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Protecting all people from the harmful effects of environmental exposures relies on the coordinated efforts of scientific researchers, regulatory agencies, legislators, and the public. Environmental justice addresses the disproportionate impact that harmful environmental exposures have on individuals and communities who are minoritized and marginalized. It has long been known that environmental problems disproportionately impact these groups; however, addressing these problems has been impeded by structural racism and other biases. Developing effective interventions to eliminate these disparities requires a more diverse and inclusive modern workforce produced by a bottom-up approach beginning with education and professional development of the next generation of researchers. The most effective approaches to addressing inequities rely on active input from impacted populations to ensure cultural and social acceptance and adoption of interventions. Credibly pursuing these efforts in a sustainable, inclusive manner will require a concerted shift in workforce demography. One potential strategy to address these workforce disparities features academic-industry partnerships with targeted professional development programs aimed at minoritized and underserved populations. [This paper was supported by strategic funds from the University Collaboration Office at RTI International and North Carolina Central University.]

This publication is intended for three primary audiences: international development professionals who want to define "workforce" for program design purposes, those who seek information about field activities, and those who want to reflect on the implementation of successful, high impact programs--whether they were broad-based or sector-specific projects or local activities. The goal is to provide readers with options and strategies for connecting diverse sets of development objectives through international workforce initiatives. Following a brief introduction, the first chapter briefly reviews international workforce initiatives' historical roles in United States economic and political diplomacy and how they became part of the practice of development assistance. The chapters that follow provide definitions and design principles. The annexes contain more than 80 profiles of projects the Academy for Educational Development (AED) is currently or has recently implemented that have had workforce components. Most of the examples used come from projects implemented in partnership with the U.S. government, projects funded by the United Nations (UN), the Group of Eight (G-8), private foundations, and national governments are also included. Annexes contain: (1) AED Workforce Initiatives--Project Profiles ; (2) AED-Managed Global Technical Assistance Programs; and (3) Profiles of AED Projects with Workforce Components by Category.(Contains 23 endnotes.) [Primary support for this publication has come from AED's Leadership and Institutional Development Group and the AED Center for Enterprise and Capacity Development (CECD).]

Human resources are recognised as being key to the creation, commercialisation and diffusion of innovation. Among them, doctorate holders are not only the most qualified in terms of educational attainment, but also those who are specifically trained to conduct research. Not much is known however about their career and mobility patterns on the labour market. This is why the OECD launched in 2004 a collaborative project with the UNESCO Institute for Statistics and Eurostat aimed at developing internationally comparable indicators on the careers and mobility of doctorate holders. An expert group with representatives from national statistical bodies was formed to develop the technical components of the project and start compiling data at national level. This document presents the three main technical components of the project which are: (1) the methodological guidelines; (2) a core model questionnaire and instruction manual; and (3) the output indicator tables used for reporting data at the international level. The current draft was discussed by the OECD Working Party of National Experts on Science and Technology Indicators (NESTI) in June 2007 and approved for broader diffusion. Its aim is to provide guidance to countries that wish to implement the project at national level. It is planned to work on a new and improved version following the outcomes of the data collection launched in November 2007. (Contains 7 footnotes and 32 tables.)

Using the qualitative research method known as folknography, the authors led a research team to the heart of Illinois farm country to ask the question "What are the perceptions of the people of the Midwest concerning math and math education?" A review of the literature includes Canadian and Australian references on the topic, as well as information from the United States, and the targeted geography and population is described. Research followed the pattern of a similar study conducted in Appalachia in 2004. A preliminary survey was planned to gather benchmarking statistical data and to open respondents up to the possibilities of a folknographic interview. Folknographers entered the field in May 2006 to perform focused and intensive field research. Findings include: (1) belief that young people can not perform simple math; (2) perception that too much technology has a significant and negative impact on developing minds of students; (3) connection between acquiring math knowledge and achieving a dynamic career; (4) recollections of tyrannical or cruel math teachers; (5) desire for a school or school system that makes learning math an exciting and motivating experience. Folknographic narratives are included to illustrate each finding. Bibliography is included. Four appendixes conclude the document: (1) Perceptions of Math in the Mid-West Interview Questions: Adults (18-55); (2) Perceptions of Math in the Mid-West Interview Questions: Seniors (55-Over); (3) Perceptions of Math in the Mid-West Interview Questions: Youth (Ages 10-17); and (4) Perceptions of Math Survey Mid-West. (Contains 4 charts.)

