Apprenticeship
and the Future of the Work Force (ERIC Digest No. 124)
Wonacott, M. E. (1992).
Columbus, OH: ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education.
This digest offers a definition of apprenticeship and explains how its characteristics can be imparted to other educational programs. The brief discussions cover the following topics: what apprenticeship is not, benefits of apprenticeship, broadening the scope, and applying apprenticeship components to vocational-technical programs. (2 pages, no charge)
Address:
ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education
Center on Education and Training for Employment
Ohio State University
1900 Kenny Road
Columbus, OH 43210-1090
(800) 848-4815
Apprenticeship
for Adulthood: Preparing Youth for the Future
Hamilton, S. F. (1990).
New York: The Free Press.
Drawing upon successful systems in West Germany and the U.S., the author
explains how apprenticeships for youth aged 16 through 21 can capitalize upon
workplaces as learning environments; create opportunities for mentor
relationships to provide important adult roles; and develop the flexibility,
dependability, and vocational skills of the future as identified by employers.
The author describes an effective apprenticeship as one which contains the
following essential features: (1) exploits workplaces and other community
settings as learning environments; (2) links work experiences to academic
learning; (3) allows youth to become both learners and workers with
responsibilities; and (4) fosters close relationships between youth and adult
mentors. Apprenticeship is viewed not solely as a preparation for work, but as
a dynamic, supportive transition to adulthood. It provides opportunities for
education and training to college-bound youth as well as noncollege-bound
youth, offering more support services to disadvantaged youth to ensure their
success.
The book includes an overview of the future of youth and work; discusses the
issues surrounding transition from school to work; describes the history,
current state, and future of academic and vocational education; gives
recommendations for restructuring; and contains a model American apprenticeship
program. Principles involving personalized instruction, performance standards,
and the integration of community service with vocational education are
discussed. (223 pages, $22.95)
Address:
Simon and Schuster
200 Old Tappan Road
Old Tappan, NJ 07675
(800) 223-2348
(800) 223-2336 for orders
Apprenticeship
Training: Administration, Use, and Equal Opportunity
U.S. General Accounting Office. (1992, March).
Washington, DC: Author.
The Government Accounting Office (GAO) conducted a study designed to assess the operation of the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training. The purpose of the study was to determine (1) the use of apprenticeship to train workers, (2) state and federal resources dedicated to administering apprenticeship, and (3) the representation of minorities and women in apprenticeship. Findings of the GAO study presented in this report show that (1) there are relatively few apprentices and the number is declining, (2) public resources for apprenticeship have declined, (3) minorities and women tend to be concentrated in lower paying occupations, and (4) there are relatively few women apprentices. GAO recommended that the Secretary of Labor work with the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training and the Women's Bureau to identify actions to improve the outreach and recruiting of women into apprenticeships. (44 pages, no charge)
Address:
U.S. General Accounting Office
Box 6015
Gaithersburg, MD 20884-6015
(202) 512-6000
Making
Apprenticeships Work
Finegold, D. (1993, March).
Santa Monica, CA: RAND.
In this paper, the author critiques existing apprenticeship ideas using three criteria: (1) attracting all individuals, (2) creating incentives for employers, and (3) accommodating the needs and constraints of the U.S. policymaking system. The author also proposes an alternative youth-training system that could work in the United States. (6 pages, no charge)
Address:
RAND
Distribution Services
1700 Main Street
P.O. Box 2138
Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138
(310) 393-0411, ext. 6686
Education
and Training for Work in the Fifty States: A Compendium of State Policies
McDonnell, L. M., & Zellman, G. L. (1993).
Berkeley: National Center for Research in Vocational Education, University of
California at Berkeley.
State policies and practices with regard to five education and training programs are described in this monograph. The programs are secondary vocational education, postsecondary vocational education, the Job Training Partnership Act, welfare-to-work programs, and state-funded job training. The data comes from a survey of work-related education and training policies in the fifty states, and are available to researchers and members of the policy community through the National Center for Research in Vocational Education. Policymakers and program administrators can use this database to learn about the different approaches that states take in managing and funding programs designed to prepare individuals for employment. (MDS-184@747, 251 pages, $15.00)
Address:
National Center for Research in Vocational Education
Materials Distribution Service
Western Illinois University
46 Horrabin Hall
1 University Circle
Macomb, IL 61455
(800) 637-7652
A
Special Issue on the American Workforce: 1992-2005. Occupational Outlook
Quarterly, 37(3)
Baxter, N., Managing Editor. (1993, Fall).
Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
This special issue contains projections of the labor force, industry employment, and occupational employment. Discussions about the labor force include details about the historical and projected growth of the labor force by age group, sex, race, and Hispanic origin. It also offers a look at labor force entrants between 1992 and 2005. The author discusses employment in industries and in occupations supported by data which includes projected employment, educational attainment, and median earnings. The publication also offers information about the fastest growing occupations, and those that add the most jobs and provide the most openings. (44 pages; $2.75/single copies, $8.00/one year subscription)
Address:
Superintendent of Documents
P.O. Box 371954
Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954
(202) 512-1800
Fax: (202) 512-2250
Training
in America: The Organization and Strategic Role of Training
Carnevale, A. P., Gainer, L. J., & Villet, J. (1990, April).
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
This first volume in the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD)
Best Practices Series presents the overall findings of a three-year ASTD/U.S.
Department of Labor nationwide study on how training for today's workplace is
structured, managed, financed, and linked to organizational strategy. The book
catalogues who gets training and how much, and shows what employer-based
training systems look like. It also spells out how to select and contract with
outside training providers or consultants and how to build lasting partnerships
with these groups.
The authors demonstrate the importance of linking training to organizational
strategy, and detail specific techniques for building training programs that
are responsive to an organization's most critical needs. They explain how to
gain access to decisionmakers and specifically what questions to ask and what
approach to take in gaining a commitment for training. They describe the role
of training in different business settings, providing examples from
organizations that are experiencing internal and external growth or reductions.
And they present policy recommendations for educators, employers, and
government officials that will ensure the commitment of resources and support
that effective training requires. (260 pages, $26.95)
Address:
Jossey-Bass, Inc., Publishers
350 Sansome Street
San Francisco, CA 94104-1310
(415) 433-1740
Training
the Technical Work Force
Carnevale, A. P., Gainer, L. J., & Schulz, E. R. (1990, April).
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
This fourth volume in the ASTD Best Practices Series represents the findings of
a three-year ASTD/U.S. Department of Labor study addressing the training needs
of America's enormous technical workforce. This population includes such
technical professionals as scientists, doctors, and engineers; technicians such
as hygienists and draftsmen; and skilled trade or blue-collar workers. In this
book, the authors describe the nature and role of technical training within
today's competitive and technologically shifting workplace and set forth
specific guidelines for conducting effective technical training programs inside
employer institutions.
The authors survey how successful technical training programs are structured,
organized, and implemented within the workplace and provide case studies from
ten Fortune 500 companies, illustrating the best approach for training in each
organization. Each case study focuses on the organization's strategic goals and
training structure, and explains how training supports the strategic goals.
This format helps employers and educators build technical training programs
that are best suited to their organizational needs and responsive to the
demands of their workforce. (210 pages; $23.00/members, $25.00/ nonmembers,
plus $1.75 shipping and handling)
Address:
Jossey-Bass, Inc., Publishers
350 Sansome Street
San Francisco, CA 94104-1310
(415) 433-1740
Working
Skills for a New Age
Bailey, L. (1990).
Albany, NY: Delmar Publishers, Inc.
Written with an awareness of the changes that are taking place In both the workplace and the nation's schools, this book was developed for use as a high school-level text in work experience programs (including cooperative vocational education, work-study programs, pre-employment training, and career or consumer education). Major sections address preparing for work, working on the job, career planning, success skills, managing money, and independent living. At least two What Would You Do? features are included in each chapter to stimulate thinking and discussion; many pose ethical questions that can be used to help students ponder and clarify their values. Also available are a student activity workbook, a teacher's annotated edition and resource package, a set of transparencies, videos, and separate teacher's guide and microtest software. (444 pages, $19.95)
Address:
Delmar Publishers, Inc.
3 Columbia Circle
P.O. Box 15015
Albany, NY 12212-5015
(800) 423-0563