In this issue:

• Jobs: How young people are faring
• Older workers: Working forever?
• Good data, bad news and good policy making
• ACER UPDATE

An annual report of how young people are faring says that each year a substantial proportion of young Australians make a poor transition from school to further study and work. A paper based on the report How Young People are Faring 2005, prepared for the Dusseldorp Skills Forum, was presented by Michael Long at the Monash University-ACER Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) National Conference in October.

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The ageing of the Australian population will have an effect on workplaces in coming years, as outlined in a paper by Fran Ferrier at the Monash University-ACER Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) annual conference in October. Several of the predicted effects of the ageing of the population, particularly the decline in the number of people in the labour force as more and more workers move toward retirement, are now leading to stronger attention internationally to ‘mature’ or ‘older’ workers and the need to keep them in the workforce for as long as possible.

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The New Basics Trial held in Queensland from 2000 to 2004 aimed to improve educational outcomes through practical changes to curriculum, teaching and assessment. Gabrielle Matters, who became a Principal Research Fellow and began setting up ACER’s presence in Queensland in October, presented a paper about the trial at ACER’s Research Conference, Using Data to Support Learning held in Melbourne in August.

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Latest Research Developments now available

The latest edition of ACER's newsletter, Research Developments, is now available online. Print copies will be available shortly. The latest edition contains articles on a review of research into effective teaching methods for students with learning difficulties, effective teacher training and a major assessment on the ICT literacy skills of Australian students and more.

 

Development of Standards for Foundation Programs for International Students

ACER's Assessment and Reporting research program has been awarded a new project on the Development of Standards for Foundation Programs for International Students. This project is jointly sponsored by the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST), the Victorian Government Department of Education and Training (DET) and the Victorian Qualifications Authority (VQA). The purpose of the project is to develop standards to support a draft definition and core criteria for Foundation Programs for international students which have been developed by a national Foundation Studies Working Group of key stakeholders in the international education industry, facilitated by DEST. This work will result in a clear set of national guidelines for Foundation Programs for use by State and Territory government authorities in approving these programs for registration on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS). The project will thus help to ensure national consistency in registration for ‘standard’ Foundation Programs for international students, that is, those offered on-shore in Australia which prepare students for higher education programs, and provide a direct academic pathway to 1st year undergraduate study or its equivalent.

 

Sub Sector Monitoring and Evaluation program

The ACER International Institute is currently playing host to a group of 31 senior education officials from the Philippines. ACER is providing a four week “In-Australia” program on Sub Sector Monitoring and Evaluation for the group from 14 November– 9 December. This full program also involved an initial week of activities being delivered in Manila from 4-8 November with the final week of the program to be delivered in Manila in January.