•Employabilityskillsareasetofbroadskills,includingcommunication,problem-solvingandteamwork.Theyare

regardedbyemployersasveryimportant—technicalskillsalonenolongersufficeforpeopleenteringandadvancingin

theworkplace.

•Anoperationaldefinitionof‘employabilityskills’isneededtoreduceindustryandVETpractitionerconfusion

associatedwiththeterm.Learnerswouldalsobenefitfromclarification.

•Themostsignificantdevelopmentsince2002istheembeddingofemployabilityskillsintotrainingpackages,although

disagreementremainsoverwhetheremployabilityskillsshouldbeembeddedatthequalificationorunitofcompetency

level.

•Teachersareuncertainabouthowtoteachandassessemployabilityskills.Professionaldevelopmentprogramscould

helptoensurethatteachersareequippedtoteachtheseskills.

•Consistencycontinuestobeanissueinassessingandreportingemployabilityskills.Appropriatemethodssuchas

integratedassessmentanddescriptivereportingarerequired.

NATIONALCENTREFORVOCATIONALEDUCATIONRESEARCH

AtaglanceEMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

KE

Y M

ESS

AG

ES

AUTHOR: BRIDGET WIBROW

2 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

Inacompetitiveworkforceitisnotjusthavingtherightqualificationortechnicalskillsthatwilllandan

individualajob;itcouldverywellbetheirinterpersonalskills.Howsomeonecommunicatesisoftenthefirst

impressionanemployerhasofapossibleworker.Yet,itispreciselycommunicationskillsthatemployersfeel

applicantsaremostlacking(DepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations2011).

Inlinewithmoderneconomies,workplacesareconstantlychangingandasaresultemployersarelookingfor

employeeswhoareadaptableandwhohaveskillsbeyondthetechnical(Maxwell2010).Forexample,asurvey

ofCEOsfoundthat33.1%ofemployersconsideremployabilityskillstobethemostimportantfactorwhen

employinggraduates,whereasonly19.2%ratedrelevantworkexperienceaboveemployabilityskills(Australian

IndustryGroup&Deloitte2009).

This At a glancebuildsonthematerialonemployabilityskills1intheearlierNCVERpublications,Defining

generic skills(NCVER2003a)andFostering generic skills in VET programs and workplaces(NCVER2003b),

anddrawsonthe2002EmployabilitySkillsFrameworkdevelopedbytheAustralianChamberofIndustryand

CommerceandtheBusinessCouncilofAustralia.Inadditiontoconsideringdevelopmentsintheareasof

teaching,assessingandreporting,thispaperlooksathowemployabilityskillsaredeliveredandexaminesthe

argumentsunderpinningeachoftheapproaches.

DEFINING EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

TheAustralianChamberofIndustryandCommerceandBusinessCouncilofAustraliadefineemployabilityskills

as‘skillsrequirednotonlytogainemployment,butalsotoprogresswithinanenterprisesoastoachieveone’s

potentialandcontributesuccessfullytoenterprisestrategicdirections’(2002,p.3).Theirframeworkidentifies

eightmainemployabilityskills.Theseare:

• communication

• teamwork

• problem-solving

• initiativeandenterprise

• planningandorganising

• self-management

• learning

• technology.

Despitealltheattentiontheseeightskillshavereceived,thereisstillnooperationaldefinitionthattrainers

canusewhendesigningcurriculaandassessmenttools.Thisdeficiencyleadstothissetofskillsbeingpoorly

understoodbyVETpractitioners(AustralianFlexibleLearningFramework2009),nottomentionlearners.

Althoughcalled‘employability’skills,theabilitiesencompassedbytheseskillshavebroaderapplication,being

relevanttoavarietyoftasksindailylife,education,thelabourmarket,socialnetworksandinterpersonal

relationships.Havingwell-developedemployabilityskillscanalsobeanadvantageinafluideconomicclimate

—theycanhelpindividualstoprosperandcopewithchange(Callan2003).Employabilityskillstendtorequire

ahighorderofmentalcomplexitysincetheyinvolveanactiveandreflectiveapproachtolife.Inthissense,

theyaremulti-dimensional,comprising‘know-how,analytical,culturalandcommunicationskills,andcommon

sense’(AllenConsultingGroup2006,p.12).

