Supporting vocational skills and workplacelearning – still undervalued andmisunderstood?Regional Skills Partnerships in a Global EconomyConferenceJune 23rd 2005Professor Lorna UnwinCentre for Labour Market StudiesUniversity of Leicester
Challenges : WorkEnvironment
•Primary goal of any workplace is to producegoods and services
•Workplaces differ according to history,values, product market position,personalities, cultures - each creates adifferent learning environment
•Changing perceptions of skills - shift to‘soft’
Challenges: VET System
•Completion and attainment rates problematic
•Traditional models of VET (apprenticeship)struggle in voluntarist system and in servicesectors
•Problem for 14-19 year olds - how to protectrights to quality programme and progression
• Employers need support to create appropriateworkforce development strategies
Sectoral Differences
•Advanced Apps (level 3) - completion of frameworkranges from 24% in hospitality to 46% in engineering.
•Completion of NVQ ranges from 30% in hospitality to53% in engineering.
•Apprenticeships (level 2) - completion of frameworkranges from 31% in construction to 14% inhealth/social care.
•Completion of NVQ ranges from 43% in constructionto 32% in engineering.
•Retail has very poor figures - 20% completion of level 3framework and 22% completion of level 2 framework.
Expansive-RestrictiveFramework
Expansive Environments:
•See apprentice/employee as both ‘learner’ and‘worker’
•Combine on and off-the-job learning
•Require knowledge-based qualifications - provideprogression route to higher VQs and furthereducation
•Are embedded within broader workforcedevelopment strategy - older employees see valuein supporting younger workers
Restrictive Environments
•Restrict learning opportunities to on-the-job
•Want apprentice to be as productive as quickly aspossible - deny identity as learner
•Have limited opportunities to cross boundaries atwork, access to new tasks, new people
•Under-value employees’ ideas and expertise
•Have limited aspirations for workforce in general
Using the expansive-restrictivemodel
•The model could be used by any organisation(pubic or private sector) as an analytical tool
•To move away from the restrictive end of thecontinuum towards the expansive end,organisations need to understand that learning is aproduct of and dependent on the organisation’sculture, vision, values and structures
•Individuals will respond positively in an expansiveculture which values and makes use of their skillsand knowledge
Policy Implications
•How do we provide quality programmes for youngpeople in sectors with jobs with limited range ofvocational knowledge and restricted skills?
•Can we meet sectoral needs and protectentitlement/progression?
•Need cadre of specialists to work with employers
•Centres of Vocational Excellence in collegescould play key role
•One size, national programmes difficult to sustain
Who Cares?
I have been an apprentice for 6 months. My employer
says I’ve done enough training and don’t need the NVQ.
Who will help me complete my apprenticeship?
•Training provider
•Connexions
•Local LSC
•SSC
•National LSC
•DfES
•QCA
•RDA
•Apprenticeship Task Force
•Ruth Kelly
•My MP, Richard and Judy, Digby Jones, Brendan Barber, Bono
Research Details