commercial and non-com-mercial goods and services, as is made clear

in the OECD report entitled TransformingDisability into Ability (2), whose authors rec-ommend in particular that individual sup-port schemes should be developed, com-bining retraining with vocational training,help with finding jobs, financial allowancesand access to different types of employment.

It would nonetheless appear, as is said byMurielle Timmermans, a young blind womanwho spent some time as a trainee at the DGEmployment and Social Affairs of the Euro-pean Commission in Brussels, that ‘Mem-ber States...do not regard the issue of dis-ability as a priority’ (3). It was in order toput the issue under the spotlight that theEuropean Commission and the EuropeanDisability Forum (EDF) (4) organised theYear of People with Disabilities in 2003, car-rying Member States along with them, withthe intention of revealing the difficulties anddiscrimination which such people face, andemphasising their contribution to societyand their right to have a chance to improvetheir lives and to see attitudes towards themchange.

The choice made by the European Union isvery clear: it is that of integration. In the fieldof education, and specifically in that of vo-cational training, this means seeking as faras possible to integrate young people withdisabilities and/or special educational needsinto ordinary educational establishments andreducing enrolment in specialised estab-lishments to a minimum.

The issue merits debate, however. Integra-tion into the ordinary school system un-questionably has positive effects in terms ofsocialisation, as Annet De Vroey argues inthe article published here. She preparesyoung people with disabilities to integratewith their peers with no experience of dis-ability, and non-disabled young people toget along every day with their disabled peers.However, the fact remains that protectedsystems often respond better to the specif-ic educational needs of young people withdisabilities and also have the advantage of


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Martin Mulder Chairman of theEditorial Committeeof the EuropeanJournal ‘VocationalTraining’

Éric Fries GuggenheimEditor-in-Chief of theEuropean Journal‘Vocational Training’

(1) 2003: European Year of Peoplewith Disabilities, examples of edu-cation and culture projects for peo-ple with disabilities / European Com-mission, Directorate General of Ed-ucation and Culture. [Press release].June 2003.

(2) Transforming Disability into Abil-ity. Policies to promote work andincome security for disabled people/ OECD. Paris, 2003. ISBN 92-64-29887-8 (81 03 02 2).

(3) 2003: European Year of Peoplewith Disabilities, op. cit., page 33.

(4) The European Disability Forum/ Forum européen des personneshandicapées is an EU umbrella or-ganisation representing a large num-ber of associations of people withdisabilities. The purpose of EDF isto guarantee full access for disabledcitizens to fundamental rights throughtheir active participation in devel-opment and policy implementationwithin the European Union. The Fo-rum has a website in English andFrench:

English: http://www.edf-feph.org/en/welcome.htm

French: http://www.edf-feph.org/fr/welcome.htm

Editorial

2003: European Year ofPeople with Disabilities

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providing reassurance for the young peo-ple and their families, thereby reducing thelevel of stress and hence raising their im-mediate quality of life. It is therefore vitalto work in close collaboration with the fam-ilies and with associations of people withdisabilities, and above all to give specifictraining to the trainers and other specialistscalled upon to help young people with dis-abilities to move into an open environment,as Cristina Milagre, João Passeiro and Vic-tor Almeida, who work as part of the INOFORteam, point out in their article on new ac-tors in the training of disadvantaged socialgroups.

We publish four articles in this issue on vo-cational training for people with special ed-ucational needs.

The first article, Vocational training for dis-abled pupils in an inclusive setting, by An-net De Vroey, comes from Belgium and isan expression of opinion. It argues in favourof integrated initial vocational training in or-dinary educational establishments. The au-thor calls for the appointment of specialistteachers to every ordinary school rather thantheir concentration in specialist institutions,and stresses the need for specialist sup-port for young people with disabilities dur-ing their school careers in the ordinary en-vironment. Annet De Vroey lectures at theÉcole supérieure catholique in Louvain,where she teaches a supplementary spe-cialist course as part of teacher training forstudents who will then teach young peoplewith disabilities in the ordinary environment.

The second article on secondary leaving cer-tificates and vocational skills qualificationsfor disadvantaged young people, is the out-come of a research study conducted by threeNorwegian academic researchers, Karl Jo-han Skårbrevik of the University of Ålesund,and Randi Bergem and Finn Ove Båtevik ofthe Møre Research Institute in Volda. Thisarticle reports on the measures needed inthe ordinary education system at the levelof upper secondary education and appren-ticeship in order to ensure that young peo-ple with disabilities succeed in obtaining anupper secondary leaving certificate and vo-cational qualifications. One of these meas-ures is the provision of close support for stu-dents, a conclusion which echoes that of thepreceding article.

The third element of this mini-report is a

Portuguese article by Cristina Milagre, JoãoPasseiro and Victor Almeida, three seniortechnicians in the ‘Training Methodology’unit of the Institute for Innovation in Train-ing (INOFOR). The article is entitled newtrainer profiles for socially disadvantagedgroup, and is a case study carried out in fivepublic and voluntary institutions working totrain and integrate disadvantaged groups in-to society and the labour market. It is clear-ly shown how the need to take into accountthe new training requirements of disadvan-taged sections of the population has re-sulted in new ways of organising training,the main focus being training support, andhence in the emergence of new actors in-volved in training.

Finally, the fourth and last article in thisreport, Special needs students in vocation-al education and training in Norway - a lon-gitudinal study, is the result of a researchstudy conducted by an Associate Professorof Sociology at the University of Volda,Jon Olav Myklebust. His longitudinal analy-sis confirms the argument, put forward par-ticularly by Annet De Vroey, that integratingstudents with disabilities into ordinary class-es rather than placing them in special smallgroups or classes is still the best way of en-abling them to obtain the desired skills.

Some readers will no doubt consider thatthe articles published here only give a verylimited view of the issue of vocational train-ing for people with disabilities. We wouldnot disagree, and we feel it is obvious thedebate must continue in these columns. Weare fully aware that the European Journal‘Vocational Training’ has to date publishedonly a very small number of articles onvocational training for people with disabil-ities and/or special educational needs. Forthat reason, the Editorial Committee of theEuropean Journal has taken advantage ofthe Year of People with Disabilities to re-launch the topic of vocational training forpeople with disabilities.

A number of factors explain why this topicoccupies so little space in these columns:

- our procedure for selecting articles,the rigour of which guarantees the qualityof the Journal, often frightens off men andwomen working hard on the ground to pro-mote and implement appropriate social andoccupational guidance, education and train-ing, and integration into society and the


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labour market. They are reluctant to spendtime writing articles which may then ulti-mately be rejected on ‘academic’ grounds.When they do overcome their initial reti-cence and submit articles, they are too of-ten discouraged by the considerable workentailed in the revisions required by the Edi-torial Committee. They do not follow uptheir articles, so that these remain unpub-lished, even though it would sometimes re-quire only modest effort to produce a textthat would be of interest to our readers;

- the specialist journals which are the firstchoice of academic researchers garner thebulk of the good articles submitted becausethey are immediately recognised by the bod-ies making decisions on careers.

We nonetheless think it crucial that voca-tional guidance and training, lifelong edu-cation and training, and social and labourmarket integration for people with disabil-ities should cease to be a specialist area. Thisjournal has a varied readership - academicresearchers of course, but also the socialpartners, political decision-makers, and menand women at the grassroots, and it is pub-lished in five languages (5). It sets out to dis-seminate information about vocational train-ing, guidance and labour market access,wherever possible from a European andcomparative perspective. In other words,it deals generally with all matters concernedwith the relationship between training andemployment, with the aim of contributingto the development of vocational training inEurope by supplying the various parties in-volved with arguments, tools and exampleswhich will be of use to them in their every-day work. We therefore hope that this firstsmall report on vocational training for peo-ple with disabilities will help to open up thedebate and will encourage other authors tosend us their contributions on a subject whichwill obviously not come to an end on 31 De-cember 2003. With this in mind, we can-not resist quoting the reply from the youngtrainee at the DG Employment and SocialAffairs mentioned earlier to a question posedby a member of the DG Education and Cul-ture:

What do you think of the European Year ofPeople with Disabilities? Do you think thatEurope can play a part in making society ingeneral more aware of this issue?

It’s a good thing that Europe is taking this

type of initiative. It makes it possible to pres-ent people with disabilities in the media andto the public. But the problem lies at the lev-el of the Member States, which do not re-gard it as a priority and whose actions arecompletely invisible. Perhaps the EU shouldset precise targets, with concrete projects tobe undertaken. And it would also be goodif the European Year of People with Dis-abilities were not restricted to one year!


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(5) English, French, German, Por-tuguese and Spanish.

During the last decade many disabled chil-dren have been educated in mainstreamclasses. Education and training have followeda broader trend towards greater participa-tion in citizenship of people with disability.Most European countries have already putthe question of inclusive education on thepolitical agenda. However, in some coun-tries the transition from an (exclusive) spe-cial education system towards inclusive meas-ures has taken a great deal of time, reflect-ing much hesitation after many years of thesesystems operating in parallel. Primary edu-cation often faces the challenge of inclusion,but in secondary and vocational education,inclusion is far from being common prac-tice. There are many good examples of in-tegration operating via private initiatives,adult organisations, second chance educa-tion, etc. Similarly, there are many positiveexperiences of inclusion already in evidenceat all levels of education in some countries(as for instance in Italy, Norway, Swedenand the UK). However, these models of goodpractice do not seem to be sufficient to gen-erate a real break-through towards inclusiveeducation.

Consequent to these observations, we shouldask ourselves whether the lack of inclu-sive education at all levels delays the par-ticipation of disabled people in work, orwhether the lack of a consistent system ofequal rights in education and training strong-ly discourages their participation in later life.In other words: is the fact that until nowthere has been no real break-through to fullinclusion in education and training still amajor obstacle for real job fulfilment for all?I believe it probably is an important ob-stacle, although new initiatives outside ofeducation support finding mainstream jobsand encourage new training models. How-ever, as long as disabled pupils are referredto special vocational training and education,we neglect a very powerful tool for increasingparticipation and citizenship, which couldsend out a strong signal to society: a com-mon sense agreement, adopted at all levels

of education, about equal rights for youngpeople.

A matter of history

In some European countries, as, for instance,in Belgium, (full) inclusive education is stillquite a new phenomenon. The system ofspecial education has been expanding formore than 30 years and represents more than6% of the whole school-aged population (3-18 years). Although measures for integrat-ing pupils in mainstream classes have ex-isted for almost 20 years, they have not beenable to reduce the total number of specialschool pupils, except where they have beenactively promoted and fully supported bylocal or regional teams. For some children,integration has 'worked' almost without ahitch. A few schools for special educationalready have more teachers visiting and sup-porting mainstream classes than they haveactually working in their own institution. Forinstance, visually impaired pupils with noother disabilities often succeed very well inprimary, secondary and even higher edu-cation, with (a little) help from an externalteacher who supports them for a few hoursa week, whenever they are in need of spe-cial help. Children with (other) physical dis-abilities, however, often have much greaterdifficulties in succeeding at school. This isdue to many factors: the poor level of ac-cessibility to most schools, the greater needfor assistance with any kind of activity, andthe limited number of hours of support giv-en to them on integration 'protocol'. Whatabout children with even greater specialneeds in the classroom, such as those withcommunication difficulties (deaf children orchildren with hearing impairment, autisticchildren...) or learning and intellectual chal-lenges? At this moment, many schools arestill not in 'good shape' to welcome childrenwith any kind of disability. Measures intro-duced to improve integration have not, upto now, really changed school attitudes onissues such as their flexibility and creativi-


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Annet DeVroey

VOBO - PostgraduateTeacher Courses forspecial educational

needsKH Leuven

The postgraduate one-yearcourse trains qualified teach-ers for special education as aservice - not a place. Each yearalmost 20 students supportpupils with disability or se-vere learning problems inmainstream classes for 2 daysa week. These classes are inprimary as well as secondaryand vocational education. Thestaff of the postgraduate coursecoach the students in how tofollow up, adapt, and collab-orate with the school team.This coaching brings us in-to many schools, where wemeet parents, teachers andpupils with and without dis-ability. The process of in-clusion strikes us with everynew request as being the mostinteresting innovation in ed-ucation for the last decades.

Vocational training fordisabled pupils in an in-clusive setting

ty in adapting to demands, their organisa-tion of internal teacher support, or their ori-entation towards external support, depend-ing on the special needs of one or more oftheir pupils. As long as integration is de-pendent on a limited and fixed support sys-tem, only pupils with mild problems, andpreferably very active, involved parents, canplan for their future in a mainstream setting.The others will have to wait until special ed-ucation and mainstream education - includingvocational training - change their belief sys-tem on disability. I believe it is the very ex-istence of (the structure of) special schoolsalongside mainstream schools as two par-allel systems, that slows the process of in-tegration and inclusion. It is this very struc-ture, which categorises and labels childrenas disabled in one way or another, that al-lows the 'medical and therapeutic' view ofdisability to survive. In this so-called 'deficitideology' disabled people are not supposedto earn their living, are not expected to ful-fil a job and are not seen as 'able to' par-ticipate fully in society. So it is not the dis-ability itself that reduces the participation,learning and training opportunities of chil-dren and young people at school. The kindof disability doesn't matter in the end, it isthe habit of sending children with specialneeds to special schools, special care, spe-cial places, and the habit of giving specialisedand therapeutic answers to questions of spe-cial need (Fougeyrollas, 1998; WHO, 2001).The existing belief systems prevent specialeducation from becoming a support servicefor mainstream education, and preserve it,instead, as a service in its own right.

A change of view

However, the shift from integration towardsa demand for full inclusion at school hasshown that many people want a more pro-found change. As long as all efforts to suc-ceed must come from the pupil (and the fewhours extra help he gets), many children willstill be excluded from integration. Many ofthem will never succeed in following thesame programme or in keeping pace withthe others. This difference should be a pointof departure for inclusion, rather than an ex-clusion criterion. Even when parents organiseprivate help to support their child in theclassroom, it does not necessarily changethe attitude fully - it helps therapeutic 'busi-ness' to profit from the lack of school sup-

port and often harms the inclusion effortsof (un)qualified assistants. Only if all par-ticipants agree that it is the mainstreamingof the disabled pupil itself that triggers hispresent and future learning and participa-tion processes, and only if no time limit isimposed for measuring progress, will theshift towards inclusion take place.

This more profound idea of integration,which we call inclusion, is slowly beingintroduced into some classrooms and schools.Primary schools have been the first to movetowards this new social view of equal op-portunities for all, although they feel veryinsecure about this development. Secondaryschools, however, have shown hesitation,especially when they have a layered systemof curricula and different study criteria thatreflect the pupil's intellectual capacities ratherthan his interests or talents. At this level, spe-cial schools often offer job training, whichis better suited to the needs of the individ-ual. Many special schools for vocational train-ing prepare their students for an integrat-ed job, though others only prepare theirpupils for sheltered work, arguing that noother jobs will be available for them in thejob market. I believe it is crucial that sec-ondary mainstream education - in prepara-tion for (later) vocational choices and op-portunities - should also follow this new ten-dency towards equal opportunities, thus be-coming gradually more aware of the im-portance of inclusion.

In spite of all the efforts that are already tak-ing place in primary education, vocationaltraining has not had as much experience ofinclusion until now. This is partly due to thefact that many disabled pupils are not par-ticularly 'handy', which is often a prerequi-site for vocational training. However, theneed to adapt the level, pace and efficien-cy of performance is even more obviousin the context of vocational training than inprimary education. Also, the need to allo-cate support, not only during the trainingprocess but also in the adjustment period ina mainstream work environment and be-yond, might discourage schools from start-ing the complex process of inclusion.

Because it goes beyond integration - de-manding a great deal of adjustment fromthe school, the job placement, the teach-ers and trainers - and because it deals withindividualised goals, personal demandsand work conditions, inclusion funda-


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mentally challenges the process of voca-tional training.

Consequently, young people with any kindof disability or learning problem very of-ten do not have a real choice between main-stream or special education - certainly notwhen it comes to job choices. Some of them,who have good intellectual capacities, canget through mainstream school and higherstudies and choose for themselves whatev-er profession they want. But many others,who have a multiple disability or more com-plex problems with learning, are not free tochoose, and are not even sure they will beable to fulfil a professional role in the jobmarket.

In my opinion, every person has the right tofulfil any kind of social role. It is part ofthe quality of life. This is why vocationalchoices and vocational training are so im-portant and why there should be greaterawareness of the new perspective of inclu-sive education. There need not be a breakin the process of inclusion and participation,either at the start of the education process,or in the middle. If inclusion is not fully avail-able, the future of inclusive education is veryunstable, and the future of the pupils in-volved is not guaranteed to be any betterway than it was before. It may even be worse.In order to work towards full inclusion,we only need to agree on some basic prin-ciples, which I will introduce and argue forlater on in this article. If we neglect these ba-sic principles of inclusion, we are not doinga better job than we did before.

In the meantime, the need for integrated vo-cational training is growing and new ini-tiatives are being taken and promoted byadult organisations instead of by educationalinstitutions. Adult vocational training out-side the school system will have to becomean important and continuous partner of vo-cational training at school. Simply becauseof its lower pace, efficiency and productiv-ity, more time and training may be needed,and new models of in-service training needto be developed, especially for the im-provement of job chances for the disabled.

Why inclusion is a key concept towardsrole fulfilment, personal choices and jobtraining

Work is becoming a major domain in peo-ple's lives, whether we applaud this devel-

opment or not. The choices we make forour (future) profession are of enormous im-portance. The work we do very often givesus the most important and the most securesocial position we have during a large partof our life. Other social roles or positionswe take are not necessarily less worthy. Onthe contrary, they can be of a deeper ormore continuous kind. But the very fact oftaking a place amongst other professionalsbrings with it a certain (self) respect and in-dependence.

Those of us who have the opportunity tomake our own choices without meeting allkinds of barriers are perhaps the privilegedones. Many people, not only disabled peo-ple, are not free to choose. But the mainidea of equal opportunities in education isto guarantee as many pupils as possible thisfreedom of choice, in order to build theirown future. The way to achieve this is notby 'selection of the fittest' at the start, norby meritocracy - encouraging (only) thosewho follow the system and show that theyare worth being encouraged (Nicaise, 2002)- but by not giving up on any member ofthe school community. Only in this way willall of them come to a point where a fairchoice of either vocational training or high-er education - or both - is reached. Any sys-tem that narrows job choices at too early apoint in the school career neglects the im-portance of personal choices.

Disabled people very often meet these kindsof barriers. Even if we know from the startthat a particular boy or girl will not becomea doctor or a lawyer, we should not denyhis or her rights to fulfil a professional rolein society. Neither should we deny his orher rights to choose a profession. A boy whois intellectually disabled may not becomethe hospital manager, but can speak for him-self if he says that a hospital environment isthe job environment he prefers and wantsto be part of. We should not consider theseyoung people's dreams any less realistic orreliable than those of others, who themselvesoften change perspectives and choices.

We live in a society where lifelong learningis encouraged and where second choicesfor vocational training and job choices areallowed. Yet, when it comes to work, it of-ten takes a lot of courage for the people in-volved to leave their (often negative) schoolexperiences behind them and start all overagain. For many people with a disability who


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have been told that their choices were lim-ited - either sheltered work, or no work atall - adult vocational training often givesthem new perspectives, but can't take awaythe lead others have built over them.

Only by providing good, inclusive vocationaltraining within the education system can weprevent people from losing an important so-cial position, self-respect and independence.For those who are depending on others forso many daily tasks, this kind of independ-ence - perhaps financial, perhaps intellec-tual - can make a major difference in theirlife. This sense of interdependence is givenan even greater meaning by fulfilling a jobwhere others are relying on you. The samefeeling of interdependence is one of the mostessential values of inclusion.

The practice of inclusive education

Of course, some disabled pupils already fol-low a vocational training programme in aninclusive setting. In my experience, it isoften organised either with a support teamthat is provided by their parents, or with of-ficial support because it is that they are 'ableto succeed' within the standard curriculum.However, in Belgium the number of disabledyoung people in mainstream vocational sec-ondary education is still quite low. Whenit comes to vocational training options, manydisabled pupils are not only at a disadvan-tage because of the standards required inthe curriculum, but even more so becauseof the practical demands: they have to bequick, efficient, with good motor skillsand very mobile. The transition to vocationaleducation is often the breaking point, ratherthan the access point to inclusion.

While many primary schools are slowly learn-ing how to deal with the demands of in-clusion, secondary schools, and especiallyvocational schools, will have to start fol-lowing their lead. In order to succeed theywill have to adopt the main ideas and prin-ciples of inclusion that are crucial for pres-ent and future participation among theirpeers. Let us first look at common princi-ples for inclusive education before drawingattention to a few more specific consequencesfor vocational training.

Inclusive education is a continuing processin which many people are involved. It is,therefore, a vulnerable process. If we focuson five main tasks for inclusion, schools and

pupils can benefit from this continuing process(De Vroey & Mortier, 2002).

❑ First, we have to work on a commonview and a common language: as a schoolcommunity, what is our attitude towardslearning problems, disability, behaviour prob-lems, and differences in achievement? Howdo we deal with pupils who are unable tokeep up with the curriculum? How do wecommunicate with them if they have diffi-culty in speech, in comprehension? How dowe keep in touch with their parents? Manyquestions arise that need to be discussed.By learning about the main purpose of in-clusive education - maximising participationin all life domains - we will be able to changeexisting attitudes and regard 'problems' moreas differences and challenges. This stageis not a first step, it is rather an underlyingshift within the whole school, permittingmore visible actions and changes to embedthemselves into the school culture, practiceand policies (CSIE, 2002).

❑ Second, we have to recognise the needfor an individual education plan and startworking with it. In inclusion, the IEP isnot based on a description of the develop-mental and educational steps that are nec-essary or upon remedial activities, but itrather takes the form of a support plan.Individual goals are identified based on theopinions, dreams, interests, expectations andobservations of the main participants, nec-essary adaptations are searched for andagreed upon, and participation is explicitlyplanned. Organising inclusion means care-fully matching all activities with specific goalsand filling the need for support. It also meanscareful planning of assistance, without ne-glecting all available natural support that canbe, or already is, provided by peers. Theevaluation of individual goals, as well as re-viewing the support given, are continuoustasks.

❑ Next, we focus on the organisation andmanagement of daily class practice. Teach-ers and trainers will have to be aware of theireducational 'style' as well as their pupils'learning style. Their belief in the learning ca-pacity of every pupil is crucial, even if theycannot 'see' the kind of achievements theyexpect from most pupils. Multilevel instruc-tion is indispensable in an inclusive set-ting, carefully planned and chosen. Teach-ers will probably need training for planningdifferentiated activities and will need to


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become more used to working with supportstaff. Collaborative class practice is often themost interesting working method, becauseof the interdependence of the pupils that iscreated. Tutoring and other forms of peersupport have to be encouraged.

❑ Further to this, a crucial criterion for suc-cessful inclusion is the social support thatneeds to be guaranteed. This means it needsto be planned and monitored through theIEP and its use should become a natural fea-ture of best practice within the culture of theclass and the school. It is probably the mostvulnerable link in the whole inclusion process,so we have to take care of it. The focusshould be on creating a variety of social sup-port systems among peers, on developinggood communication skills among all pupils,and on making the teacher a model practi-tioner of how to support others instead ofletting others down. Even friendships area particular area to be examined. Often, dis-abled pupils need some help to keep friend-ships going, and by organising activities forgroups of friends, schools can encouragefriends to take care of each other.

❑ Finally, the collaborative skills of all staffmembers and every other participant willneed to be evaluated. Inclusive educationintroduces a much more intense need forcollaborative practice at school and at thesame time widens the role of school staff.They will need to meet regularly with par-ents or other carers and with external ad-vice or guidance centres. Additionally, theywill need to work together with support staff,look for more effective internal collabora-tion and look ahead to plan future supportand to make contacts with people who mightneed to be involved. The aim is to move to-wards a model of transdisciplinary and in-tegrated collaboration. It implies role release,creativity, flexibility and the sharing of eachother's competences.

These five key points for action all differfrom what we have been used to organis-ing in special care in one way: the ulti-mate criterion has now become whether wecan preserve the most 'natural' social envi-ronment for the pupil, thus preparing thisenvironment and the pupil for further par-ticipation. Support can come from his ownsocial (peer) group to a great degree; com-mitment and care can be found in his owncommunity; goals are chosen on a naturalbasis, meaning that whatever is learned helps

him to maximise his participation among hispeers. This ecological model is the basisof inclusion rather than the former devel-opmental and therapeutic model.

At the same time, these five principles haveled to some valuable characteristics of spe-cial education being introduced into main-stream education, namely curriculum changeusing individualised goals, materials, and as-sistance based upon a systematic follow-upof the pupils' skills and comprehension.

How to prepare vocational training forinclusive education

The inclusion process does not need to bedifferent in vocational training. The samefeatures are essential. However, there area few circumstances that distinguish voca-tional training from other inclusive educa-tion.

❑ First, vocational training has a clear linkwith a given professional profile. This isvery often a one-to-one relationship: theprofile of the gardener, the hairdresser etc.,dictates the goals and skills to be achieved.Primary schools, and even many types ofsecondary schools, allow pupils a greatdeal of choice when it comes to makingjob and career decisions. This gives themthe opportunity to change goals, to mod-ify assessments and to adapt many of theirpractices. The end goals are more gener-al. Vocational training can modify goalsand assessments as well, but will it deliv-er a qualification that will allow the dis-abled person to find a job? The first of thefive steps, talking through the whole mean-ing of inclusion and taking care of every-one's future as a school team, deserves,therefore, careful follow-up. How can wemaximise the job opportunities of all pupils,including those with challenging abilities?Do we allow them to take more time tolearn how to perform the tasks that are es-sential, or do we agree upon different eval-uations of the performance level of ourpupils? Qualifications can be modified andprobably already are, by describing themodules a trainee finished, or by assign-ing assist or partial accreditation to a per-son's qualification. But before adaptinggoals consideration should be given to pro-viding all the support that might be need-ed, both in a training environment as wellas in a working environment.


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❑ In vocational training settings, obser-vation in the classroom and in work place-ments may take more time before planningfor support can start. Striving to achieve asmuch learning as possible - participatingfully or partially in the classroom or thework environment - we will have to con-sider every possible obstacle to, or supportfor, full participation at work in the future.Therefore, we will need good task analy-ses of all practice required before we canplan for adaptations, assistance or support.Observation of the social support systemthat already exists is very important, as isnoticing the lack of support at certain mo-ments that are crucial for the learning processof the trainee.

❑ Planning for the future, together withthe pupil, will have an important role inthe whole planning process. The near-fu-ture aspect of vocational training not on-ly intensifies the need for collaborationamong staff members of the school andother partners from outside, it also callsfor active input by the disabled person.Personal choices should no longer be trans-lated by parents (only), but - if possible- asked directly. This will give us a bet-ter insight into the social role the personhopes to assume later on, and into the sig-nificance of particular choices and the im-portance of particular friends or assistants.Difficulties that are met very often and can-not be changed easily should be discussedtogether with the pupil, in order to helphim or her to change perspectives if nec-essary. Perhaps transport is already verytiring, which makes a full-time job almostimpossible. But it may also be true thatthe disabled pupil can think of particularsolutions which others fail to consider.

❑ Cooperative learning is not difficultto incorporate in vocational training. Mostvocational schools already work coopera-tively without labelling it as a collabora-tive skill. Whether pupils learn to collab-orate and to support each other to enrichthe group's performance, depends on thetasks to be done and on the interdepend-ence of the different tasks undertaken byone group. The new challenge and focusfor inclusive collaborative work may be onthe process of dividing the tasks in thegroups, agreeing upon a common goal,and on all communicative, social and cog-nitive aspects of a group performance.

❑ Social support systems are relativelynew in vocational education, but can beorganised the way they are in other schools.The amount of peer support required of-ten depends on the extent of the groupinteraction needed and the degree towhich all teachers and trainers take aleading role as a model for support. Tu-toring, mentoring and buddy systems forassistance are valuable methods for in-creasing support and facilitating friend-ships. Perhaps the more obviously slow-er pace of disabled students, the lowerlevel of performance, and the need forassistance calls for very open and honestinformation being given to their class-mates. If these obvious differences arenot discussed or the risk of not being un-derstood is much bigger.

Special schools for vocational training havepaid close attention to linking vocationalskills with practice in real working con-ditions. Many schools work together withpartners in different private companies. Butthe experience they have seems to be lim-ited to a small group of disabled traineesand does not include pupils with morecomplex problems. These schools and theirstaff might be the ones to advise or to sup-port mainstream schools providing voca-tional training when working towards abetter inclusion policy and practice.

Adult organisations for disabled people areproviding another means for vocationaltraining. They seem to be more aware thaneducational institutions of the present em-phasis placed on personal choices and cit-izenship for disabled people. They also of-fer many new initiatives to change the pro-fessional perspective of the person involved.Until a few years ago, many intellectuallydisabled people followed a weekly pro-gramme in a day care centre, where tak-ing part in a variety of activities seemed tobe the priority. Now many day care cen-tres let their members opt into one majoractivity, allowing them to become a bak-er, a gardener, or any other professional'role' of their choice. The latest initiativestry to help these people to find a job in aninclusive working environment. These ex-periences may also serve as a model forthe transition to inclusive vocational train-ing.


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Summary

Inclusive education is growing. However, inorder to continue inclusion in all life do-mains, including work, vocational trainingwill have to follow. Disabled people meetmany obstacles when it comes to job choic-es. Apart from political and economic dif-ficulties, one of the major barriers is soci-ety's opinions on disability. Only by learn-ing together and by acquiring the profes-sional skills needed in a mainstream group,will disabled people be able to find a re-spected social position later on. The inclu-sion process does not only affect their owndevelopment and participation chances, itaffects the attitude of all of their classmatesand peers. When pupils are used to learn-ing, studying, communicating and working

together with their disabled peers, whenthey have good role models showing themand reinforcing the values of (peer) support,they will learn how to coach, support andassist people with disability in the future.It may change the attitude of many adultslater on, and of schools, vocational partners,companies, society. Being a professional inthe near future, they will know how to dealwith questions of support in working con-ditions. This does not mean every disabledperson is obliged to work, but it means hehas a right to take a place in a working so-ciety, in a community, in all domains of so-cial life, and to have training that prepareshim for certain specific professional tasks.If vocational training follows the ideas of in-clusion, we believe it will help to bring abouta breakthrough towards real citizenship forpeople with disability.

Ides Nicaise. Gelijke onderwijskansen (Equal op-portunities in education). Inleidend artikel voorhet Prioritair Nascholingsproject Boeiend Verschil,VOBO, Leuven, 2002.

Annet De Vroey; Kathleen Mortier. Polyfoniein de klas. Praktijkboek voor inclusie. (Polypho-nia in the classroom. A practical guide for in-clusion.) Leuven, Acco, 2002.

Booth T.; Ainscow M. Index for inclusion. Devel-oping learning and participation in schools. Bris-tol, CSIE, 2002.

Fougeyrollas P. et al. The Quebec classification:disability creation process. Quebec, INDCP , 1998.

WHO. The international classification on func-tioning, disability and health. Geneva, WHO, 2001.

Unesco. The Salamanca Statement and frame-work for action on special needs education. Paris,Unesco, 1994.

O'Brien J.; O'Brien C. Inclusion as a force forschool renewal. In: S. Stainback; W. Stainback.Inclusion, a guide for education (p. 29-49). Bal-timore, P. Brookes, 1996.

Porter, G.L.; Richler D. Changing Canadianschools: perspectives on disability and inclusion.Toronto, G. Allen Roeher Institute, 1992.

Hall J.T. Social devaluation and special educa-tion. The right to full mainstream inclusion andan honest statement. London / Pennsylvania, Jes-sica Kingsley, 1997.

Gartner A.; Lipski D. Beyond special education:Toward a quality system for all students. HarvardEducational Review, 57, p. 367-395.

Villa R.; Thousand J. Student collaboration: Anessential for curriculum delivery in the 21st cen-tury. In: S. Stainback; W. Stainback (Eds.), Cur-riculum considerations in inclusive schools: Fa-cilitating learning for all students (p. 117-131),Baltimore, P. Brookes.

Johnson R.; Johnson D. An overview of co-operative learning. In: J.S. Thousand, R. Villa; A.Nevin (Eds.), Creativity and collaborative learn-ing: a practical guide to empowering students andteachers. Baltimore, P. Brookes.


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Bibliography

The article reports on meas-ures that need to be taken byupper secondary schools andthe apprentice system in or-der to help disadvantaged stu-dents obtain a higher educa-tion entrance qualification ora craft certificate. The resultspresented are based on con-clusions from a project ini-tiated by the Norwegian Min-istry of Education. Throughthe project, knowledge andexperience were gained onhow the schools could plan,organise and implement in-dividual educational plans fordisadvantaged students. Thestudents who participated inthe project all aimed at a high-er education entrance quali-fication or a craft certificate.At the end of the project pe-riod this was still the goal forabout 77% of the participants.

Introduction

In Norway, all young people aged 16 to19 have a legal right to upper secondary ed-ucation. This right, established by law, wasimplemented by the reform of upper sec-ondary education in 1994, referred to as Re-form 94. Its goal is to ensure that as manystudents as possible attain either passes athigher education entrance level, which qual-ify for college or university entrance, or acertificate as a skilled worker. In order tohelp disadvantaged or handicapped studentsto achieve this goal, they are given priorityenrolment in the first year course of theirchoice and they are also given the right tospecial education, if this is needed. Initiallythese measures are based upon an evalua-tion of the problems they faced in lower sec-ondary school.