INTRODUCTION

1ThisAt a glancerefersto‘employabilityskills’,asitisthetermpreferredbyindustryandusedmostfrequentlyintheliterature.Othercommontermsincludegenericskills,keycompetencies,transferableskills,coreskillsandsoftskills.

AT A GLANCE 3

Box 1 Timeline

1985KarmelCommitteeQuality of education in Australia: report of the Review Committee, April 1985

•LookedatthequalityofeducationinAustralia•Studentsshouldbepreparedforbotheducationand employmentbyattainingskills

1991FinnReviewYoung people’s participation in post-compulsory education and training: report of the Australian Education Council Review Committee

•Lookedattheimportanceofyoungpeopledeveloping keycompetenciessothattheyhavebothspecificskills forthejobandflexibility•Needstronggroundingingenericskillsandtransferable skills

1992MayerCommitteeKey competencies: report of the committee to advise the Australian Education Council and Minsters of Vocational Education, Employment and Training on employment-related key competencies for post-compulsory education and training

•Developedasetofsevenkeycompetencies: – Collecting,analysingandorganisinginformation – Communicatingideasandinformation – Planningandorganisingactivities – Workingwithothersandinteams – Usingmathematicalideasandtechniques – Solvingproblems – Usingtechnology•Recommendedthreeperformanceindicatorlevels•Recommendedassessmentinmultiplecontexts•Recommendedreportingatindividualandaggregate levels•Keycompetenciesbegantobeincorporatedin competencystandards

1999AustralianIndustryGroupTraining to compete: the training needs of Australian industry: a report to the Australian Industry Group

•Lookedatthehardskillsandsoftskillsthatneedtobe developedpriortorecruitment

2002AustralianChamberofCommerceandIndustry&BusinessCouncilofAustraliaEmployability skills for the future

•Evaluatedprogressofkeycompetenciesinitiatives•Conductedanextensivereviewofothergenericskills schemes•Conductedtwosurveysofindustryandemployerviewsof requiredskills•Definedemployabilityskills•DevelopedEmployabilitySkillsFramework

2005NationalQualityCouncil •Providedendorsementofemployabilityskillsbeingmade explicitintrainingpackages•ReplacedKeyCompetencyFrameworkwiththe EmployabilitySkillsFramework

2007NationalQualityCouncil •Endorsedtheuseofdescriptivereporting•Employabilityskillssummariesfortrainingpackage qualificationstobemadeavailableoninternet

Source: Allen Consulting Group (2006); National Quality Council (2008); NCVER (2003a).

HISTORICAL TIMELINE

4 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

TherearetwomainoptionsfortheformalintroductionofemployabilityskillsintoVETsectorprograms—either

embeddedintrainingpackagesorkeptseparatefromthetechnicalandvocationalskills.Thedisadvantageofa

separateapproachisthatlearnersmaynotseethevalueofemployabilityskillsiftheyareremovedfromtheir

industrycontext(Cleary,Flynn&Thomasson2006).Embeddingthemintrainingpackagesmeansthattheyare

integralandtailoredtotheindustry-endorsedcompetencies.Learnersbeingabletoseetherelevanceoftheskillsto

workplacesiscentraltotheirembracingthem.

TheNationalQualityCouncil’s2005endorsementforemployabilityskillstobemadeexplicitintrainingpackages

provokeddebateoverhowtheyshouldbeembedded.Therehadpreviouslybeensomecriticismaboutthewaythis

wasdone,withteachersinparticularscepticalaboutwhetherstudentswerereallygainingtheskillsneededtobe

employableinarangeofjobsindifferentindustries(Callan2003).TheAllenConsultingGroup(2004)hadargued

thatincorporatingemployabilityskillsconsistentlyacrosstrainingpackagescouldhelpeasethiscriticism,sincethey

woulddemonstratetherelevancetotheworkplace,whatevertheindustry.

