Career and Technical Education (CTE) has become a vibrant source of workforce development across the globe. It is no longer an offering only for a specialized sector of students. Instead, it has matured into a sound and meaningful program for high school and postsecondary students across interest areas, and abilities. CTE programs and students realize the great relevancy of the programs to workplace and higher education readiness and immediate earning power. This volume addresses the changing needs of foundation courses in CTE. As land grant universities began to offer courses to cover the historical, social and philosophical aspects of CTE, teaching institutions have followed suit. Therefore, readers will find not only a rich background in history and philosophy of the field, but also theory, best practice, and strategies specifically grounded in CTE. As scholars and practitioners argue whether human resource development (HRD) encompasses CTE or vice versa in the field, this text proves that HRD is an integral component and thrust of CTE. As a broad field of study, CTE has come a long way and its history parallels the efforts of humanity from the Stone Age to modern civilization. Building Workforce Competencies through CTE proves that CTE survived, and thrives. The more we realize how pervasive technology and information skills are needed in our society, the more we need CTE. CTE is a leader in innovative educational programs, pedagogical theory and practice; it prepares people, young and old, for the world of work. This book provides a practical and visionary basis for cultivating future opportunities and directions in CTE.

Summaries a portion of the research conducted under a two-year joint project of the American Society for Training and Development and the U.S. Department of Labor.

A handy guide offering a practical plan for targeting skills any employee wants to develop and employers most desire. It's hard to tell if today's competitive job market is more unsettling for employees seeking job security or companies trying to retain loyal workers. The Value-Added Employee provides fresh insights on what makes employees valuable to the organization and how companies can keep productive employees on the job. Employees will understand how to increase their personal marketability by developing specific skills, knowledge, and attitudes. Managers and coaches will find the tools and resources to make employees more valuable to the organization. Even policymakers and human resource professionals can drive change and business improvement through the application of competency modeling processes. The Value-Added Employee is a step-by-step plan for targeting the competencies an employee wants to develop and employers most desire. It discusses 31 core competencies, including interpersonal competencies, business competencies, and self-management competencies. Designed as a handbook, The Value-Added Employee is a toolkit of ideas and a workbook to be written in and referred to on a regular basis. Through its use, employees and their companies will discover a firm foundation for meeting future goals.

The five chapters in this book draw upon the policy experience and trends in OECD countries to examine various aspects of lifelong learning.

This book investigates how social and cultural factors affect the education, training and career development of graduates of higher education in Japan and the Netherlands. The aim of this book is to explore how Dutch and Japanese graduates choose and develop their careers in reference to the above-mentioned challenges. It is based on a unique data set consisting of surveys held among graduates three and eight years after leaving higher education.

As the world’s economy develops into a more dynamic, fast-moving, and unpredictable entity, it is crucial that the workers who create wealth have the ability to assess and respond to new and unforeseen challenges. In other words, the future will require a more competent workforce. What, though, does this mean in practice? In this, the fully revised second edition of Christine Velde’s book, a variety of researchers from around the world provide a truly international perspective on the issue. They help to redefine the term competence. Rather than responding to challenges using a pre-existing set of skills, they see competence as having the ability to assess new situations, and then adapt one’s response accordingly, particularly in collaboration with others. Providing the reader with insightful perspectives about competence in different situations and contexts, the book’s sections explore the concept of competence in industry and vocational education, in schools and colleges, in small businesses and companies, and in universities. The interpretation, experience and teaching of competence in the workplace is boiled down to five essential components that in themselves represent an argument for a more holistic conception of competence. Velde herself concludes the book by synthesizing and reflecting on the contents. This book provides the reader with insightful perspectives on competence, and the characteristics of learning environments in different workplace contexts. Drawing on phenomenographic insights allows it to present a more enlightened view of competence, at the same time as opening up an international dialogue about the meaning and interpretation of competence in the workplace. Useful not only to educators and researchers, this volume will also assist leaders and managers in a variety of contexts to develop more meaningful workplaces.

Current economic difficulties and the challenge of competing in the world market have necessitated a rethinking of American approaches to the utilization of people in organizations. Management now recognizes a need to have workers take on more responsibility at the points of production, of sale, and of service rendered if the United States is to compete in rapidly changing world markets. This development means that much more is expected of even entry-level members of the American workforce. Thus, even more is expected of our high schools and colleges to provide this type of workforce. The need of American management for workers with greater skills and who can take on greater responsibility has spawned many commissions, task forces, and studies. All of them have contributed to the vast evidence documenting the need for a more highly skilled workforce. These studies are summarized and synthesized in this book. However, what remains largely undone is the development of methods to assess the necessary skills that have been identified. A major portion of this book deals with assessment issues. Workforce Readiness: Competencies and Assessment explores the state-of-the-art in the specification of competencies (skills) and their assessment for students entering the world of work from both high school and college. Both individual and team competencies are examined via data that has been reported and collected in various settings--schools, laboratories, and industrial facilities.

The Institute of Medicine study Crossing the Quality Chasm (2001) recommended that an interdisciplinary summit be held to further reform of health professions education in order to enhance quality and patient safety. Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality is the follow up to that summit, held in June 2002, where 150 participants across disciplines and occupations developed ideas about how to integrate a core set of competencies into health professions education. These core competencies include patient-centered care, interdisciplinary teams, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and informatics. This book recommends a mix of approaches to health education improvement, including those related to oversight processes, the training environment, research, public reporting, and leadership. Educators, administrators, and health professionals can use this book to help achieve an approach to education that better prepares clinicians to meet both the needs of patients and the requirements of a changing health care system.