An evaluation of Reform 94 focused on itsconsequences for the disadvantaged (Kval-sund and Myklebust, 1998). For this group itwas found that, of the students who startedin upper secondary schools in 1995, about45% had dropped out during the first 3 years.It was also found that a relatively high num-ber received their training in separate groupsor special classes, a factor which may havehindered them in obtaining a diploma orcertificate.

Based upon these findings, the Ministry ofEducation initiated a three year project toassess how schools could create and im-plement individualised educational plans fordisadvantaged students seeking higher ed-ucation entrance qualifications or a craft cer-tificate and thereby help achieve the objec-tive of Reform 94.

The project referred to in this article is oneof several research and development proj-ects initiated upon evaluations of Reform 94.Partial competence (Skårbrevik and Båtevik,

2000) and Differensiering og tilretteleggingi videregående opplæring(1) (Dale, 2002) aretwo such projects. The aim of the first wasto find out how students could obtain par-tial competence or qualifications that wererelated to certain modules or part of mod-ules as described in the syllabus. The aimof the second was to identify practical arrange-ments which could contribute to an indi-vidualised programme for each student inaccordance with their abilities and educa-tional needs.

Evaluation of the project

The project referred to in this article wasevaluated by the present authors. It wascarried out in three counties and nine up-per secondary schools. In one of the coun-ties, four training offices also participated.The evaluation was based upon written re-ports by, and interviews with, the projectcoordinators in the counties, interviewswith coordinators at the schools and thetraining offices as well as students, ap-prentices and their employers. Interviewswith the coordinator at the county leveland the local coordinators at the schoollevel were conducted twice a year. As manyteachers as possible were interviewed atleast once a year. Interviews with the oth-er relevant parties were conducted onceor twice during the project period. The in-terviews were based on an interview guidewhich focused on those aspects of the pro-grammes important to individual studentsand could differ from one student to an-other. In addition data about the progressof the students was collected each year. Asmost of the students sought a craft cer-tificate, the article concentrates on thisgroup. It should be emphasised that whilethe students included in the project fol-lowed their own individual programmes,these programmes were within the frame-


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Karl J. SkåbrevikÅlesund UniversityCollege

(1) Differentiation and organisationin upper secondary education.

Randi Bergem Møre Research

Finn Ove BåtevikMøre Research

Higher education en-trance exam or craft cer-tificate for disadvantagedadolescents

work of the main objectives of upper sec-ondary education.

Upper SecondaryEducation in Norway

Upper secondary education in Norway isorganised as a three-year programme forthose who seek higher education entrancequalifications and as two years of school-ing and two years as an apprentice for thoseseeking a craft certificate. During the lasttwo years as an apprentice, the responsi-bility for training lies with the employingcompany and a contract for training is drawnup between the apprentice and the em-ployer. Companies that employ apprenticesreceive a grant from the government and inthe case of adolescents who need some kindof extra attention from the employer addi-tional subsidies are given. Each county hasan office for apprenticeships which approvessuitable companies, helps students from up-per secondary schools to make contact withthem and obtain a contract for training. Thisoffice also appoints a committee which eval-uates the performance of the apprenticesbefore they get the craft certificate. In ad-dition, businesses within the same craft of-ten establish their own training office whichassists with the recruitment and trainingof apprentices and supports them general-ly during their apprenticeship period.

Students and apprenticesparticipating in the project

The problems found among the 64 studentsand apprentices participating in the proj-ect are given in Table 1. Some youngstershad more than one problem, therefore thetotal number of problems exceeds the to-tal number of students.

As can be seen from the table, the majori-ty of the adolescents had psychosocial and/orattention problems or learning disabilitieswhen accepted into the project. Physical dis-abilities were less common but persons withvisual, aural and orthopaedic problems areincluded. Compared with the sample of dis-advantaged students studied by Kvalsundand Myklebust (1998) in the evaluation ofthe 1994 reform, this sample contains moreindividuals with psychosocial and/or atten-tion problems.

Results

The project lasted for three years only. Moststudents who aimed for a higher educationentrance qualification would not be ableto obtain a full diploma during the projectbecause they needed extended time to com-plete the programmes and some were in-cluded in the projects in the second yearof the project period. The conclusions aretherefore based on the status of the proj-ect at the end of the academic year2000/2001 (spring 2001) when most of thestudents had still to complete their educa-tion or apprenticeship. However, mostof the students had progressed so far intheir programmes that it was possible toconclude whether the attainment of a high-er education entrance qualification or acraft certificate was a realistic prospect. Theschools or the offices for apprenticeshipshad made plans with the students for theremainder of their programmes at the endof the project period and Table 2 showwhat goals were set by the students as re-flected in these plans.

The goal of the project was to help as manyof these students as possible obtain a high-er education entrance qualification or acraft certificate. At the end of the projectperiod this was still the aim for 77% of theparticipants. At this point 39 of the studentshad a craft certificate and 10 a higher ed-


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Table 1

Disabilities among those participating in the project

NumberVisual impairments 4

Aural impairments 2

Orthopaedic disabilities 8or motor coordination problems

Problems with language or speech 15

Learning disabilities 32

Psychosocial problems 40

Medical problems 11

ucation entrance qualification as their goal.The rest had either dropped out of schoolor aimed at partial documented compe-tence, a diploma for students unable toachieve higher education entrance qualifi-cation or a craft certificate standard (Skårbre-vik and Båtevik, 2000). At the end of theproject 24 (38%) of the students were intheir last year in school or were appren-tices.

The dropout rate is less than found in thefollow-up study of disadvantaged studentscarried out in the evaluation of Reform 94(Myklebust, 2001) where 45% percent of thegroup had dropped out after 3 years. It wouldappear that the measures taken in the pres-ent project had encouraged students to stayin their programmes and may also havehelped increase the number receiving a fulldiploma or certificate.

The importance of a newcontext for education andtraining

In general, the problems faced by studentsin primary and lower secondary school ini-tially define their need for special educa-tion or some other measures when enter-ing upper secondary school. However, inupper secondary school, students are facedwith a different culture, new subjects andnew teachers and, for many, an environ-ment more conducive to learning. We havewhat Bronfenbrenner (1979) defines asan ecological transition. For 13 of the 64students who participated in the project,the educational situation changed signifi-cantly with the transition from lower sec-ondary school to upper secondary school.In half of these instances social problemswere more or less eliminated in a cooper-ation between the school and the students.For the others it was a question of new po-sitions and new roles as they entered a newsocial situation and this seems to have hadan effect upon their behaviour and moti-vation. In some cases it was reported thatproblems perceived at lower secondaryschool did not appear when the studententered upper secondary school, this ap-plying to behavioural problems as well asto learning difficulties.

Slower progress had been considered anappropriate measure for several of the stu-

dents in the project. In most cases thestudents had taken two years to completethe first year basic course. Some studentsin the vocational track had also taken twoyears on the advanced course. Accordingto the plans, 21 (34%) would complete theircourses required for higher education en-trance qualification or craft certificate with-in the normal time schedule of 3 or 4 years,12 (19%) would take 5 years and 9 (14%)6 years or more(2). For the students on thevocational track, this slower progress inschool was combined with practical train-ing in the workplace and viewed by teach-ers and students as a necessary initiative inensuring completion of the programme.

The first year basic courses appear to bean obstacle for many of the students in thevocational track. However if students man-age to pass this stage, the more advancedcourses and the apprenticeship seem to beeasier for them to complete. At the endof the project 54 (84%) had at least com-pleted the first year of upper secondary ed-ucation.

One third of the lessons in the basic cours-es in the vocational track of upper sec-ondary school are academic subjects. Manyof the students in the project had a histo-ry of failure from primary and lower sec-ondary school in these subjects and theylacked the basic knowledge, skills and mo-tivation for this kind of schoolwork. By ex-tending the basic course over two yearsand combining it with training outside school,upper secondary school became more mean-ingful to the students. This gave them abreak from some of the theoretical subjects,and they found they were able to carry out


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Table 2

Students' aims for upper secondary education at theend of the project period

Boys Girls All

Higher education entrance exam 6 4 10

Craft certificate 26 13 39

Diploma of partial competence 7 2 9

Not in upper secondary education 5 1 6

Totals 44 20 64

(2) For seven of the students it wasdifficult to estimate the time requiredto obtain the aim of craft certificateor higher education entrance qual-ification. In some of these cases itcould take time to get an appren-ticeship.

their work while in the workplace. This in-creased their self-confidence and, in time,their motivation to complete the academicsubjects needed to receive a certificate. Sim-ilar conclusions were drawn from an earli-er project with almost the same target group(Skårbrevik and Båtevik, 2000). Many ofthe students who had this combination ofschool and work were also offered a con-tract for apprenticeship by the same com-pany.

Preventing dropping out

Many of the students in this project had so-cial or psychosocial problems combinedwith attention deficit disorders. Without thespecial attention that these students receivedthroughout the project period many of themwould have dropped out. Primarily, teach-ers must show a positive interest in the stu-dent and, as expressed by one student, theirpresence has to be recognised and appre-ciated and the reasons for absence estab-lished. Often these students stay away forseveral days without the school taking anyaction to establish their whereabouts. If thisabsence persists for weeks it can be verydifficult to get the student back to school.In the project, some schools initiated spe-cial procedures aimed at preventing thishappening. Close cooperation betweenteachers, school counsellors and family,and in some instances with school psy-chologists or social agencies, is called for,especially when the student becomes anapprentice. In many cases the employer andother employees do more than normal tohelp the apprentice when problems arise.However, assistance is often needed fromthe training offices or the other agencieswho know the apprentice, and the uppersecondary school might also assist in somecases. The school counsellors who knowthe apprentice have the professional knowl-edge and skill to intervene in a construc-tive way if problems should arise. Theschool's responsibility for students normallyends when the apprenticeship begins. How-ever, in the project it transpired that it wasimportant that the guidance counsellor ora teacher could continue to assist the stu-dent with social and practical problemsthroughout the apprenticeship period, aswell as the employer. This presupposes amore extensive integration of the school-based education and training with the ap-

prenticeship system.

Formal issues related totransfer

There are several transfers within upper sec-ondary education which also entail someformal procedures, especially within the craftcertificate track. When students have fin-ished the basic course, they have to applyfor admission to one of the more specialisedcourses in the second year. When the sec-ond year is finished, a workplace for the ap-prenticeship has to be found. A key task forthe project was to help identify procedureswhich could smooth the transfer from schoolto the workplace and apprenticeship. Thisrequired close cooperation between student,school, the county-based offices for ap-prenticeship, the training offices establishedby the employers and the workplace. Forexample, the company should apply for ad-ditional subsidies from the government forapprentices in need of special attention. Theformalities involved mean additional workfor the employer which was found burden-some. It takes time before the applicationsare granted, making it even more difficultto obtain an apprenticeship for the disad-vantaged. As a result of the conclusionsfrom the project, new procedures were es-tablished where the subsidies were grantedbefore the companies were approached,making it much easier to obtain a contractof apprenticeship.

Alternation between schooland workplace

Many employers were sceptical about ac-cepting apprentices needing special atten-tion. In order to overcome this, schools ac-tively sought to introduce their students toappropriate businesses at an early stage, forexample while the student was still in thebasic course, combined with slower progress.However, this was most often used in con-junction with advanced courses when thetransfer to apprenticeship was being planned.In most cases the students spent one or twodays a week at the workplace and this ap-proach was successful for several reasons.First, prospective employers got to know thestudents and, in most cases, became hap-pier about accepting them as apprentices


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later on. Second, the students could com-bine theory with practical training and recog-nise the relevance of the courses being taughtat school. Students were more motivated asthey could get out of school and do somepractical work even though it might meantaking an extra year to obtain their certifi-cate. The alternative could mean they failedcourses at school and had to take an extrayear anyway. This alternation was not al-ways easy to implement as the work at thebusinesses concerned had to be adjusted toschool schedules and, to avoid problems,cooperation between schools, students andemployers was essential.

The role of the trainingoffices

These offices are set up by different busi-nesses in order to assist them with the re-cruitment and training of apprentices. In onecounty some offices also participated inthe project while in the other counties theywere involved only if the coordinators foundit necessary. Cooperation with these officeswas crucial in order to secure an appren-ticeship for many of these students. How-ever, in some instances these training officesdid not want to give priority to disadvan-taged youth. Employers are free to recruitthe apprentices they want and it is not sur-prising to find that some want to recruit on-ly the most able students. In several cases itwas found that without a special effort byfamily, teachers or others that knew the stu-dents, it would have been difficult to securean apprenticeship for them. It is apparentthat the goal of upper secondary education,that all youth should be given a chance toobtain a craft certificate, can only be attainedif the students have a network that helpsthem secure an apprenticeship. At the endof the project 16 (25%) of the adolescentshad obtained apprenticeships and otherswere in the process of obtaining such con-tracts with employers. From interviews withthe students and employers and from in-formation from local teachers involved inthe projects, it can be concluded that to se-cure apprenticeship for these adolescents itis necessary to go beyond the regular pro-cedures and involve the support of the schoolor the office for apprenticeships.

The training offices also assisted the em-ployers by way of regular meetings with the

apprentices where training related problemsor other issues were discussed. The employerfound this assistance to be beneficial in en-suring the quality of the training and was ofspecial importance in working with disad-vantaged youth.

Information is a key issue when studentstransfer from one year to another duringschool years or from school to apprentice-ship, and a lack of it is often a cause of dis-satisfaction for almost everyone involved. Itis important to pass on relevant informationabout the student or apprentice and to beaware that when the student enters a newlearning or training situation his or her prob-lems might appear differently than in theformer context, and even disappear. Em-ployers with no experience of taking on stu-dents might be wary and anticipate diffi-culties but it was found that some of thosewho had employed disadvantaged youth asapprentices in the past had become moreinclined to employ similar staff in the future.It was found counter productive to withholdinformation in order to obtain an appren-ticeship as this could destroy the neces-sary trust between the employer, the schoolor other agency concerned and in turn makeit difficult for the employer to plan andimplement satisfactory training for the ap-prentice.

Cooperation

Several of the students and apprentices hadsocial or psychosocial problems. For thisgroup, the support related to these difficul-ties was as important as the special adjust-ments made to the educational or trainingprogramme. Often the educational problemsdisappeared when the social or psychoso-cial problems were resolved and the socialsituation of the students or apprentices wasstabilised. However such circumstancesrequired close cooperation between young-sters and their families, social agencies, schoolpsychologist or other agencies outside school.Officially the schools do not have any re-sponsibility for the students once they havefinished their education and are seekingan apprenticeship. However, it can be con-cluded from the project that for these stu-dents, schools can play an important coor-dinating role during this and the appren-ticeship period.


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While the schools had counsellors and lo-cal project coordinators to attend to theseproblems, such resources are not found inthe workplace. If problems occurred, theemployer had to rely on the training of-fices or the county-based offices for ap-prenticeship. As reported in other studies,businesses which had employed appren-tices with serious handicaps stressed thatwithout assistance from these offices theywould not have been able to complete thetraining (Båtevik, 2000). Throughout theproject it was found important to establishsupport groups consisting of representa-tives from the school psychological office,social agency or training office for someof the apprentices. These groups could as-sist the apprentice as well as the employ-er in dealing with problems related to thetraining or the social situation of the ap-prentice.

Discussion

This article has mainly focused on the stu-dents who sought a craft certificate. Ten stu-dents sought a higher education entrancequalification and these had mainly physicalproblems or visual or aural impairments. Thephysical or technical needs of these studentswere generally satisfactorily met by theschools. Their progress was also satisfacto-ry, even though most of them followed anindividual plan that meant it would be morethan three years before they could get adiploma. The main problem for these stu-dents was their social integration with oth-er students.

Several of the students who chose the vo-cational track needed a new start in uppersecondary school. For years they had ex-perienced failure during the primary andlower secondary school years and many ofthem had received extensive special edu-cational support. The upper secondary schoolprovided a new context for learning thatgave many of these students such an op-portunity.

With the reform of upper secondary edu-cation in 1994, a majority of the academicsubjects in the vocational track were allo-cated to the basic courses of the first year.Thus these students met the same subjectsin which they had failed earlier. They al-so found them to be of little relevance to

the craft towards which they were work-ing. Students were in need of an approachwhich primarily gave them confidence inthemselves. Our study shows that combin-ing theory with practical training in the firstyears ensured success for many students.Using an environment for learning outsideschool provides a flexible way of organis-ing courses and has been found to be veryuseful for disadvantaged students. Otherprojects have reached similar conclusions(Skårbrevik and Båtevik, 2000). This com-bination of teaching at school and practi-cal training in the workplace could provevery useful for all students in the vocationaltracks of upper secondary education, andcalls for a revision of the syllabus that pro-vides for more practical training during thefirst year. The Norwegian Parliament hasasked the Ministry to take initiatives thatincreased the integration of theory and prac-tice in vocational education. (Innst. S. No139 [2001-2002].

The education act provides a formal rightfor at least three years of upper secondaryeducation for all youth. However, this righthas one important exception for studentswho aim for a craft certificate. The employeris free to decide whether to sign an agree-ment of apprenticeship with a student ornot. This is a weak point in the egalitari-an tradition of the Norwegian school sys-tem that might place a student with lesserpersonal or social resources at a disadvan-tage. It is especially difficult to obtain anapprenticeship for these students. The studyshows that success in this respect often de-pends on personal knowledge of the young-ster by owners of small businesses in thelocal community or on special efforts bythe school or training offices. This is a prob-lem that has been addressed in several doc-uments, for example in a White Paper tothe Parliament in 1999 (St meld No 32, 1998-99), but without any further initiatives.

The evaluation of the project has shown thatthere are several problems to be solved ifthe goal of obtaining a craft certificate shouldbe made available to as many disadvan-taged young people as possible. However,it has also shown that by fairly simple meas-ures and close monitoring of the studentsthis goal could be realised by a majority ofthe students who participated in the proj-ect.

Båtevik, Finn Ove. Frå særvilkår til fagbrev. Om


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tidlegare særvilkårselevar på lærekontrakt. Work-ing Paper No 86. Volda: Volda University Col-lege/Møre Research Volda, 2000.

Bronfenbrenner, Urie. The Ecology of HumanDevelopment. Cambridge: Harvard University Press,1979.

Dale, E.L. Differensiering i utdanningssystemet.Læringssenteret, Oslo, 2002.

Innst. S. No 139. Proposal by M.P. Rolf Reik-vam and Lena Jensen about different models forvocational education in upper secondary schooland greater flexibility to chose alternative arrange-ments in relation to the main model, 2001-2002.

Kvalsund, R.; Myklebust, J.O. Innestenging,utestenging eller inkludering? Om læringsvilkår,gjennomstrøyming og fråfallsmønster for særvilkårse-

levar i vidaregåande opplæring. Research Rap-port No 35. Volda: Volda University College/ MøreResearch, 1998.

Myklebust, Jon Olav. Gjennomstrøyming og kom-petanse. Særvilkårselevar i vidaregåande opplæring.Working Paper No113. Volda: Volda UniversityCollege/Møre Research, 2001.

Skårbrevik, Karl J.; Båtevik, Finn Ove. Docu-mented partial competence. A third way to a diplo-ma in upper-secondary education in Norway. TheEuropean Journal for Vocational Training. Vol.21, p.16-23, 2000

St.meld. No 32. Videregående opplæring, (1998-99).


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Bibliography

Introduction

Generally speaking, official provision of ed-ucation and training in Portugal has had dif-ficulty coping with the specific needs of so-cially excluded groups. The lack of successin some cases was not due merely to trainees'unsuitability, unwillingness to learn or oth-er shortcomings, which were often put for-ward in explanation.

Because of this, and conscious of the gen-erally low level of education and occupa-tional qualifications and skills in Portugalcompared to the rest of the EU, the coun-try's research organisations, led by INOFOR(the government body concerned with pro-moting training innovation and quality) tookon the challenging task of proving the pre-vailing discourse wrong. These bodies setout to identify and disseminate good train-ing practices that would help to solve thetraining problem for groups at risk of socialexclusion.

The study on 'Emerging training profiles fordisadvantaged social groups' carried out byINOFOR under the Community's EMPREGO/INTEGRA programme sought to identifyinnovations in forms of training and trainerprofiles that were particularly adapted tothe needs of socially disadvantaged groups.

The term 'profile' is used here to mean thecombination of knowledge and of occupa-tional and behavioural knowhow requiredby trainers in order to deliver the new formsof training. We refer to 'emerging profiles' be-cause they reflect innovations not coveredby officially recognised occupational profiles.

A new understanding ofsocial exclusion

We use the term 'disadvantaged' for all per-sons who find themselves in a situation ofexclusion.

The concept of social exclusion, frequent-ly encountered in sociological theory, hascome to replace the concept of poverty insocial debate because it highlights com-plex issues that go beyond a person's fi-nancial situation.

Exclusion relates to an existing integratedset of basic social systems characterised bydiffering degree of inaccessibility. Viewedthus, the notion of exclusion also bears aconverse relationship to the notion of citi-zenship. The latter concept is described byBruto da Costa as effective access to a setof basic social systems that may be groupedunder five main headings: ‘social, econom-ic, institutional, territorial and symbolic bench-marks’ (Bruto da Costa, 1998, p.14).

The inability to access the various basic so-cial systems is the product of a number offactors that increase the risk of social ex-clusion, such as low income, unemployment,low educational level, job instability, unsta-ble family relationships (particularly mar-riage), poor living conditions (lack of space,poor sanitation or substandard dwellings),poor physical or mental health, alcoholismor drug addiction, worries about dependants,social isolation and the trajectories of pover-ty (Hespanha et al., 2000). Although all sub-ject to the same risk factors, groups threat-ened by social exclusion, who we can referto generically as 'socially dis-advantaged'(Capucha, 1998), by no means constitute ahomogeneous population. They simply sharecertain problems that result from particularcircumstances.

To be able to identify the various risk situ-ations deriving from the unequal distribu-tion and accumulation of different handi-caps (exclusion from or inadequate inclu-sion in the labour market, low income, in-adequate housing, low educational level,lack of skills, low social and political in-volvement etc.) we talk of 'summations'of poverty and social exclusion situations,that in turn find expression in a more or less

Cristina Milagre

João Passeiro

VictorAlmeida

New trainer profiles forsocially disadvantagedgroups


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Senior research technicians in the 'Training Methodologyand Curricular Development'

Project Unit, INOFOR

The need for greater efficiencyin certain systems or aspectsof training for socially dis-advantaged groups in Portu-gal has led some training bod-ies to reorganise training andintroduce new training meth-ods. We look here at some ex-amples of good practice thathave proved particularly ef-fective in adapting trainingto meet these groups' specif-ic needs.The study on 'Emerging train-ing profiles for disadvan-taged social groups' carriedout by INOFOR sought to iden-tify innovations in forms oftraining and trainer profilesadapted to the needs of so-cially disadvantaged groups.


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coherent, consolidated way of life (Luis Ca-pucha, 1998).

The groups that may be considered social-ly disadvantaged, therefore, are 'those who,because they find themselves on the lowestrungs of the social scale, are particularly sus-ceptible to poverty and tend to become vic-tims of social exclusion and to accumu-late handicaps that impede access to full cit-izenship for most of them' (Capucha, 1998,p.8). The fact of being subject to a numberof complex negative discrimination factorsgenerates within these groups 'identifyingmechanisms that find their expression in aspecific way of life' (loc.cit.).

If we understand social exclusion in this wayrather than as an economic problem solv-able by a money grant, combating exclusionimplies a political devolution of power. Thiscould occur through the creation of a train-ing system that provides access to social,economic, territorial, institutional and sym-bolic power.

Approaches to training forthe socially disadvantaged

Given the precarious situation of the sociallydisadvantaged in terms of training and em-ployment due to their lack of educationaland occupational qualifications and of work-related, personal and social skills, trainingcannot just be conceived in the strict senseof implementing a curricular programme butmust be viewed in a broader sense.

In fact, this broader concept of training callsfor a diversification of training strategies. Itmust be viewed as a process (Castro, 2000)that combines activities normally understoodas training (which we shall refer to as train-ing components - general, theoretical andpractical, and social and cultural - tradi-tionally covered by the formal training mod-el) with new types of activity. The latter areproving themselves to be equally importantfor the integration of the socially disadvan-taged in the world of work (Nunes, 2000).We shall call these training dimensions.

The term 'training dimensions' is thus usedto mean those activities that complement theformal elements of the training curriculum.They aim to motivate individuals to takepart in training, and to work towards social

and occupational integration, by helpingthem to plan their personal life and careerrealistically and in a manner consonant withthe motivation, ability and aptitude of each;to adapt the content and methods of teach-ing and training to trainees; to assist themwith solving personal and social problemsby creating conditions favourable to learn-ing and progress in their personal and so-cial plan; and to devise with trainees or theiremployers strategies for achieving their so-cial and occupational integration (adaptedfrom Guia do Apoio ao Utilizador - Acred-itação das Entidades Formadores, INOFOR,1998).

Thorough documentary research and dis-cussions with experts in the field made itpossible to identify a number of innova-tive dimensions suitable for use in trainingthe groups concerned.

We shall now look at a number of these train-ing dimensions that are used throughout tocomplement the instruction involved in train-ing stricto sensu, and to create the condi-tions motivating trainees to persevere in theirtraining.

In the first place new strategies are neededfor publicising and recruiting. Approachingpeople and inviting them to take part in train-ing should be preferred to issuing formalcommunications or summonses. Excessive-ly rigid and exclusive selection criteria arenot appropriate for dealing with more diffi-cult situations. It is also to be hoped that aprior analysis of training needs and interestsconducted jointly with client groups will con-tribute to their greater perseverance.

It is also important to analyse the needs ofthe labour market so that the motivation andinterests of potential trainees can be direct-ed to suitable areas of training with a viewto achieving higher job placement rates.

Care must be given to the way in which peo-ple are received. Their first contact with anorganisation should be used to provideeducational and career information, possi-bly leading on to retraining for which as-sistance is available. The aim should be tofind the most suitable solution for each case,while continuing the process of analysingneeds and interests. Trainees should be in-volved in designing an initial training pro-gramme (this process should continue astraining progresses) and in defining a set of

objectives and the roles of the various agentsinvolved.

When working with socially disadvantagedgroups it is important to bear in mind thatevery type of experience can be a source ofskills. Knowledge and skills acquired throughwork or personal and social experience (withfamily, at school, in leisure time etc.) maybe recognised, validated and possibly certi-fied using a series of procedures that go tomake up the skills audit. This method ba-sically works towards three objectives, whichmay or may not complement one another.

1) - A skills audit helps a person to identi-fy his knowledge and skills so as to beable to draw up a career plan which heis then responsible for pursuing. The or-ganisation performing the skills auditmay act as mentor and support by mo-bilising the necessary means, whethereducational, training, financial, logistic,administrative etc. The ultimate aim is tohelp the person get to know himself bet-ter, discover his personal and occupa-tional abilities and aptitudes and drawup a plan for life.

2) - The skills audit may also mark the startof a process assisted directly by the bodyperforming the audit. In this case it willserve as a guide in that it will enable adiagnosis to be made of the trainingneeds justifying the action. Bearing inmind that the skills audit focuses on theperson and his particular history, it shouldas far as possible lead to a personalisedform of training specifying the areas andforms of training in each case, thus per-mitting training to be organised in linewith individual needs so as to benefitthe individual concerned and enhancetraining efficiency.

Finally a skills audit may constitute an im-portant tool for validating and certifying skillsacquired informally, whether in a work en-vironment or in other ways.

Particular importance should also be givento the analysis of basic needs so as to helptrainees identify and solve any personal orsocial problems they may have; these, whilenot strictly related to training, tend to hin-der their learning and skill acquisition. Ananalysis of this kind may be conducted in amore structured manner at the outset of train-ing. Steps should be taken to to build trustbetween trainees and trainers so that theteam is aware of any problems throughout

the training period.

Among the new training dimensions, par-ticular emphasis should be placed on follow-up during and after training. Since work-basedtraining may sometimes be a person's firstexperience of incorporation within an or-ganisation - an experience that is often for-eign to the life and mentality of disadvan-taged groups - individual and group fol-low-up takes on particular importance for theteam: it provides an opportunity for observ-ing both individual and group dynamics, andbrings training into line with individuals' ob-jectives and expectations (and vice versa).

This should be a psychosocial process us-ing empowerment strategies to encouragetrainees' involvement and their growing in-dependence in solving their personal, so-cial, learning, integrational or other prob-lems. This approach may complement thesocial and cultural training component orconstitute an alternative to it.

Follow-up should continue after training, onthe assumption that once training has beencompleted it is desirable for trainees tofind work. This calls for active job-seeking,coupled where possible with contacts withpotential employers and negotiating workplacements for trainees. Active partnershipsshould be established with local firms andother bodies that are willing to lend assistancewith training, particularly to meet basic needsor for social and occupational integration.

Method

Since the object of our study was to identi-fy emerging profiles for trainers in conjunctionwith training dimensions considered ap-propriate for disadvantaged social groups,it seemed to us that research using the casestudy method might provide a better answerto the inevitable questions of what shouldbe done and why.

In order to formulate a more concrete ob-jective, it was decided to choose five train-ing projects from among a wide variety oftraining environments. It is not difficult tounderstand that even when concerned withcombating social exclusion, different train-ing bodies and projects may vary in termsboth of the type and personal circumstancesof groups targeted and of their training di-


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mensions. Our choice was therefore gov-erned by a number of criteria, selected witha view to ensuring a degree of diversity inthe cases being studied.

We therefore had to seek out cases of:

❑ projects targeting different types of so-cially disadvantaged groups;

❑ projects using different dimensions pri-or to, during and after training;

❑ projects involving new types of trainers;

❑ projects conducted in different geo-graphical areas;

❑ projects funded by the European Union.

The choice of projects and trainers for casestudy purposes was made using the infor-mation gathered in the course of meetingswith people responsible for GICEA (the man-agers of Youthstart, Now and Integra), anINOFOR operational programme for the in-tegration and accreditation of training bod-ies who are familiar with the training avail-able for socially disadvantaged groups.

The choice of interviewees for the case stud-ies was not a random one; it was guided bythe wish to link the project coordinator'soverall view of the training project with themore nuanced view of those involved inspecific areas of training. We therefore drewup an interview guide for the project coor-dinator of each of the projects chosen andanother for each of the trainers being stud-ied.

The choice of interview topics was basedon theoretical and expressly formulated char-acteristics. These were then confirmed inconversations with the trainers themselves,who were questioned along lines suggest-ed by certain literature, experiments andteam discussions. More specifically on theobjective of the study, they were asked whatthey did and what they thought about a cer-tain training process in which they were ac-tively involved. The interviews, therefore,did not follow a completely open model; atfirst they used a semi-structured model inorder to 'lead the interviewees to think moredeeply or consider a new point that theywould not have raised spontaneously' (Al-barello, et al., 1997, p.110).

New trainer profiles

Broadening the concept of training impliesexpanding the actual training team so asto diversify trainers' functions (Nunes, 2000).This means identifying new profiles for train-ers and others working in the areas of per-sonal, social and occupational developmentof socially disadvantaged groups with a viewto their social integration and employment.

The case study method was used to identi-fy and analyse a number of innovations con-nected with the training of socially dis-ad-vantaged groups.

We were this able to draw up occupation-al profiles for the trainers concerned on thebasis of the method used by INOFOR in Por-tugal to produce standard descriptions forthe various sectors of activity(1).

Profiles were drawn up on the basis of thework performed by each person. The skillsinvolved were broken down under the threeheadings of knowledge, technical knowhowand social and interpersonal skills. This en-abled us to include theoretical knowledge,occupation-related skills and behaviour andattitudes towards others and towards work.

The information thus obtained was designedmainly for the use of professionals concern-ed with the training of the socially disad-vantaged for the training dimensions and/orpeople involved in these projects(2).

The following are the types of trainer se-lected for the innovation case studies, theorganisations in which the trainers work andthe functions they perform.

a) - Skills auditor (ANOP - National As-sociation of Planning Offices)

A skills auditor acts as a facilitator and istasked with encouraging and developingclients' self-esteem and self-regard, offeringthe assurance needed for them to exploittheir capacity for initiative. He also assistsand accompanies trainees throughout theirtraining, maintaining a presence that struc-tures the relationship with the other mem-bers of the training team.

Auditing is carried out at the start of the train-ing process and comprises three stages:

(1) Through its 'Skill developmentand analysis of training needs' pro-gramme INOFOR draws up nation-ally valid standard descriptions forthe different sectors of activity whichillustrate the way in which skills aredeveloping and serve as an aid inthe analysis of training needs andhow training should be reorient-ed: Suleiman, F; Morais, M.F.; Fer-nandes, M.M. Estudos Sectorais Per-spectivos: Manual Metodológico. Lis-bon: Instituto para a Inovação naFormação, 1999.

(2) The profiles for skill auditors,training technicians for in-servicefollow-up, mediators, personal andsocial development teams (psy-chologists and social service, de-velopment and job placement tech-nicians will be found in the formdescribed in the study on which thisarticle is based (Emerging trainingprofiles for trainers working with so-cially disadvantaged groups, INOFOR,2002).