InresponsetotheNationalQualityCouncil’sendorsement,Cleary,

FlynnandThomasson(2006)developedaresourceforindividuals

whoprovidetrainingandassessmentintheVETsector.Inthis

resource,theyrecommendtheuseofanemployabilityskills

statementandsummaryinalltrainingpackages.Sincethenthe

11industryskillscouncilshaveadoptedthisapproachasthey

reviewandreplaceexistingtrainingpackages.In2006theKey

CompetencyFrameworkwasreplacedbytheEmployabilitySkills

Frameworkandtheprovisionofemployabilityskillsstatements

andsummariesisnowstandardpractice,withthesummaries

individualisedtotheparticularindustry.Generally,undereach

qualificationtheemployabilityskillsandtheirfacetsarelisted

inanemployabilityskillssummary.Thefacets,whichmakeup

eachoftheskills,havebeenmodifiedtoreflecttheneedsof

theparticularqualification.TheNationalQualityCouncilhas

developedawebsitewhichcontainsthesummarypagesforeach

trainingpackage().

Box2providesanexampleofhowthecommunicationskills

neededfortheCertificateIinWorkPreparation(Community

Services)andtheCertificateIinActiveVolunteeringhavebeen

embeddedinthetrainingpackage.Box3showsthedifferencein

communicationskillsrequiredfortheCertificateIIIinCommunity

ServicesWorkandCertificateIIIinActiveVolunteering,compared

withthecertificateI.

EMBEDDING EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS IN TRAINING PACKAGES

What are employability skill statements and summaries?

TheDepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations(2008a,2008b)hasreleasedguidelinesdescribingeachofthese.Thestatementprovidesanoverviewoftheemployabilityskillfacetsofaqualificationintermsofday-to-dayapplication,alsolistingtheskillsneededfortheoccupationsconcernedandcontainingexamplesoftheirapplication.Thesummarydescribestheemployabilityskillsrequirementsatthequalificationlevelandshouldbeconsistentacrosstrainingpackages.Italsoassiststrainersandassessorstoensurethattheyhaveincludedindustryexpectationsintheirlearningandassessmentstrategies.Theuseofemployabilityskillsstatementsandsummariescanhelptoprovideconsistencyinhowtheskillsareembeddedintotrainingpackages.

AT A GLANCE 5

Box 2 Example of an employability skill embedded into the CHC08 Community Services Training Package:certificateIlevel

EMPLOYABILITYSKILLS

FACETS ADDRESSED: Industry/enterprise requirementsforthisqualificationincludethefollowing facets:

Communication

1.Listeningtoandunderstandingwork instructions, directions and feedback

2.Speakingclearly/directlyto relay information

3.Readingandinterpretingworkplacerelated documentation,such as safety requirements and work instructions

4.Writingtoaddressaudienceneeds,such as work notes and reports

5.Interpretingtheneedsofinternal/externalclientsfrom clear information

6.Applyingbasicnumeracyskillstoworkplace requirementsinvolving measuring and counting

7.Establishingandusingnetworks

8.Sharinginformation(e.g. with other staff)

9.Negotiatingresponsively(e.g. re own work role and/or conditions, possibly with clients)

10.Persuadingeffectively

11.Beingappropriatelyassertive(eg. in relation to safe or ethical work practices and own work role)

12.Empathising(e.g. in relation to others)

Note: If a facet is not needed, then it has a line through it or, if additional words are required, then they are inserted in bold italics.

Source: Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (2009, p.3).

Box 3 Example of an employability skill embedded into the CHC08 Community Services Training Package:certificateIIIlevel

EMPLOYABILITYSKILLS

FACETS ADDRESSED: Industry/enterprise requirementsforthisqualificationincludethefollowing facets:

Communication

1.Listeningtoandunderstandingwork instructions, directions and feedback

2.Speakingclearly/directlyto relay information

3.Readingandinterpretingworkplacerelated documentation,such as safety requirements and work instructions

4.Writingtoaddressaudienceneeds,such as work notes and reports

5.Interpretingtheneedsofinternal/externalclientsfrom clear information

6.Applyingbasicnumeracyskillstoworkplace requirementsinvolving measuring and counting

7.Establishingandusingnetworks

8.Sharinginformation(e.g. with other staff)

9.Negotiatingresponsively(e.g. re own work role and/or conditions, possibly with clients)

10.Persuadingeffectively

11.Beingappropriatelyassertive(eg. in relation to safe or ethical work practices and own work role)

12.Empathising(e.g. in relation to others)

Note: If a facet is not needed, then it has a line through it or, if additional words are required, then they are inserted in bold italics.

