International Labour Organisation (ILO) resources to support apprenticeship

 Two useful guides produced by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to inform apprenticeships.

1) A guide for policy makers and governments (2017): Titiled ILO toolkit for quality apprenticeships: Volume 1: Guide of policy makers. Covers the overarching mechanisms which allow apprenticeships to flourish. Firstly, the rationale and advantages for apprenticeship are summarised. Then the key 'building blocks' for quality apprenticeship are introduced and discussed. The keys are to ensure there is social dialogue between the parties administrating and supporting apprenticeship; the regulatory frameworks are contextualised to carry weight and provide the necessary protection for all involved; roles and responsibilities of all parties are summarises; funding arrangements are introduced and discussed; the need to align apprenticeships to labour market skills needs are detailed; and a call for ensuring access to apprenticehships are inclusive of all (i.e. gender, vulnerable groups etc.)

2) The guide of employers, practitioners, apprenticeship trainers, supporters (2020)  This guide covers the various aspects of developing, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating apprenticeships programmes.

Seven modules are offered: an overview; the quality apprenticeship training life cycle; development of apprenticeship programmes; preparing quality training places; organising apprenticeship training; post-training transitions and evaluation; and innovations and strategies in apprenticeship.

A range of 'tools', frameworks, models, resources etc. from many countries are presented as examples, making the guide accessible and applicable.  

Australian perspective of vocational education and training (VET - NCVER 'landmark' series

 The VET Development Centre (VDC) based in Victoria, Australia featured and summarised Professor Erica Smith's 'landmark' look into the Australian apprenticeship system. 

In turn, the NCVER VOCED has collated a VET knowledge bank of the key policies and reports which impinge on Australian VET, which they call 'landmark documents'. A good resource for those wanting to understand the evolution of the Australian VET system. A good way into VOCEDplus  massive database is their 'special collections' site which has links to key topics including key research and policy by region (Australian), programme based collections, organisational based collections, VET/HE pathways, thesis and key conferences.

Other landmark documents include:

historical overviews of the place of VET;  research in the VET sector, overview of the VET workforce; reviewing aspects of skill and knowledge; and training and assessments. 

A few already somewhat dated and all are contextualised to the Australian VET context. However, they provide good summaries and recommendations and are useful as comparative tools to see how things have shifted (or not) and provide the historical background for understanding the Australian system.

Emergence and Innovation in Digital Learning (2016) - ebook overview

 This book, Emergence and Innovation in Digital Learning: Foundtions and Applications : published in 2016 by Athabasca University and edited by Dr. George Velesianos, is available as an open access ebook. 

I downloaded the book last year and a wet weekend provided the opportunity to read it more thoroughly. Although a relatively new book, some of the concepts have dated especially due to the rapid move to blended/ online learning due to the pandemic. The first few chapters provide good frameworks for understanding aspects of educational innovation and the emergence of 'new' pedagogies.

 The book has two sections. Part 1 has a series of chapters providing 'foundation' followed by the next section with 6 chapters as on 'applications'. Below are short overview of the chapters in the 'foundation' section.

Section 1 - foundations

chapter 1 by the editor, grounds the book's premises and concepts by defining the characteristics of emerging technologies and emerging practices in digital education. Of note is the 'fluid' and contextualised nature of 'emergence'. What is innovative in one discipline / sector may already be mainstream in another. 

The second chapter by J. Ross and A. Collier, continues on from the discussion in the first chapter. The contention is that 'innovative', 'new', and 'emergent' technologies for teaching online are complex, messy and often at a state of 'not-yetness' requiring careful, reflective, agile and sensitive (to learner perspectives) introduction, development and support.

Terry Anderson summarises the theories of learning pertinent to working with emerging technologies. His framework on learning interactions is introduced along with summaries, discussion and critiques of relevant theories of learning. These include social constructivism, complexity theory, net-aware theories of learning, heutagogy, connectivism, groups nets and sets, and threshold concepts. A bit of an eclectic collation!

Royce Kimmons and  Cassidy Hall then propose an 'emerging technology integration model. There are many examples of models including TPACK, SAMR, Replacement Amplification Transformation (RAT), Technology Integration Matrix (TIM), Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Technology Integration Planning (TIP)! Six criteria are important when applying and evaluating models - compatibility, scope, fruitfulness, role of technology, student outcomes, and clarity. The chapter provides good discussion and critiques of the various models.

The last chapter in in the foundations section is by Elizabeth Wellburn and B. J. Eib who propose ' multiple learning roles in a connected age' - when distance means less than ever. The chapter focuses on the perspective of learners and how their role has changed, from empty receptacle for 'knowledge' to be poured in, to active and co-construction partner. The chapter overviews various ways to understand how learning has been shifted by access to information and the need to provision learners with the metacognitive skills to navigate a complex and ever shifting environment. This especially important when distance learning is the major means by which learners access learning. 

All in, the foundation chapters provide good anchors to ground thinking on the introduction and implementation of technology into education. 

International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training

The International Journal for Research in Vocational Education is an open access journal with connections to the European VET research community through the  The European Educational Research Association (EER)). Vocational Education and Training is one of over 30 networks supported and networked through the EER. 

The IJRVET publishes 3 issues a year with a the addition of occasional special issues. The journal is open access and is now into it's ninth volume. The range of articles includes a small number of studies of workshop/classroom-based learning through to ones which discuss broader social/economic issues of VET.

I have dipped in and out of articles as they appear on my Google alerts but will need to do a concerted trawl through the journal to bring across relevant articles into EndNotes.