(1) initially the nature of the client's requestis clarified with him. He is then told howthe audit process will be conducted andthe various procedures involved, as alsothose of the Planning Office. This stageends with the signing of a contract set-ting out the objectives to be achieved onthe basis of the request, and the rolesand responsibilities of the two parties(trainee and auditor);

(2) the next stage is a thorough study of theclient's personal and occupational careerto date with a view to determining hisaptitudes, motivation, interests and per-sonal/work values;

(3) finally the client, with the auditor's as-sistance, produces summary documentssetting out the most important findings ofthe study in systematic form. Of these, thepersonal and occupational dossier con-tains information relating to the client'spersonal and career background and anydocuments making clear the knowledgeand skills he uses that are not shown inany certificate and possibly not evenrecognised by the client himself. Thissummary document contains all the in-formation used during the audit.

The skills audit is conducted partly on a one-to-one basis and partly in groups. The one-to-one sessions enable trust to be establish-ed between the client and the auditor. Theyalso provide an opportunity for the client tobecome aware of, and think more deeplyabout, aspects of his past and his personallife, thus enhancing his self-knowledge andability to manage skills. The group sessions,on the other hand, are essential for the in-terchange of experience, ideas and feelingsthat is beneficial both in terms of trainingand of creating an esprit de corps. This isa process which develops (and permits in-dividual development) at a gathering pace:individual sessions are used to reflect andconsolidate the individual's thinking, whilegroup sharing, confrontation and a collec-tive synthesis in turn contributes to furtherreflection and consolidation.

b) In-service training follow-up techni-cian (ASPD - Portuguese Solidarity andDevelopment Association)

This person's role extends throughout theentire training process, in all training di-mensions and in all training components.

Essentially, however, his work centres onaccompaniment and follow-up, and the so-cial and cultural training which this involves.The purpose of follow-up is to encouragethe development of personal and social skillsand to organise and exploit the possibilitiesof learning in the workplace. There are twotypes of follow-up.

Psychosocial follow-up takes place in week-ly group-based sessions and involves a week-ly stocktaking in terms of employability,guidance, and a collaborative solving of per-sonal problems. Use is made of various toolsand techniques for enhancing self-knowl-edge and knowledge of the environment(lists of interests, life history) and trainingmanagement (diary, guidance, and skillsauditing tools).

Trainees' career plans and employability lev-els are studied and discussed, beginning withsuch aspects as application, punctuality, andrelations with superiors before proceedingto specific questions about training. Eachtrainee's progress is assessed and consid-ered, starting from the trainee's account ofneeds and difficulties. This account is basedon a diary in which the trainee records theweek's events at the training location andelsewhere. Other tools and techniques arealso used, all designed to encourage groupconfidence and experience-sharing: groupdynamics, mutual help, personal histories,'progress report' etc. Sessions devoted tospecific subjects and study visits are also or-ganised for social and cultural training pur-poses.

Psychosocial follow-up also involves indi-vidual follow-up of trainees in order to iden-tify and help solve any personal problems(such as physical health, psychological prob-lems connected with unemployment, be-havioural disturbances, difficulties in relat-ing to others, or isolation) and social prob-lems such as a shortage of money, insecurehousing accommodation, illiteracy, and theneed to regularise official records. Many ofthese problems are raised at the weeklygroup stocktaking sessions when reflect-ingon the week's events in a personal or train-ing context. Another form of follow-up,namely teaching follow-up also takes placeweekly in order to assess trainees' technicaland interpersonal skills as demonstrated attheir work-based training location. Thefollow-up technicians make contact withfirms on a weekly basis in order to set train-


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ing objectives, receive reports of work done,define the skills profile to be acquired, seekwork placements for trainees, inform thoseresponsible of the incentives available forthose offering employment contracts etc.

c) Mediator ('Youth Mill' CulturalAssociation)

In this project the mediator undertakes thepsychosocial follow-up of young peopleat their workplace, in their families, with thetraining team and with other local people in-volved. This is conducted at three levels. Aninformal individual follow-up takes place,for example during breaks, over lunch andin trainees' leisure periods when the medi-ator uses conversation to strengthen hisrelationship of confidence with them and togive them any help needed in solving per-sonal, family or educational problems. Heassists them in communicating and dealingwith local authorities and contacts their fam-ilies in order to provide explanations or askfor help with the young person's difficulties.He also takes part in group activities suchas classroom discussions on given subjectsand exercises in self-expression that offeran opportunity for him to get to know thetrainees as a group and when necessary re-solve conflicts between them or clarify mat-ters connected with the course. Finally, hefacilitates contact with other members of theteam and with local bodies, with whose pro-cedures he needs to be familiar in order toprovide trainees with help when necessary.

d) Personal and social development team(CESIS - Centre for Social Action Studies)

The role of the personal and social devel-opment team extends throughout the entiretraining process with one or more of its mem-bers involved in every training dimensionas well as the social and cultural compo-nent.

It is mainly concerned with follow-up andsocial and cultural training. This componentis referred to as the 'Personal and SocialDevelopment' or 'Social Skills and FutureProspects' programme and is conducted bythe psychologist and social service techni-cians and by specially invited outside train-ers in sessions dealing with a variety of par-ticular subjects such as the training contract,trainees' rights and obligations, health, childrearing, family planning (for adolescentmales), personal appearance and presen-

tation, access to the minimum guaranteedincome, access to work etc. Treatment ofsuch subjects is supplemented by a fol-low-up of female trainees throughout thetraining process, since it is essentially dur-ing group sessions that a friendly relation-ship can develop between trainers and traineeswhich encourages confidences and discus-sion of specific problems. These can thenbe dealt with during individual follow-upsessions.

Follow-up is essentially psychosocial and or-ganised in such a manner as to encourageacquisition of the personal and social skillsneeded for successful social integration andjob placement. It takes the form of weeklystocktaking sessions with female trainees inorder to assess their progress as regardslearning, interpersonal relations, degree ofsatisfaction, suitability of content, personalproblems, basic needs etc. These sessionsfunction as an open space where questionsconcerning trainees' adaptability to the group,to work and to society are discussed. Theyallow personal problems to be brought tolight via the subject under discussion; theirexpression enables the team to help thetrainee(s) find a solution. At the same time,individual follow-up strategies can be de-vised either by the psychologist (who is con-cerned with personal skills and can give spe-cific advice or psychotherapeutic guidanceaway from the place of training); by the so-cial service technicians who provide specificinformation concerning the rights of traineesand how best to go about obtaining them;or by the development technician, who isable to assist in matters connected withthe family, living accommodation, the healthand education of children etc. Every femaletrainee is free to approach any technicianinformally with a request for help with aspecific problem, particularly the person withwhom she feels the greatest empathy. Theteam then decides which technician is bestqualified to cope with the particular prob-lem.

e) Job placement technician (CRIS - Centrefor Social Integration)

The job placement technician's work chieflyinvolves working with trainees in finding so-lutions to their problems so as to permit theirpersonal development and encourage learn-ing. In this way, trainees are prepared forwork experience while their integrationinto the social and work environment is as-

sessed and monitored. The technician alsoencourages firms to offer work experienceopportunities and prepares them for the task.

Job placement follow-up occurs at three lev-els. The technician begins by gatheringinformation on each trainee in collabora-tion with the rest of the team, especially thetechnical trainers and mentors. This processcontinues throughout the period of train-ing. The information assembled is used asthe basis for preparing a trainee for herinterview with the firm. This is done infor-mally, chiefly by making the trainee awareof what he can expect, how he should con-duct himself, which values are important inthe work environment, how he should pres-ent himself to the firm and how he shouldreact to initial difficulties in adjusting to workand to people (low output, possible criti-cisms from fellow-workers, etc.). To this pur-pose, job interviews are simulated. Thejob placement technician accompanies thetrainee on the first day of training if he doesnot seem able to cope alone.

The technician also works with the firmswilling to accept trainees for work experi-ence and visits them regularly, learning asmuch as possible about their operations,their production system, corporate culture,working atmosphere etc. She seeks to es-tablish close contacts with employers, usingarguments and language appropriate to eachsituation. Having compiled a list of firms onthe basis of general knowledge and, fre-quently, information from other employers,she visits the firms and then selects onlythose that display a genuine interest in train-ing and employing the young people. Shedraws up training agreements with firms forvarying periods (generally three months),during which time their progress is moni-tored by CRIS. Trainees are not paid duringtheir period of work experience. If the firmis benefiting from a trainee's work the tech-nician suggests some form of remuneration,but makes no demands in this regard.

Finally, work experience follow-up is in-formal and occasional. The technician on-ly intervenes when problems arise; she avoidsputting small and medium-sized enterpris-es under too much pressure by asking themto conduct assessments, since this is likelyto prove counter-productive. The assessmentmade at the end of the period of work ex-perience involves completing an assessmentform which is the same as that used by CRIS

in cases of direct job placement. Often anemployer will offer the young person a con-tract before the expiration of a period ofwork experience. Follow-up ceases once acontract has been signed, but can be re-sumed at any time if the former traineeapproaches CRIS with a request for a newjob placement.

Conclusion

The procedures which take place at the startof training (publicising, recruitment, selec-tion, induction, vocational or occupationalguidance and skills auditing) as well as pro-cedures that accompany or follow training(analysis of basic needs, follow-up and as-sessment of trainees and training) are fun-damental aspects of the training practices ofprojects under study relating to socially dis-advantaged groups.

Special importance is accorded to trainingfollow-up, which has proved vital in work-ing with the socially disadvantaged. Despitethe different methods employed used, therewas general agreement as to the followingprincipal objectives:

❑ activating or reviving skills on the ba-sis of the knowledge of the groups target-ed;

❑ creating a relationship of empathy start-ing from a holistic personal approach;

❑ using a mixed individual and group-basedfollow-up strategy;

❑ pursuing follow-up actively on the ba-sis of project methods;

❑ mobilising and managing locally avail-able resources, i.e. other staff working indifferent areas, partner bodies in favour ofmeeting basic needs, employers' organisa-tions, firms offering training vacancies, etc.

Despite their involvement in more generalprocedures, the trainers examined in thestudy are only responsible for a few aspectsof training; the need to introduce new formsof training leads to the emergence of train-ers with new functions. What was foundto be of fundamental importance in the caseof training for the socially disadvantaged,therefore, was to devise, on the basis of


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new training needs, new forms of train-ing organisation, leading to new types oftrainer.

We believe that the trainers chosen for thisstudy cover functions that will prove in-creasingly important in this field.

Our observation and description of each ofthe profiles inevitably took us beyond spe-cialist-skill trainers to those concerned withgreater versatility and flexibility, whether asindividuals or as members of a team. Simi-larly, we no longer regard basic educationand vocational training as all-important forskill-building but take greater account of theskills that come with experience of life. Inevery case the fundamental importance ofsocial and relational skills emerges as pre-eminent.

Social and relational skills

❑ Showing enjoyment and physical andmental investment into employing one's skills.

❑ Demonstrating an ability to communi-cate.

❑ Demonstrating an ability to adapt to sit-uations and individuals.

❑ Demonstrating creativity and initiative insolving difficulties.

❑ Demonstrating ability to criticise self inpersonal and work matters.

❑ Demonstrating an ability to empathisewith others.

❑ Demonstrating an ability to work in ateam, to accept new ideas and use themas a means of solving problems that arise.

❑ Providing evidence of self-confidenceand independence in one's work.

❑ Showing common sense and opennessto social problems both local and national.

❑ Showing general interest and curiosity.

❑ Showing readiness to enter into dialogueand establish relations with firm managers.

❑ Giving evidence of human qualities such

as idealism, solidarity, application to work,persuasiveness and patience.

It is particularly important to understandthese groups and the kind of problems theyhave using the concept of empowerment.

While pursuing and disseminating thesetrainer profiles it is also important to re-main aware of the emergence of new prac-tices and procedures which complementtraining processes. We should also be awarethat the new types of trainers are a re-sponse to real social needs, particularly ofthe socially excluded, whose problems callfor urgent and effective action. Attentionshould also be given to the practice andideas of private bodies, such as non-gov-ernmental organisations. In our study wefound that such bodies have room for ma-noeuvre in designing and implementingstrategies and methods to meet the needsobserved in the field. High priority shouldtherefore be given to a continuing in-depthdialogue between those responsible forgovernment action and the representativesof civil organisations that aim to meet thetraining needs of socially excluded groups.Our study also sought to pursue this ob-jective. The result was the product of jointreflection by all the partners and the syn-ergy generated by the different tasks andcharacteristics of each body - INOFORas a government institution charged withvocational training research, and the oth-er experienced partners inside Portugaland beyond, who give much thought topractice.

It is, therefore, clear in our minds that pri-vate bodies, while retaining their autonomyin the choice and development of new meth-ods, could benefit from longer-term supportin addition to funding from the EU. Thiswould allow them to remedy the weaknessor even lack of continuity in their activityand the instability of their technical resources,which lead to a loss of their organisationaland technical knowhow. But it is also veryimportant that government bodies such asINOFOR should remain in continuing dia-logue with organisations that are close tothe field and which can contribute exam-ples of good practice. Finally it should bepoint-ed out that a reflective and practice-orient-ed dialogue of this kind is already be-coming a reality. Recent official initiativesseeking to remedy some of the weaknessesreferred to are already putting the experi-

ence and ideas gained by small private or-ganisations to good use in their work (3).Such interact-ion cannot fail to be fruitful

and work to the benefit of the socially dis-advantaged.

Albarello, L. Digneffe, F. Hiernaux, J. P. Maroy,C. Ruquoy, D. Saint-Georges, P. Práticas e Méto-dos de Investigação em Ciências Sociais. Lisbon:Gradiva, 1997

Benavente, A. (ed.). A Literacia em Portugal. Re-sultados de uma Pesquisa Extensiva e Monográfi-ca. Lisbon: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, 1996.

Bruto da Costa, A.. Exclusões Sociais. Lisbon:Gradiva, 1998

Bruyne, P.; Herman, J.; Schoutheete, M. Dy-namique de la Recherche en Sciences Sociales.Paris: Presses Universitaires de Paris, 1974

Capucha, L. (ed.). Grupos Desfavorecidos Faceao Emprego. Tipologias e Quadro Básico de Me-didas Recomendáveis. Lisbon: Employment andTraining Observatory, 1998.

Castro, J. L. Workshop 3 - "Educação, formaçãoe inserção: contextos, investimentos e expectati-vas para os públicos de baixa escolaridade". InDesenvolvimento de Competências, competitivi-dade e cidadania; actas do Seminário. Lisbon:INOFOR, 2000.

Cedefop. AGORA - IV. The low-skilled on the Euro-pean labour market: prospects and policy options.Towards a minimum learning platform. CedefopPanorama, series, 5097. Luxembourg: Office forOfficial Publications of the European Communi-ties, 2000.

Cruz, J. V. P. Formação Profissional em Portugal.Do levantamento de necessidades à avaliação.Lisbon: Sílabo, 1998.

Ferreira de Almeida, J.; Capucha, L.; Firminoda Costa, A.; Machado, F. L.; Nicolau, I.; Reis,E. Exclusão Social. Factores eTipos de Pobreza emPortugal. Oeiras: Celta, 1992.

Imaginário, L. (ed.). Adaptação/Reinserção Profis-sional dos Adultos Pouco Escolarizados. Lisbon:Employment and Training Observatory, 1997.

Imaginário, L. Problemas de Inserção Profissionaldos Adultos Pouco Escolarizados. Sociedade e Tra-balho, No 2, March 1998, p. 22-31.

INOFOR.. Guia de Apoio ao Utilizador - Acredi-tação de Entidades Formadoras. Lisbon: INOFOR,1998.

Lopes, H. (ed.). Aplicação de Metodologias deFormação para Adultos Pouco Escolarizados. Re-latório Final (Reservado). Lisbon: DINÂMIA/ISCTE,1998.

MTS/DE. Quadro de Pessoal, 1996. Lisbon: Min-istry for Labour and Solidarity / Statistics Depart-ment, 1998.

Nunes, L. A Workshop 3 - Educação, formação einserção: contextos, investimentos e expectativaspara os públicos de baixa escolaridade. In INOFOR.Desenvolvimento de Competências, Competitivi-dade e Cidadania: actas do Seminário. Lisbon:INOFOR, 2000.

OECD. Education at a Glance. OECD indicators- 1997. Paris: OECD/ Centre for Educational Re-search and Innovation, 1997..

Steedman, H. The idea of a minimum learningplatform. In: AGORA - IV. The low-skilled on theEuropean labour market: prospects and policy op-tions. Towards a minimum learning platform.Cedefop Panorama, series, 5097. Luxembourg:Office for Official Publications of the EuropeanCommunities, 2000, p. 33-38.

Suleman, F.; Morais, M. F.; Fernandes, M. M.Estudos Sectoriais Prospectivos. Manual Metodológi-co. Lisbon: INOFOR, 1999.


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(3) To quote just one example with-out disparaging the many others: theeducational and training courses foradults run by ANEFA are consider-ing bringing in an initial processof recognition and validation of pri-or experience; their team of techni-cians includes a mediator.

Bibliography

Introduction

Since the sweeping reform of upper sec-ondary education in Norway in 1994 allyoung Norwegians have been entitled to 13years' education (cf. Skårbrevik and Båtevik2000:16 -17). Children start school at the ageof six and complete ten years of compulso-ry education at primary and lower second-ary levels. They then have the option of threeyears at upper secondary level. Studentswith various kinds of problems of a physi-cal, psychological or social nature are enti-tled to special educational provisions, andmay therefore receive an additional two yearsof upper secondary education.

Young people avail themselves of this en-titlement. Approximately 95% of lower sec-ondary school leavers start upper second-ary education in the autumn of the sameyear. Almost one tenth of these - approxi-mately 6 000 - are special needs students,the overwhelming majority of whom starton vocational training courses. The ques-tion, however, is how these students fare inupper secondary education: How well dothey flow through the system? What kindsof special provisions result in the best qual-ification for those receiving special needseducation?

These problems will be discussed in this ar-ticle, which is based on a longitudinal studyof special needs students who started uppersecondary education in the autumn of 1995.Reform 94 - særskilt tilrettelagt opplæring(Reform 94 - special needs education) wasfunded by the Norwegian Ministry of Church,Education and Research, and was carriedout by Møre Research and Volda UniversityCollege in the period 1995 - 2000.

This research project started out as an eval-uation of the major restructuring of uppersecondary education that took place in 1994

- a package of changes known collectivelyas Reform 94. The main purpose of thisreform was to increase flow through the ed-ucational system. Among other things, thisentailed a structural reform of the coursesoffered. The number of foundation courseswas reduced from 109 to just 13 (subse-quently increased to 15) and the degree ofspecialisation in the advanced courses wasreduced considerably. Courses of study thatdid not lead to any vocational qualificationor qualification for admission to higher ed-ucation were discontinued. This had thegreatest impact on the half of the cohortstudying vocational subjects, since the mainmodel following the reform was one of twoyears' education in school followed by a fur-ther two years in an external educational en-terprise.

These measures have definitely been in-strumental in helping more students to achievea vocational or higher-education admissionqualification. This becomes obvious whenwe compare the admission cohort of 1991with the reform cohorts of 1994 and 1995.According to Støren and Skjersli (1999:109)this improvement is due to an increase inthe number of places and a better course-offer structure. The fact that the studentsnow have a statutory right to upper sec-ondary education is also important.

The progress made is confirmed withoutdoubt if we look at whole cohorts throughcomprehensive registration studies. The sit-uation is less clear in the case of sub-cate-gories that are difficult to identify in suchstudies. Special needs students are an ex-ample of such a category.

The empirical data in the article have beenobtained from a sample of special needs stu-dents from the 1995 admission cohort, i.e.the second cohort of students following theimplementation of the major educational re-


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Jon Olav Myklebust holds a doctorate insociology and is anassociate professor atVolda UniversityCollege, Norway.

From 1995 to 2000 he was oneof the leaders of thecomprehensive researchprogramme Reform 94 -særskilt tilrettelagt opplæring(Reform 94 - special needseducation).

In Norway almost all youngpeople start upper secondaryeducation. This means thatthe student population in up-per secondary education isvery diverse and many of thestudents have difficulty com-pleting their education. Thisapplies not least to the tenthof the students entitled to spe-cial educational provisions.This article is based on a lon-gitudinal study in which spe-cial needs students were fol-lowed for four years throughtheir upper secondary edu-cation. The study focused onstudents taking vocationalcourses, documenting howmany students were on sched-ule at different points in time,how many were falling be-hind and how many haddropped out. An analysis wasalso performed to find outwhich conditions help voca-tional students to achieve aqualification. The conclusionwas that making special pro-visions within the frameworkof mainstream classes ratherthan in small groups or spe-cial classes is a decisive fac-tor in whether the studentsachieve a qualification.

Special needs students invocational education andtraining in Norway - A longitudinal study

forms. The flow through the system andachievement of qualifications is describedfor students who started upper secondarylevel vocational courses, which is where wefind most of the special needs students. Thisapplies to almost three quarters of the stu-dents in the study on which this article isbased. One eighth of the students startedcourses which would prepare them for high-er education studies, while an equal pro-portion received unspecified special edu-cation without reference to any specificcourse of study. The latter are those withthe greatest functional difficulties.

A life-course perspective onspecial needs education

In order to understand the flow through up-per secondary education, it was decided thatlife-course theory and social transitions shouldbe used as the framework. These are par-ticularly useful perspectives when study-ing people who are out of step with the greatmajority in their journey through the edu-cational system.

The term life course refers to the biologicalageing process. But this is just one aspect.In the social sciences, life in society is thefocus of attention. Individual life courses areinfluenced by past events and actions andby present framework conditions, and canoften be understood on the basis of futureexpectations. A life course may be viewedas the sum of those trajectories, for instancein education, work and family life, whichindividuals and groups follow through fre-quently changing contexts. Different aspectsof life-course theory are reviewed in Setter-sten (2002) and Elder and Johnson (2002).Hagestad and Dannefer (2001) are also ad-herents of the same life-course tradition.What is special about their contribution isthat they warn against excessive focusingon agency perspectives in life-course stud-ies at the expense of structural perspectives.In their view, this can lead to undesirablemicrofication.

A life-course approach combining an agencyperspective and a structural perspective formsthe theoretical basis for the research projectwhich provided the empirical data for thisarticle. This is elaborated in Kvalsund andMyklebust (1996), who outline an approachto life-course research which clearly dis-

tances itself from pure structural focusingand extreme agency orientation. In this per-spective there is room for individual agencywithin the limits set by structural constraints.

A life-course perspective is fruitful whenanalysing the long lines followed by indi-viduals and cohorts through varying geo-graphical environments and shifting histor-ical contexts. A life course, however, evolvesnot merely in the long term but also in theshort term, in which case transition is themost useful concept. This concept is par-ticularly helpful in flow studies since stu-dents' problems often come to light whenthey drop out or fail to move up to the nextlevel at the normal time. The problems ofspecial needs students often manifest them-selves in their inability to keep up with theirpeers - the transition comes at the wrongtime (off time).

A course of education typically forms a chainconsisting of a series of transitions. Exam-ples of these are leaving lower secondaryschool, starting upper secondary educa-tion and progressing through upper sec-ondary school. It may, however, also be aquestion of dropping out, which for somemay mean a transition to work, but for mostwill mean unemployment. Dropping out maybe influenced by exclusion factors in theschool environment or motivated by moreattractive provisions outside school. The ac-tual dropping out is, however, often pre-ceded by a long process during which thedrop-outs gradually distance themselves fromschool. Blaug (2001:40) expresses this as fol-lows: ‘they are not so much drop-outs orpush-outs as fade outs’.

Norwegian research into dropping out amongspecial needs students in upper secondaryeducation emphasises the same point. Myk-lebust (1999: 173) documents that two thirdsof the students who rejected offers of spe-cial provisions in their first six months,had left the upper secondary education sys-tem by the end of the third year. There is al-so a marked tendency for those with highrates of absence in the first six months sub-sequently to turn their backs on upper sec-ondary education. It may thus be said thatpartially distancing oneself from school inthe initial period gradually develops into to-tal rejection, as a result of which a final breakis made.

With regard to upper secondary educa-


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(1) The registration continued afterthe schools had submitted materi-al for the last time in the spring of1999, but current work is being fi-nanced mainly by The ResearchCouncil of Norway. The studentsand their parents have been inter-viewed, but these data will be re-ported in future publications.

tion, dropping out of a course of educationis an external transition. There are also in-ternal transitions. A typical example is mov-ing from one course level to the next,for example from a foundation course toa more advanced course. This may be call-ed a vertical transition as opposed to switch-ing to a different course of study at the samelevel, which is a typically horizontal transi-tion.

Method and material

There are good reasons for employing a lon-gitudinal research method. Longitudinal da-ta are required when studying careers, forinstance with respect to training or occupa-tion. It is important to note that prospectivedesigns, where the same individuals are fol-lowed forward in time, are particularly wellsuited to the study of social transitions. Thefollow-up studies in the Reform 94 - særskilttilrettelagt opplæring (Reform 94 - specialneeds education) are therefore largely prospec-tive.

It is easiest to study flow through the sys-tem when one particular cohort is used asthe starting point. We have chosen to followthe autumn 1995 admission cohort in sixcounties: Finnmark, Rogaland, Oslo, Møreog Romsdal, Nord-Trøndelag and Hedmark.(In the three latter counties we also have in-formation about the 1994 cohort, but thesedata will not be used in this article.)

In the first data collection round in the springof 1996 we used a detailed questionnaire toobtain information about 438 special needsstudents who had started vocational cours-es in 1995. We then received informationfrom the schools about these students up tothe spring of 1999, in five more data col-lection rounds. The table below is a schemat-ic presentation of the data collected(1).

Statistics obtained from the six counties in-dicated that we fell far short of receiving in-formation about all the special needs stu-dents in the 1995 cohort. We therefore senta simplified questionnaire to the schools andrequested that its completion be given high-er priority than previously. This resulted ininformation about a further 581 vocationalstudents from the 1995 cohort for whom spe-cial provisions had been made at the end ofthe first school year. These students are in

addition to the 438 about whom we had al-ready received data. The total of 1019 is as-sumed to include nearly all special needsstudents who started at upper secondaryschool in 1995 and who were still in up-per secondary education at the end of thefirst school year. Response in the follow-upstudy was only 43 per cent. In view of thisit is important to know whether the materi-al is biased and, if so, how.

There are two variables that can be com-pared directly for both the follow-up andthe total material, namely gender and classtype. The gender distribution is approxi-mately the same in the follow-up sampleand population - about 65% are boys. Stu-dents attending mainstream classes all orpart of the time are, however, underrepre-sented in the follow-up sample. The reasonfor this is that this sample has a degree ofoverrepresentation of students with severefunctional problems, who are more oftenplaced in special classes. These factors shouldbe taken into consideration when evaluat-ing the results of the study. Kvalsund andMyklebust (1998) describe the data collec-tion in more detail and present a thoroughassessment of the representativeness ofthe complete follow-up material, in whichalso special needs students taking generalstudies and those following unspecified cours-es of studies are included.

Flow through the system

A given pattern of progression at a specif-ic point is the sum of all the individual ad-justments for and choices made by the stu-dents. Through a series of transitions - in-

Figure 1

Outline of the data collection method for the 1995admission cohort

Autumn 1995 Start upper secondary education

Spring 1996 First school year Wave 1

Autumn 1996 Second school year Wave 2

Spring 1997 Second school year Wave 3

Autumn 1997 Third school year Wave 4

Spring 1998 Third school year Wave 5

Autumn 1998 Fourth school year

Spring 1999 Fourth school year Wave 6

ternal and external, horizontal and vertical- specific patterns are created, which, in thisresearch project, have been registered everysix months. Here, we shall only briefly doc-ument the progression from the first to thethird year of upper secondary school. Weshall note the proportion of the cohort whoseeducational progress is on schedule, the pro-portion that has fallen behind and the pro-portion that has dropped out. This is not theplace to document detailed flows betweendifferent levels and different courses of study.Nor is the relationship shown between drop-ping out and subsequent return to uppersecondary education. It is however impor-tant to remember that many of the studentschange courses, which means that flows arenot only in one direction.

We received data on these students for thefirst time in the spring of 1996, when theywere taking the foundation course in one ofthe vocational study programmes. At thattime they were, by definition, on schedulein their education.

However, many of these students had al-ready had substantial problems at the pri-mary and lower secondary level, and theproblems continued in the first year of up-

per secondary school. It is therefore no sur-prise that the figure below shows that a largenumber did not progress to the first level ofthe advanced course when they started theirsecond year in the autumn of 1996.

In the autumn of 1996, half-way through thesecond school year, less than half were onschedule, two-fifths were behind scheduleand almost a seventh had dropped out. Thesituation worsened, with an increasing in-cidence of students dropping out and a small-er percentage on schedule, up to the au-tumn of 1997. There was, however, someimprovement during the third year, when agreater percentage were on schedule in theireducation. This was due to a considerableincidence of students returning to educationafter a dropping out for a short time. At thesame time there was a somewhat smallerflow from behind schedule to dropout.

We see therefore that vocational studentswith special needs often fail to progress sat-isfactorily and many drop out of upper sec-ondary school education. It must, however,not be forgotten that previously this typeof student received little education at thislevel. Nor do all ordinary students progressstraight through upper secondary school.Thus in Norway only around two thirds ofthe whole admission cohort from autumn1994 were on schedule at the end of the thirdschool year (Edvardsen et al.1998: 83). How-ever, there was a great difference in this co-hort between students pursuing different typesof studies. More than 80% of those pursuingacademic studies were on schedule, whilethe same applied to only 52% of vocationaltraining students (Støren, Skjersli and Aamodt1999: 77). Of the students leaving lower sec-ondary school in spring 1995 and startingupper secondary school in the autumn of thesame year, only 58.5% completed and pass-ed the courses in the normal time (Statis-tics Norway 2001). We should always bearthis in mind when assessing the performanceof special needs students.

Qualification attainmentafter four years

So far we have seen how various transitionsthroughout a course of education form def-inite patterns of progression in a cohort ofvocational students receiving special needseducation. We have seen what proportion


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Figure 2

Progression from spring 1996 to spring 1998 forspecial needs students who started upper secondaryvocational courses. The 1995 admission cohort in sixNorwegian counties. N=438

is on schedule after three years, what pro-portion is behind schedule and what theproportion of dropouts is. The qualificationstatus of these students the following yearcan be summed up as follows:

Four years after starting upper secondaryschool, we note firstly that almost half (45%)of the 1995 cohort left school without ourbeing able to determine with any certaintywhether they obtained qualifications, andsecondly that over a third (37%) are still inupper secondary education. However, spe-cial needs students are entitled to up to fiveyears upper secondary education. There-fore, most certainly more students will even-tually complete their education with someform of qualification. Furthermore there are6% who have received a certificate of qual-ification (partial qualification), i.e. the stu-dents have passed some subjects, but notall.(2) Just over 12% of vocational studentsobtained a vocational qualification withinthe normal time of four years, and barely1% obtained the entrance qualification re-quired for higher education. However thereally interesting question here concerns theconditions that contribute to qualification at-tainment. That is the topic of the rest of thearticle.

What role does the students' functio-nal level play for qualification attain-ment?

It is probable that the extent of the students'functional difficulties affects their chancesof achieving a qualification. This is thefirst aspect we need to discuss. We will startwith the first data collection in spring 1996,which gave an overview of how the classteachers and school counsellors assessed thevarious problem conditions concerning stu-dents with special educational needs. Thissurvey provided us with insight into the ba-sis for the special provisions for each pupil.(3)

These problems were registered using thir-teen different indicators which encompassdifficulties of a physical, psychological orsocial nature. Counsellors and class teach-ers placed each student in one of four cat-egories - ranging from none to very greatdifficulties - for each of the problem indi-cators. The four categories for each indica-tor were explained in more precise terms inthe registration form (cf. appendix in Båtevik,Kvalsund and Myklebust 1997). However,in the present analysis individual problem

conditions are not used but rather an addi-tive index, based on the thirteen indicators,as the measure of functional level.

This index can then be subdivided in dif-ferent ways, for example into quartiles.(4)We then discover that there is a dividing linebetween the weakest quartile and the restof the students. Students in the fourth quar-tile (those with the lowest functional level)are clearly worst, with only 6% of themachieving a qualification. In the third quar-tile 15% achieved a qualification, the resultfor the second quartile was 12% and for thefirst quartile (those with the highest func-tional level) 16%. Since there is hardly anydifference between students in the three bestquartiles, functional level is presumably nota decisive factor in qualification attainment.

What promotes greater qualification at-tainment - special or mainstream classes?

The purpose of special provisions is to helpthe students on their way through upper sec-ondary education. It is therefore importantto know what kind of provisions help toachieve this goal. The types of provisionsfor special needs students can, however, varya great deal. Help and support may be giv-en in mainstream classes, in groups of eightor groups of four, as individual lessons out-side the class or remedial lessons within theclass. A personal assistant or the use of var-ious technical aids are also possible. Th-ese remedial measures can also be com-bined. This great variation is documentedby Kvalsund and Myklebust (1998:62 - 64).

