Stasz, C., & Brewer, D. J. (1999). Academic Skills at Work: Two Perspectives (MDS-1193). Berkeley: National Center for Research in Vocational Education, University of California.

Conclusions

Our analysis suggests that any description of knowledge and skill must relate to several aspects of the job, including the tasks and processes the worker carries out, the technologies in place, and the social context that delineates work responsibilities and interdependencies among individuals. Also evident is the need to understand relationships among systems, both human and technical, and within a single process or technology application. Technical workers discuss the need to know both how something works and why it works that way. Our results concur with Barley's (1995) observation that technical work resembles craft work and that "most valued skills appear to be those developed in hands-on conversation with materials and techniques" (p. 15). He refers to these as "artisanal" rather than formal knowledge and skills.

The present analysis provides a rich picture of academic skills in work. Our analysis only skims the surface, however. It provides snapshots of the complex relationships between academic knowledge and work context but does not explore every aspect of work. Other important relationships are likely. Given these limitations, we draw the following conclusions about the technical work that we studied:

• Technical work incorporates a wide variety of mathematics skill levels, ranging from basic mathematics (pre-algebra) to complex trigonometry. Many workers use mathematics regularly on the job, and some, notably survey inspectors, cannot do their job without mathematics.
• Mathematics, science, and disciplinary knowledge varies with work context. In some cases, the work is dominated by a few disciplines or subject areas such as medical knowledge for home health caregivers; electronics knowledge for traffic signal, test-cell, and equipment technicians; and mathematics for surveyors. Other work may require broad disciplinary knowledge, as in construction inspection.
• Technical workers may not discuss academics in the terms typically used in school. Rather, math or science topics, even when formal terms are used, are most often described in relation to a particular work process or technology application. In these cases, it seems that technology may render knowledge opaque--hard to know about or construct apart from the technology.
• In some communities of practice, it can be important to establish the precise meaning of terms related to math or science applications because individuals within a community can define important concepts in different ways. Misunderstandings could lead to costly or even fatal errors.
• Technology may define work practice. In some jobs, answers to questions about academic skill needs will depend on the technology at hand and the expectations about new technologies that will be used in the future. Specialized mathematics and science skills may be needed, particularly for technicians who have maintenance and troubleshooting responsibilities.
• Managers' and supervisors' understanding of academic skill requirements appear consistent with frontline workers' own estimation. This finding departs from our previous study of generic skills in which employers and workers often disagreed about capabilities related to problem-solving, communication, and other "soft" skills. In that study, employers often underestimated skill use. Since academic skills are commonly measured, either by tests or other indicators (e.g., courses taken, degrees, or credentials), it may mean that employers are using such measures to assess skills, and make use of these assessments in selection, hiring, and compensation decisions.

In the next chapter, we take a look at academic skills from a positivist perspective and discuss relationships between cognitive and noncognitive skills and labor market outcomes.

Stasz, C., & Brewer, D. J. (1999). Academic Skills at Work: Two Perspectives (MDS-1193). Berkeley: National Center for Research in Vocational Education, University of California.