Source: Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (2009, p.8).

6 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

Differencesremainaboutthebestwaytoincorporateemployabilityskillsintotrainingpackagesbutembedding

thematthequalificationlevelistheoptionfavouredbytheindustryskillscouncils.AsCleary,Flynnand

Thomasson(2006)suggest,thisoptionenablesassessmentofanindividual’sunderlyingknowledgeatagiven

leveltoensuretheyhavetheappropriateskillsbeforeproceedingtoahigherqualificationlevelorajob.

Othercommentators,suchastheAllenConsultingGroup(2006)andCushnahan(2009),arguethat

employabilityskillsshouldbeembeddedattheunitofcompetencylevelintrainingpackages,asthisisthe

levelatwhichtrainersteachandassess.Thisapproachmaymeanadditionalworkfortrainersandassessors

astheywillbeassessingbothemployabilityandtechnicalskills.Theonuswouldbeontrainingpackage

developerstoensuretheseskillsarewrittencoherentlyandcomprehensivelyintotrainingpackages.An

alternativeoptionmightbeacompositemodelwhichdescribesallemployabilityskillsatthequalificationlevel

andembedsindividualemployabilityskillsinspecificmodules.

Therearethreeimportantissuestoconsiderwhenlookingathowemployabilityskillsaretaught.Theseare

howwelltheyareunderstoodbyteachers,theimpactthishasonstudents,andwhetherthereisarolefor

employers.

VETteachersoftenbeginteachingafterhavingworkedinaparticularindustry;yet,theseteachersarealso

expectedtoteachemployabilityskillstolearners,anditisinferredthattheyalreadypossesstheskillsand

knowledgetoteachthem.TheminimumqualificationthesedaysforVETteachersistheCertificateIVin

TrainingandEducation.Itspredecessors,theCertificateIVinAssessmentandWorkplaceTrainingandthe

CertificateIVinTrainingandAssessmenthavebeencriticisedfortheirinadequaciesintheareaofemployability

skills(Clayton2010;Cushnahan2009;Smith2010;Virgonaetal.2003).Itislikelythereforethatteacherswith

thesequalificationsmaynotpossesstheknowledgeorunderstandingrequiredtoteachemployabilityskills(see

Box4foracasestudyoftradeteachers).

Butwhataboutthenewminimumqualification?Itisyettobedeterminedwhetherthisissuehasbeen

appropriatelyaddressedintheCertificateIVinTrainingandEducation,butearlyreviewssuggestthatthebasic

contentofthecertificateisthesame(Forward2010),whichmeansthatemployabilityskillsandtheirteaching

willcontinuetopresentaproblem.Havingcurrentknowledgeofemployabilityskillsappearstobeatissue,and

maybeovercomebytheprovisionofprofessionaldevelopmentprogramsforteachersthatfocusonthenature

ofemployabilityskills,theirroleinthecurriculumandtheirassessment.

TheAustralianFlexibleLearningFramework(2009)suggeststhatteachersneedtointroduceemployability

skillsinastructuredwaytodemonstratetherelationshipbetweentheseskillsandtheirchosenfieldto

learners;theyfurtherrecommendkeepingdiscussionsaboutemployabilityskillstiedspecificallytoworktasks.

Unlesslearnersareabletorecognisetheimportanceofcommunication,problem-solving,planningskillsetc.to

findingajob,navigatingaroundthejobmarketandbasicallybeing‘employable’,theymayfocusonacquiring

onlythetechnicalskillstheyseeasrelevanttotheirchosenfield.