This diversity makes the picture rather vaguewhen analysing the relationship betweenspecial provisions and qualification attain-ment. This article therefore takes one fun-damental distinction as its starting point,namely whether special provisions in thefirst year were made exclusively within theframework of a mainstream class or whetherthey were made in various types of smallgroups. We then obtain two equally sizedgroups. Slightly less than half (49%) of thevocational students are provided for exclu-sively within the framework of mainstreamclasses while the remainder (51%) are pro-vided for in other ways, primarily in differ-ent types of special classes. These groupsalso display very different degrees of qual-ification attainment.

Of the students for whom provisions are


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(2) The Norwegian system of qual-ification certificates is described inmore detail by Skårbrevik and Båtevik(2000).

(3) However, we should bear in mindthat a diagnosis is not an indisputablefact, but rather a vague indicationof the problems the students haveto cope with. It may often be a "thindescription" (cf. Gillman et al. 2000:396) based on fleeting consultationswith experts. Moreover, it must bestressed that these diagnoses are of-ten social constructs rather than ob-jective categorisations (Kvalsund andMyklebust 1996:106). Such diag-nosis is more a registration of whatis lacking than a mapping of re-sources. It is unfortunate if classifi-cation becomes more important thanprevention and treatment (cf. Par-menter 2001:274-275).

(4) The basis for the division intoquartiles is not the 438 vocationalstudents from the 1995 cohort butthe total number of special needsstudents (760) included in the fol-low-up material from both the 1995and the 1994 cohorts.

made exclusively in mainstream classes dur-ing the first school year, just over 19% achievea qualification after four years. The corre-sponding figure for students for whom pro-visions are made in special classes is 6%.This is a marked difference and would seemto suggest that the greatest possible numberof special needs students should receive helpin mainstream classes. However, there areseveral factors that must be included inthe analysis.

Control for other variables - are mains-tream classes still best?

It would be easy to assume that the useof different types of classes is due to stu-dents with severe functional disabilitiesbeing placed in special classes and stu-dents with less severe functional difficul-ties in mainstream classes. And there is infact a tendency to do this, but the differ-ence between the types of class is not sogreat. Only about 60% of the students inthe first quartile (with the least overall func-tional difficulties) attend mainstream class-es exclusively. The same applies to 30%of the pupils in the fourth quartile. Thepupils in both the second and the thirdquartiles divide almost equally between

main-stream and special classes. The smallextent to which functional level determinesclass placement may be due to several fac-tors. Firstly, the idea of inclusion is con-sidered important in many places, whichmeans that provisions are made in main-stream classes for as many as possible, re-gardless of functional level. Secondly, de-mographic factors limit the number of spe-cial classes possible in each school. In ad-dition, both diagnosis and class placementmay naturally be somewhat random in in-dividual schools.

This variation makes some interesting analy-ses possible. It allows us to compare studentcategories with almost the same functionallevel, but with different types of provisions.This comparison is shown in the figurebelow:

In the case of students at the lowest func-tional level (fourth quartile) it does not seemto matter much whether they are providedfor in mainstream or in special classes. Forthe others, however, the class placement inthe first year is crucial. At every functionallevel students for whom provisions are madewithin the framework of mainstream class-es clearly fare best in respect of qualifica-tion achievement. However, before drawingthe final conclusions, we must look at howother variables affect the interaction betweenfunctional level and class placement. Theform of analysis best suited to this is logis-tic regression.(5) The table below shows thevariables included in the analysis:

Some of these variables have been present-ed earlier in the article. The new variableswill be considered only briefly: Intensivemeasures are an indicator of help and sup-port over and above placement in a spe-cific class or group. The progression vari-able is relevant in this context because qual-ification is an end-product after many yearsschooling, in the course of which studentsfrom time to time move up a class, fall be-hind or drop out. This progression patternis documented in figure 1. The chances ofachieving a qualification must be greatestfor those who at any given time are on sched-ule in their education, i.e. those who keeppace with students having a normal pro-gression. Myklebust (2002) has thus shownthat it is much easier to remain on schedulefor those for whom all special provisions aremade within the framework of a main-streamclass. This variable has also been included


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(5) This form of analysis is most suit-able when the dependent variableis a dichotomous nominal level vari-able, such as qualification attain-ment.

Figure 3

Percentage achieving a vocational qualification or theentrance qualification for higher education after fouryears. Distribution according to functional level andclass type in the first school year. 438 special needsstudents starting vocational education courses inautumn 1995.

in the analysis in an attempt to avoid whatHagestad and Dannefer (2001:7) refer toas ‘the time 1 problem’, i.e. including in-dependent variables from the first phase on-ly in longitudinal studies. It is important toinclude the gender variable since the distri-bution among special needs students is bias-ed, only a third being girls. On the otherhand, the girls for whom special provisionsare made have greater problems than theboys.

If we concentrate on the two columns onthe right, we see that class type is the onlyvariable to have a significant effect on qual-ification attainment after four years. The stu-dents for whom provisions in the first yearwere made exclusively in mainstream class-es are almost three times (2.774) as likely toachieve vocational or higher-educationqualification as those for whom provisionswere made in special classes.(6) This alsoapplies when we control for the effect ofthe four other independent variables usinglogistic regression.

Discussion and conclusion

Even if we control for other relevant vari-ables the significance of class type is not less-ened as regards qualification attainment byspecial needs students. Those for whom pro-visions are made exclusively in mainstreamclasses in the first school year(7) achieve avocational or higher-education admissionqualification more often than other specialneeds students.

These results are very similar to the patterndocumented by Markussen for a sample ofNorwegian special needs students who start-ed upper secondary education in 1994. Aftercontrolling for social background, gender,diagnosis, primary and lower secondaryschool grades and age on starting school,the conclusion is that special provisions inmainstream classes gives the best resultsas regards qualification attainment (Markussen1999:216). Similar findings have been re-ported from lower-level education in othercountries, for example the Netherlands (cf.Karsten, Peetsma, Roeleveld and Vergeer2001) and the USA (cf. Waldron and McLeskey1998).

There is thus a great deal to indicate that farmore students with functional difficulties

achieve a qualification when special provi-sions are made within the framework ofmainstream classes.

This can tentatively be explained by a so-called context stimulation hypothesis. Thehypothesis postulates that the best quali-fication result will be achieved by specialneeds students in mainstream classes be-cause in such classes they can more easilycompare themselves with ordinary students.The group with whom they compare them-selves, the reference group, consists of oth-er pupils for whom qualification for a vo-cation or for higher education is the natu-ral goal of the education. The class contextwill therefore stimulate the special needsstudents to perform better. If the referencegroup consists only of other special needsstudents in one small class, academic am-bitions will rapidly fall off. Close teacherfollow-up is therefore of little help in suchclasses. Blaug (2001:41) reasons along


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(6) The result is the same if we usesingle indicators in the analysis - forexample reading and writing diffi-culties - instead of an additive in-dex for functional level. Students forwhom provisions are made exclu-sively in mainstream classes are al-most three times as likely to achievea qualification as the others.

(7) The class placement in the firstyear has a great effect on subsequentplacing. Approximately 90% of thespecial needs students in the 1995cohort for whom provisions weremade exclusively in a mainstreamclass in the first year continued in amainstream class in the second year.

Table 2

List of variables included in the logistic regressionanalysis.

Dependent variable:Qualification achieved after4 years by vocational students: 0. No vocational or higher-education qualification

1. Vocational or higher-education qualification

Independent variables:Class type 1st year: 0. Students for whom provisions are made in special

classes1. Students for whom all special provisions are made

in mainstream classes

Functional level 1st year: 0. Quartile with the lowest functional level1. Quartile with next lowest functional level2. Quartile with next best functional level3. Quartile with best functional level

Intensive measures: 0. No remedial measures other than group/class place-ment

1. One remedial measure2. Two remedial measures 3. At least three remedial measures

Progression: 0. Not on schedule halfway through second school year1. On schedule halfway through second school year

Gender: 0. Girls 1. Boys

Blaug, M. (2001): What are we going to do aboutschool leavers?: European Journal of VocationalTraining. NO. 22:40 - 46.

Båtevik, F.O., Kvalsund, R. and Myklebust, J.O.(1997): På særvilkår. Om gråsoner, overgangar ogkanalisering i vidaregåande opplæring. [Studentswith special needs. On grey areas, transitions andchannelling in upper secondary education.] Vol-da: MFV/HVO. Forskingsrapport nr. 24. [Researchreport no 36. 24.]

Elder, G. and Johnson, M. K. (2002): The LifeCourse and Aging: Challenges, Lessons and NewDirections. In: Settersten, R.: Invitation to the LifeCourse: Toward New Understanding of Later Life.New York: Baywood Publishing Company.

Edvardsen, R. et al. (1998): På oppløpssida. Eval-uering av Reform 94: Underveisrapport 1997 fraNIFUs hovedprosjekt. [Coming into the finishingstraight. Evaluation of Reform 94: 1997 progressreport from NIFU's main project] Oslo: NIFU. Rap-port 3 [Report 3].

Hagestad, G. and Dannefer, D. (2001): Conceptsand Theories of Aging: Beyond Microfication inSocial Science Approaches. In: Binstock, R. and

George, L.: Handbook of Aging and the SocialSciences. San Diego: Academic Press.

Karsten, S, Peetsma, T., Roeleveld, J. andVergeer, M. (2001): The Dutch policy of integra-tion put to test: differences in academic and psy-chosocial development of pupils in special andmain-stream education. European Journal of Spe-cial Needs Education, Vol. 16, No. 3:193 - 205.

Kerchhoff, A.C. (1995): Social Stratification andMobility Processes. Interaction between Indi-viduals and Social Structures. In: Cook, K.S., Fine,G.A. and House, J.S. (eds.): Sociological Perspec-tives on Social Psychology. Boston: Allyn and Ba-con.

Kvalsund, R. and Myklebust, J.O. (1996): Nedstved bordet. Vidaregåande opplæring på særskildevilkår. [At the foot of the table. Special needs up-per secondary education.] In: Blichfeldt, J.F. et al.Utdanning for alle. Evaluering av Reform 94. [Ed-ucation for all. An evaluation of Reform 94] Os-lo: Tano Aschehoug.

Kvalsund, R. and Myklebust, J.O. (1998): For-sking i motstraum. Om forskingsprosessen i pros-jektet Reform 94 - særskilt tilrettelagd opplæring.

the same lines:

One thing learned from the famous Co-leman Report ... it is that individual edu-cational achievement is almost as muchaffected by the attitudes and achieve-ments of other students in the class asby teachers, parents and general schoolresources.

Blaug (2001:42 -43) also argues against split-ting the students into groups: ‘... anything

which divides pupils in a school, particu-larly in terms of cognitive abilities, is virtu-ally guaranteed to produce school failures.’

Grouping according to ability has gradual-ly come to be regarded as a measure thatcreates inequality rather than levelling. Ker-ckhoff (1995: 483) is among those who claimthis: ‘... grouping results in students in "high"ability groups moving ahead and those in"low" ability groups falling back in terms ofacademic achievement.’ We thus achieve theopposite of what was intended. The mani-fest function is to create greater equality. Butthe latent function leads to a sorting that in-creases inequality. Kerckhoff supports hisclaim by referring to research in primary, low-er secondary and upper secondary educa-tion.

This is an argument for inclusion in main-stream classes. The results presented in thisarticle point in the same direction. The struc-tural arrangements, such as placement inspecific types of classes, seem to have achannelling effect that has a major impacton the qualification achievement of spe-cial needs students. An effective way of im-proving qualification is therefore to providefor as many as possible of the special needsstudents in mainstream classes. This will,however, also require the provision of greaterresources for such classes.


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Table 3

How five independent variables influence the chanceof achieving a vocational or higher-educationqualification after four years. Special needs studentswho started vocational education courses in 1995. N=438.

B S.E. Wald Sig. Exp(B)

Class type in 1st year 1,009 0,349 8,355 0,004 2,744

Functional level in 1st year 0,056 0,154 0,133 0,715 1,058

Progression halfway through 2nd year 0,519 0,327 2,511 0,113 1,680

Intensive measures in 1st year -0,207 0,201 1,062 0,303 0,813

Gender 0,201 0,319 0,397 0,529 1,222

Bibliography

[Research battling against odds. On the researchprocess in the ‘Reform 94 - special needs edu-cation’ project] Volda: HVO/MFV. Forskingsrap-port nr. 36 [Research report no 36].

Markussen, E. (1999): Segregering til ingen nytte?Forskning om særskilt tilrettelagt opplæring. [Use-less segregation? Research on special needs edu-cation] In: Haug, P., Tøssebro, J. and Dalen, M.:Den mangfaldige spesialundervisninga. [The di-versity of special education] Oslo: Universitets-forlaget.

Myklebust, J.O. (1999): Særvilkårselevar i vi-daregåande opplæring - vegar og vegval [Specialneeds students in upper secondary education -pathways and pathway choices] In: Kvalsund, R.,Deichman-Sørensen, T. and Aamodt, P.O. :Videregående opplæring - ved en skilleveg? [Up-per secondary education - at a crossroads?] Oslo:Tano Aschehoug.

Myklebust, J.O. (2002): Inclusion or Exclusion?Transitions among Special Needs Students in Up-per Secondary Education in Norway. EuropeanJournal of Special Needs Education. Vol. 17, No.3: 251-263.

Parmenter, T.R. (2001): Intellectual Disabilities- Que Vadis? In: Albrecht, G.L., Seelman, K.D. andBury, M. (eds.): Handbook of Disability Studies.London: Sage.

Settersten, R. (2002): Propositions and Contro-versies in Life-Course Scholarship. In: Setter-sten, R.: Invitation to the Life Course: Toward NewUnderstanding of Later Life. New York: BaywoodPublishing Company.

Skårbrevik, K.J. and Båtevik, F.O. (2000): Doc-umented partial qualification. A third way to adiploma in upper-secondary education in Nor-way. Vocational Training. European Journal ofVocational Training. No. 21: 16 - 23).

Statistics Norway (2001): Aktuell utdan-ningsstatistikk. Nr. 9. [Current educational statis-tics. No. 9]

Støren, L.A., Skjersli, S. and Aamodt, P.O. (1998):I mål? Sluttrapport fra NIFUs hovedprosjekt. [Goalachieved? Final report from NIFU's main project.]Rapport 18/98 [Report 18/98]. Oslo: NIFU.

Støren, L.A. and Skjersli, S. (1999): Gjennom-føring av videregående opplæring. [Implementa-tion of upper secondary education.] In: Kvalsund,R., Deichman-Sørensen, T. and Aamodt, P.O.:Videregående opplæring - ved en skilleveg? [Up-per secondary education - at a crossroads?] Oslo:Tano Aschehoug.

Waldron, N.L. and McLeskey, J. (1998): The Ef-fects of an Inclusive School Program on Studentswith Mild and Severe Learning Disabilities. Ex-ceptional Children. Vol. 64, No. 3:395 - 495.


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Consideration of education and training insocieties in transition of itself requires abroader perspective than when dealing withone country. The European context also pro-vides too narrow a view of vocational ed-ucation and training policy, which is close-ly influenced by conditions affecting em-ployment systems. The effects of the processof European integration account for only some,possibly even the minority, of the influencesgoverning national institutions. Hence, anydiscussion of transition focusing on voca-tional education and training policy whichfails to look beyond the horizon of 'Euro-pean unification' is incomplete in manyimportant respects. I shall therefore exam-ine first the outside influences which havea definite impact on the trend towards con-vergence of national structures.

Outside influences:modernisation,globalisation andinternationalisation

The findings of modernisation theory

The term 'modernisation of vocational train-ing' is without doubt one of the most com-mon subtitles to appear in research on vo-cational education and training. However,modernisation is more than a fashionablelabel and when used as a technical term inthe social sciences relates rather more close-ly to a theoretical context which was for-mulated in the European case by Stein-Rokkan(1972) and Peter Flora (1974) in the 1970s(see Münk 2000 for a full discussion). Thekey focus of interest of modernisation the-ory as a way of modelling specific types ofsocial change is to illuminate processes oftransformation occurring in similar ways inall modern societies, although not all at thesame time. It is useful for analysis of the

'Europeanisation' of social structures because:

1. it is oriented towards past, present andfuture;

2. it emphasises the developmental andprocess-related nature of social structures;

3. it reflects the image of the modern in-dustrialised society;

4. the logic of the development of indus-trial societies implicit in modernisationtheory is potentially ubiquitous and henceinherent also in education and trainingsystems;

5. despite the assumption of standard goalsof development in industrialised soci-eties, it demonstrates the structural in-equality of these development process-es in subsystems, both in internal sys-tems of social action, and at the level ofinternational and European comparison.

The premises of various types of moderni-sation theory are supported in large meas-ure by sociological research into the struc-ture of society. The results of research intosocial history (Kaelble 1987) reveal far-reach-ing convergence within Europe in familypatterns, systems of employment, socio-cul-tural and urban environments, and the mod-ern welfare state. Modernisation theory al-so points to developmental convergencethroughout Europe at the level of social struc-ture analysis (e.g. Hamm 1996, p. 52) andof a wide range of empirical evidence:

From the standpoint of social structure the-ory, the sociologists Hradil (1994, 1997) andImmerfall (1995), in particular, identify ed-ucation and training systems, i.e. the im-plementation of mass education, expansionof education and training, and increased ac-cess for women to educational opportuni-ties (Müller; Steinmann; Schneider 1997), as


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Dieter MünkProfessor at the

‘Institut fürAllgemeine Pädagogikund Berufspädagogik,

FachgebietBerufspädagogik

EuropäischeBerufsbildungsfor-

schung. TechnischeUniversität Darmstadt

European vocational educa-tion and training policy issubject to the guiding prin-ciple of subsidiarity. This for-bids harmonisation and in-sists on consensus in policymatters on the basis of 'uni-ty in diversity'. Against thebackground of globalisationand internationalisation ofeducation, and particularlyin the context of the debateabout vocational educationand training policy in Europethere are, nonetheless, in-creasing signs that this processof internationalisation, or atleast of Europeanisation, iscreating pressures on nationalVET systems. These pressuresmay not be easily defined orquantified, but they are forc-ing individual Member Statesto react to 'European' chal-lenges. This analysis exploresthe opportunities and threatsfacing the German vocation-al education and training sys-tem as a result of this process.

Impact of the EuropeanUnion on the vocational training system in Germany

key elements of modernisation, these de-velopments in education being interpret-ed as proxies for 'common trends...of mod-ernisation in a manner that is typical ofEurope and which developed there histor-ically' (Hradil; Immerfall 1997, p. 12 ff.).

Globalisation

While outside influences, i.e. external toand not governed by the nation state, areimplicit in themselves in modernisation the-ories, this situation has become a com-monplace through use of the term global-isation. For a long time, sociology has beenconcerned with the issue of 'globalisationof social structures' (Hamm 1986), andaccording to the sociological debate re-ferred to above on the 'Europeanisation ofsocial structures' (Immerfall 1995, Hradil1997), more recent discussion inspired bysocial structure theory appears to be look-ing for opportunities to establish Europe assome kind of counterweight between thetwo poles of 'globalisation' and 'nation-state'as a separate intermediate category in or-der to clarify 'how federal and internation-al institutions are changed by the presenceof the third, European level' (Schäfers 1999,p. 3).

In respect of vocational education and train-ing, Zabeck (1999) reflects on 'the conceptof vocational education and training in theage of globalisation of markets and share-holder value' and speaks in this context ofso-called 'universalistic challenges to voca-tional education and training as a result ofglobalisation and Europeanisation' (Zabeck1999), which he perceives as inescapablereal pressures. Lastly, Greinert (1999) lastyear also raised the potential question of'globalisation as a threat to national voca-tional education and training systems', treat-ing it (idem, p. 14 et seq.) in the context of:

❑ the reduction in the volume of employ-ment in technical and productive industriesand in primary services that is typical of in-dustrialised societies;

❑ the shift in the principles of businessmanagement (cost controlling) (1);

❑ the changes in employers' demands forskills (2).

Internationalisation of theeducation and trainingdebate

The term internationalisation of the educa-tion and training debate refers on the onehand to what has become more or less aglobal concept, the 'knowledge society' andits wide range of variants (OECD 1994, 1996,Unesco 1996 and European Commission1996); on the other, there are increasing signsthat, as it says in the German 'Education Del-phi', 'the internationalisation of education...willincrease considerably by the year 2020' and'mutual international recognition of educa-tional qualifications and compatibility be-tween international education modules' willalso rise (bmb+f/Bildungs-Delphi, 1998 p.43). Kuwan is more specific about this prog-nosis, foreseeing 'internationalisation of vo-cational training' through 'new internation-ally recognised qualifications' and 'Europe-wide provision of training courses using al-ternance systems' (Kuwan 1998, p. 5).

This is of course also connected with con-siderations of national education and train-ing marketing, and is driven by a certain en-thusiasm for technology in the context ofweb-based multimedia approaches to teach-ing and learning. One of the policy outcomesof this discussion, as the debate about Bach-elor degree courses demonstrates, has beento make the German national education andtraining system more international and to fa-cilitate links with others. But regardless ofthe extent to which they are true, these fore-casts also point to a trend of increasing linksbetween national education and training sys-tems in an international context. Such a prog-nosis leads to the obvious conclusion thatnew transnational ways of working are grad-ually being developed at the level of policydevelopment.

It is only sensible to discuss the Europeani-sation of the German national system of ini-tial and continuing education and trainingagainst the background of these more or lessworld-wide considerations; and this inter-mediate European position reveals in factthat the economic and legislative integrationof the European Union has gone a good dealfurther than the citizens of the Union maybe aware: the German Confederation of In-dustry, for example (FAZ 25.8.97), estimatesthat at least 60% of legislation that is ofrelevance to industry now originates in Brus-


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(1) Greinert (1999, p. 15) explicitlystresses in this context that from thisstandpoint in-company initial voca-tional training loses its character andits status as a social obligation, es-pecially in major companies oper-ating globally and competing inter-nationally.

(2) Greinert (1999, p. 15) argues fur-ther that the implementation of neworganisational principles is showingup two additional factors in a situ-ation of global competition: 'onetechnical, aiming at as complete in-tegration as possible of informationand communication in productiveactivities and services, and one or-ganisational, aiming at an effectivesystem of flexible wealth creationand working processes (Schumann1994). The German industry modelof skilled workers based on the dualorganisational principle is unsuited,because of its rigid demarcation be-tween skills, to these new principlesof organisation and management(Kern; Sabel 1994).' Furthermore,the dual system was and still is 'pri-marily a system of training for pro-duction jobs, and less for the serv-ice sector' (ibid.).

sels - and in agriculture, this proportion haseven reached more than 90%.

In the light of such findings, the political sci-entist Hartwich (1998) believes developmentsalready to have gone so far that he candetect a 'Europeanisation of the German eco-nomic system'. The same applies in the fieldof law: nation states may retain significantsovereign rights, but over half of national(German federal) legislation already com-prises ratifying legislation (Reuter 1995, p.203).

The influence of Europeanpolicy

The process of integration that has evolvedover more than 40 years was motivated byeconomic considerations, as the former term'European Economic Community' suggests.The substance of this process of integration,from the European Economic Community(1957) to the European Community (1986),the European Union (1992) and the UnionConstitution proposed by the European Par-liament in 1994 (3), and the debate launchedthis year (2000) by the German Foreign Min-ister at Humboldt University about a Euro-pean federation of nation states (Fischer2000), is the outcome of a lengthy politicaland, as experience clearly suggests, contro-versial discussion between the states in-volved, the principal concern being eco-nomic interests. At first sight, the institutionalimplementation of the process of integra-tion is a matter for the legal system. First,the multinational process of integrating aconstantly increasing number of MemberStates must necessarily take place voluntar-ily, i.e. through political discourse, sec-ondly, it must be by agreement on the ba-sis of common economic interests and third-ly, it requires step-by-step regulation in in-dividual states under European treaties.

Economic development asa goal of Europeanvocational education andtraining

The priority goals of European integrationpolicy remain the achievement of free move-ment of labour and the promotion of mo-bility. The driving force behind the Euro-

pean Economic Community was primarilyeconomic (4) and influenced the view of theEuropean Commission from the outset, thehuman resources approach even today form-ing the most important nucleus of the ar-gument for the European formula of 'com-petition between vocational education andtraining systems' (Koch 1998). Given the in-terface function of vocational education andtraining, the exclusive interpretation of train-ing as a 'human resource' and the implicitinstrumentalisation of vocational training de-serves criticism just as clearly as its one-sid-edness from the perspective of vocationaleducation (Lipsmeier 1991; Lipsmeier; Münk1994), even though there can be no doubtas to the role of vocational education andtraining as a factor in competition and choiceof location.

The history of European labour-market pol-icy provides a telling example of the effectsof economically-oriented EU policy strate-gies: while the issue of unemployment, es-pecially among young people (Münk 1999)was an essential spur to the introduction ofEU action and training programmes in themid-1980s, as well as for other measures un-der secondary legislation, a turning pointwas reached by 1997 at the latest with thelaunch in the early 1990s of the 'EuropeanEmployment Pact' (1999) (Piehl; Timmann2000) in the wake of the Luxembourg Pro-cess, whereby an active European and na-tional employment policy was made a max-im of Community action as a response tothe increasing pressure of the problem ofaround 18 million unemployed. Consequently,this call by Member States for an active em-ployment policy was enshrined in EU pri-mary legislation in the same year, namely inArticles 125 et seq. of the Treaty of Ams-terdam.

The 'multi-level strategy' of the need for col-laboration between the national and theEuropean level proclaimed by Delors in 1993in the White Paper 'Growth, Competitive-ness, Employment' is now evident and ef-fective in active employment policy: not on-ly does the annual summary of 'National Ac-tion Plans' (NAPs) provided in the 'Joint Em-ployment Report' published since 1997 al-low for constructive comparison of best prac-tices in national competition policies, butthe obligation on Member States to producethese outcome reports is also based on abenchmarking approach, which implicitlyincreases potential control and influence by


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(3) See the report of the Institution-al Committee on the European UnionConstitution (DOC-DE/RR/244403PE 203.601 final); adopted by theEP on 10.2.1994; concurring reportof 17.3.1994 from the Bundestag[12/7074]; cf. Reuter 1995, p. 203.

(4) In the Community action of theEuropean Union, this primacy ofeconomic concerns has for decadesled to a close and, from the pointof view of vocational education andtraining, extremely one-sided linkwith economic and employment pol-icy strategies. The European Com-mission has consistently support-ed this instrumentalisation of voca-tional education and training as atool of economic and employmentpolicy in all statements, most re-cently in the White Paper of 1996(see inter alia the Commission Me-morandum 'Vocational Training Pol-icy in the 1990s' (1991), the WhitePaper 'Growth, Competitiveness,Employment' (1993) and the WhitePaper 'Education and training, teach-ing and learning: towards the learn-ing society' (1995)).

the Commission.

Given the primacy of economic concerns,as demonstrated in particular in the Euro-pean Employment Pact, it is very clear fromprimary and secondary Community legisla-tion that despite the principle of subsidiar-ity vocational education and training in Europeis seen as a continuum with fluid bound-aries, but with increasingly precise sharedgoals.

The legal framework ofEuropean vocationaleducation and training

The stages in this process of gradual har-monisation of legislation have left very ob-vious traces in education and training poli-cy, as in other fields, since 1957 (5). The factthat there is wide disagreement over whetherthe articles on education in the Maastrichtand Amsterdam Treaties extend, confirm orreduce Community law does little to alterthis state of affairs (Wolfgramm 1992, Richter1993, Feuchthofen; Brackmann 1994).

The issue of the legal framework of Euro-pean vocational education and training pol-icy is therefore central to any quest for out-side influences on national policies: the pil-lars of European law on education and train-ing are: first, primary Community legisla-tion (see above); secondly, the secondaryCommunity legislation enshrined in regu-lations adopted by the EU institutions un-der the EU treaties; thirdly, interpretativerulings by the European Court of Justice,and fourthly, non-binding declarations byCommunity institutions of the EU, or 'softlaw' (provisions adopted by the Council, ofthe Education Ministers and the Commis-sion meeting in the Council). The bound-aries, however, are fluid since the ECJ hasfrequently transformed these originally 'soft'agreements into binding Community law,as in the case of the action programmes ini-tially established voluntarily (see Reuter1995, p. 205).

There are legal rules of relevance to voca-tional education and training at all four lev-els: primary Community legislation alreadycontained regulations governing vocationaleducation and training before 1992, not mere-ly implicitly in the form of the basic princi-ples enshrined therein (6) but also explicit-

ly in Article 235 which, while safeguardingthe principle of subsidiarity, grants generalpowers to the Community which apply toeducation and training policy (7). Hence theEEC had powers over education and train-ing policy even before the Maastricht Treaties,albeit in the limited sense of accessory com-petence in education (see Reuter 1995, p.205), for which no separate field of educa-tional action was constituted.

At the level of secondary EU law, on the oth-er hand, there are very many ways of in-fluencing education and training policy di-rectly, in the form of directives, guidelinesand decisions, programmes, recommenda-tions, opinions and other statements (reso-lutions, conclusions and reports; see Schröder1991), which vary greatly in the degree towhich they are legally binding. The first di-rect intervention in vocational education andtraining in 1963 ('Principles for implemen-tation of a common vocational training pol-icy' of 2.4.1963 (8)) illustrates the wide im-plications of the principle of dynamic ex-tension of EC law, according to which po-sitions on education and training policy areexpressed without there being any provi-sions for the allocation of competence at thesame time (see Reuter 1995, p. 206).

The significance of this consistent strategy,especially at the level of secondary Com-munity legislation, is clear if it is remem-bered that the EU institutions have suc-ceeded over the years in developing out ofspecific education and training responsi-bilities an 'independent field of policy, eventhough its structure of competence is un-clear' (Reuter 1995, p. 207). These guide-lines, memoranda, statements of principleand white papers which comprise EU ed-ucation and training policy mark out theboundaries within which the national andinternational debates about education andtraining policy as part of the 'European cause'have taken place for years, especially amongthe specialist community (9). It would al-so be hard to overestimate the significanceof the education and action programmesalso launched under secondary Communi-ty law (Müller-Solger 1993, Münk 1999).Although the legal basis of the pro-nouncements made at this level of secondarylegislation is generally unclear, and the reg-ulations themselves have no legally bind-ing impact, they have without doubt driv-en and, usually at least, polarised Europeandiscussion of policy.


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(5) These are: the Treaties of Rome(1957), the Single European Act(1986), the Schengen Agreement(1990) and the Treaties of Maastricht(1992) and Amsterdam (1997).

(6) These are the prohibition of dis-crimination (Art. 7), freedom ofmovement for workers (Art. 48), free-dom of residence (Art. 52) and free-dom to provide services (Art. 59).

(7) Article 235 of the EEC Treaty reads:'If action by the Community shouldprove necessary to attain, in thecourse of operation of the commonmarket, one of the objectives of theCommunity, and this Treaty has notprovided the necessary powers, theCouncil shall, acting unanimouslyon a proposal from the Commissionand after consulting the EuropeanParliament, take the appropriatemeasures.'

(8) 'Principles for implementation ofa joint vocational training policy' of2.4.1963. In: OJ C 1388/63.

(9) In the late 1980s these were,for example, the medium-term out-look for 'Education in the EuropeanCommunity 1989-1992', the medi-um-term guidelines 'General and vo-cational education 1989-1992', theCommission memoranda on highereducation and vocational educationpolicy in the early 1990s, the WhitePaper 'Growth, Competitiveness,Employment' (1993) and the 1996White Paper 'Teaching and Learn-ing - towards a learning society'.

Alongside hard and soft Community law, therulings of the European Court of Justice areanother key factor influencing national poli-cies. In the case of Germany, the ECJ hasbrought dynamic change to vocational ed-ucation and training because of its functionallink with the four basic principles (10) of EUlaw. That is, it has been extended to all fieldsof education, thereby obviously consider-ably expanding the EU's competence to act(Schröder 1991) (11).

In what follows I shall therefore focus onthe effects of this second level of Commu-nity legislation, which is central to the es-tablishment of vocational education and train-ing policy, on the assumption that the sig-nificance of primary Community legislation(12) for vocational education and training pol-icy is largely undisputed, given that gener-al, vocational and higher education havebeen the subject of treaties since 1992 (foran expert discussion of the implications ofMaastricht see Berggreen 1992, Feuchthofen;Brackmann 1992, Konow 1992, Jarass 1994,Bardong 1994). Reuter (1995, p. 213) sumsup primary and secondary Community leg-islation and the rulings of the ECJ by sayingthat 'both the historical background to theMaastricht Treaty (and the role of the ECJ)and the EU documents of the 1990s on ed-ucation policy...[argue] against the assump-tion of a clear restriction of the competence'of the EU institutions.

Instruments of theEuropean policy area of'vocational education andtraining'

Given the principle of subsidiarity, the po-tential for the EU institutions to steer policyin any specific field of European policy islargely indirect, via secondary Communitylegislation. I should like to mention threeexamples: first, EU initiatives on the formu-lation of an overall European plan for ed-ucation and training; secondly, the roles ofthe Structural Fund and of education andaction plans; and thirdly, the significance ofCommission recommendations in stimulat-ing innovative planning.

