Thomas Spielhofer and David Sims
This article presents the results of a qualitative study that examined the views and experiences of 12 large city employers of modern apprenticeships (MAs). Given the government's…
Abstract
This article presents the results of a qualitative study that examined the views and experiences of 12 large city employers of modern apprenticeships (MAs). Given the government's target that by 2004 at least 28 per cent of young people should enter an apprenticeship before the age of 22, it is imperative that large employers are fully involved in taking on young people as apprentices. However, this study found that many such employers are either not aware of these qualifications or do not see them as relevant to their businesses. The paper concludes by providing suggestions, based on the findings of this study, for different ways of raising the status of MAs and getting more large employers to take up the award.
Details
Keywords
The purpose of this paper is to critically reflect on evidence relating to the development and delivery of apprenticeships and its potential implications for pre-registration…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to critically reflect on evidence relating to the development and delivery of apprenticeships and its potential implications for pre-registration healthcare education.
Design/methodology/approach
An iterative review of English language literature published after 1995 to date relating to apprentices and apprenticeships was undertaken. In total, 20 studies were identified for inclusion. Only three related to the most recent apprenticeship initiative in the UK, and the majority were UK based.
Findings
Three key themes were identified: entering an apprenticeship, the learning environment and perceptions of apprenticeships. Successful completion of an apprenticeship relies heavily on both understanding the role the apprentice is seeking to inhabit, as well as well-structured and comprehensive support whilst on the programme. These findings are then discussed with reference to professional body requirements and pre-registration education in healthcare.
Practical implications
Appropriate work experience and support for learning are critical to apprenticeship success and apprenticeships should be given equal status to traditional healthcare education routes.
Originality/value
The introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy in April 2017 (Finance Act, 2016), acknowledgement that all National Health Service Trusts will be levy payers and the introduction of targets relating to apprenticeships for public sector employers have all contributed to growing interest in the apprenticeship agenda in health and social care.
Details
Keywords
The purpose of this paper is to make a case for creating a strand of negotiated qualifications in the English (and more generally UK) vocational education and training (VET…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to make a case for creating a strand of negotiated qualifications in the English (and more generally UK) vocational education and training (VET) system, using the approach established through Ufi-Learndirect Learning through Work (LtW).
Design/methodology/approach
The paper identifies some limitations in the recent Whitehead review of adult vocational education in relation to people already in work. Drawing on research into learning at work, modifications to the VET qualifications system are proposed based on the LtW approach.
Findings
The VET qualifications system assumes a purpose of preparing people for occupational entry and developing essential competence. The needs of adults already in work can be accommodated provided that they can be fitted within structures reflecting this assumption. It is less able to meet the bespoke needs of individual workers or employers. The LtW approach, which enables individual accredited programmes to be negotiated, offers a way forward that preserves the integrity of the qualification system.
Practical implications
Implementing a LtW-type approach in the VET sector is structurally more difficult than in higher education, although less likely to encounter academic resistance. The main challenge is likely to come from the need to modify regulatory rules and design principles for vocational qualifications.
Originality/value
Individually negotiated qualifications have been resisted in VET due to largely unfounded fears about reduced rigour and loss of control of content. The proposed approach offers a means of meeting individual needs while retaining the integrity of the qualifications system and reducing the proliferation of units and content within it.
Details
Keywords
Matthew C. Draycott, David Rae and Katie Vause
Although the assessment of enterprise education activities has been widely highlighted as a key area of concern, it continues to be under represented in the literature. Questions…
Abstract
Purpose
Although the assessment of enterprise education activities has been widely highlighted as a key area of concern, it continues to be under represented in the literature. Questions remain as to how educators seeking to monitor student progression can capture quality data and measure relevant aspects of development, often leading enterprise education to be monitored rather than assessed. This article seeks to explore the challenges of assessing enterprise education in the secondary education sector. It aims to provide useful insights to help practitioners understand how to evidence the impact of enterprise learning by students.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper first presents a critical review of the existing literature with insights from specialist practitioners sourced through an online survey and a seminar. This provides a broad review of the field from a practitioner standpoint focusing on current assessment techniques and standards. Using these data a conceptual pedagogy is proposed for the delivery of enterprise education and a methodology for its assessment, to be developed in future work.
