Research on Future Skill Demands A Workshop Summary (2008) / Chapter Skim
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7 Implications for Education and Training
7 Implications for Education and Training
Pages 75-83
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From page 75... ...
Noting that nearly 20 years have passed since the SCANS commission identified the need for broad social, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills and that cognitively based theories of education that emphasize teaching such skills became widely accepted, Bailey asked what had happened. He described "the discovery, once again, that our workers don't have soft skills" as "discouraging." 75
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From page 76... ...
Following up on the earlier discussion about nursing education, Bailey noted that such programs are so expensive that community colleges often lose $3,000 to $4,000 annually for every nursing student they enroll. Addressing the difficulty of accurately forecasting future skill demands, Bailey said many community college administrators, faculty, and students have strong relationships with local companies.
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From page 77... ...
. He said that another important aspect of current best practice involves helping employers not simply to train their employees, but also to reorganize work and adopt other human resource strategies in order to increase productivity and job security. Osterman said that large nonprofit or quasi-public firms (such as hospitals and banks)
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From page 78... ...
He emphasized that he and other education officials are trying to establish high school exit standards and that they lacked good measurements for nonacademic skills. Disagreeing with Bailey, he said that cognitively based theories of education -- in which teachers engage students, assess their developing understanding (or misconceptions)
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From page 79... ...
McWalters said he would look for similar agreement about expectations and support from the policy and business communities in the United States. He recalled successful efforts with committed, supportive corporate partners, including Danny Wegman, president of Wegmans Food Markets, Inc., and partners at the Kodak and CVS Corporations.
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From page 80... ...
He said that many entering community college students with B averages in high school were required to take one or two years of remedial classes to develop the content knowledge needed for college-level course work. McWalters observed that, at the elementary school level, students are grouped for science and mathematics instruction, and weaker students spend years reviewing basic arithmetic.
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From page 81... ...
He observed that few data are available about the age of students participating in the many rapidly growing noncredit classes offered by community colleges, noting that many college graduates with liberal arts degrees take these classes to obtain specific job skills. Bailey expressed concern about these data gaps, saying that information is lacking about whether noncredit classes are simply subsidizing training for local employers or about the outcomes for participants.
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From page 82... ...
However, he said, most college faculty lack training in teaching generally, including the teaching of problem-solving skills, communication skills, and other broad skills. Kay responded that he sees K-12 systems as more willing to explore these broad skills than higher education, which is focused on deep content knowledge in disciplinary "silos." Traiman, noting that higher education has a powerful influence on K-12 education, said that, if leading universities were to require the broad skills in addition to academic content knowledge, high schools and high school students would respond.
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From page 83... ...
Mary Gatta said that she had been involved in establishing a career resource center in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics for 7th to 12th grade students, introducing both boys and girls to nontraditional careers, such as nursing for boys. Federal support provided under the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act allowed the center to operate without need for tuition, recruiting students from low-income neighborhoods, she said.
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