The European Area ofLifelong Learning as an EUpolicy area

The preamble to the 1997 Treaty of Ams-terdam was deliberately broad, resolvingamong other things: 'to promote the de-velopment of the highest possible level ofknowledge for their peoples through a wideaccess to education and through its contin-uous updating.' This stated goal, large-ly aresponse to youth unemployment in the EU,recognisably inspired by concepts of theOECD (recurrent education) and Unesco(lifelong learning), prepared programmati-cally through the Commission memorandumand its two white papers of 1993 and 1995,and given supporting publicity throughthe proclamation of 1996 as the 'Year of Life-long Learning', refers to the notion of a'knowledge-based society' in which initialand continuing vocational training are ac-corded considerable importance as factorsin competition and the choice of location.

In the context of the discussion about theneed for lifelong learning, there is one oth-er serious issue relating to the developmentof the social structure in Europe, the impor-tance of which can scarcely be exaggerated:demographic change. Over time, Europeansocieties reveal structural similarities not on-ly in economic statistics but also in demo-graphic data. For 50 years the birth ratehas been declining sharply throughout Europe,which will have huge consequences in themedium term because the effect of an av-erage rise in life expectancy will within theforeseeable future no longer be able to cush-ion the fall-ing birth rate: human resourceswill be in short supply in Europe becausethe average age will constantly rise. Germanyis the Member State where this effect will befelt first. This means, however, that the avail-able resources must be used to best advan-tage, i.e. more effectively, for which purposeeducat-ion, vocational training and particu-larly lifelong learning are a suitable tool ofpolitical policy, and may indeed be the on-ly way out of the demographic dilemma.

The model of the 'learning society' outlinedby the Commission states that lifelong learn-ing is interpreted 'ever more strongly as com-bining formal and informal learning' (Sauter;Grünewald 1999, p. 199), so that in otherwords the interval model of recurrent edu-cation is increasingly being replaced by in-


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(10) i.e. Articles 7, 48 and 52 of theEEC Treaty on equality of treat-ment, non-discrimination, freedomof movement and freedom of resi-dence.

(11) Up until the Maastricht Treaties,the competence of the ECJ in thematter of vocational education andtraining rested on Article 128 ofthe EEC Treaty; since then, theserulings on vocational education andtraining policy, the most importantof which have required provisionof access to places of training, forexample (cf. the judgment in theGravier case of 1985, for instance,on the issue of student fees, thejudgement in the Lawrie-Brown caseon teacher training, etc.) rest on thesecure basis of the text of the Maas-tricht Treaty.

(12) i.e. especially Articles 126 and127 of the Maastricht Treaty, and Ar-ticles 149 and 150 of the Treaty ofAmsterdam.

tegrated concepts, emphasising 'self-direct-ed and self-organised learning' (see for ex-ample OECD 2000; Lipsmeier; Clement 1999;Sauter; Grünwald 1999, p. 199). This em-phasis was also predicted in the Delphi sur-vey in Germany (Bildungs-Delphi) as a spe-cific trend in German education, and en-couraged in Germany, for example, duringthe debate on 'skills development' (Bernien1997, Münk 2002).

The growing European debate on the im-portance of lifelong learning driven by theinstitutions of the European Union since the1990s is not taking place in a vacuum, how-ever, but against the background of nation-al education and vocational training policiesand in the context of wide-ranging interna-tional discussion by such bodies as Unesco,the World Bank and the OECD.

The starting signal for the key education pol-icy debate on lifelong learning was given atthe Lisbon summit in spring 2000, where Mem-ber States declared education to be the 'mainissue' so to speak, largely because of the wide-spread assumption of the positive economiceffects of a proactive education and vocationaltraining policy, with the result that the sum-mit became known as the 'Employment Sum-mit'. In its final communiqué, the Lisbon sum-mit of heads of government set a new strate-gic goal of making the Union 'the most com-petitive and dynamic knowledge-based econ-omy in the world capable of sustainable eco-nomic growth and with more and better jobsand greater social cohesion.' (European Coun-cil 23-24 March 2000, p. 2).

Specific goals were set for education, inclose alliance with the goals of the Luxem-bourg Process: a substantial increase in percapita investment in human capital, halvingof the number of 18 to 24-year-olds with nomore than a lower secondary leaving qual-ification, development of schools and train-ing centres into local 'multipurpose learn-ing centres' open to all, establishment of acanon of basic skills, promotion of mobili-ty and development of a European modelcurriculum vitae (European Council 23-24March 2000, p. 9).

Alongside the goal of equality of opportu-nity, the emphasis was on the concept ofemployability and on giving higher priori-ty to lifelong learning as a basic componentof the European social model 'by exploitingthe complementarity between lifelong learn-

ing and adaptability through flexible man-agement of working time and job rotation'(European Council 23-24 March 2000, p. 8).The 2002 Barcelona summit built logicallyon the Lisbon Process (see Rosenau 2002,p. 153 ff. for a fuller chronology), which wasrecorded in the conclusions of the Ministersof Education of the European Union underthe title 'a competitive economy based onknowledge/education'.

In terms of content, these conclusions gavefocus to the key position statements of 2000and 2001: the European Commission 'Me-morandum on Lifelong Learning' of 30 Oc-tober 2000, the 'Commission report on theconcrete future objectives of education andtraining systems' of 31 January 2001, and the'Commission Communication: Making a Euro-pean area of lifelong learning a reality'. Th-ese built on the implications of the Lisbonsummit and set out a detailed description ofa networked, knowledge-based society basedon lifelong learning and thereby guaran-teeing economic development and social co-hesion and welfare.

The six key programme messages of theMemorandum were the creation of new ba-sic skills, higher investment in human re-sources, innovation in learning and teach-ing methods, greater attention to non-for-mal and informal learning, vocational coun-selling and guidance, and the goal of bring-ing learning physically closer to learners(European Commission, Memorandum 2000).In referring this programme back to Mem-ber States, the Commission stressed thatlifelong learning and the circumstances ofits social context (globalisation) posed acommon challenge to all Member Statesthat was structurally similar: 'While we mustpreserve the differences of structure andsystem which reflect the identities of thecountries and regions of Europe, we mustalso recognise that our main objectives, andthe results we all seek, are strikingly simi-lar. We should build on these similarities tolearn from each other, to share our suc-cesses and failures, and to use educationtogether to advance European citizens andEuropean society into the new millennium'(European Commission 2001, p. 15). Con-sequently, the 'open method of coordina-tion' was introduced, for the purpose of'spreading best practice' ('peer review') and'achieving greater convergence towards themain EU goals' (European Council, Lisbon23-24 March 2000, p. 11).


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In essence, this open method of coordination(defining objectives and then checking howfar those objectives have been achieved) meansa new framework for cooperation betweenEU Member States on education policy (seeFabian 2002, p. 126 on this aspect), aiming ata approximation of national policies, com-peting to create the most successful educa-tion and employment policies.

It is particularly remarkable that the openmethod of coordination rests on a deci-sion by the Ministers of Education of theMember States. At least from the Germanperspective, the old, more or less tradi-tional objection by Member States that theCommission was pursuing an inappropriateand unlawful policy of intervening in edu-cation no longer holds because the repre-sentatives of the Member States had a sharein framing the decision, and were jointly re-sponsible for taking it. Henceforward, thiscriticism would appear to have shifted to alevel low-er in the German federal systemand to be forcefully expressed by the Min-isters of Education in the Bundesrat, whichbelieves that it sees in the new open methodof coordination 'the danger that it could openthe way to coordination of education poli-cy by the Community'. (773rd Session of theBundesrat, stenographer's report, quoted byRosenau 2002, p. 156 ff.)

e-Learning and mobilelearning as tools of lifelonglearning

The prospect of an educational biographymarked by continuing lifelong learninghas acquired a new dimension through newmultimedia-based IT technologies. 'Learn-ing that is supported by...ICT...is thereforenot limited to "digital literacy" (...) but mayencompass multiple formats and hybridmethodologies, in particular, the use of soft-ware, Internet, CD-ROM, online learning andany other electronic or interactive media'(Cedefop 2002, p. 5-6).

The advantages of e-learning and the directconnection with the core issue of lifelonglearning are self-evident (decentralised, in-dividualised learning that is not time-boundand can be used flexibly, greater equalityof opportunity provided that broad access tothe technology is guaranteed: see, for ex-ample, Esser; Twardy; Wilbers 2001). e-Learn-

ing is also, so to speak, a genuinely Euro-pean form of teaching and learning becauseit transcends the borders of national voca-tional education and training systems by itsvery essence and by virtue of its structure andcan therefore be used without restrictionthroughout Europe for teaching and learning- if we may forget the problem of languagefor the moment.

The Commission's 'e-learning initiative' isa logical response to this development andregards e-learning, and lately also 'mobilelearning', as an opportunity to 'modernisethe economy', offering 'all citizens, espe-cially young people, the knowledge and sup-port...to succeed in the knowledge-basedsociety' (after Prodi, EU News 6/2003). AEurope-wide Cedefop 'survey into the useof e-learning in training and professional de-velopment in the European Union' (Cede-fop 2002, p. 4) suggests that e-learning has'a key role in the pursuit of the EU's policyobjective...of making the EU the most com-petitive and dynamic knowledge-driven econ-omy in the world.'

The Commission's e-learning initiative there-fore also sets out to improve the quality oflearning - even though a Cedefop study re-cently found that over 50% of EU citizens,and as many as 64% in Greece, were not fa-miliar with 'ICT skills' (Cedefop 2003, p. 8-11). The large number of projects launchedby the Commission in the context of the e-learning initiative (under Comenius, EQUAL,Leonardo, IST and elsewhere) is in itself ev-idence of the targeted awareness of the prob-lem in education, and particularly in labourmarket-oriented vocational training policy,but also demonstrates that considerable short-comings have yet to be overcome in this field.These are less of a technological problemthan a problem of teaching methods and, inthe broadest sense, an educational challenge,and also call for quite new teaching and learn-ing arrangements such as new organisation-al and institutional structures.

The EU policy area ofpromotional programmes

The ESF and education programmes

The restructuring of the structural funds forthe years 2000 to 2006 makes no fundamentalchange to the previous key task of structural


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support in order to strengthen economic andsocial cohesion through measures to pro-mote employment in structurally weak re-gions. There is therefore an obvious simi-larity with the employment policy objectivesof the European Union Treaty (Article 150),and support for the European employmentstrategy and employment guidelines is im-plicitly contained in the new arrangements.Links between the ESF and the employmentpromotion activities of the EU may well growfurther in future since greater complemen-tarity between structural funds and actionprogrammes is aimed at, and some of theresources may also be used to expand vo-cational education and training measures(bmb+f 2000, p. 205 ff.).

The action and education programmeslaunched by the EU since 1985 have had aneven greater influence than the ESF. UnderArticles 126 and 127, the Commission adopt-ed 'Guidelines for Community action in ed-ucation and training' in May 1993 as a keyelement of secondary (soft) Community leg-islation. In these it announced that it would'act to complement the measures of Mem-ber States and create a common frameworkin order to coordinate Community and na-tional efforts and to restructure the educa-tion programmes (Socrates and Leonardo)'(Reuter 1995, p. 212). Together with the 1993White Paper 'Growth, Competitiveness, Em-ployment', these set out the cornerstones ofa thoroughgoing modernisation of Europeanvocational education and training, bothaccentuating the labour market and com-petitive function of vocational education andtraining, and arguing for promotion of the'European dimension in education', a rise inthe quality of training and greater innova-tion in education as a whole (European Com-mission, White Paper 1994, p. 144 et seq.),under the banner of coherence between ed-ucation, training and culture in Europe.

These funding programmes operate in manydifferent ways, which cannot be quantifiedexactly: within countries they may be usedto legitimise national support for education;they create dependencies and blur bound-aries of responsibility (see, for example,Sieveking 1990); they provide a structure forinternational cooperation from a Europeanpolicy perspective, and not only serve as aninstrument of comparative benchmarkingbetween competing vocational educationand training systems, but also mean that theEuropean dimension must be taken into ac-

count if sponsorship is to be retained. Theextraordinary importance of these EU ini-tiatives under soft Community law is demon-strated by the rise in participation and in in-terest among Member States, especially sincethe launch of Leonardo: it would be diffi-cult to exaggerate the value added to voca-tional education and training by this at leastpotential 'Europeanisation' of national vo-cational education and training policy sincethese programme activities frequently stim-ulate debates about reform in individualstates.

The EU policy area ofCommission planningrecommendations

Planning recommendations made under sec-ondary Community legislation are by theirnature diffuse and devoid of legal force. Itis therefore not surprising that the Com-mission has not so far put forward a coher-ent plan for either initial or continuing vo-cational education and training, but has mere-ly launched a assorted collection of individ-ual suggestions and measures. This suits thesubsidiary, complementary role accord-ed tothe Commission under the EU Treaty. In thepast, a series of these suggestions has provedfruitful and politically unproblematic. Thenumerous national projects initiated or tak-en advantage of by a whole series of Mem-ber States under the Leonardo da Vinci pro-gramme should be mentioned particularly inthis context, alongside the Council Recom-mendation of 30 June 1993 on access to con-tinuing vocational training, which has beenassociated with a large number of individualconcrete proposals (13), and the efforts of theEU to enhance the quality of vocationaleducation and training.

The main focus has nonetheless been on re-cent attempts to achieve the goal of trans-parency of vocational education and train-ing systems, and of accreditation and eval-uation. Bjørnåvold (1998, p. 44) comes tothe critical conclusion, however, that 'muchinformation and experience comes from thebottom up...but that the inherent potentialof the many initiatives is not fully exploit-ed.' It can be assumed, Bjørnåvold (1998, p.44) continues, 'that the exchange of infor-mation' will as a whole remain 'too modest,the interpretation inadequate and the mech-anisms to promote exchange and interpre-


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(13) e.g. the measures to improveplanning of in-company continuingtraining, help for SMEs, provision forgroups facing difficulties in the labourmarket, development of teach-ingand learning methods, etc.

tation of information insufficiently devel-oped' until measures achieve some degreeof control and permanence.

It can be observed overall in respect of ef-forts at greater transparency in European vo-cational education and training systems thatthere has been recognisable progress inmethodology (ESAS - 'European Skills Ac-creditation System') and in content, fol-lowing a lengthy process of recognition,alignment - which generally failed - and morerecent schemes of individual portfolios andskills passports (see Bjørnåvold 1998, p.24 for an overview of portfolios).

One secret of the success of these recentschemes for accreditation and validationof formal and informal skills certainly lies intheir consistently decentralised organisationand above all in the fact that this type of val-idation does comparatively little to threatenthe sovereignty and competence of MemberStates in educational planning, even thoughthere is much talk of the suspicion that har-monisation is aimed at convergence of Euro-pean systems (e.g. Bjørnåvold 1998, p. 32),which has given rise to reservations in Ger-many, for example.

Although these and other innovative plan-ning recommendations are not legally bind-ing in formal terms, some particular sug-gestions for innovation have in the past be-come the focus for conflicts of interest be-tween the EU institutions and the MemberStates of the European Union. These con-flicts of interest demonstrate the critical po-tential of EU intervention in planning in thepolicy area of 'vocational education and train-ing' which, at least in the 1990s, regularlyprovided the nucleus for national resistance.

The conflict of interestsbetween Europeanintegration and nationalsovereignty

Until the 1980s it was accepted that the con-flict of interests between European planningrecommendations and national intentionswas less severe in the states on the edges ofEurope with a shorter history of vocationaltraining systems than in the core states ofEurope: the former were looking forward to'development assistance', although this can-

not be reduced merely to economic support,while the latter were more concerned withmaintaining the institutional structures oftheir vocational education and training sys-tems.

There have been many such conflicts, andnational interpretations prove decidedly se-lective: Germany, for example, welcomesthe Commission recommendations to ex-pand apprenticeship, but is a fierce oppo-nent of the Commission proposal for a Euro-pean system of accreditation, particularly ofindividual skills that are not formalised andcertified but are acquired through the processof learning while working: this notion is inline with the nature of the British system,for example, but runs counter to the strict-ly formalised, certified system of Germaninitial vocational training.

The same applies to the controversies overthe five-stage scheme introduced by the Com-mission, and to what might be termed theconflict of paradigmatic objectives over theCommission proposal for modularisation ofinitial vocational training, which is based onthe British system that has now been inplace for decades (Münk 1997, p. 100 ff.).

The German reaction to modularisationdemonstrates two things. Firstly, it showsthat that the Commission's aim of makingstructures of initial and continuing vocationaltraining more flexible is only realisticallylikely to succeed if it does not fundamen-tally threaten the structure of establish-edsystems; secondly, the German FederalGovernment's retreat from its initial stanceof complete rejection reveals that the Com-mission's role as innovator, catalyst and driv-ing force for dynamic integration is largelybeing fulfilled. In respect of Germany, Hanfeven observes a 'long-term impact of theEuropeanisation of the notion of occupa-tions...merging the concept of occupationwith modularity' (Hanf, 1998, p. 157).

In view of the fundamental conflict of aimsbetween integration and national sovereign-ty, the example of the debate over modu-larisation also shows that it is not appropri-ate, and is indeed impossible, to impose aso-called pan-European vocational educa-tion and training system: the implicit mes-sage is to observe the motto 'unity in di-versity'. On closer examination, this is alsosupported by the theoretical findings pre-sented at the beginning.


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(13) e.g. the measures to improveplanning of in-company continuingtraining, help for SMEs, provisionfor groups facing difficulties in thelabour market, development of teach-ing and learning methods, etc.

Unity in diversity -A reconsideration of thetheoretical findings

The opening remarks on global and/or Euro-pean trends of convergence of social struc-tures should be relativised as follows. Nei-ther the perspective of modernisation northat of social structure theory excludes vari-ations. In fact they both systematically allowfor these through differences in timing orpath of development, and widely differ-ingfindings of social structure analysis in respectof the structural development of vocationaleducation and training systems. The corefinding is in fact that the structure of educa-tion and training systems is 'not a matter ofchance but the result of specific cultural val-ue orientations and social and economic cir-cumstances' and that 'vocational training inparticular [reflects] national dividing lines'(Müller; Steinmann; Schneider 1997, p. 185).

The overall purpose of the historical com-parative study by Greinert (1999) cited atthe beginning was not in fact to demonstrateconvergence throughout Europe but the op-posite: to give details of the historically andsocially conditioned and therefore irreversibledifferences that have grown up betweenEuropean nation states in their vocationaleducation and training systems.

Comparative results of social science researchalso confirm the European belief in 'unity indiversity': Heidenreich, for example, assertsthat what matters is 'to take account of thecontext of vocational training and educa-tion, with its interdependencies and strate-gic links with the cultural system' (Heiden-reich 1991, p. 53). Some representatives ofGerman research into vocational and com-mercial education (Georg 1997 and Deissinger1999) have in recent years contributed tothe debate about vocational training by re-viving the 1970s 'theory of social effects'of Maurice, Sellier and Silvestre (1982), withthe aid of which the underlying causes ofsocial developments and the structural in-fluences of national traditions and culturalpractices can be identified. Lutz (1991), inparticular, proves by comparing France andGermany that despite having comparabletechnology and economies, national pecu-liarities and differences can be observed inthe organisation of industry and labour. Lutzand Veltz (1989, p. 218) see the specific wayin which 'vocational skills are taught' in coun-

tries as being a 'key causal and explanato-ry factor'.

The thesis of convergence, which is so plau-sible in theory, would appear from the de-tailed social structure of vocational educa-tion and training systems to be based on aconsensus that might be called 'similar in in-tention, dissimilar in form' rather than somevast macro-structural millenarian vision.

The 'Unitas Multiplex'strategy of adaptationrather than adoption

Lastly, it cannot clearly be identified whetherchanging conceptual trends in vocational ed-ucation and training systems have direct Euro-pean causes or are the result of pressures toadapt, however expressed, which are some-what intangible: the process of political in-tegration, primary and secondary Commu-nity legislation, the trend towards globalisa-tion with its pressures of competitivenessand rationalisation, and the development ofnew technologies and modern ways of or-ganising work, all create immense pressures,largely independently of the process of Euro-pean integration. Furthermore, not onlyare these technological and economic pres-sures, which are typical of industrialised so-cieties, transnational, but the social and eco-nomic functions of vocational education andtraining themselves also reveal a great de-gree of similarity in modern industrialisedand knowledge-based societies. This struc-tural similarity is found not just in the chal-lenges but also in the problems to be over-come throughout Europe - by way of ex-ample I would once more mention the tra-ditional European problem of youth unem-ployment.

However, it can be stated at least in respectof Germany that opinions have recently beenexpressed by the Federal Government, in the'Vocational Training Reform Project', for ex-ample (Deutscher Bundestag 1997) (14), andeven in trade union position papers (Hans-Böckler-Stiftung 1998) (15), which cling to thebasic principles of the dual system andhence to the concept of occupations, and re-ject modularisation after the British model.However, these reform statements also clear-ly demonstrate a readiness for fundamentalchange and have a certain European flavour.


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(14) This reads (Deutscher Bundestag1997, p. 3 f.): 'The Federal Govern-ment holds to the concept of occu-pations as the basis for the con-tent and structure of recognised train-ing occupations. High priority is giv-en to occupational status in Ger-many, extending beyond the worldof work as a marker of social iden-tity. Occupations defined national-ly as a framework for structuring thecontent of vocational train-ing pro-vide transparency in the labour mar-ket and ensure occupational flexi-bility and mobility. Training in oc-cupations offers specialist prepara-tion for a wide range of chang-ingapplications in many different fieldsof activity. It therefore promotes per-sonal skills, thinking and action whichextend beyond the confines of nar-row fields of employment. This can-not be provided by the step-by-stepaddition of modules offering prepa-ration for specific jobs. Occupationaltraining as preparation for initial en-try to the world of work and as thebasis for lifelong learning, on theother hand, is the more modern con-cept, offering greater security for thefuture.'

(15) This committee of experts takesthe European term 'lifelong learn-ing' literally and proposes replacingan 'institutionally oriented by aprocess-oriented conception of con-tinuing education' (Hans-Böckler-Stiftung 1998, p. 42) in the sense ofthe restructuring of people's livesand their educational and workingcareers and family activities. Theprocess-orient-ed conception isframed so broadly that the authorsbelieve that modularisation can bereconciled 'in principle with the con-cept of occupations', albeit it in aspecific form, not just in continuingeducation and training but explicit-ly also in initial training (by short-ening basic training and bringingforward training periods) (Hans-Böckler-Stiftung 1998, p. 16).

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Cedefop. Lifelong Learning: Citizens' Views. Lux-embourg: 2003.

Deissinger, Th. Beruflichkeit als Zusammenhang

The development of the debate on educa-tion and training policy, and of the theoret-ical discourse in the 1990s, also signals thathighly controversial concepts such as mod-ularisation and accreditation are nonethelessbeing given serious consideration. In Ger-many this is partly because such a perspec-tive is required for the very contemplationof reform, without the need immediately toquestion the system - this applies particularlyto the history of the German reaction to mod-ularisation. Europeanisation of the structureof vocational education and training is there-fore not only conceivable in theory but alsoempirically discernible, at least in outline.

In conclusion, it is therefore impossible tosay with the desired certainty whether voca-tional education and training is being Euro-peanised. According to the current state ofresearch, it is clear that there is no questionof there being a real European vocational ed-ucation and training system. However, it ap-pears equally clear that it is no longer feasi-ble, for example, to consider the develop-ment of the German system of initial andcontinuing vocational training in its ownterms and within its own framework. As Hanf(1998, p. 148) states, European vocationaltraining policy has for at least a decade beendeveloping increasingly into 'the systemicenvironment'. The impact of the process ofmutual dialogue, which takes place as it wereunder the umbrella of European policy guide-lines and objectives, is obviously a kind ofosmosis, leading to a gradual spread of a wide

variety of elements and approaches with aEuropean dimension (16).

This process of dialogue is adaptive in na-ture and therefore scarcely threatens the con-ceptual heart of the vocational educationand training systems in Europe, which arehistorically and socially unique. But it isalso very clear that to ignore this process ofintegration would genuinely endanger thestructural survival of these very systems.

The leitmotiv of 'unity in diversity' and EdgarMorin's vision of a 'Unitas Multiplex', drawnfrom cultural sociology, are therefore morethan a compromise formula. Even in the con-text of scientific analysis, the concept of 'Uni-tas Multiplex' has a very specific meaning,which concerns the economic and legalessence of the process of European inte-gration: Europeanisation of vocational edu-cation and training is, if only because of dif-fering social and historical paths of devel-opment and on grounds of national sover-eignty, not a synonym for the standardisa-tion of vocational education and training.But it does, as is stated in the 2000 Voca-tional Training Report, make a challengingdemand for fruitful 'competition betweeneducation systems' and for 'individual edu-cation and training systems to look at theirown strengths and weakness, to try newways and to create and build on a sharedset of European training principles and cri-teria' (bmb+f 2000, p. 201 ff.).


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(16) The effects of this process candefinitely be explained in terms ofmodernisation theory, as argued atthe outset, and can therefore be com-pared with the creeping socio-eco-nomic effects of globalisation.

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Introduction

Vocational training activities are primarymeasures for improving organisational andindividual competitiveness and success.Numerous authors have emphasised the needfor further training to adapt swiftly and im-prove the qualification of entrepreneurs andemployees. This, in turn, delivers the abili-ty to cope with dynamic economic and tech-nological changes, innovations, and so-ciostructural developments in the labourmarket, improving international competi-tiveness through higher quality and cost-ef-fectiveness (e.g. Bates, 2001; Cedefop, 1998a;Conlin and Baum, 1994; Cooper et al., 1997;Fayos-Sola and Jafari, 1997; Freyer, 1988;Hinterhuber, 1997; Hjalager, 1994; Icking,2000; Langer, 1989; Langer, 2003a; Mouti-nho, 2000; OECD, 1996; Rosow and Zager,1988; Smeral, 1994; WTO, 1994). Huge in-vestment in training activities (LakewoodResearch, 1998∞ indicates a need for qual-ified research, planning, and controlling tech-niques.

In view of the generally acknowledgedimportance of training, universally applica-ble methods for measuring training activi-ties should be available. Such a method wasrequired for an empirical study of the ac-commodation trade, for which 'tourism in-dustry' is often used synonymously (Freyer,1988; Kaspar, 1991; Leiper, 1999), of CentralEuropean Alpine regions in Austria andBavaria (Germany). However, an examina-tion of statistics and a survey of publicationson the measurement of training activitiesyielded few usable results, as shown below.As a result, an adequate method of measur-ing training activities had to be developedaccording to specific criteria. For this pur-pose, the 'TrainingActivityDegree' ratio (TAD)was developed.

The new method had to go beyond the re-porting of simple statistical values. It need-ed the potential to show the individual'sreadiness and willingness to participate intraining, thereby providing an indicator thatcould also be used in theoretical modelsto explain variations in training activity, and,

further, to explain the effect of training onthe success of individuals or enterprises. Toensure such statistical and theoretical ap-plicability, a fundamental decision was madeto focus on non-monetary values rather thanthe standard monetary values commonlyused in economic models. The use of mon-etary values is problematic because they failto take into consideration expenditure as-pects (and income aspects, too, if low in-come hinders training participation) whichhave an impact on the degree to which par-ticipation in training activities can be meas-ured. For example, the same training meas-ure could be available at three different prices:standard market price, reduced price andcost-free, depending on the subsidies avail-able. Moreover, the same training measurecould have different prices even if subsidiesdo not exist. As a result, even simple sta-tistical values provide a distorted picture. Incontrast, time investment, although not per-fect, can be a decisive indicator of the indi-vidual's readiness to participate in training.It seems particularly appropriate in an agewhere many perceive they have little time,giving rise to opportunity costs.

An additional issue in measuring training ac-tivity is the applicability of a method in allbranches and sectors of the economy, world-wide. Using the example of the current study,Central European tourism fundamentally dif-fers from other industries, being dominatedby medium and large-scale organisationswhich generally feature well-organised hu-man resource management and training struc-tures, e.g. the public sector or the financesector. In contrast, the tourism industry isdominated by small-scale enterprises or smallbusinesses (Langer, 1988b), officially definedby the European Commission as enterpris-es with 1 to 50 employees, though most, inpractice, have 10 or fewer. The executivesor management of such enterprises are char-acterised by a lack of special knowledge ofhuman resource management and a lack oftime for management duties because theyare concerned with a wide variety of tasks(Feleppa, 1998; Kailer and Scheff, 1998). Theappreciation of the need for human resourcesdevelopment is diminished by the fact that


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Gottfried LangerAssociate Professor atthe Institute ofManagement, Tourismand Service Economicsat the University ofInnsbruck

Measurement of trainingactivities

Inadequate methods for meas-uring training activities are abasic problem in explainingvariations in training activi-ties and organisational or per-sonal success in interactionwith training etc., as well asfor statistical comparisonsamong countries, industries,professions or demographicgroups. The manifold meth-ods used primarily are onlyadequate for application inthe privileged segment of gov-ernmental organisations andother big organisations suchas enterprises with a highlydeveloped training culture.In contrast - using a roughdistinction - for unprivilegedpopulation and organisationsegments the methods areless suitable. This study pres-ents a possibility for bridg-ing this gap with a new ratiocalled TrainingActivityDegree(TAD). The first-time empir-ical TAD data reported heredemonstrate practical ap-plications of the ratio in sta-tistics and in context with sta-tistical methods.

owners or managers often lack a clear con-cept of the relationship between training andperformance (Boer et al., 1997).

Furthermore, the example of small tourismbusinesses shows specific features which in-fluence training measures and, consequently,the compilation of reliable training activitydata. First, seasonal fluctuations require manyemployees in the tourism industry to changetheir place of employment twice per year.As a result, employers view training in-vestments as uneconomical and avoid them(Becker, 1964). Because employees often fi-nance training activities themselves, and, inmany cases, pursue training activities dur-ing periods of (seasonal) unemployment,employers are not involved in, and, there-fore, normally only partially informed of,employees' training activities. Second, thesector is mostly composed of employeesqualified at low and medium level and ahigh rate of women (about 60%) and ofyoung people with a short-term employ-ment or trade perspective (Langer, 1984;Langer, 1988a), who often do not aspire togetting ahead and generally do not keep arecord of training measures. The third fac-tor is related to the entrepreneurs themselves.Often their education level is also moder-ate, their attitude towards training is oneof distance, and they usually do not keep arecord of their training because they are notactive in the job market. Fourth, these struc-tural factors are exacerbated by the absenceof a general system for reporting education,training, and development. Finally, the train-ing market is dominated by a broad rangeof suppliers who provide services to indi-viduals and do not have an overview of thetotal activity of a single person.

In light of these factors, it is not surprisingthat there is an absence of useful and reli-able training activity data. To exacerbate fur-ther the problem of gathering information,there is an extreme variation in the durationof training measures in the tourism business.Employees and employers in this sector main-ly participate in relatively short-term train-ing activities in the order of a few hours,one day, several days, a week, or - in a fewcases such as language courses - severalmonths and longer (Langer, 2000-01; Langer,2000-02).

These industry characteristics, togetherwith the involvement of groups, employeesand employers in empirical research, cause

decisive problems regarding the measure-ment of training activities. It is not possi-ble to opt for an organisation-specific andlow-cost method of measurement, examplesof which have been described by Bates (2001)and Weber (1985), among others. This chal-lenging situation resulted in an effort to de-velop a method for worst-case situations thatalso would be applicable in as many situa-tions as possible.

Review of literature

The review of literature covered a diversi-fied, broad-spectrum survey of publicationsin the field. It is presented very briefly andselectively here (for more detail see Langer,2000-01). First, it covers the general topic ofeducation, further vocational training andhuman resources in search of a universallyapplicable solution for the measurementof training activities. A second objective isto identify the problems and implications ofnew solutions by discussing the current sit-uation.

Demanded features of measuringmethods regarding training activity

Methods of measurement are analysed ac-cording to their ability to meet two demands.The first is sufficient usability for a valid andreliable assessment and effective presenta-tion of training activities. In addition, the usein explanatory micro- and macro-economicmodels of society is a major requirement for:

(a) analysis of training activity variationamong individuals (employed, unem-ployed) and their success as labour mar-ket participants;

(b) the success of firms (with a focus on mi-cro-enterprises) as influenced by train-ing activities.

In such analysis, it seems appropriate to as-sume that the benefit of training activitiescan be measured on a yearly basis. How-ever, it may be that, in the early months(even the first year) success generally, andstrategically, is low. This means that for analy-sis of training success at the micro-level ofthe individual or organisation, activities mustbe assessed over longer periods, e.g. threeyears or more.


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The second demand is the usability of amethod for all training segments (individu-als, organisations) including the segment thathas a systematic and highly developed train-ing culture. This group can generally be de-scribed as comprising governmental organ-isations, the finance sector, some of the man-ufacturing sector plus larger enterprises orsmall and medium sized ones in specialistsectors. These have a training culture thatallows simple methods for measuring train-ing activities, i.e. assessing activities overshort periods, such as four weeks, or longertimes, such as a year. However, the select-ed measuring method must also work sat-isfyingly in industries with fragmented andsometimes chaotic training cultures, oftencharacterised by unsystematic training ac-tivities, low training activity rates and longbreaks between training activity. It must al-so deal with small enterprises (often in theservice sector), low wage industries, andspecific demographic segments such aswomen fitting their careers around childrenor people in sectors with low qualificationrequirements.