Involvingemployersintrainingisonewaytohelpteacherstobetterunderstandemployabilityskillsandtheirlinks

totheworkplace.Someoftheseskillsareeasiertolearnonthejobandemployersareideallyplacedto

providetheopportunityforlearnerstopractiseinaworkenvironment.Inthiswaylearnerswillrapidlyrecognise

theimportanceofbothsetsofskillstotheworkplace.Theresultislikelytobebetter-equippedgraduates,who

understandthatthesearetheskillsthatemployerstakeseriouslywhenassessingcandidatesforjobs.

TEACHING EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

AT A GLANCE 7

Box 4 Case study: trade teachers and teaching employability skills

InherpaperBeyond Mayer: learning from delivering and assessing generic employability competencies,MaryCushnahan(2009)exploredhowtrainersunderstandemployabilityskillsandhowtheyapproachthedeliveryandassessmentoftheseskills.CushnahaninvestigatedtheseissuesthroughinterviewsoftradeteacherswhohadcompletedtheCertificateIVinTrainingandAssessmentandthetrainerswhoteachthecertificate.

Cushnahan’sfindingsindicatedthattradeteacherswhoundertooktheCertificateIVinTrainingandAssessmentfeltthatemployabilityskillswereonlybrieflycoveredinthecourseandconsequentlytheywereunsureoftheirnatureandtheirrole.Thisuncertaintyledtoteachersbeingreluctanttoprovidetrainingandundertakeassessmentsontheseelements,whichinturnledtoemployabilityskillsbeingsidelined.

Cushnahanfoundthatthetrainerswhoteachthecertificatethemselvesneededgreaterclarityaboutthescopeandcontentofemployabilityskills,asituationthatsuggeststheneedforprofessionaldevelopmentforbothteachersandtrainers.

Source: Cushnahan (2009).

InresponsetotheNationalQualityCouncil’sendorsement,theAllenConsultingGroup(2006)analysedvarious

alternativestoembeddingemployabilityskillsintotrainingpackages.IntheirreporttothethenDepartment

ofEducation,ScienceandTrainingtheysuggestedfiveoptionswiththeirdefiningcharacteristicsforassessing

employabilityskills.Theseareshowninbox5.

Box 5 Forms of assessment

Generic•Reliesonthesubjectivejudgmentsoftrainersonalearner’semployabilityskills.•Areindependentofthetechnicalskillsinanunitofcompetency.•Lackcontextualisationtoindustry.•Assessmentmethodislessapplicableoutsidetheclassroomenvironment.

Standardised•Isanobjectiveformofassessmentthatinvolvestheuseofaspecial-purposestandardisedinstrument.•Iscomparableacrossindividuals.•Canbeexpensivetoimplementandmaintain.•Maynotconveytheimportanceofemployabilityskillstolearners.•Doesnotprovidecontextualinformationforindustry.

Integrated•Iscombinedwiththeassessmentoftechnicalskills.•Providesindustrycontextualisation.•Showsrelevanceofemployabilityskillstolearners.•Needsinputfromindustryindescribingwhatemployabilityskillsareneededforparticularqualifications.•Employabilityskillswillneedtobeembeddedintrainingpackages.

Graded•Scoreslearnersontheiremployabilityskillswithagradeofperformance.•Demonstratesthehighvalueofemployabilityskillstolearners.•Worksbestwithemployabilityskillsembeddedintrainingpackages.•Makeslittlesensetogradeemployabilityskillsastechnicalskillsarenotgraded.

Validated self-assessment•Collectevidenceforlearnersofemployabilityskillslearntandhaveevidencevalidatedbytheregisteredtraining organisation.•Creatingaportfoliowilldevelopthelearner’sawarenessofemployabilityskills.•Demonstratesthevalueofemployabilityskillstolearners.•Notcomparableacrossstudentsorinstitutions.

Source: Allen Consulting Group (2006).

ASSESSING EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

8 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

Comparisonofthevariousoptionssuggeststhatintegratedassessmentistheidealapproachfortworeasons:

individualscouldbecomparedandtherelevanceofemployabilityskillswouldbeobvioustolearners,asthey

areassessedincombinationwithtechnicalskills.TheAllenConsultingGroup(2006)recommendthisapproach.

