Building Skills and Alliances to Meet Demand in New Jersey's Labor Market

This summary report examines the Ready for the Job initiatve, which profiled the skill and occupational requirements of 73 occupations in New Jersey. This report highlights four cross-industry demand skills: math and technology skills, problem solving and critical skills, communication and teamwork skills, and entrepreneurship and business skills

Skills Academy research report

"This research was commissioned by the Welsh Assembly Government in July 2009 in order to review the development, operation and sustainability of Skills Academy networks across the UK and other relevant countries, to determine the strengths and weaknesses of such networks and to make recommendations to support the policy development of a Skills Academy network in Wales." - overview

Research into the use of ICT and e-learning for work-based learning in the skills sector

This research has been commissioned by Becta to provide an evidence-based overview of the current use and effectiveness of work-based e-learning and its integration with more traditional learning methods. The specific objectives of the research were to: investigate the known impact of ICT and e-learning on the skills sector; and describe the ways in which ICT and e-learning can support key workforce development issues such as addressing skills gaps and achieving sustainability in training and development

An investigation of vocational progression pathways for young people and adults in building crafts and hospitality CoVEs: A London case study

This report was commissioned by the Learning and Skills Development Agency's (LSDA–s) strategic programme of research and development, funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). The principal aim of this project is to explore how vocational pathways have been developed and enhanced in these two occupational areas among 14–19 year olds and employed adults in London. The project identifies how well the selected CoVEs have performed against various factors

Interrogating the technical, economic and cultural challenges of delivering the PassivHaus standard in the UK.

A peer-reviewed eBook, which is based on a collaborative research project coordinated by Dr. Henrik Schoenefeldt at the Centre for Architecture and Sustainable Environment at the University of Kent between May 2013 and June 2014. This project investigated how architectural practice and the building industry are adapting in order to successfully deliver Passivhaus standard buildings in the UK. Through detailed case studies the project explored the learning process underlying the delivery of fourteen buildings, certified between 2009 and 2013. Largely founded on the study of the original project correspondence and semi-structured interviews with clients, architects, town planners, contractors and manufacturers, these case studies have illuminated the more immediate technical as well as the broader cultural challenges. The peer-reviewers of this book stressed that the findings included in the book are valuable to students, practitioners and academic researchers in the field of low-energy design. It was launched during the PassivHaus Project Conference, held at the Bulb Innovation Centre on the 27th June 2014

Research into the use of ICT and e-learning for work-based learning in the skills sector

The report provided an overview of the research commissioned by Becta into the use of ICT for learning by SMEs and the public sector, in the context of work-based learning (WBL). The findings were illustrated with a number of case studies and vignettes of good practice. The report was targeted at stakeholders in work-based learning (WBL)

Disaster Management Education through Higher Education – Industry Collaboration in the Built Environment

Effectively responding to the current and dynamic construction labour market requirements is a major responsibility of higher education institutions (HEIs). HEIs aim to reduce the mismatch between what they deliver and what is required by the industry. Built environment professionals require continuous update of knowledge and education in order to effectively contribute to disaster management. However, the complex and multidisciplinary nature of disaster management education pose a challenge to the higher education institutions to make them more responsive to the industrial needs and to prepare the students for careers in disaster resilience. Adopting a lifelong learning approach would be appropriate for HEIs to maintain a through-life studentship and to provide disaster related knowledge and education on a continuous basis to respond to the labour market requirements. However, incorporating lifelong learning approach within the system of higher education is not easy and straightforward for HEIs. This is mainly because of the formal and bureaucratic nature of HEIs that acts as a barrier for providing effective lifelong learning education. In resolving this issue, HEIs are increasingly relying on the benefits associated with fostering close collaboration with external organisations such as industries, professional bodies and communities. In this context, this paper discusses the role of HEIs in providing disaster management education, the challenges associated with it, and the way of addressing the challenges through the higher education industry collaboration