Measuring methods used in variouscontributions

Contributions in the last seven years to stud-ies of human resources management, edu-cation and further training in tourism, andin general in English and German speakingareas rarely focus on measuring training ac-tivities (e.g. book-length publications ofBardeleben et al., 1996; Cedefop, 1998a and1998b; Gee and Fayos-Sola, 1997; Go et al.,1996; Mullins, 1995; OECD, 1996; e.g. arti-cles and conference reports of Airey andJohnson, 1999; Ashley et al., 1995; Barrett etal., 1995; Barrows et al., 1995; Dionne, 1996;Fayos-Sola and Jafari, 1997; Guerrier andDeery, 1998; Leiper, 1999; Okeiyi et al., 1994;Richards, 1998). Articles and conferencesdeal mainly with higher education, manage-ment development, or human resource de-velopment as a managerial technique ofmedium and large-scale organisations, whileeducation, training, and development of em-ployees and self-employed individuals with-out much formal education (mainly employedat small enterprises) are largely ignored.

Subject matter more closely related to meas-uring training activities can be found in, forexample, Harrison (1996), with a compari-son of training at large businesses based ontheir financial human capital investment.

Unesco (1997) employs a 'gross enrolmentratio' for the comparison of gender dispar-ities in school participation, without ad-dressing the topic of further training. Publi-cations by Cedefop (1998a and 1998b) onvocational education and training (VET) dealwith a variety of aspects relevant to the quan-tification of training activities, including adistinction between formal education andnon-formal learning, as well as further sta-tistical documentation of educational activ-ities. The OECD publication about "Lifelonglearning for all" (1996) includes documen-tation of educational activities, including timeseries of the number of courses offer-ed andthe percentage of further training activitiesby age groups.

Cooper et al. (1996) describe individual in-struments that are especially important forthe improved reporting of educational andtraining activities:

(a) the accreditation for prior experientiallearning (APL), which records past edu-cational activity (Bjornavold, 2001: 110et seq.) and is part of the national vo-cational qualifications (NVQs) in the UK;

(b) credit accumulation transfer schemes(CATS), which are closely associatedwith making educational systems moremodular, flexible, and individualised;

(c) the CEUs (continuing education units)of IACET (International Association forContinuing Education and Training),which can be regarded as credits inthe area of further training, where theactivities are calculated in hours (IACET,2003).

Such well-documented educational and skilldevelopment activities make it possible todetermine a fairly reliable individual Train-ing ActivityDegree. In order to measure fur-ther training activity at industry level throughsuch systems of documentation, however,the concepts must be expanded to includeemployees in lower and mid-level positionsand the executive staff of micro-businesses.The record of achievements in the UK is agood example of such a concept.

In the future, bridges could be built betweensystems that record training activities for thepurposes of certifying personal qualificationson the one hand, and, on the other hand,the quantitative measurement of training ac-


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tivities developed in this study for statisticaland scientific purposes. Furthermore, at-tention should be paid to the TEDQUAL sys-tem as a method enabling 'a form of vol-untary standardisation for dealing with qual-ity issues in tourism education and training'(Cooper et al., 1997). A conversion of thisproposal into a standardisation of the qual-ity of educational provisions could lay afoundation that would render the inclu-sion of qualitative factors, together with aquantitative documentation of training ac-tivities, considerably easier in the context ofan expanded TAD.

It is to be emphasised that non-monetarytraining activity indices play an importantrole in theoretical explanatory models of ed-ucation and training. They are used as de-pendent variables in explanatory models ofthe behavioural sciences and of human re-source management theory, or in empiri-cal ad hoc models (e.g. Bardeleben et al.,1996; Bates, 2001; von Rosenstiel, 1984; We-ber, 1985) as well as in economic models(e.g. Becker, 1993; Mincer, 1974) as sup-plementary values for missing monetary in-put values (investment in human capital).Based on equilibrium theory, economic mod-els postulate that educational activities in-fluence the dependent variable 'salary'. Build-ing on this foundation, the works of Beck-er (1964) and Mincer (1974) led to an ex-planatory model in which the homogeneityassumption of the equilibrium theory con-cerning the factor 'work' was omitted andnon-monetary benefit and cost categorieswere considered.

In contrast, social science models (e.g. Bates,2001; von Rosenstiel, 1984; Weber, 1985) usespecific training activity indices as depend-ent variables. One of the described outcomemeasures of Bates (2001), the 'subjectivemeasure of training', reports training dayswithin one year, self-reported by trainingparticipants. In this case the index shouldbe identical with the TAD (see TAD de-scription and specifications below). The prob-lem is that a one-year period often is tooshort to attain valid results because the im-pact of those employees in the explanatorymodel who have attended longer courses ineach of three previous years and did not (orwere not allowed to) participate in train-ing courses during the observation periodis ignored. If Bates' subjective measure wereextended to a longer observation period, itwould come close to the features of the TAD.

Bates uses the term 'objective measure', de-fined as organisation-sponsored trainingevents (not day units), whereas the outcomemeasure by 'event' only should be employedif the events have a very similar duration(e.g. 3 weeks each). Furthermore, the 'ob-jective' character is a problem if the organ-isation is not aware of training measures out-side of the workplace.

Measuring methods used for officialtraining statistics

Insufficiencies must also be emphasised con-cerning the official training statistics of theEuropean Commission, especially with re-gard to micro-enterprises with fewer than 10persons (European Communities, 2002). Meth-ods and definitions are described in re-ports on continuing vocational training sur-veys (CVTS) conducted in 1994 (regarding1993, CVTS1) and 2000/2001 (regarding 1999,CVTS2) and in reports on the labour forcesurveys (LFS). Both have incomplete and notcontinuously clear descriptions of the char-acteristics of censuses of training activity da-ta (European Commission, 1997; Nestler andKailis, 2002; European Communities, 2003;Statistik Austria, 2003) summarised below.

Compared to the definition below, whichrestricts training to formal training activities,the Eurostat term training includes a het-erogeneous mix of formal and informal de-velopment activities (European Commission,1997: p. 85 and 102; European Communi-ties, 2003: p. 51 and 90). It is not clearly iden-tifiable whether training is defined in thesame way in CVTS and LFS; in fact, thereseem to be notable differences. This maycause basic problems regarding the validmeasure-ment of formal training itself andfor valid comparisons of training activity da-ta within the Commission's statistics.

CVTS considers only training activitieswhich are financed by enterprises for theiremployees, so use of the term vocationaltraining (Nestler and Kailis, 2002) or in Ger-man Berufsbildung (European Commission,1997) seems questionable and misleads. In2003 there was a change in German publi-cations (European Commission, 2002; Statis-tik Austria, 2003) with the term betrieblicheWeiterbildung being used to greater de-scriptive effect; this could roughly be trans-lated as company-internal training or evenas on-the-job training. The term vocationalcan be translated as beruflich in German and


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would be interpreted as an umbrella term,including company-internal training as oneof various types. Of major importance areactivities organised by individuals (financedby themselves or by other institutions)these are not covered by the CVTS concept.In contrast, LFS includes both types of con-tinuing vocational training and, in this re-spect, delivers more information.

CVTS considers a short period of one yearand LFS considers the very short referenceperiod of training activities in the last fourweeks only.

CVTS counts the number of training hoursas a part of paid working hours used for oneor more training activities during the one-year period. The data are provided by theemployers. In contrast LFS analyses the state-ments of individuals between 15 and 64about themselves. LFS considers only oneactivity, the longest course in terms of hours,even if two or more have taken place. Thefocus is the 'usual number of hours', for oneactivity in a typical week of this activity.Time spent on homework is excluded, eventhough this may be a most effective wayof learning.

CVTS only covers enterprises, mainly thoseemploying 10 persons and more, includingworking proprietors (Statistik Austria, 2003).Furthermore, the report Key Data on Voca-tional Training in the European Union (Euro-pean Commission, 1997) on CVTS results al-so contains LFS results relating to self-em-ployed individuals (businesses with-out em-ployees) covering the age group from 30 to59. It must be noted that the LFS (EuropeanCommunities, 2003: p. 51) potentially givesa more complete picture of training activi-ties in the European Union, because all labourmarket segments are included. In addition,all training activities are seemingly includ-ed, whether relevant or not to the respon-dent's current or future job, according toISCED (International Standard Classificationof Education - Unesco 1997).

CVTS counts the individual duration of train-ing activities measured in working hours (notin training hours). The data are presented asvarious ratios (European Commission, 1997;Nestler and Kailis, 2002) as well as averagedata on training hours of individuals (Statis-tik Austria, 2003). Hours of vocational train-ing self-financed and independently organ-is-ed by employees are not considered in

CVTS data. In contrast, LFS (European Com-munities, 2003) includes all types of traininghours, though only over the preceding fourweeks and only for one activity.

In summary, different definitions of training,distinct time peculiarities (deficits), reducedinclusion of training activities and segment-based selection of individuals, which occurin varying combinations, together add up toan insufficient calculation of training activ-ities. There is the impression that the Euro-pean Commission evolves its activities basedon a concept of training culture which is typ-ical for the European Commission itself, thepublic service sector in general, lobby or-ganisations or large enterprises in the financeor manufacturing sector with well-organiseddepartments and systematic personnel de-velopment and training activities. There seemslittle appreciation of the less privileged sec-tors - organisations and employees such asmicro-enterprises, the self-employed, the un-employed and women who temporarily stayout of labour market (e.g. to care for chil-dren) - that are often financially exhausted,badly organised, discriminated against andexposed to distorted competition. These arefrequently self-fund-ing and train in theirleisure time. Although the majority of Euro-pean enterprises (Schmiemann, 2002) andcitizens belong to these categories, privi-leged thinking and its permutation inter aliawhen implementing surveys, seemingly dom-inates. Even though exercises such as theLFS surveys consider each labour marketsegment and each training activity, the sur-veys are hampered by the various weak-nesses described, are presented in a hesi-tant manner and accessibility is unsatisfac-tory. The problem is the lack of a generalmethod of assessing training activities adapt-ed to the training culture of the unprivilegedmajority. Of course, such a universal methodshould be fully applicable for the privilegedsegment too and so allow valid comparisonsof training behaviour for all segments of in-dividuals and of organisations.

Definitions and measurement procedures ofthe OECD, which are described in detailin a manual (OECD, 1997), deliver a furtherdefinition of training which obviously dif-fers considerable from those of the Euro-pean Commission. One variation is that, ina survey of education and training the OECDrecorded '... up to three training courses tak-en during the previous twelve months'(O`Connell, 1999).


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The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) hasa highly developed terminology and meas-urement procedure (ABS, 2003). However,there are limitations in terms of current aims.The compilation covers a maximum of fouractivities (instead of including each), the pe-riod of one year is very short in respect ofthe fragmented training cultures of varioussegments (sectors, small enterprises, women,etc.) and there strike some questionable de-limitations of the term 'learning' in relationto formal, non-formal and incidental learn-ing. Additionally, the term training remainsunclear. It obviously is a combination of for-mal and non-formal training if the definitionis used for comparison (see below). This mixmay be of distorting influence if searchingfor a valid picture of (formal) training ac-tivities only.

The official statistics in Germany (bmb+f,1998; Kuwan et al., 1996; Pannenberg, 1995)and in Austria (OSTAT, 1992; Zeidler, 1990)are especially relevant because the currentresearch was conducted in these coun-tries. These statistics, like the procedures dis-cussed before, show specific handicaps ofmeasuring training activities (Langer, 2000-2001) which are discussed in the summarybelow. It must be emphasised, that a re-porting purely of events (participation)without recording time units such as hoursor days is insufficient.

A comparison of these training measurementprocedures from national or supranationalorganisations, which are of major relevanceto current objectives, first shows differencesin definitions and procedures and, second,shows that they do not fulfil specified re-quirements:

a) definitions of training, as delivered bythe five organisations, are questionableto varying degrees as well differing fromeach other, so that international com-parisons are invalid. Additionally, in-tranational comparisons between in-dustries or employment segments maybe affect-ed, caused by variations in train-ing as a result of different learning cul-tures.

b) the procedures are not sufficient for com-parisons and for academic research be-cause:

❑ they take a one-sided view, focusedon well-organised training (the privileged

sector). For the (very significant) remainder,the picture of training participation maybe biased by very limited recording of ac-tivities (four weeks, one year) which is aparticular problem in industries and popu-lation segments with infrequent training par-ticipation. In addition, the limited referenceperiod does not take into account that train-ing effects may be long lasting.

❑ the picture of training participation canbe biased in two ways by limited recordingof activities: a) it may cover only one ac-tivity, or a maximum of three or four activ-ities in the reference period; b) it may on-ly cover training activities during work time(as in the CVTS). However, the total activi-ty is relevant if effects are considered.

❑ selective recording, e.g. only the em-ployed, only enterprises with 10 and moreemployed persons.

Specific problems of such national and supra-national training data must also be point-edout. The availability of data in general,and of micro-data in particular, may be lim-ited by data protection concerns. If train-ingdata are available, then deficits regard-ingthe usability in academic research normallyexist because of the need for specific re-search questions which cannot be consid-ered in general statistical surveys.

Finally it must be emphasised, that corre-lation of organisational and personal vari-ables is normally not possible with the da-ta from the organisations discussed above,which is partly of relevance to the currentresearch project. An exception are the CVTSdata, though the spectrum of queries is lim-ited to the subject of training itself and doesnot include general organisational data. So,this objective only can be reached by gath-ering data in organisations concerningthe organisation itself (e.g. success data,training culture, positioning) as well as in-dividual data for executives and employ-ees.

Review of the situation

Huge investment and numerous activitiesrelating to education, training, and hu-man resources document the importanceof these subjects. This underlines the im-portance of the development of meaningful


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statistics and streamlined research, an im-portant objective itself and also a necessityin decision-making on investment in humancapital by policy-makers, public organisa-tions and private enterprises.

However, it is apparent that understandingof the measurement of training activities inmany respects is insufficient. The signifi-cance of official statistics is affected, e.g. theexamples of the European Union, Australia,Austria and Germany show different con-figurations, making inter-country compar-isons difficult. The methods employed donot characterise all industries and train-ing segments adequately and the methodsare so problematic that the validity of meas-urement is questionable. In addition, re-search mainly focuses on isolated trainingsituations in organisations which allowthe application of specific output measuresin combination with low-cost survey meth-ods. The value of such organisation-specif-ic findings lags behind the options, partic-ularly as the possibility to attain universalfindings by qualified methods in some cas-es nearly is achieved.

The present literature review points tothe existence of a current lack of knowl-edge. An absence of a commonly accept-ed method is evident even in countries withintensive efforts in this field. Since no ex-isting method seemed appropriate to achiev-ing the desired research objectives, a newmethod had to be developed. However,public statistical data would not allow test-ing of the hypothesis because major vari-ables which influence the extent of train-ing activities or success are not covered.

Development of a new method formeasuring training activities

Based on a distinction of the terms training,education, and personal development (orlearning) the term TrainingActivityDegree(TAD) is introduced, further specified byterms for education and development ac-tivity ratios, followed by technical detailsabout its measurement, its representation, asuggestion for categorisation and main ap-plications of the new ratio.

Definition and delimitationof the term training

The terms education, training, or develop-ment (in relation to learning) are sometimesused interchangeably, sometimes with dif-ferent meanings, e.g. education or trainingeach being used to include the others (e.g.Cedefop, 1998a; Go et al., 1996; Torkildsen,1992). Currently, development, or person-al development, is used as an umbrella termwhich can stand for all development process-es from the start of life (even before birth).It can be subdivided into formal develop-ment, at school or in organised train-ingcourses, and informal development, such aseveryday learning, or informal learning, forwhich the literature sometimes uses 'non-formal' development (Cedefop, 1998a and1998b, Vol. II; Bjornavold, 2001). The cur-rent research related to vocational train-ing of adults demands distinction betweendifferent development activities: education,training and informal further development.An alternative term for development is learn-ing, as used by the Australian Bureau ofStatistics (ASB, 2003), which is very similarand accents the characteristic of consciousactivity.

This delimitation of the term training and oftraining activities from other developmentactivities is necessary because it decisivelyinfluences the value of the TrainingActivi-tyDegree ratio. In addition to the delimita-tion of the term training, the mode of cal-culation, the observation period of trainingactivities, and the selection of activities (e.g.training regarding specific contexts suchas profession, organisation, industry) are im-portant influencing factors on the ascer-tainable value of the TAD.

It is important to note that terms such as'training', 'further training', 'continuing edu-cation', 'continuing training' or 'continuinglearning' are used synonymously in this pa-per.

Education is a formal development activity,covering the general and vocational basiceducation of children and adolescents atschool. It serves the primary systematic ac-quisition of job qualifications (expert skills,knowledge, experience), perhaps with a for-mal degree. Mostly it is strongly organisedand takes place at technical colleges, basicvocational schools and universities. Normally,


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education is the main occupation of a per-son, with reduced or no employment dur-ing this period. A further delimiting charac-teristic of education as opposed to trainingis that education takes place to the extent ofhalf a day or all day for a period of at leastfive more or less consecutive months. If, how-ever, educational activities take place along-side employment (e.g. three hours once ortwice per week) and there is no formal grad-uation, then, even if this activity lasts sev-eral years, it is called further training ratherthan basic vocational education. An Italiancourse with sessions of two hours per weekover a longer period (perhaps some years)is a typical example of such a case.

Further training is a formal development ac-tivity like education and, as a rule, is mark-ed by the following main characteristics:more or less systematically and formally or-ganised, led by an instructor, short to medi-um duration, undertaken alongside somegainful occupation or in periods of unem-ployment. It can take place at training in-stitutions as well as in enterprises or evenby way of an educational trip. Usually it fol-lows basic education, but not necessarily,because training can also be used for thecreation of (narrowly defined) basic abili-ties of unskilled employees to perform aspecific task. In summary, further trainingin the German language area serves to con-solidate, expand, and renew basic knowl-edge, to retrain for new qualifications,and to develop new specific skills for nar-rowly defined work areas.

Further informal development takes placewithout an instructor, away from schools orcourse facilities and without any systematic(formal) organisation. Instead, it arises outof everyday work or everyday life, eitherquite unconsciously or in a more purpose-ful way (e.g. private study with literature)and therefore is often a by-product of workand leisure activities. Informal developmentactivities include using the media, self-studymaterial, learning on the job along with pos-sible instructions from colleagues or su-pervisors, visiting fairs, attending confer-ences, travelling 'with one's eyes open', oralso a change of enterprises and jobs. It canalso occur in a more targeted scheme as self-study which, however, clearly differs fromexternally organised self-study as basic ed-ucation or further training such as corre-spondence courses.

This delimitation is necessary and helpful,but if one considers the potential diversityof development activities it is impossible todraw a clear boundary between formal andinformal further development activities ineach individual case; the transitions are flu-id and the classification must thus sometimesbe decided. A trend can be observed, mov-ing away from education and towards train-ing on the firm's premises and towards in-tegrated learning at the work place. There-fore, in the future, academia, further train-ing institutions, etc., will probably have toconsider an increasing mixture of education,further training, and informal developmentactivities that will often take place at work.Also, distance learning and systematic (com-puter-supported) self-tuition are expectedto increase and must therefore be more care-fully noted as factors influencing qualifica-tion development. These developments sig-nificantly cloud the boundary between fur-ther training and informal developmentactivities. The characteristics 'organised' and'guidance by an instructor', however, offeran unambiguous delimitation in most cases.

Operational definition of the term ‘TrainingActivityDegree’

The TrainingActivityDegree is defined as thetotal of further training activities during alimited period (e.g. five years). For exam-ple, where the activity unit is measured indays and the duration unit is measured inyears, the TAD is the ratio of 'average train-ing days per year' (Langer, 2000-01), calcu-lated as: activity units (days) divided by du-ration units (years). As one can see, the for-mula can be used for a variety of time vari-able combinations for both activity unit(hours, days) and duration unit (months,years).

For the first-time use of TAD data, present-ed below, the activity unit is the day. As lim-ited and uncertain memory is a significantobstacle to the collection of data over longerperiods such as years, the aim was to avoidfalse expression of exactness by using dayunits instead of hour units. In gathering thedata, half days and whole days were estab-lished as the calculation units (0.5 day; 1.0day; 1.5 days; etc.), where half-day units are4 hours (with a span from 1 to 5 hours) andday units are 8 hours (span of 6 to 10 hours,


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if completed on 1 day). It should be notedthat the empirical observations mostly oc-cur around four hours and seven to eighthours (see in detail Langer, 2000-2001). If atraining unit is originally specified in hours,e.g. 120 hours, then the factor '8' is used forcomputing the day units, in this case 15 days.The factor '8' would also be used for a trans-formation of TAD values between day andhour units.

The observation period, represented by theduration unit, can vary. In the current re-search, which examines the further trainingof workers in the accommodation trade inGermany and Austria, the observation peri-od was determined to start at the age of 18,or at the completion of vocational educa-tion if later than the age of 18. For the pe-riod of observation, several variables wereselected, including the 'total relevant peri-od' (trp). In practice, the total relevant pe-riod can extend to 50 years, covering thefull potential period for training in worklife.

Decisions on the observation period mustbe preceded by an analysis of the disad-vantages and advantages of each. A one-year period demands relatively high preci-sion in interviewee statements; however, itis very short and only can be applied in sit-uations with a general high level of train-ing in an organisation or industry; evenin such cases, the probability of a bias bymistake could be high. For the accommo-dation trade, which in general shows a lowlevel of training participation and often in-terruptions of many years (perhaps becausethere is no actual necessity for training), re-search periods of 5 or 10 years, or even thetotal relevant period, must be preferred, al-though relatively inexact data on the fre-quency and the duration of individual train-ing activities have to be expected. Fur-thermore the question arises as to what rel-evance training activities which occurred,for example, 15 years ago could have in amodel using TAD as a dependent variablefor determining current training behaviour.In such a model, age would also play animportant role as an explanatory factor.

The selection of eligible training activitiesfor the measurement of the TAD mostly de-pends on the objective of the research orthe statistics. For example, participation inobligatory courses may be excluded if theobject of the research is the TAD in relationto attitudes and situational factors of indi-

viduals. In contrast, obligatory courses areto be included if the object of research isthe effect of training on income in relationto the TAD or a correlation between the TADand career (Riley and Ladkin, 1994). A fur-ther selection criterion is the topical subjectof training measures, which can be limitede.g. to the current occupation, to the or-ganisation of employment, to the industry,or to any training measures during the totalrelevant observation period.

Computation of theTrainingActivityDegree

The computation of TAD can be de-monstrated from its first application.

The following concrete questions for assess-ing the TrainingActivityDegree were part ofan extensive questionnaire, preceded by adefinition of 'further training' including a de-limitation regarding basic education and in-formal development activities. On this ba-sis, 'personal further training activities un-dertaken hitherto', i.e. those activities sincefinishing basic education up to the date ofthe interview, were to be stated in a table.

The statements about training activitieswere collected through extensive question-ing, allowing sufficient time for the inter-view. Occupation-specific training activitiesfor the current occupation and further train-ing activities for former or future occupa-tions outside the accommodation and restau-rant trade were considered. The followingquestions do not only yield important in-formation on the partial aspects of trainingactivities but also served as an aid to mem-ory for the interviewees during the data col-lection process:

(a) training activities: topic and organisationof training measures (e.g. individualschooling on the job, course in a group);

(b) provider and place of training (name ofthe provider, schooling rooms, hotel,etc.);

(c) reason for training (obligatory for occu-pation, need of a certificate, interest, etc.);

(d) dates of training activities (if possible:day/month/year) and duration of eachmeasure (hours, days, weeks, months);


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(e) other time aspects (week days, time ofday);

(f) rough cost-benefit evaluation of indi-vidual training activities and of the stim-ulus to future course attendance.

The average training day units per yearare calculated with the statement on timeaspects (d) together with the number of rel-evant years. The calculation can be illus-trated by the following example of a maxi-mum five-year reference period from 1998to 2002 with specific training measures of acook as interviewee (survey conducted inJanuary 2003).

The result is a total of nine training days at-tended in five years, giving a TAD of 1.8.Minor adjustments such as the charging ofseven-hour days or of 8.5 hour days as stan-dardised eight-hour days are accepted.

Categorization,representation andapplications of theTrainingActivityDegree

TAD data are interval scaled and, as such,are well suited to use in statistical analysis.However, for presentations in tables or fig-

ures a categorisation by individual featuresgrouped in ordinal scales is necessary. Thefirst step towards forming categories is ascreening of data distribution; rough indi-cations were provided by trials in varioussectors and by pilot interviews. This distri-bution yielded large differences, e.g. be-tween the financial sector and the accom-modation trade. Further, the TAD data in thelatter show a broad spectrum of observa-tions starting with a focus in the range be-tween 0 to 3.5 and decreasing frequenciesto values around 10 and above; in individ-ual cases values between 30 and even 40average training days per year were docu-mented (Langer and Naschberger, 1999-2001;Langer and Naschberger, 1999-2002).

The relatively few training activities in theaccommodation trade required narrow stagesin the low-activity categories and increas-ingly wider stages in correlation with thedecreasing frequency. This staging is alsobased on the assumption (Langer, 2000-01)that if the distribution of TAD data is focus-ed on zero or very low, finer gradations canbe explained by certain configurations ofinfluence factors, whereas, for an increas-ingly higher TAD, the width of the appro-priate TAD category can be attributed lessto configurations of general exogenousinfluence factors than to coincidental indi-vidual factors.

The number of categories will depend onvarious factors such as the sample size,the distribution of specific TAD data, the re-search objectives, and an acceptable size forthe data presentation. As a general model,a 10-step category system has been devel-oped (Langer, 2000-01). As was the case inthe current project, if a large number of lowTAD values and very few high values occur,it is necessary to reduce the spectrum of cat-egories, e.g. by summing up the highest cat-egory. In the current example, seven cate-gories were defined with a range from cat-egory 1, TAD is zero (inactive person) = 0days/year up to category 7, TAD is fairly highto extremely high = 10.0 or more days/year.This seven-step category system has beenemployed for the presentation of data in fig-ure 1 and further a four-step system is demon-strated in table 1 (both see below).

Since the TAD is a ratio with a potentialfor manifold specifications, it is necessary touse acronyms and abbreviations for an effi-cient presentation, e.g. for the specification


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Result regarding the gathering of time aspects withitem (d):

sum per activityyears activities and duration of activities (days, hours per day) in day units

1998 a five-day course about ‘health food’, each day approx. 8 hours 5.0

1999 a half-day (4 hours) instruction on the job about ‘industrial hygiene’ 0.5

2000 no activity 0

2001 a one-day course about ‘Viennese sweets’ (7 hours) 1.0

a three-day course about ‘human resources management’, 2.5with two days approx. 8.5 hours and one day 4 hours

2002 no activity 0

sum of years: 5 sum of training days: 9.0computation: 9.0 training days: 5 years = 1.8 training days per year (TAD = 1.8)

of the observation period (5 or 10 years, to-tal relevant period = trp):

version 1: TAD5 TAD10 TADtrp

version 2: TAD-5 TAD-10 TAD-trp

Further specifications according to individ-ual theoretical and empirical goals can be:

❑ individual person (ind) or organisationsuch as enterprise or other (org);

❑ sector such as industry, branch, tradeetc. together with specification (e.g. financesector = fin, pub = public sector, tou = tourismsector);

❑ country specification (international ab-breviations), e.g.: UK, US, D, A;

Practical examples of combined specifica-tions are:

- TAD10, org, US or TAD-10/org/US

- TAD3, ind, fin, uk or TAD-3/ind/fin/UK

At the present state of research (Langer, 2000-1) three main applications of the Train-ingActivityDegree ratio can be described:

❑ statistical recording of training activi-ties to allow comparative analysis, e.g. be-tween countries; explanatory or dependentvariable in explanatory models (Langer andNaschberger, 1999-1; Bernini et al., 1999;Langer, 2000-1; Langer et al., 2001); otherstatistical applications;

❑ evaluation of the success of traininginvestments on the meso- or macro-level ofindustries and countries;

❑ evaluation of individuals (or of groups)in the recruiting process, with regard to per-formance in the workplace or to success oftraining investments at micro-level (humanresources management of organisations).

Examples for the application of the TADin statistics, in comparisons, and fortesting hypotheses are shown below.

Empirical Method

The data in this study were gathered in thecontext of a larger transnational survey andanalysis project regarding the Austrian and

Bavarian Alpine tourism industry, focusedon the extent of training activities and on ex-plaining variations of training activities.

Setting and sample

The empirical research process included 4consecutive steps (see details in Langer andNaschberger, 1999-2001; Langer, 2000-01):expert interviews (approximately 5 per coun-try), pilot interviews with entrepreneurs andemployees (approximately 25 per country),an exploratory small sample (approximate-ly 100 interviewees per country) and a finallarge sample (approximately 430 intervie-wees per country).

The results of this first use of the Train-ingActivityDegree come from an explorato-ry quota sample. This accepted approachwas sufficient for gaining a first solid insight,without claiming representative statistical re-sults. A random sample is possible in theentrepreneur segment but the employee seg-ment is affected by lack of data due to theEuropean law on privacy. Even the quotamethod meets limitations when applied tothe accommodation trade (for statistics prob-lems in tourism see also Latham, 1989), be-cause population data are restricted due toinadequate statistical records. The necessarypopulation quotas have to be roughly cal-culated on the basis of several data sources.Statistical problems also arise through sea-sonal fluctuations, which are typical for thisbranch, and also over the qualifying date(taking the day of data collection in highseason or outside the season causes a sig-nificant difference in employees counted).

Participants in the quota sample were 217workers in small accommodation enterprises(Bed and Breakfast, inn, hotel) in summer1998, with 103 interviewees in Austria (42employees, 41 employers, 20 micro-entre-preneurs) and 114 in Bavaria (37 employ-ees, 53 employers, 24 micro-entrepreneurs).The employees work for the employers inthe sample (mostly pairs of one employerand one employee). These employers areowner-managers or entrepreneurs (or, ina few cases, dependent managers) with be-tween 2 and 49 full-time employees. Micro-entrepreneurs are owner-managers with nomore than one employee. These segmentsare treated as 3 samples, each fitting thepopulation data concerning age and gen-der; altogether approximately 60% are fe-male). These three samples are represent-


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ed together in the total sample category insome instances. In the case of the respec-tive quotas for individual segments theycould represent the 'working people of theaccommodation trade'. However, this is nota valid assumption since the ratio of popu-lation data to quota data is very different ineach of the three occupational segments,e.g. there are considerably more employ-ees than employers in reality but not in thesample. In general, the significance of theresults is limited to the interviewees includ-ed in the sample (Langer and Naschberger,1999-2001).

Field research

The data collection was conducted throughface-to-face interviews with a questionnaireconducted by highly qualified interviewers.This assisted the low refusal rate, first be-cause those surveyed in the tourism indus-try prefer a comprehensive personal inter-view rather than completing a questionnaireon their own and, second, it enabled clari-fying questions, thereby ensuring high qual-ity responses. The sampling and collectingprocess was subjected to an external au-tonomous quality control, which confirmedthe high quality (Langer and Naschberger,1999-2001).

Statistical analysis

A further methodological aspect is the sta-tistical analysis of the quota sample re-sults, which followed the principle of ex-ploratory data analysis (EDA). The interval-scaled TrainingActivityDegree data are notdistributed normally but follow an F distri-bution. For this reason only non-parametricmethods can be employed in the researchon differences and correlations.

Results

The survey of the data was a main objectiveof the underlying project since only vaguedata existed up to this point. It should bementioned that previous sources, includingofficial statistics and results of various stud-ies (Boer et al., 1997; European Commis-sion, 1997; Langer, 1988a; Schmidt, 1996;Zeidler, 1990) indicated a low level of fur-ther training activities among employers and


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64

50

40

30

20

10

0

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

no activity 0,6 thru 1,5 3,0 thru 5,9 10,0 thru 40,0

0,1 thru 0,5 1,6 thru 2,9 6,0 thru 9,9


0,1 thru 0,5 1,6 thru 2,9 6,0 thru 9,9

empl. status

employee

employer

micro-entrepreneur

empl. status

employee

employer

micro-entrepreneur

COUNTRY 1: Austria

COUNTRY 2: Germany

Figure 1: TrainingActivityDegree (TADtrp) of threeemployment segments in the accommodation tradein Austria and Germany

60

50

40

30

20

10

0


0,1 thru 0,5 1,6 thru 2,9 6,0 thru 9,9

empl. status

employee

employer

micro-entrepreneur

COUNTRY 2: Germany

TrainingActivityDegree (total relevant period)Sample: 214 cases, no missing case; percentage (%) of valid cases; TAD in averagedays per year;Note: instead of dots we use commas as a separator betwen whole number and frac-tion.Source: Langer and Naschberger, 1999-1 and 1999-2 (Leonardo project "Training re-quirements in tourism", exploratory survey 1998)

employees of small tourism enterprises ingeneral.

The data are partly presented by diagramand cross-tabulation and they test differencesof feature characteristics for the attributes'country', 'employment status', 'age' and 'gen-der'.

Comparisons of three employment seg-ments in two countries

Diagrams, a table, and statistical test meth-ods are used for the comparison of TAD re-sults of the employment segments.

Figure 1 (see below) demonstrates clear dif-ferences in the TAD according to employ-ment status. Similar pictures are found inboth countries, with employees and mi-cro-entrepreneurs featuring a high percent-age of 'no activity'; in Germany this is over50%. The employer segment shows a no-ticeably lower figure for 'no activity'. Inthe majority of cases, they prove the mostactive segment.