Whenassessedaccordingtotheircriteriaof:valuetolearnersandemployers,trainingdelivery,easeof

implementation,andvalidity,flexibilityandreliability,thiswasthebestperformer.

However,employabilityskillsarenottheeasiesttoassess,assomerelatetoattitudesandarenotdirectly

observable.Herebehaviourhastobeusedasaproxyforattitude,andcompetenceisbasedonthelearner’s

performanceofthisbehaviour(Virgonaetal.2003).Competencyinemployabilityskillsshouldbeassessed

accordingtothecriteria,knowledgeandskillsdescribedintheunitofcompetency(AllenConsultingGroup

2006;Cleary,Flynn&Thomasson2006).Thereforehowemployabilityskillsarewrittenintoatrainingpackage

willaffecthowtheyareassessed.

Anotherissuewithassessingemployabilityskillsisdeterminingwhoshoulddecideontheassessmentmethod.

Forassessmenttobenefitthelearner,ithastoberelatedtotheworkenvironment.Whoeverhasthefinal

sayontheassessmentmethodneedstohaveanunderstandingofhowtheseskillstranslatetotheworkplace.

Industry,theregisteredtrainingorganisationorteacher—eachpotentiallyhasaroletoplay.Astheeventual

employeroflearners,industryshouldbeinvolvedintheexplicitspecificationoftheassessmentcomponent,

whichwouldinvolveidentifyingrisks(forexample,isitahigh-riskenvironment?),whetherassessmentshould

bedoneonthejob,theskillsneededandhowtheskillswillbedemonstrated(thatis,theconditionsandtime

allowedetc.).Theapproachtoassessmentshouldbeconsistentacrossindustry,trainingorganisationsand

teachers.

Ifthegoalisconsistencyacrosstrainingpackages,thentheassessmentmethodshouldbedecidedbyindustry,

butifthegoalisindividualisedassessmenttailoredtoworkplacesorstudents,thentheassessmentmethod

shouldbedeterminedbytheregisteredtrainingorganisations.Asfarasteachersareconcerned,greatvariance

inassessmentmethodsispossibleacrossindividualteachersteachingthesameunitofcompetency.However,

suchanomaliescanbeavoidedwitharangestatementandanevidenceguidethatdealspecificallywith

employabilityskills.Acombinedapproach,wherebytheindustrydeterminesasetofassessmentstandards

butwhicharetailoredbytrainingorganisationstoclientneeds,couldprovidetheconsistencyandflexibility

demandedoftheVETsector.Otherfactorsinfluencingthechoiceofassessmentincludethelocationofthe

settingandthequalificationlevel.Aswellasthis,successfulassessmentofemployabilityskillsshouldinclude

acleardefinition,explicitinformationforstudents,acknowledgmentofthestudent’ssignificantrolein

assessment,andgoodguidelinesforassessors(AllenConsultingGroup2004).Goodassessmentshouldalso

providefeedbackandnotbeonerous(AllenConsultingGroup2004).

AT A GLANCE 9

Inadditiontohavingtheabilitytoeffectivelycommunicatetheirskillsinajobintervieworapplication,being

abletoreporttheemployabilityskillstheyhavelearntisimportantforlearnerswhentheybecomejobseekers.

Andforemployers,reportingcanimprovetheirunderstandingoftheemployabilityskillsdeliveredintraining

packagesandassistinrecruitmentdecisions.TheAustralianJobs2011reportpointsoutthatemployersrelyon

employabilityskillswhenchoosingbetweensuitablecandidates,particularlywhenthereisalargenumberof

applicantsforaposition(DepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations2011).

Therearefourmainoptionsforreportingemployabilityskills,wherebyinformationontheindividualandthe

trainingdeliveredisprovided.Thesearedescribedinbox6.

