CEET Seminars 2005

20 September 2005

Presenter: Professor Ewart Keep, Universities of Oxford and Warwick , UK
Time: 11–12.30 pm
Venue:  Shell Theatrette, 1 Spring St, Melbourne, Vic
Topic: Skill shortages in the UK–issues, problems and ways forward
Paper: Presentation slides available [ppt format: 190KB]

This paper examines two linked issues. The first is the evidence on the existence of skill shortages and gaps in the UK economy, with particular stress on the implications of changes that have taken place in the meaning of skill in the last two decades, the potential mis-match between skills and qualifications, and the inter-play between the concept of skill shortages and wider public policy debates about education and training. The second half of the paper probes the policy responses that have resulted from perceptions of skill shortages, particularly the current emphasis on forecasting future skill needs, and planning and managing the VET system to meet this expected demand. The potential tensions between demand from individuals and employers will be explored.

Ewart is Deputy Director at the ESRC Centre on Skills, Knowledge and Organisational Performance (SKOPE) based at the Universities of Oxford and Warwick . Has advised many UK government departments and agencies, and has published extensively on VET policy, work-based learning, the links between skills and competitive strategy, and the learning society and learning organisation.

12 August 2005

Presenter: Professor James Hough, Visiting Professor of Economics, University of Luton.
Time: 11.00–12.00 noon
Venue: Faculty of Education, Monash University, Clayton Campus – Room G23, Building 6
Topic: Recent Developments in Higher Education in the UK
Paper: Available (doc 104kb)

Current enrolment in higher education in the UK is 2.2 million students, in 91 universities 80 colleges. The percentage of the relevant age group studying full-time in higher education has leapt from 4 per cent in the 1960s to 43 per cent now, and is still on the rise, ushering in what has been called “the age of mass higher education”. Public funding to universities per student has declined steadily in real terms for the last 20 years, due to what the Government terms “efficiency gains”, with what it sees as a marked “improvement” in student-teacher ratios. With increased student choice of subjects, courses consisting of mass lectures to large student audiences are increasingly common. A student seminar group which previously might have had 12 members now will probably have 24. Student finance has undergone a revolution, consequent on the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 and the Higher Education Act 2004, with tuition fees being increased to £3,000 per year from October 2006. Many students now graduate with debts of £10,000-15,000. Guidelines have been announced for the Research Assessment Exercise 2008, which will be the sixth in a series of such exercises, the results of which are being linked more and more closely to university funding. The same years have seen periodic attempts to assess Teaching Quality. The seminar will review the above and other aspects of higher education in the UK.

James Hough is an independent consultant in education and economics. He was formerly Professor of Economics of Education and Dean of the Faculty of Education and Humanities at Loughborough University, UK, before becoming a member of Loughborough University Council and Visiting Professor of Economics at the University of Luton.

12 May 2005

(presented in conjunction with the Victorian Institute of Teaching)

Presenter: Dr Phillip McKenzie, ACER and a Director of CEET.
Time:4:30pm-6:30pm
Venue: Victorian Institute of Teaching - Meeting rooms 1 & 2, Level 24, 570 Bourke St , Melbourne
Topic: Attracting, developing and retaining effective teachers:  OECD policy review
Paper: Presentation slides available [ppt format: 175KB]

Teacher policy is high on national agendas. The demands on schools and teachers are becoming more complex. As the most significant resource in schools, teachers are central to school improvement efforts. Improving the efficiency and equity of schooling depends, in large measure, on ensuring that competent people want to work as teachers, that their teaching is of high quality, and that all students have access to high quality teaching. This seminar will present the main findings from the recent OECD project, Attracting, Developing and Retaining Effective Teachers. The project was conducted between 2002 and 2004, and involved 25 countries, including Australia . It includes analyses of policies on 1) making teaching an attractive career choice; 2) developing teachers’ skills and knowledge 3) recruitment, selection, employment and retention of effective teachers; and 4) developing and implementing teacher policy.

Phillip is the Research Director of the Transitions and Economics of Education research program at ACER, and a Director of CEET. Between 2002 and 2004, he worked on the teacher policy review at the OECD and edited the OECD’s annual Education Policy Analysis series.