The following tests of these TAD results inthe three employment segments, within theparticular country and between the countries,confirm the visual analysis in figure 1, be-cause they show highly significant differences.

If the two-tailed significance level is 0.05 orhigher, then there is not quite enough evi-dence to reject the null hypothesis thatthe observations are independent. This maybe the case for the comparisons (2) of eachof the employment segments between thecountries. Although the test of the total sam-ple (1) in the two countries yields a sig-nificantly higher TAD in Austria, the null hy-pothesis can almost be rejected on the su-perior 0.01 level, supposedly caused by theincreased sample size. The tests withinthe countries (3) yield highly significant re-sults for independent observations in thesegment 'employer' in relation to 'employ-ee' in both countries. This counts as wellfor the pair 'employer' versus 'micro-en-trepreneur' in Germany, while the testsfor the other pairs do not allow rejection ofthe null hypothesis.

Employment segments (grouped bycountry), tested by gender

Differences of training activities by genderare often reported, so a general working hy-

pothesis could argue that female workersparticipate less in training than male work-ers. However, in the accommodation tradethe gender-related working hypothesis wouldbe identical with the test hypothesis thatsays there is no difference. (Database, testhypothesis, and test method see above.)Table 1 demonstrates exploratory results forthe Austrian and German accommodationtrade.

The comparison of column rows for femaleand male groups in table 1 shows slightdifferences for the individual employmentsegments (and the row total); this picture isconfirmed by the tests.


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Database: Exploratory survey in 1998 (description see above) in the accommodation trade withsamples of three employment segments in two countries (A = Austria, G = Germany);altogether six samples which can be pooled to a total sample. Most of the interviewees(approximately 75% overall) have finished school education, e.g., referring to theAustrian educational system, the combination of primary school or lower secondaryschool and vocational education up to three years. Some (approximately 10%, mainlywomen) have completed the primary education level only, or they have finished a sec-ondary and, in a few cases, even tertiary education. It should be observed that the in-terviewees are mostly a demographic group with "standard education" and with a moreor less reluctant activity behavior in regard to formal education, learning, and devel-opment.

Data:ratio scaled data of the variable TADtrp (note: figure 1 presents these data ordinal-scaled); F distribution;

Test hypothesis:null hypothesis - the population means are the same of each of the independent groupstested in pair;

Test method:non-parametric test of median difference, Mann-Whitney, Asymptotic Signific. (2-tailed);

Abbreviations:A = Austria, G = Germany; p = significance level;

Test results:

(1) total sample (A) * total sample (G) p = 0.014

(2) employee (A) * employee (G) p = 0.312

employer (A) * employer (G) p = 0.051

micro-entrepr. (A) * micro-e (G) p = 0.116

(3) employee * employer p = 0.003 (A) p = 0.007 (G)

employee * micro-entrepreneur p = 0.397 (A) p = 0.815 (G)

employer * micro-entrepreneur p = 0.243 (A) p = 0.005 (G)

The test of the total sample (217 intervie-wees), grouped by gender, shows a slighthigher TAD of male interviewees (meanranks: f = 106, m = 114); however, the dif-ference is not significant (p = 0.328) and thenull hypothesis therefore cannot be reject-ed. The picture of results repeats for testsof the individually paired gender segments.

Discussion

This paper has focused on describing thedevelopment of a universally applicablemethod for the measurement of further train-ing activities and an example of using thismethod in statistics and statistical analysis.The description starts with a definition of


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66

TAD trp-c4

no activity in therelevant period

very low thru low:0,1 thru 0,9

low thru moderate:1,0 thru 2,0

middle trhu veryhigh: 3,0 thru 200

cases% of employment

status


status


status


status


status

1352,0%

624,0%

312,0%

312,0%

25100,0%

917,6%

1019,6%

1121,6%

2141,2%

51100,0%

642,9%

428,6%

428,6%

14100,0%

2831,1%

2022,2%

1415,6%

2831,1%

90100,0%

female TAD trp-c4

no activity in therelevant period

very low thru low:0,1 thru 0,9

low thru moderate:1,0 thru 2,0

middle thru veryhigh: 3,0 thru 200


status


status


status


status


status

2547,2%

1018,9%

815,1%

1015,1%

53100,0%

818,2%

1636,4%

613,6%

1431,8%

44100,0%

1550,0%

413,3%

26,7%

930,0%

30100,0%

4837,8%

3023,6%

1612,6%

3326,0%

127100,0%

gender

column cass sum

column percentage sum

employment status

employee employermicro-

entrepreneur row total

male

Table 1: TrainingActivityDegree (TADtrp) in the accommodation trade in Austria andGermany, cross tabulated by ‘employment status’ and partitioned by gender

Source: Langer and Naschberger, 1999-1 and 1999-2 (Leonardo project "Training requirements in tourism", exploratory survey 1998)

terms in the field of training and develop-ment, which in future ought to be extend-ed towards a multilingual approach, e.g. byextending current standards of Cedefop pub-lications. A clear distinction between basiceducation, further training (continuing edu-cation) and informal development would bea substantial advance for international com-parative research and statistics as well, sinceuse of non-comparable data is detrimental.Even simple statistical comparisons are af-fected substantially by different defini-tions. Because of the potential for substan-tial variances, hypotheses and explanatorymodels must not be formulated and testedwithout a clear definition of the depend-ent variable 'training' or other output meas-ures; otherwise the result could be sub-stantially different and be neither external-ly valid nor reliable.For analytical models of behaviour relatedto formal training, on the one hand, and in-formal development, on the other, the dis-tinction between these types of develop-ment is particularly important because bothare fundamentally different and could havediffering relevance for the various workersegments. For example, the hypothesiscan be formulated that people with little ba-sic education have a disposition towards in-formal development processes like learningby practical actions (at the work place), ex-perience in several organisations, or learn-ing by brief instructions. In contrast, formaldevelopment measures often are avoidedbecause they are equated with sitting atschool, listening to a teacher, experiencingdiscomfort and undertaking exhaustingexaminations. Some learning types do notfunction well in school-type learning, whichis why the current trend towards combina-tions of formal and practical (informal) learn-ing processes should meet their requirementsbetter. These reflections on the advantagesof informal and the disadvantages of formallearning situations reinforce the need to dis-tinguish between the strengths and weak-nesses of formal training. A conscious deci-sion to undertake training, normally includingspecific expenditure and time costs, differsfundamentally from informal development,though formal training normally allows a rel-atively rapid and targeted acquisition of qual-ifications. However, despite the fact that thedifficulties of distinguishing between formaland informal development will increase inthe future due to the trend to combine thetwo, the distinction between purely infor-mal development, undertaken by everyone,

and formal training should be respected inresearch.

In addition to the definition problem regard-ing the term 'training', other potential prob-lems which can distort activity data measuredby the TAD must be addressed; one such po-tential problem is inadequate definition inquestionnaires leading to incorrect statementsby interviewees. Confusion of the length ofthe observation period can cause intervie-wees erroneously to assign further trainingactivities to the selected observation period,e.g. including training activities from the year1994 even though the observation period isfrom 1996 to 2001. Interviewees may also for-get to report individual training measuresas a whole or report a wrong number of train-ing days. Measuring the TAD in rough dayunits instead of hour units can distort the re-sult as can inadequate categorisation or sta-tistical treatment of TAD data (in detail seeLanger, 2000-01; Langer, 2003b). Yet similarpotential errors can arise with the use of oth-er output measures, which normally have ad-ditional significant problems. That is why theTAD is presented as a new option for bridg-ing the knowledge gap, complete with sug-gestions for its definition, varying observa-tion periods, categorisation, representation,and application examples. The TAD is apotential inclusion in efforts towards a newcommonly accepted method for measuringtraining activities universally.

The examples of the TAD being used in sta-tistics and testing hypotheses have demon-strated its practical benefit for scientific workas well as for administrative and politicalpurposes.

Regarding the original research objective,the determination of the extent of training


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67

Test results:segments of the total sample:- 2 countries: A = Austria, G = Germany;- 3 employment segments: employee, employer, micro-entrepreneur; - 2 gender segments: f = female, m = male;

(1) female total * male total p = 0.328

(2) employee (f) * employee (m) p1) = 0.640 (A); p1) = 0.555 (G)employer (f) * employer (m) p = 0.236 (A); p = 0.964 (G)micro-entrepr. (f) * micro-e. (m) p1) = 0.437 (A); p1) = 0.259 (G)

p1) In these cases the SPSS programme due to low frequency of segments automati-cally tests with the Exact-test;

activities in the Austrian accommodationtrade, the TAD measurement is significant-ly higher than has been supposed in anec-dotal situation reports and conjectures in re-cent years. The exploratory results of thecurrent investigation contradict such per-ceptions, even if there are few intervieweeswho participate continually in further train-ing and thus exhibit a higher TAD, e.g. anaverage of 10 or more training days per year.In any case, a great number of workers intourism have taken part in further trainingat least occasionally and this result is defi-nitely new. Nevertheless, it should be ad-mitted that the average TAD should be rel-atively low in comparison to many other in-dustries. Unfortunately, comparative TADdata do not exist at this point.

It must be pointed out that the TAD, as itis defined here, measures the quantity oftraining activities and nothing else. Qualityaspects such as the training offer, the learn-ing effect during training periods, and theimplementation of new knowledge, remainuntouched. These factors are of substantialrelevance if the effect of training activities,e.g. on the income of employees or of theperformance of organisations, is analysed.These aspects are even of relevance with re-gard to the long-range development of an

individual TAD, because bad or futile train-ing experience can cause a negative attitude,or at least absence from training activity(Bates, 2001). As such a tool, in terms of acombined ratio of quality and quantity fac-tors is important, future research could de-velop a new method.

Finally it should be emphasised that the TADdata presented here are rough first-timeresults of a newly developed instrument forassessing and presenting training activities.In the future, data quality could be raisedby a refinement of the whole survey process,including increased time inputs. Limits oncosts or access to exact data will often pre-vent this, at least for a complete sample. Asa tolerable solution to obtaining sufficientinformation about data quality, a small con-trol sample could be obtained through veryexact collection of training data. This would,among other things, require spending muchtime on the survey and using serious sourcessuch as organisation data, information fromtraining providers, accounting documents,certificates or confirmations of participationin courses. The recording of training par-ticipation, for which the Record of Achieve-ments in the UK is a good example, mayalso contribute.


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Schmiemann, M. Enterprises in Europe - doessize matter? Eurostat, Statistics in focus, Theme 4- 39/2002. Luxemburg: European Communities,2002. Im Internet verfügbar: http://europa.eu.int/comm/eurostat/Public/datashop/print-cata-logue/EN?catalogue=Eurostat&product=KS-NP-02-039-__-N-EN [manuscript completed on: 03. 10.2002].

Smeral, E. Tourismus 2005. Wien: Wirtschaftsver-lag Ueberreuter, 1994.

Betriebliche Weiterbildung 1999 / Statistik Aus-tria. Wien: Statistik Austria, 2003.

Torkildsen, G. Leisure and recreation manage-ment. 3. Ed. London: Spon, 1992.

Gender-Sensitive Education Statistics and Indi-cators: A Practical Guide / Unesco - United Na-tions Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organi-zation. Paris: Unesco, 1997.

Weber, W. Betriebliche Fortbildung: EmpirischeAnalyse betrieblicher und individueller Entschei-dungen über Fortbildung. Stuttgart: Carl ErnstPoeschel Verlag, 1985.

Global Tourist Forecasts to the year 2000 andBeyond / WTO - World Tourism Organisation. Vol.5. Madrid: WTO, 1994.

Zeidler, S. Teilnahme an beruflicher Fortbildung.Statistische Nachrichten, 1990, 45(11), S. 788-792.


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The author wishes to acknowledge the Leonardoda Vinci-Programme of the European Commis-sion, the Austrian National Ministries for Com-merce and for Science in Vienna, the Governmentof the Federal Province of Tyrol, the Labor Cham-ber of Tyrol and the Chamber of Commerce ofTyrol, all situated in Innsbruck, Austria. These in-stitutions enabled the research through their fi-nancial support of an analysis and survey project.

For productive co-operation and important con-tributions within the Leonardo-project, which isbasis of the results on hand, the author wishes tothank to Ms Christine Naschberger, Assistant Pro-fessor in Human Resource Management and Or-

ganisational Behavior at "Audencia Nantes. Schoolof Management", France, previously project as-sistant at the Munich University of Technology,to Professor Dieter Witt, Department of ServiceEconomics, and, to Professor Joachim Ziche,Department of Rural Sociology, both at the Mu-nich University of Technology in Freising-Wei-henstephan, Germany. Thanks also to Mr AndreaGuizzardi and Ms Cristina Bernini at the Univer-sity of Bologna, Italy, for conducting the qualitycontrol of the empirical observations as well asfor their valuable contribution to discussions inthe context of the project partnership about themethodology of conducting interviews.

Acknowledgments


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Information, comparativestudies

Lifelong learning: potential and con-straints with specific reference to poli-cies in the United Kingdom and Europe/ Paul Ryan.International Labour Office - ILO, In-Fo-cus Programme on Skills, Knowledgeand EmployabilityGeneva: ILO, 2003, 33 p.(Skills working paper, 15)ISBN 92-2-113658-2; ISSN 1609-8412

In this paper Paul Ryan takes a critical lookat lifelong learning policies as they haveevolved in recent years, particularly in Bri-tain and elsewhere in Europe: goals and con-tent; attributes of lifelong learning; tradeunions and partnership.

Labour market and social policies in theBaltic countries.Organisation for Economic Cooperationand Development - OECDParis: OECD, 2003, 181 p.ISBN 9264100067

The Baltic States - Estonia, Latvia and Lithua-nia - have made impressive progress sincethe early 1990s. They have now almost com-pleted their preparations for accession to theEU. Most elements of labour-market and so-cial policy have been thoroughly reformedover the past decade. However, several dif-ficult policy questions need to be addressedin response to changing economic condi-tions. This OECD Policy Review analyses thekey issues facing each country given its spe-cific economic and social trends. It drawsboth positive and negative policy lessonsfrom OECD experience. It also identifiesBaltic policy initiatives, such as pensionreforms, which are more advanced than thoseadopted in most OECD countries. Fac-inghigh unemployment, modest incomes andmore unequal income distributions thanmany European countries, Baltic policy mak-ers have limited room for manoeuvre. In em-ployment policy, a paramount goal must beto improve the institutional framework forinnovation and job creation. Social spend-ing needs to be contained because taxes andsocial insurance contributions are relativelyhigh, placing a heavy burden on employ-

ment. This report provides detailed infor-mation and policy recommendations in fivetopical areas: labour law; 'active' and 'pas-sive' labour market policies; pension reform;long-term care of the elderly; and social as-sistance benefits as a last resort.

Entrepreneurship and local economicdevelopment: programme and policyrecommendations.Organisation for Economic Cooperationand Development - OECDParis: OECD, 2003, 240 p.ISBN 9264199780 (en)

The scope, number and growth of pro-grammes supporting entrepreneurship andmicroenterprise across OECD member coun-tries is striking. Much of the policy inter-est in encouraging entrepreneurship re-flects a belief that the creation of new firmswill help achieve important economic andsocial objectives. Increasing rates of en-terprise creation is an almost universal con-cern for local authorities and for centralgovernments wishing to combat localisedeconomic distress. However, despite theextent of policy interest, few studies havesystematically examined the relationshipbetween the birth of new firms and localeconomic development. This publicationexamines the principal routes through whichenterprise creation and development canimpact on local economies. Empirical ev-idence on the relationship between entre-preneurship and local economies is re-viewed. It is shown that while entrepre-neurship is a critical component of localeconomic development, the promotion ofentrepreneurship does not constitute a de-velopmental panacea. A number of po-tential limits to entrepreneurship-orientedstrategies - and how these limits mightbe countered - are considered at length.This book sets out detailed policy recom-mendations for both national and local lev-els of government. These recommenda-tions cover three thematic areas: strategy,finance and programme design. It is hopedthat these guidelines will assist local andcentral governments in designing and im-plementing cost-effective entrepreneurshipstrategies and programmes. This publica-tion also describes the types of researchthat should be undertaken in order to

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Reading

Europe International

improve understanding of the key policyissues.

European Union: policies,programmes, participants

Common Position (EC) No 48/2003 on16 June 2003 adopted by the Council,acting in accordance with the procedurereferred to in Article 251 of the Treatyestablishing the European Community,with a view to adopting a multiannualprogramme (2004 to 2006) for the ef-fective integration of information andcommunication technologies (ICT) ineducation and training systems in Europe(eLearning Programme)European Parliament and the Council ofthe European Union.Official Journal of the European Union C233 E3, 30.9.2003, pp. 24-34 (2003)Luxembourg: EUR-OP, 2003

This is the common position for the Deci-sion establishing the eLearning Programme,which is a multi-annual programme forthe improvement of the quality and acces-sibility of European education and trainingsystems through the effective use of infor-mation and communication technologies(ICT) from 2004 to 2006.URL: http://libserver.cedefop.eu.int/vetelib/eu/leg/copo/2003_0048_en.pdf

Council Resolution of 6 February 2003 onSocial Inclusion - through social dialogueCouncil of the European UnionOfficial Journal of the European Union C 39,18.02.2003, pp.1-2 (2003)Luxembourg: EUR-OP, 2003

Returning back to the problem of socialinclusion, the Council adopted a resolutionin which it invites the Commission: 1) tocontinue to promote social dialogue andpartnership in the context of an enlargedUnion as a means of promoting social in-clusion at national, regional and local lev-els; particular emphasis should be placedon prevention, including keeping people injobs, and remedial measures; 2) to ensurethat particular attention is paid to the full in-tegration of social inclusion in the economicand social strategy of the Union; 3) to con-tinue to collect and analyse national, regionaland local examples of social inclusion throughsocial dialogue and partnership, in order tohelp disseminate examples of good prac-

tice, in terms of stake-holders, target groupsand models for collaboration.URL: http://libserver.cedefop.eu.int/vetelib/eu/leg/res/2003_c39a_en.pdf

Council Resolution on 15 July 2003 onSocial and Human Capital Building so-cial and human capital in the knowledgesociety: learning, work, social cohesionand gender Council of the European UnionOfficial Journal of the European Union C175, 24.07.2003, pp.3-6 (2003)Luxembourg: EUR-OP, 2003

With this Resolution the Council calls onMember States to consider the social andhuman capital elements in the planning,development and implementation of theirpolicies and initiatives, in particular as re-gards the following areas: learning, work,social cohesion, and gender. 'Human cap-ital' is defined as 'knowledge, skills, com-petencies and attributes embodied in indi-viduals that facilitate personal, social andeconomic well-being' and 'social capital' as'networks and participation in public lifetogether with shared norms, values, cul-ture, habits and practices, trust and under-standing that facilitate cooperation withinor among groups to pursue shared objec-tives.URL: http://libserver.cedefop.eu.int/vetelib/eu/leg/res/2003_175b_en.pdf

European eSkills summit report: Copen-hagen. 2002European Commission; eSkill summitIndustry Consortium; European Union.European PresidencyBrussels: EUR-OP, 2003. - 31 p.ISBN 92-894-5494-6

The eSkills summit is a unique opportuni-ty to learn how the e-skills challenge hasbeen and can be successfully addressedby stakeholders in both the public and theprivate sectors. These initiatives range fromindividual projects targeting specific groupsin society to high-level policy actions thathave been endorsed by EU Heads of Stateand Government. Different forms of part-nership have also been formed as a meansof bringing stakeholders together and en-suring that synergies are created and that ef-forts are not being duplicated. The purposeof this page is to capture as many of theseinitiatives as possible to award recognitionto those that are making great strives towards


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the ultimate goal of bridging the e-skills gapin Europe.

Framework of actions for the lifelongdevelopment of competences and qual-ifications: first follow-up report 2003.Union of Industrial and Employers' Con-federations of Europe - UNICEEuropean Centre of Enterprises withPublic Participation and of Enterprisesof General Economic Interest - CEEPEuropean Association of Craft and Small andMedium-sized Enterprises - UEAPMEBrussels: UNICE, 2003. - 69 p.

The first follow-up report, issued in March2003, describes how the framework of ac-tions has been included in social partner ac-tivities as regards the development of com-petences and qualifications in Member States.It also gives information on the actions tak-en at cross-industry, sectoral and companylevel, illustrated by examples of good prac-tice where appropriate.

Intercultural competence / Gerhard Ne-uner [et al.]Neuner, GerhardCouncil of Europe - COEStrasbourg: COE, 2003. - 146 p.ISBN 92-871-5169-5 (fr)ISBN 92-871-5170-9 (en)

This collection of four articles offers a rad-ical new view of intercultural competence.It places language teaching in a wider con-text, demonstrating that it has political andethical implications of the kind found through-out education. Language teaching is not justa professional skill, but a social activity ofmajor significance in the contemporary world.

Proceedings of the twentieth CEIES sem-inar labour statistics - towards enlarge-ment: Budapest, 14 and 15 November20002. European Advisory Committee on Sta-tistical Information in the Economic andSocial Spheres - CEIESLuxembourg: Office for Official Publicationsof the European Communities, 2003. - 200 p.- (Theme 1 - General statistics)ISBN 92-894-5296-XISBN 1725-1338

The seminar on 'Labour Statistics - towardsenlargement' follows a trend set in earlierseminars organised by the subcommittee onSocial Statistics to discuss in depth social is-sues that require input from varied statisti-

cal fields. Precursors are among others theseminar on Social Exclusion (London, 1999),on Education and Training Statistics and theFunctioning of the Labour Market (Thessa-loniki, 2000), on Health and Safety at Work(Dublin, 2001) and the seminar on Life-LongLearning (Parma, 2001). The aim of this sem-inar is to bring together data users and pro-ducers to discuss data availability, user needs,statistical lacunae, limitations of currentlyavailable data and their treatment in the lightof new policy needs and priorities; and con-sider what can be done to respond more ef-fectively to the changing needs and policycontext in the future. Overall, this seminarwill make a contribution to the discussionon challenges put forward on labour-mar-ket issues by enlargement to the candidatecountries and the existing member states ofthe Union and policy considerations. Theparticular objective of the seminar will beto inform participants from the EU MemberStates about the experiences of the acces-sion countries and provide the opportuni-ty to highlight any possible difficulties orproblems that may be encountered. Thisshould initiate an exchange of informationbetween producers and users of statistics,of labour market experts in the MemberStates and the applicant countries. It is in-tended if possible to identify specific labourmarket phenomena occurring in the candi-date countries. Special statistical issues, suchas how to measure and present the informallabour market, the gender gap, sectoral andeducational differences, and different levelsof labour costs would be of particular in-terest. Another principal theme of the sem-inar will be the predicted labour migrationand projections after enlargement.

Recognition issues in the Bologna Pro-cessBergan, SjurCouncil of Europe - COEStrasbourg: COE, 2003. - 292 p.ISBN 92-871-5150-4

The Bologna Process, aiming to establish aEuropean Higher Education Area by 2010,is the most important higher education re-form process in Europe since the immedi-ate aftermath of 1968. Making it easier forstudents and holders of higher educationqualifications to move around Europe is oneof the key goals of this process, and facili-tating the recognition of qualifications is oneof the preconditions for this goal to be re-alised. This book sets out to take stock of


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the recognition of qualifications in Europe,and to highlight policies that will help makethe European Higher Education Area a re-ality. The authors are recognition specialistsand higher education policy-makers fromseveral countries in Europe and worldwide.

Second annual report on the imple-mentation of innovative measures un-der Article 6 of the European Social Fundregulation during 2001 / presented tothe ESF Committee on 17 December 2002.Brussels: European Commission- Directorate-General Employment and Social Affairs, 2003.- 31 p.

These measures were directed at a widerange of organisations working in or aroundthe labour market. Project promoters includesocial partner organisations operating at re-gional, national and European level, voca-tional training institutions and universities,independent research institutes and foun-dations as well as private companies, de-velopment agencies and NGOs. All projectsare based on a partnership approach withsocial partner organisation. Projects were re-quired to be transnational in scope, i.e. di-rected at staff of enterprises in two or moreMember States. Transnational activities in-clude actions aimed at the exchange ofexperience, expertise and good practice, thetransfer and adaptation of methods and tools,and the joint development of new approachesand pilot projects in response to demands

and needs in different Member States. Theprojects address one or more of five themes,under the general heading of 'Adaptation tothe new economy within the frameworkof social dialogue', namely: 1. Anticipationof economic and social change; 2. Use ofInformation Society tools in the frameworkof social dialogue; 3. New approaches toCorporate Social Responsibility; 4. Moderni-sation of work organisation; 5. Promotionof lifelong learning.URL: http://libserver.cedefop.eu.int/vetelib/eu/pub/commission/dgesa/2003_0004_en.pdf

Trade union memorandum to the Ital-ian Presidency of the European UnionJuly- December 2003European Trade Union Confederation -ETUCBrussels: ETUC, 2003. - 11 p.

In its memorandum to the Italian Presi-dency, the ETUC proposes policies tostrengthen the European social dimension.According to John Monks, ETUC GeneralSecretary, 'The Intergovernmental Confer-ence must ensure a democratic, modernand social Constitutional Treaty for Europe.The Union must launch an emergency pack-age of measures, consistent with the Lis-bon goals, to address the immediate prob-lems facing Europe and pursue the com-mitment to more and better jobs basedon economic, employment and social co-hesion policies'.

AT Erwachsenenbildung im Wan-del: theoretische Aspekte und

Praxiserfahrungen zu Individualisierungund Selbststeuerung.[Adult training undergoing changes: the-oretical aspects and practical experi-ences related to individualisation andself-guidance.]Gary, Christian; Schlögl, PeterÖsterreichisches Institut für Berufsbil-dungsforschung - ÖIBFVienna: Österreichisches Institut für Berufs-bildungsforschung, 2003, 288 p.ISBN 3-901966-05-6

Österreichisches Institut für Berufsbildungs-forschung, Wipplinger Straße 35/4, 1010Wien, Tel. (43-1) 3103334, Fax (43-1) 3197772,

E-mail: [email protected], URL: www.oeibf.atIn the current discussions on educationalpolicy as well as in education practice, 'in-dividualisation' and 'flexibilisation' are wide-ly used terms. Expectations in relation tothe concepts of self-directed, self-guidedand self-responsible learning are high: theaim is to better meet the increasing demandfor upgrading vocational skills and for con-tinuing vocational training (CVT) while be-ing able to take into account more efficientlyindividual education targets and needs.What are the challenges institutions for adulttraining and CVT have to face in this con-text? What are the consequences and chancesfor institutionalised adult learning? In thispublication, Austrian and German authorsexplore possible future scenarios of CVTand skills training in Austria. This compi-


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From the Member States

lation of contributions aims to serve as astarting point for creating concepts for or-ganisational development and the devel-opment of offers and for analysing the top-ic in more detail.

BE La formation professionnellecontinue: l'individu au cœur des

dispositifs / Jean-Luc Guyot, ChristineMainguet, Béatrice Van Haeperen.[Continuing vocational training: the in-dividual as the focus of legal provisions]Brussels: De Boeck, 2003, 379 p.(Economie, société, région)ISBN 2-8041-4306-6

'Based on various theoretical references andan analysis of original data, the studies com-piled in this work help to throw finely shad-ed light on continuing vocational trainingseen from the angle of the individual. Afterfirst setting out the new contexts of con-tinuing training, the work goes on to dealwith the training of persons in employmentand job-seekers. The contributions addressthe following themes: factors determiningaccess to continuing training, reasons fordropping out, the impact of training on hor-izontal or vertical mobility, its effects onsalary trends, its outcome in terms of socio-occupational work integration, and the ped-agogical aspects of training in a work situ-ation. The institutional and organisationaldimensions of training will be examined ina later work.'

HR Social dialogue in southeastEuropean countries: possibil-

ities, limitations, perspectives: a com-parative study / Darko Marinkovic.Action Plan for the Promotion of the Cul-ture and Practice of Social and CivilDialogue in the South Eastern EuropeanRegion. Final Conference. Thessaloniki. 2002 Belgrade, 2002, 92 p.

The subject of the project described is theconcept and practice of the establishmentand development of social dialogue in thecountries covered by the Stability Pact. Thisissue encompasses a whole range of differ-ent aspects and is connected with all key ar-eas of the life of society. This comparativestudy will encompass social dialogue in thefollowing countries: Albania, Bulgaria, Ser-bia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Croatia, Bosniaand Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, Roma-nia and FYROM.

CZ National action plan of em-ployment 2003.

Ministry of Labour and Social AffairsPrague: Ministry of Labour and Social Af-fairs, 2003, 46 p.

In its Programme Declaration 2002, in thesection on employment, the Czech Govern-ment proclaimed the achievement of fulleffective employment as the strategic goal ofits term of office. The Government ProgrammeDeclaration stated, inter alia: 'The priority aimof the Government's active employment pol-icy is to include the best efforts for reductionof unemployment, with the focus on the re-gions of North, Central and South Moraviaand North-West Bohemia. The Governmentwill support projects whose implementa-tion will result in significant creation of newjobs, preferably within the regions at risk, andin the continued development of small andmedium-sized enterprises. The Governmentwill engage in steps which provide incentivesto people to seek and maintain their jobs. Inorder to achieve these plans, the Governmentwill present the new Employment Bill thatwill, inter alia, approximate employment pol-icy instruments to the systems applied through-out the EU Member States. The Governmentwill update the National Action Plan of Em-ployment annually'.http://www.mpsv.cz/files/clanky/4819/emp_2003_1.pdf

DK Statusundersøgelse af forsøgmed kombinationsaftaler i er-

hvervsuddannelserne.[An investigation of experiments withcombination agreements in vocationaland educational training.]Andersson, Jens; Piil Hansen, MortenDanmarks Erhvervspædagogiske Lære-ruddannelse - DELÅrhus: DEL, 2003, 29 p.DEL, Rosenørns Allé 31, DK-1970 Fred-eriksberg C., Tel. (45-35) 247900, Fax (45-35) 247910, E-mail: [email protected], URL:http://www.delud.dk/

In 2001, a new Act on Vocational Educationand Training came into force in Denmark.One of the changes to be implemented wasa new scheme for 'combination practical train-ing agreements' in which training in the com-pensatory practical training scheme could becombined with practical training in compa-nies that have been approved to provide partof the practical training. In order to experi-


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ment with this new scheme, a number of ex-perimental projects were initiated under theFoU programme. This publication documentsthe results of those experimental projects.The focus is on the number of combina-tion agreements that have been entered in-to and on the barriers that the vocational col-leges have encountered in promoting thisnew scheme. The preliminary results showthat there are major problems in persuadingenterprises to enter into combination agree-ments. So far only 35 combination agree-ments have been concluded.

Læring på jobbet: strategier og system-atik, ideer og metoder.[On the job learning: strategies and sys-tematic approaches, ideas and methods.]Astrup Christensen, Albert; Gottlieb, Su-sanne. Undervisningsministeriet - UVM,UddannelsesstyrelsenCopenhagen: UVM, 2003, 96 p.(Uddannelsesstyrelsens temahæfteserie, nr.6-2003)ISBN 87-603-2314-0Undervisningsministeriets forlag, Strandgade100 D, DK-1401 Copenhagen K, Tel. (45-33)925220, Fax (45-33) 925219, E-mail:[email protected], URL: http://www.uvm.dk

Teachers at vocational colleges face a num-ber of challenges. They have to be able todifferentiate teaching according to differenttypes of students with different levels of pro-ficiency. They have to be able to plan, im-plement and evaluate new types of trainingand take into account the learning pathwaysof the individual students. As a consequence,continuous competence development to keepthe teacher skills up-to-date with new chal-lenges has become a vital element in the col-leges' strategies. This report forwards rec-ommendations on how the colleges can workstrategically and systematically with compe-tence development on-the-job and in coop-eration with colleagues, e.g., in teacher teams.The publication includes a number of prac-tical tools that the colleges can use in theirwork formulating and implementing a strat-egy for developing the competences of bothmiddle management and teachers.http://pub.uvm.dk/2003/joblaering/

EE Access to adult learning in Es-tonia / Talvi Märja.