Box 6 Forms of reporting

‘Competent’ or ‘not yet competent’•Indicateswhetheralearnerhasachievedcompetenceforeachemployabilityskill.•Doesnotprovideanyindicationoftheextenttowhichtheyarecompetent.•Doesnotenhancelearner’sknowledgeoftheemployabilityskillstheyhaveobtained.•IstheapproachusedelsewhereinVET.

Levels of competency•Providesdifferentperformancelevelsforeachoftheemployabilityskills.•Indicatesthehighestlevelthatthelearnerhasachieved.•Couldbemistakenasaformofgrading.

Descriptive•Usesshortsentencestodescribethenatureofemployabilityskillsdeveloped.•Textcouldbetakenfromtheemployabilityskillssummaryinthetrainingpackage.•Providescontextforthelearnerandemployer.•Couldbedifficultforreportingonlearnersonlyundertakingaunitofcompetency.

Portfolios•Providesevidenceoftheskillsacquiredfromtraining.•Wouldbeuptothestudenttomaintain.•Canbeusedtodemonstrateemployabilityskillstoemployers.•Isbasedonthepremisethatthelearnerisbestplacedtoidentifytheemployabilityskillstheyhavedeveloped.

Source: Allen Consulting Group (2006).

DescriptivereportingistheNationalQualityCouncil’s(2008)preferredoption,asitprovidesasummaryofthe

employabilityskillsattained.TheAllenConsultingGroup(2006),ontheotherhand,recommendsanapproach

thatcombinesdescriptivereportingwithportfolios.Theyarguedthatdescriptivereportingperformedbeston

theircriteriaofvaluetolearners,employers,andtrainingdeliveryaswellaseaseofimplementation,while

portfolioswouldprovideinformationtoemployersontheemployabilityskillsdevelopedbythestudent.Since

2006theuseofportfolioshasbecomethenormandin2009theywerealsoendorsedbytheAustralianFlexible

LearningFramework(2009).Box7providesanexampleofaskillsportfolioreportingemployabilityskills.

REPORTING EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

10 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS

Box 7 Example of communication skills in a skills portfolio

Source: Queensland University of Technology.

Asfarastheadvanceofemployabilityskillsisconcerned,themostsignificantdevelopmentsince2002has

beentheNationalQualityCouncil’sendorsementoftheirintegrationintotrainingpackages;asanessential

componentoftrainingpackages,theseskillsbecomerecognisedasimportanttogettingajob.Theirintegration

intotrainingpackagesalsosignalledthatteacherswouldhavetoteachthem—andthatlearnerswouldhaveto

takethemseriously.

Thekeychallengesaheadlieinensuringthatteachersareequippedtoteachtheseskillsandthatappropriate

andconsistentmethodsofassessingandreportingareavailableandutilised.Improvingtheabilityofteachers

toeffectivelyteachemployabilityskillswillhaveaconcomitanteffectonlearners:theircapacitytoengage

withthenotionofemployabilityskillsandtotransferwhattheyhavelearntduringtrainingtotheirfuture

employmentwillbegreatlyexpanded.Theissueofconsistencyinreportingandassessmentstandardsacross

trainingpackagesrequiresdirectindustryaction—perhapsthroughindustryskillscouncils.Finally,tofurther

advancethecrucialpositionofemployabilityskillsintoday’strainingarenademandsanoperationaldefinition

ofemployabilityskills,onethatcanbeusedwithequalunderstandingbyindustryandpractitioners.

CONCLUSION

AT A GLANCE 11

InattemptingtoaddresssomeoftheissuesraisedinthisAt a glance,theDepartmentofEducation,

EmploymentandWorkplaceRelationshas,aspartoftheNationalFoundationSkillsStrategy,begun

developmentofanemployabilityskillsframework.TheaimoftheSkillsStrategyistoaddressstructuralissues

withinthenationaltrainingsystemtoimprovefoundationskills.Thisprojectisdueforcompletionmid-2012,

afterwhichtheframeworkwillbeimplemented.Itishopedthatthisframeworkwillbesuccessfulinsetting

consistentstandards,atthesametimeassistingteacherstoimprovetheirknowledgeandunderstandingof

theseskills,fortheultimatebenefitofthenextgenerationoflearners.

