Claire Field, Consultant and an advisor to the tertiary education sector at Claire Field & Associates, reports in 9 February 2022 edition of Campus Morning Mail on the keynote address Prof. Lorna Unwin from University College London gave on the changing world of work and what it means for VET.
This is an interesting piece Claire reports on, as the Professor, “argued that if the sector is to continue to have relevance, we need to shift our thinking of VET being predominantly institutionally focussed (mostly on a student’s initial post-school qualification) to a broader focus on developing learners’ expertise throughout their life.” Something not new to some practitioners in industry.
The keynote address by Prof. Lorna Unwin was given at last week’s seventh Congress on Research in Vocational Education and Training is pertinent to the VET reform underway here in Australia.
Claire states she, “particularly liked her characterisation of the drivers of change in the workplace and society. In addition to the three core drivers: technology, climate and demography – she added two which receive little attention in Australia:
- the growth in intangible assets (ideas, brands, marketing, networks, etc), and
- lifestyle changes (an increased focus on work-life balance, and at least in the UK, a growth in craft-related hobbies)
She then went on to describe how these changes are in turn changing the way people think and talk about their work …”