Adult learning: for employment and cit-izenship: international conference.Kaunas. 2003Kaunas: VMU, 2003, 6

As Estonia is becoming a full CommunityMember from 2004, the most important taskis to acknowledge the new educational par-adigm, which has been worked out by theEuropean Commission and mostly empha-sises the following: lifelong learning as anew possibility for all; the need to widenaccess to learning, especially to adult learn-ing; the importance of building a new learn-ing area. The Estonian Minister of Educationinitiated the process of elaborating a strate-gy for lifelong learning by calling outstand-ing persons from different fields of activitiesto draw up the White Paper on LifetimeLearning in Estonia. In order to given theworking group members a better backgroundfor their work, some surveys were initiat-ed for collecting the necessary data. The pa-per discusses the results of the surveys onadult learning, also the possibilities and cur-rent prospects of building the area of life-long learning in Estonia. http://www.vdu.lt/alearning2003/II%20Dalis/Talvi%20Marja_en.doc

FI Quality management of appren-ticeship training: recommenda-

tion for use in apprenticeship training/ National Board of Education.Helsinki: OPH, 2003, 39 p.ISBN 952-13-1683-7Opetushallitus / Kirjasto, PO Box 380, FIN-00531 Helsinki, Tel. (358-9) 77477234, Fax(358-9) 77477869, E-mail: [email protected],URL: http://www.edu.fi/julkaisut

Quality management (TQM) of apprentice-ship training is considered to be a strategictool for the organisers of training, such asthe apprenticeship centres and offices, unitsor schools that are in charge of its manage-ment and supervision. The publication con-tains introductory texts on quality manage-ment along with attendant recommendations,whose aim is to assist the organisers in es-tablishing for themselves suitable quality sys-tems that will also work in practice. The ap-pendices contain a list of the targets used inevaluating the quality of apprenticeship train-ing, the terminology and quality conceptsused in apprenticeship training, and a list ofrecommended reading on TQM.http://www.edu.fi/julkaisut/quality.pdf


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FR Démarche compétence: lespartenaires sociaux mobilisés:

dossier.[The competence approach: social part-ners mobilised: dossier]Anger, Michel; Sarazin, BéatriceTravail et changement, No 287 (Avril 2003),p. 7-19Lyon: ANACT, 2003ISSN 1251-9200

Skills and competences, like qualifications,are leading subjects of social discussions.Last January ANACT-Agence Nationale pourl'Amélioration des Conditions de Travail (Na-tional Agency for the Improvement of Work-ing Conditions) co-organised a seminaron this subject with the confederations oftrade unions representing the employees.This dossier summarises the main pointsdiscussed on that day: how enterprises cameto the competence approach, what toolshould be used to evaluate the competenceapproach, how such an approach can beimplemented in an economic sector or inan enterprise, finally, the opinion of theunions on the risks and advantages of thecompetence approach. The following con-tributions were compiled. Competence andnegotiation: always an animated social di-alogue, by Michel Anger. Method: from for-ward management of employment to thecompetence approach, by Michel Parlier.Tools: an evaluation grid - interview givenby Olivier du Roy to Michel Anger. SPL Den-telles: tulle-makers recognised and theirstanding enhanced, by Christian Jouvenot.Lecomble and Schmitt (Pyrénées-Atlantiques):competences - a firm foundation, by Béa-trice Sarazin. Union organisations: 'The tonehas changed...', extracts compiled by MichelAnger and Michel Parlier.http://www.anact.fr/competence/index.html

Devenir une vraie entreprise apprenante:les meilleures pratiques / Daniel Belet.[How to develop into an effective learn-ing organisation: the best practices]Belet, DanielParis: Editions d'Organisation, 2003, 217 p.ISBN 2-7081-2836-1

In this work Daniel Belet gives practical ad-vice on how to make an enterprise a learn-ing organisation. After an examination of thestrategic stakes involved in personnel man-agement, he gives an in-depth presentationof the concept of the learning enterprise and

proposes a general approach for the devel-opment of organisational learning, taking theexamples of some enterprises as the basis.

DE Delphi-Erhebung zur Identi-fikation von Forschungs- und

Entwicklungaufgaben in der beruflichenAus- und Weiterbildung / Walter Brosi,Elisabeth M. Krekel und Joachim GerdUlrich.[Delphi survey to identify research anddevelopment tasks in vocational educa-tion and training and continuing voca-tional training.]Brosi, Walter; Krekel, Elisabeth M.; Ul-rich, Joachim Gerd; Bundesinstitut fürBerufsbildung - BIBBBonn: BIBB, 2003. - 32 p. - (WissenschaftlicheDiskussionspapiere / BIBB; 65)ISBN 3-88555-731-2

In the context of a nation-wide Delphi study,the Federal Institute for Vocational Training(BIBB) interviewed experts about their viewson the most important research and devel-opment tasks in the area of vocational ed-ucation and training and continuing voca-tional training. The survey was designedto identify gaps in vocational education andtraining research and to place the plan-ning of research on a broad footing. The firstpart of the publication is devoted to anoverview of the development of the Delphimethod and presents the results of a pre-liminary study carried out in 1999; the sec-ond part introduces conceptual considera-tions and research strategy decisions; partthree explains the design of the multi-stagesurvey; and part four considers the extentto which in retrospect the results of the sur-vey support these considerations and deci-sions.

Deutsche Berufsbildungskooperationweltweit: Potenziale erkennen, Synergiennutzen / Gisela Dybowski und MichaelGajo.[German vocational education and train-ing partnerships worldwide: recognis-ing potentials, exploiting synergies.]Bielefeld: Bertelsmann Verlag, 2003. - 65p. + CD-ROMISBN 3-7639-0995-8Dybowski, Gisela; Gajo, MichaelBundesinstitut für Berufsbildung - BIBB

The report contains information on Germanvocational education and training partner-ships in 45 selected countries. It is based on


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a study that was designed to collect infor-mation on the approaches and structural el-ements of German vocational education andtraining efforts abroad and to provide anoverview of ongoing projects, partnershipsand the experiences of German institu-tions in the area of international educationcooperation. The CD-ROM contains the 45relevant country profiles and descriptionsand the most important German institutionsin the area of international vocational edu-cation and training partnerships.

GR Vocational Training DynamicDevelopment with a European

Perspective: organisation of vocationaleducation and training.Organismos Epangelmatikis Ekpaidef-sis kai Katartisis - OEEKAthens: OEEK, 2003, 6 p.OEEK, Ethnikis Antistaseos 41, Nea Ionia,GR-14234 Athens, Tel. (30) 210279000, Fax(30) 2102709144, E-mail: [email protected],URL: http://www.oeek.gr/

The Organisation for Vocational Educationand Training (OEEK) is the agent that plans,organises, operates and supports the initialvocational training in Greece. It has admin-istrative and economic independence andis supervised by the Ministry of National Ed-ucation and Religious Affairs. Furthermore,it establishes and manages all 130 Public Vo-cational Training Institutes operating in Greeceand supervises the 65 private VocationalTraining Institutes.

HU Leonardo da Vinci: the firstphase of the Leonardo da Vin-

ci programme in Hungary.Tordai, Péter; Mártonfi, György Leonardo National Agency; Tempus PublicFoundationBudapest: Tempus Public Foundation, 2002,86 p.

Hungary joined the Leonardo da Vinci pro-gramme on 1 September, 1997. In the firstapplication rounds, Hungarian institutionshad a chance to launch 106 mobility proj-ects and 36 pilot projects and could par-ticipate as partners in another 246 proj-ects.

IE Benchmarking education and train-ing for economic development in

Ireland.Expert Group on Future Skills NeedsDublin: FORFAS, 2003, 62 p.

FORFAS, Wilton Park House, Wilton Place,IRL-Dublin 2, Tel. (353-1) 6073000, Fax (353-1) 6073030, E-mail: [email protected], URL:http://www.forfas.ie/The European Commission recently adopt-ed European benchmarks for education andtraining across five broad categories: earlyschool leavers; graduates in Mathematics,Science and Technology; population havingcompleted upper secondary education; keycompetencies; and lifelong learning. Na-tionally the Expert Group on Future SkillsNeeds has recognised the need for the es-tablishment of a systematic process of bench-marking education and training in Irelandagainst other developed countries. By bench-marking a range of agreed indicators relat-ing to education and training, this reportaims to provide the context for the ExpertGroup to make recommendations in certainareas and set realistic comparative targetswhere feasible. Eleven key indicators wereselected for examination, four long-term andseven short-term indicators, with the formerassessing the 'stock' and the latter the 'flow'of educated and skilled labour force inIreland. Sections 2-5 of the report presentlong-term indicators. Both national and in-ternational data on demographic trends,labour force participation rates, literacy, andeducational profile of the population arepresented. Sections 6-12 analyse short-termindicators relating to performance to school-leaving certificate, apprenticeships, furthereducation, higher education, postgraduateeducation, adult participation and companytraining.

Awards and qualifications: a survey oflearners and employers.National Qualifications Authority of Ire-land - NQAIDublin: NQAI, 2003, 36 p. + appendicesNQAI, 4th Floor, 6-9 Trinity Street, IRL-Dublin2., Tel. (353-1) 6127080, Fax (353-1) 6127095,E-mail: [email protected], URL: http://www.nqai.ie/

The purpose of these two surveys carriedout in 2002 was to benchmark awarenessand attitudes, and to inform the introduc-tion and implementation of the NationalFramework of Qualifications. One in five Ir-ish adults claims awareness of the Nation-al Framework of Qualifications. FÁS-Train-ing and Employment Authority enjoys thehighest recognition of all awards bodies inthe state, followed by the Dublin Instituteof Technology and the National University


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of Ireland. The study surveyed learners onthe perceived usefulness of the mainawards/qualifications in terms of gainingemployment, contributing to personal de-velopment and creating further education-al/training opportunities. Employers wereasked which, if any, of a number of statedawards or qualifications were particularlyrelevant to their industry sector and theywere asked to rate their importance in theircompanies' recruitment procedures. In gen-eral, employers appear to rate work expe-rience as the more important factor influ-encing recruitment. Although FÁS/City andGuilds/Trade qualifications are highly rele-vant in a number of sectors, just one in sev-en employers consider the awards to be es-sential. The greater the company size themore essential the qualification becomes,due perhaps to more formal recruitment pro-cedures. Overall, the majority of employersfeel that standards set for qualifications inIreland reflect the needs of employers fair-ly well.http://www.nqai.ie/surveyoflearners.pdf

LT Profesinis rengimas: tyrimai irrealijos Vocational Education: Re-

search and Reality = Berufsbildung:Forschung und Realitat scientific editorRimantas Lauzackas[Vocational Education: Research and Reality]Vytauto Didziojo Universitetas (Vytautas Mag-nus University) - VDU, Profesinio rengimostudiju centras (The Centre for VocationalEducation and Research)Adult learning for employability and citi-

zenship. Kaunas. 2003Profesinis rengimas: tyrimai ir realijos = Vo-cational Education: Research and Reality =Berufsbildung: Forschung und Realitat, 6Kaunas: Profesinio rengimo studiju centras,2003, non-paginated p.ISSN 1392-6241Vytautas Magnus University, Centre for Vo-cational Education and Research, Donelaiciostr. 52 - 424, LT-300 Kaunas, Lithuania, Tel.(370 - 37) 323584, Fax (370 - 37) 323581, E-mail: [email protected], URL: http://www.vdu.lt/Social/PRSC_an.html

This publication is dedicated to the inter-national conference 'Adult Learning for Em-ployability and Citizenship'. The aim of thispublication is to present research on adultlearning in Lithuania and other Europeancountries and to give a general overview ofexisting experience: the aim is to encouragepoliticians and society to address adult learn-

ing as an immediate factor contributing tosocial welfare, and to initiate measures andensure lifelong learning.http://www.vdu.lt/Leidiniai/ProfRengimas/2003-6en.html

LU L'économie solidaire au servicedu développement des com-

munes Luxembourgeoises: un projet desociété.[An economy of solidarity which servesthe development of local communitiesin Luxembourg: a project of society]Ojectif plein emploi - OpeLuxembourg: Ope, 2003, 27 p.

The idea underlying an economy of soli-darity is that the cause of the current eco-nomic crisis is the transition of society froma post-industrial and tertiary era into an eraof knowledge, competences and mutualservices which are the response to a so-cial demand. Within the market economythere is a movement which tries to attenu-ate the difficulties brought about by con-centration on the market alone, and themovement is called the social economy. Itsrole is not to reflect on changes in thinking,but to come to the aid of groups that havebeen, or are at risk of being, brushed asideby the system.

PL Leonardo da Vinci, National Ob-servatory programme, centre in-

ternationalcooperation, forum programme, studyvisits = Leonardo da Vinci, Narodowe Obserwatorium program, centrum pro-gram wspólpraca miedzynarodowa,forum program, wizyty studyjne. Biuro Koordynacji Ksztalcenia Kadr, Fun-dusz Wspólpracy - BKKK Warsaw: Task Force for Training and Hu-man Resources Cooperation Fund, [2002?], unpaged Task force for training and human resourcesCooperation fund 00-444 Warsaw, Górnoslaska 4a, Poland, Tel. (48-22) 6253937,Fax (48-22) 6252805, URL: www.bkkk-cofund.org.pl

This brochure provides a short overviewof the current programmes and projectsrun by the Task Force for Training and Hu-man Resources Cooperation Fund. The pro-grammes particularly mentioned are theLeonardo da Vinci programme, the Cede-fop study visits programme, the NationalObservatory - Vocational Education and


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Training and the Vocational GuidanceForum. There is also a short paragraph onbilateral cooperation between Poland andJapan.

PT Future of education in Portugal:trends and opportunities - a

prospective study / Roberto Carneiro.Carneiro, RobertoLisbon: Ministério da Educação, [2003], var-ious paginationMinistério da Educação, Av. 5 de Outubro,no_ 107, P-1050 Lisboa, Tel. (351-21) 7931603,Fax (351-21) 7964119, E-mail: [email protected], URL: http://www.min-edu.pt

This report first contains a chapter on thechallenge - 20 years in which to overcome20 decades of educational disadvantage.Then it deals with the vision and the refer-ence scenario and finally with the bases fora new social contract.

SE Bringing education to life: reach-ing hard-to-read learners by cre-

ating innovative approaches to adult andcommunity learning / a UK-Sweden ini-tiative.Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Na-tional Institute of Adult Continuing Ed-ucation - NIACELeicester: NIACE, 2003, 62 p.ISBN 0-90335-987-1NIACE, Publication Sales, 19b De MontfordStreet, UK-LE1 7GE Leicester, Tel. (44-116)2044216, Fax (44-116) 2854514, E-mail: [email protected], URL: http://www.ni-ace.org.uk/

The British and Swedish governments setup this joint project to share knowledge andbest practice on lifelong learning with theaim of increasing participation. This guidepresents factors to be considered when pro-viding and structuring learning provision forhard-to-reach learners.http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/KFile/Project_BringingEducationToLife.pdf

SI Social dialogue and the economicand social council of Slovenia / Mi-

ha Grah;European Training Foundation - ETF Action Plan for the Promotion of the Cul-ture and Practice of Social and Civil Dialogue in the South Eastern EuropeanRegion. Final Conference. Thessaloniki. 2002[Turin]: ETF, [2002], 4 p.

Social dialogue as practiced in developedEuropean countries has been present inSlovenia since its transition to a market econ-omy at the end of the 1980s. It was for-mally introduced with the establishment ofthe Economic and Social Council of Slove-nia (ESC) in 1994. The aim of the ESC is todiscuss issues primarily concerning socialagreement and wage policy.

ES Fondo Social Europeo y forma-ción continua.

[European Social Fund and ContinuingTraining] Fundación Tripartita para la Formaciónen el Empleo.Madrid: Fundación Tripartita para la For-mación y el Empleo, [2003], Sin paginaciónFundación Tripartita para la Formación enel Empleo, Tel. (34-91) 3009400, Fax (34-91)7599698, URL: http://www.fundaciontripar-tita.org

After some comments on the functions ofthe Structural Funds as financial instrumentsfor European Union interventions, the fo-cus turns to the actions of the EuropeanSocial Fund in Spain, specifically its prior-ity lines of action; its programming and im-plementation; the interventions of the ESFas regards continuing training as well asthe functions of the Tripartite Foundationfor Training and Employment as the bodyresponsible for administering the aids forcontinuing training initiatives. There is al-so a short list of the European and na-tional standards applicable to continuingtraining initiatives and the continuing train-ing system.http://www.fundaciontriparti ta.org/publicaciones/folletos/fse.jsp

Financiación de la formación: inicial,ocupacional y continua / Esteve OrovalPlanas, Teresa Torres Solé.[Financing of training; initial, vocation-al and continuing]Revista de Educación, Nº 330 (2003) , p. 171-185Madrid: INCE, 2003ISSN 0034-8082

This article analyses the financing sourcesof the three training subsystems making upthe national vocational training system, asthis is considered to be a key factor bothfor active employment policy and for thedevelopment of competitiveness in enter-prises.


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SE Akademisering och profession-alisering: barnmorskans utbild-

ning i förändring/evalyn Hermansson. [Academisation and professionalisation:midwifery education in transition.] Göteborgs Universitet; Göteborg: Acta Universitatis Gothoburgen-sis, 2003, 207 p. (Göteborg Studies in Educational Sciences,200) ISBN 91-7346-473-2; ISSN 0436-1121; Acta Universitatis Gothoburgensis, Box 222,S-405 30 Göteborg

This thesis focuses on changes in midwiferyeducation as a result of different socialand educational policy reforms. The aim ofthe thesis is to analyse how demands of pro-fessional relevance and a scientific foun-dation of midwifery education have beenaffected by changes in the education systemand the changes formulated as competencerequirements for the profession, and to iden-tify the conditions that have influenced thestudy programme.

UK Basic skills in the workplace:a research review / John Payne.

London: Learning and Skills DevelopmentAgency, 2003, 79 p. ISBN 1853388319;

This report identifies recent English-languageresearch on basic skills in the workplace. Itattempts to record and analyse what hasbeen written about the subject and to pro-vide an overview of the field. It seeks to pro-vide information that will: inform policy re-garding the expansion of workplace basicskills as part of the government's basic skillsstrategy; inform practice by established andnew providers of workplace basic skills; in-form decisions about future research pri-orities.

Credit systems for learning and skills:current developments / Tony Tait. Leicester: LSDA, 2003, 18 p. ISBN 1-85338-859-9;

Learning and Skills Development Agency, 3Citadel Place, Tinworth Street, UK-London SE11 5EF, Tel. (44-20) 7962 1066,URL: http://www.lsda.ac.uk

This publication is designed to: reflect oncredit developments for learning and skillsover the past 10 years; review current de-velopments, especially in England and asthey relate to the learning and skills sec-tor; consider ways in which credit could anddoes support a range of priorities in termsof government policy; set out LSDA's viewsand current approach to credit; set out keyrecommendations for taking forward cred-it developments in the future.http://www.lsda.org.uk/pubs/dbaseout/download.asp?code=1466

Developing new vocational pathways.Office for Standards in Education -OFSTED; Online: OFSTED, 2003, 15 p. OFSTED, Alexandra House, 33 Kingsway,UK-London WC2B 6SE, Tel. (44-20)74216800, URL: http://www.ofsted.gov.uk

In September 2002, eight new GCSE sub-jects were introduced as part of a programmeto develop further vocational provision. Thesubjects are: art and design, business, engi-neering, health and social care, informationand communication technology (ICT), man-ufacturing, science, and leisure and tourism.During the autumn and spring terms 2002/03,Ofsted made 93 visits to schools involved inintroducing and providing the new courses.Based on this relatively small sample, thisinterim report summarises the main findingsand key issues arising by June 2003.http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/publications/docs/3374.pdf


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Cedefop

European Centre for theDevelopment of VocationalTrainingP.O.Box 22427GR-55102 ThessalonikiTel.(30)23 10 49 01 11 GeneralTel.(30)23 10 49 00 79 SecretariatFax (30)23 10 49 00 43 SecretariatMarc Willem, Head of Library & E-mail:[email protected]://www.cedefop.eu.inthttp://www.trainingvillage.gr

VDAB/ICODOC

Vlaamse Dienst voorArbeidsbemiddeling enBeroepsopleidingIntercommunautairdocumentatiecentrum voorberoepsopleidingKeizerlaan 11B-1000 BrusselsTel. (32-2) 50 61 321R. Van WeydeveldtFax (32-2) 50 61 561Reinald Van Weydeveldt,DocumentationE-mail:[email protected] address:http://www.vdab.be

CIRIUS

Center for Information ogRådgivning om InternationalUddannelses- ogSamarbejdsaktiviteterFiolstræde 44DK-1171 København KSvend-Erik Povelsen, SeniorAdviserE-mail: [email protected]. (45-33) 95 70 99Fax (45-33) 95 70 01http://www.ciriusonline.dk/

BIBB

Bundesinstitut für BerufsbildungRobert-Schumann-Platz 3D-53142 BonnDr Georg Hanf, Senior ResearcherInternational ComparativeResearchE-mail: [email protected]. (49-228) 10 71 602Fax (49-228) 10 72 963http://www.bibb.de/

OEEK

Organismos EpaggelmatikisEkpaideysis kai KatartisisEthnikis Antistasis 41 andKaramanoglouGR-14234 AthensDr George Sapounakis, Head ofStudies DepartmentE-mail: [email protected]. (30-21) 02 70 91 40Fax (30-21) 02 71 97 66http://www.forthnet.gr/oeek/

INEM

Servicio Público de Empleo EstatalCondesa de Venadito 9E-28027 MadridMaria Luz de las CuevasTorresano, Information/Documen-tationE-mail: [email protected]. (34-91) 58 59 834Fax (34-91) 37 75 881http://www.inem.es/

Centre INFFO

Centre pour le développement del’information sur la formationpermanente4, avenue du Stade de FranceF-93218 Saint Denis de la PlaineCedexHenriette Perker, Project ManagerE-mail: [email protected]. (33-1) 55 93 92 14Fax (33-1) 55 93 17 25http://www.centre-inffo.fr/

FÁS

Training and EmploymentAuthorityP.O. Box 456, 27-33 Upper BaggotStreetIRL-Dublin 4 DublinJean Wrigley, Consultant LibrarianE-mail: [email protected]. (353-1) 60 70 538Fax (353-1) 60 70 634http://www.fas.ie/

ISFOL

Istituto per lo sviluppo dellaformazione professionale deilavoratoriVia Morgagni 33I-00161 RomeAlessandra Pedone, ResearcherE-mail: [email protected]. (39-06) 78 26 028http://www.isfol.it/

Études et Formation S.A.

335 route de LongwyL-1941 LuxembourgMarc Ant, Managing DirectorE-mail: [email protected]. (352) 44 91 99Fax (352) 44 92 08http://www.etform.lu/

CINOP

Centrum voor Innovatie vanOpleidingenPettelaarpark , Postbus 1585NL-5200 BP ‘s-HertogenboschMartine Maes, ConsultantInternational AffairsE-mail: [email protected]. (31-73) 68 00 619Fax (31-73) 61 23 425http://www.cinop.nl/

abf-Austria

IBWInstitut für Bildungsforschung derWirtschaftRainergasse 38A-1050 ViennaProf. Thomas Mayr, DirectorE-mail: [email protected]. (43-1) 54 51 67 10http://www.ibw.at/

INOFOR

Instituto para a Inovação naFormaçãoAvenida Almirante Reis, n.º 72P-1150-020 LisboaFernanda Ferreira, CoordinatorE-mail:[email protected]. (351-21) 81 07 012Fax (351-21) 81 07 190http://www.inofor.pt/

OPH

OpetushallitusHakaniemenkatu 2, P.O. Box 380FIN-00531 HelsinkiMatti Kyrö, Head of UnitE-mail: [email protected]. (358-9) 77 47 71 24Fax (358-9) 77 47 78 69http://www.oph.fi/

ReferNet – European network of reference and expertise


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Skolverket

Statens SkolverkKungsgatan 53S-106 20 StockholmSten PetterssonE-mail: [email protected]. (46-8) 52 73 32 00Fax (46-8) 52 73 32 00http://www.skolverket.se/

QCA

Qualifications and CurriculumAuthority83 PiccadillyUK-W1J 8QA LondonTom Leney, UK ReferNetCoordinatorE-mail: [email protected]. (44-20) 75 09 53 92Fax (44-20) 75 09 69 77http://www.qca.org.uk/

MENNT

Samstarfsvettvangur atvinnulífs ogskólaGrensásvegur 16aIS-108 ReykjavikA∂alhei∂ur Jónsdóttir, DirectorE-mail: [email protected]. (354) 59 91 440Fax (354) 59 91 401http://www.mennt.net

Teknologisk Institutt

Akersveien 24CN-0131 OsloSigne Engli, Project [email protected]. (47-958) 76 139Fax (47-22) 86 53 39Web address:http://www.teknologisk.no/

NCVER

National Centre for VocationalEducation Research Ltd.PO Box 8288AU-SA 5000 Station ArcadeDr Tom Karmel, ManagingDirectorE-mail: [email protected]. (61-8) 82 30 84 00Fax (61-8) 82 12 34 36http://www.ncver.edu.au/

EVTA

European Vocational TrainingAssociationRue de la Loi, 93-97B-1040 BrusselsTommaso Grimaldi, GeneralSecretaryE-mail: [email protected]. (32-2) 64 45 891Fax (32-2) 64 07 139http://www.evta.net/

EFVET

European Forum of Technical andVocational Education and TrainingRue de la Concorde, 60B-1050 BrusselsHans van Aalst, PresidentE-mail: [email protected]. (32-2) 51 10 740Fax (32-2) 51 10 756http://www.efvet.org/

European SchoolNet

Rue de Trèves 61B-1000 BrusselsFrans Van Assche, StrategyManagerE-mail: [email protected]. (32-2) 79 07 575Fax (32-2) 79 07 585http://www.eun.org

European Commission

Rue de la Loi 200B-1049 BrusselsPeter Baur, Project ManagerE-mail: [email protected]://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/ed-ucation_culture/index_en.htm

Eurydice

Le reseau d’information surl’éducation en EuropeAvenue Louise 240B-1050 BrusselsPatricia Wastiau-Schlüter, DirectorE-mail:[email protected]. (32-2) 60 05 353Fax (32-2) 60 05 363http://www.eurydice.org/

ETF

European Training FoundationVilla Gualino, Viale SettimioSevero 6510133 TurinVaclav Klenha, Project ManagerE-mail: [email protected]. (39-011) 630 22 25Fax (39-011) 630 22 00http://www.etf.eu.int/

UNEVOC

International Centre for Technicaland Vocational Education andTrainingGörresstr. 15D-53113 BonnRupert Maclean, DirectorE-mail: [email protected]. (49-228) 24 33 712Fax (49-228) 24 33 777http://www.unevoc.de/

ILO

Centre international de formationde l’OITViale Maestri del Lavoro, 10I-10127 TurinCatherine Krouch, DocumentationE-mail: [email protected]. (39-011) 69 36 510Fax (39-011) 69 36 535http://www.itcilo.org/

OVTA

Overseas Vocational TrainingAssociation1-1 Hibino, 1 Chome, Mihama-ku,JP-261-0021 Chiba-shi,Nobuhiro Uehara, ManagingDirectorTel. (81-43) 27 60 211Fax (81-43) 27 67 280http://www.ovta.or.jp/

KRIVET

The Korean Research Institute forVocational Education and Training15-1 Ch’ongdam, 2-Dong,KR-135-102 Kangnam-gu, Seoul,Dr Jang-Ho Kim, PresidentE-mail: [email protected]. (82-2) 34 44 62 30Fax (82-2) 34 85 50 07http://www.krivet.re.kr/

ILO/BIT

International Labour Office4 Route des MorillonsCH-1211 Geneva 22Dr Jane Barney, DocumentalistE-mail: [email protected]. (41-22) 79 96 959Fax (41-22) 79 97 650http://www.ilo.org/

DfES

Department for Education andSkillsRoom E3, MoorfootUK-S1 4PQ SheffieldAmanda Campbell, LibrarianE-mail:[email protected]. (44-114) 25 93 339Fax (44-114) 25 93 564http://www.dfes.gov.uk

CINTERFOR/OIT

Centro Interamericano deInvestigación y Documentaciónsobre Formación ProfesionalAvenida Uruguay 1238, Casilla decorreo 1761UY-11000 MontevideoJuan Andres Tellagorry,DocumentalistE-mail: [email protected]. (598-2) 92 05 57Fax (598-2) 92 13 05http://www.cinterfor.org.uy/

Associated organisations


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No 27/2002

Research

ñ Bridging to the future of education (Friedrich Scheuermann)

ñ Collective learning: Theoretical perspectives and ways to support networked learning(Maarten de Laat, Robert-Jan Simons)

ñ Can organisations learn to learn? (Randolph Preisinger-Kleine)

Vocational training policy analysis

ñ Learning through ‘e-resources’: the experience of SMEs (David Guile)

ñ Young women in initial training in the new information and communicationstechnology occupations in Germany (Agnes Dietzen)

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), e-learning and local andregional development

ñ ICTs, e-learning and community development (Brian Dillon)

ñ E-learning as a strategy for creation of regional partnerships (Hanne Shapiro)

No 28/2003

Research

ñ The employment status of youth: elements of European comparison (ThomasCouppié; Michèle Mansuy)

ñ Pedagogical framework for online learning (Shyamal Majumdar)

ñ The implications of the skills-based approach for training design (Burkart Sellin)


ñ Training and flexible work organisation in the European metal industry - Spain,France, Italy and Portugal (Ángel Hermosilla Pérez; Natalia Ortega)

ñ Coaching in education for training staff in the building trade (Michael Leidner)

Case studies

ñ Transition from polytechnics to working life (Marja-Leena Stenström)

ñ Vocational training cooperation with the People’s Republic of China From bilateral to international cooperation – some German experiences (Hans-Günter Wagner)

Issues recently

published in

English


No 29/2003

Research

ñ Quality in E-learning (Ulf Ehlers)

ñ The learning organisation as seen by workers (Christian Harteis)

ñ School policy-making through electronically supported discussion involving teachersand managers (P.M. van Oene, M. Mulder, A.E. Veldhuis-Diermanse und H.J.A. Biemans)


ñ Enterprise creation initiatives in Basque vocational training centres (Imanol Basterretxea, Ana González, Aitziber Olasolo, María Saiz und Lola Simón)

ñ Difficulties and prospects of vocational education in Africa – MISEREOR’sexperiences (Thomas Gerhards)

ñ Company learning-time strategies – empirical studies on company approaches tocontinuing training (Sabine Schmidt Lauff)

ñ Building bridges between school and working life – A study of the approachesadopted by schools to create beneficial preconditions for young people’s entry intoadult life and the working environment (Marita Olsson)

Please cut out or copy the order form and send it in a window envelope to CEDEFOP

✂✂

❑

❑

❑


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The European Journalfor Vocational TrainingA call for articlesThe European Journal for Vocational Training journal is looking to publish articles fromresearchers and specialists in vocational education and training and employment. Rese-archers and specialists who want to bring the results of high-quality research, in particu-lar comparative transnational research, to the attention of a wide audience of policy-ma-kers, researchers and practitioners in many different countries.

The European Journal is an independent and refereed publication. It is published threetimes a year in English, French, German and Spanish and enjoys a wide circulation throug-hout Europe both within the Member States of the European Union and beyond.

The journal is published by Cedefop (the European Centre for the Development of Vo-cational Training) and aims to contribute to debate on the development of vocational edu-cation and training, in particular by introducing a European perspective. The journal islooking to publish articles which set out ideas, report on research results, and which re-port on experience at national and European level. It also publishes position papers andreaction statements on issues in the field of vocational education and training.

Articles submitted to the journal must be exact, yet accessible to a wide and diverse rea-dership. They must be clear in order to be understood by readers from different back-grounds and cultures, not necessarily familiar with the vocational education and trainingsystems of different countries. They should be able to understand clearly the contextand consider the arguments put forward in the light of their own traditions and experi-ence. In addition to being published, extracts of the journal are placed on the Internet.Extracts from past issues can be viewed on http:/www.trainingvillage.gr/etv/editorial/journal/journalarc.asp

Articles can be written either in a personal capacity, or as the representative of an orga-nisation. They should be around 2500 to 3000 words in length and can be written in eit-her Spanish, Danish, German, Greek, English, French, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian, Portu-guese, Finnish or Swedish. Once written, articles should be sent to Cedefop in hard co-py and on a diskette formatted for Word or Word Perfect, or as a Word or Word Perfectattachment by email, accompanied by brief biographical details of the author outlining thecurrent position held. All articles are reviewed by the Journal’s Editorial Committee whichreserves the right to decide on publication. Authors will be informed of its decision.

Articles do not have to reflect the position of Cedefop. Rather, the Journal provides theopportunity to present different analyses and various – even contradictory – points of view.If you would like to submit an article the editor Éric Fries Guggenheim can be contactedby telephone on (30) 23 10 49 01 11, fax on (30) 23 10 49 00 99, or e-mail on: [email protected]

Nr. 30 September – December 2003/III ISSN 0378-5068

Europe 123, GR-570 01 Thessaloniki (Pylea)Postal address: PO Box 22427, GR-551 02 ThessalonikiTel. (30) 2310 490 111 Fax (30) 2310 490 099E-mail: [email protected] Homepage: www.cedefop.eu.intInteractive website: www.trainingvillage.gr

European Journal ‘Vocational Training’

No 30 September – December 2003/III

Editorial

2003: The European Year of people with disabilitiesMartin Mulder, Éric Fries Guggenheim


Vocational training for disabled pupils in an inclusive settingAnnet De Vroey

Higher education entrance exam or craft certificate for disadvantaged adolescentsKarl Johan Skårbrevik, Randi Bergem, Finn Ove Båtevik

New trainer profiles for socially disadvantaged groupsCristina Milagre, João Passeiro, Victor Almeida

Special needs students in vocational education and training in Norway - a longitudinal studyJon Olav Myklebust

Research

Impact of the European Union on the Vocational Training System in GermanyDieter Münk

Measurement of training activitiesGottfried Langer

Section prepared by the Documentation Service with the help ofthe members of the documentary network

Reading selectionAnne Waniart

Dossier

Vocational training for people with special educational needs

Documents

Vocational training for people with special educational …aei.pitt.edu/44891/1/30-2003.pdf · European Journal ‘Vocational Training’ ... Special needs students in vocational