REFERENCES AllenConsultingGroup2004,Development of a strategy to support the universal recognition and recording of employability skills: a skills portfolio approach,DepartmentofEducation,ScienceandTraining,Canberra.

——2006,Assessment and reporting of employability skills in training packages,ReporttotheDepartmentofEducation,ScienceandTraining,Melbourne,March.

AustralianChamberofCommerceandIndustry&BusinessCouncilofAustralia2002, Employability skills for the future,DepartmentofEducation,ScienceandTraining,Canberra.

AustralianFlexibleLearningFramework2009,The impact of e-learning on employability skills development,DepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations,Canberra.

AustralianIndustryGroup&Deloitte2009,National CEO survey — Skilling business in tough times,AustralianIndustryGroup,Sydney.

Callan,VJ2003,Generic skills: understanding vocational education and training teacher and student attitudes,NCVER,Adelaide.

Clayton,B2010,‘TrainingtheVETworkforce:arewesucceedingorfailing?’presentedatNCVERResearchonToast,23June2010,Adelaide.

Cleary,M,Flynn,R&Thomasson,S2006,Employability skills from framework to practice: an introductory guide for trainers and assessors,DepartmentofEducation,ScienceandTraining,Canberra.

Cushnahan,M2009,Beyond Mayer: learning from delivering and assessing generic employability competencies,NCVER,Adelaide.

DepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations2008a,ES tool 8: Example employability skills statement,DepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations,Canberra.

——2008b,ES tool 9: developing an employability skills summary,DepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations,Canberra.

——2011,Australian jobs 2011,viewedJune2011,.

Forward,P2010,‘Businessasusual?’,Campus Review,23August2010,viewedAugust2010,.

IndustrySkillsCouncils2009,CHC08 Community Services Training Package volume 3: employability skills qualification summaries,CommunityServicesandHealthIndustrySkillsCouncil,NSW.

Maxwell,S2010,Using rubrics to support graded assessment in a competency-based environment,NCVER,Adelaide.

NationalQualityCouncil2008,‘Transitiontonewarrangementsforreportingonemployabilityskills’,officialcommuniqué,NationalQualityCouncil,Melbourne.

NCVER(NationalCentreforVocationalEducationResearch)2003a,Defining generic skills: at a glance,NCVER,Adelaide.

——2003b,Fostering generic skills in VET programs and workplaces: at a glance,NCVER,Adelaide.

QueenslandUniversityofTechnology,Sample ePortfolio tour,Queensland,viewed6July2011,.

Smith,E2010,‘Employabilityskills’,inInternational encyclopedia of education: volume 8,ed.PPeterson,EBaker&BMcGaw,Elsevier,Oxford.

Virgona,C,Waterhouse,P,Sefton,R,&Sanguinetti,J2003,Making experience work: generic skills through the eyes of displaced workers — volume 1,NCVER,Adelaide.

© Commonwealth of Australia, 2011

ThisworkhasbeenproducedbytheNationalCentreforVocationalEducationResearch(NCVER)undertheNationalVocationalEducationandTrainingResearchandEvaluation(NVETRE)Program,whichiscoordinatedandmanagedbyNCVER,onbehalfoftheAustralianGovernmentandstateandterritorygovernments.FundingisprovidedthroughtheDepartmentofEducation,EmploymentandWorkplaceRelations.

TheNVETREprogramisbaseduponprioritiesapprovedbyministerswithresponsibilityforvocationaleducationandtraining(VET).ThisresearchaimstoimprovepolicyandpracticeintheVETsector.ForfurtherinformationabouttheprogramgototheNCVERwebsite.

ApartfromanyusepermittedundertheCopyright Act 1968,nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedbyanyprocesswithoutwrittenpermission.RequestsshouldbemadetoNCVER.

Theviewsandopinionsexpressedinthisdocumentarethoseoftheauthor/projectteamanddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsoftheAustralianGovernmentorstateandterritorygovernments.

Anat a glanceisasynthesisofresearchfocusedonaparticulartopicofinterest,drawingoninformationfromvarioussources.

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