Findings
A critical review of the assessment of enterprise education is presented. This exposes challenges of a confused field, with pockets of good practice in schools often not shared or understood out of context. The development of a novel pedagogical model for teaching enterprise education is proposed, linked to a prototype assessment methodology which presents a new approach for enterprise teaching and learning.
Research limitations/implications
The work is limited at this stage since participants in the research were drawn from one geographic area in the East of England, and examples of qualifications reviewed were not exhaustive, but these limitations can be addressed in future research.
Practical implications
The paper provides a conceptual model for structuring enterprise education which may have relevance across the secondary sector and beyond.
Originality/value
The article investigates the problems of assessing enterprise in secondary education, examining what does and does not work, and providing practitioners with useful guidance. In this important topic it is vital that new approaches are developed which can create a broader debate especially at a time of such great change in the educational landscape. This paper provides a platform for further development in the field.
Details
Keywords
Lu An, Chuanming Yu, Xia Lin, Tingyao Du, Liqin Zhou and Gang Li
The purpose of this paper is to identify salient topic categories and outline their evolution patterns and temporal trends in microblogs on a public health emergency across…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify salient topic categories and outline their evolution patterns and temporal trends in microblogs on a public health emergency across different stages. Comparisons were also examined to reveal the similarities and differences between those patterns and trends on microblog platforms of different languages and from different nations.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 459,266 microblog entries about the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014 on Twitter and Weibo were collected for nine months after the inception of the outbreak. Topics were detected by the latent Dirichlet allocation model and classified into several categories. The daily tweets were analyzed with the self-organizing map technique and labeled with the most salient topics. The investigated time span was divided into three stages, and the most salient topic categories were identified for each stage.
Findings
In total, 14 salient topic categories were identified in microblogs about the Ebola outbreak and were summarized as increasing, decreasing, fluctuating or ephemeral types. The topical evolution patterns of microblogs and temporal trends for topic categories vary on different microblog platforms. Twitter users were keen on the dynamics of the Ebola outbreak, such as status description, secondary events and so forth, while Weibo users focused on background knowledge of Ebola and precautions.
Originality/value
This study revealed evolution patterns and temporal trends of microblog topics on a public health emergency. The findings can help administrators of public health emergencies and microblog communities work together to better satisfy information needs and physical demands by the public when public health emergencies are in progress.
Details
Keywords
Isai Amutan Krishnan, Jariah Mohd Jan and Siti Zaidah Binti Zainuddin
The purpose of this paper is to explore the knowledge of lexical items in a job interview by recent graduates.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the knowledge of lexical items in a job interview by recent graduates.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected from one of the organisations in the Klang Valley, Malaysia. Twenty-seven recent graduates participated in the study. The structured standard interview questions were used to elicit the job interview data. The data were recorded and analysed qualitatively by using Allwood's (1999a, b, c) communicative behaviour theory.
Findings
The findings showed that the lexical items used by the interviewees varied and revealed their knowledge of lexical items in relation to these five characteristics: personality, skills, capability, experience and self-motivation. The successful interviewees reflected their knowledge of lexical items that indicated their confidence in in the job interviews. The lexical items used by the reserved interviewees were limited that displayed their personalities and reflected uncertainty and lack of confidence. The unsuccessful interviewees used limited lexical items and were vague and evasive in answering questions. This could also be not convincing enough to influence the outcome of the interviews positively.
Practical implications
The findings of this study can assist policymakers such as officials of higher learning institutions to integrate interview workshops and mock interviews into their current curriculum as a form of preparation for undergraduates. These mock interviews can be more appropriate if experienced interviewers are utilised from the outsourcing organisations.
Social implications
It creates an awareness for job applicants especially undergraduates after completing their studies that knowledge of lexical items are important in job interviews.
Originality/value
The use of appropriate lexical items play an important role in job interviews as they have shown that all the successful interviewees had used them to good effect in their interactions with the interviewer.