While the majority of adults who take the General Educational Development (GED) test do so in order to continue their education, few go on to enter postsecondary education. Yet, these same adults stand to make substantial economic and personal gains when they use their adult secondary credential to move from the ranks of high school dropout to postsecondary graduate, with the possibility of going from low-wage jobs to careers with a livable wage and benefits. Unlike transition services for high school graduates, which are well-established, the transformation of adult basic education (ABE) programs to include transition services for adults is an emerging area of concern for the field of adult education. Identifying adult education models that help adult learners avoid cycles of remediation at the beginning of their college careers is more likely to produce students who can persist and obtain a postsecondary education credential. In the first five years of adult transition work done by staff at the New England Literacy Resource Center (NELRC) at World Education, Inc., the team noticed distinct models emerging in the field. To capture and categorize these models, NELRC surveyed adult education centers with transition components from around the United States, guided by the question: Do ABE-to-college transition programs fall into discrete models and, if so, what are the key features of these models? Through the development of program snapshots and four state profiles, the team discovered commonalities, allowing for an extension of an earlier typology of adult transition programs now to include five models: (1) Advising; (2) GED-Plus; (3) ESOL; (4) Career Pathways; and (5) College Preparatory. In addition, analysis of the aggregated data produced a series of themes and recommendations that other states contemplating adult transition services might find helpful. Appended are: (1) Survey Questions on Emerging Transition Models; (2) Survey Questions for State-level Interviews; (3) Programs Surveyed by Model; and (4) Contact Information. (Contains 7 tables and 1 figure.)

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is exploring the possibility of conducting a large-scale multi-year study of teachers' careers. The proposed new study is intended to follow a national probability sample of teachers over an extended period of time. A number of methodological issues need to be addressed before the study can be initiated. In considering these issues, this report offers critiques of a variety of alternative designs. Section 2, following an introduction, reviews the research content and goals of the proposed study, identifying four principal substantive gaps in current knowledge about the teaching career: (1) teacher quality; (2) teachers' work contexts; (3) teachers' work lives; and (4) teachers' career paths. The following sections offer both general and specific recommendations on the design of the proposed study. Section 3 sets forth general proposals, identifying a set of important design principles. Sections 4, 5, and 6 provide concrete recommendations for specific aspects of the proposed design. A particular focus is designating the target population and the specific sample to be tracked. Other points of interest are the length and periodicity of data collection. Section 6 comments on some survey implementation issues that will arise as NCES expands its data collection beyond current cross-sectional and 1-year follow-up studies. (Contains 2 tables, 9 figures, and 52 references.) (SLD)

Student pathways through the American higher education system are complex and entail more than the choice between continuation and dropout. The four-year college system requires students seeking a bachelor's degree to pass through a series of transitions that are marked by the achievement of credit thresholds in each year of study. At those junctures students make critical decisions about their progress: whether to enroll for sufficient credits to ensure timely completion, whether to enroll for fewer credits, or whether to leave school for a limited period of time. This project overcomes the simplistic view of discrete choices between enrollment and nonenrollment and takes a close look at the cumulative nature of the attainment of U.S. students at four-year colleges and the social inequalities arising in this process. Detailed transcript data from the National Educational Longitudinal Study (NELS-88) and multinomial transition models provide evidence on the shape of and social inequality in four-year college careers. We describe distinct trajectories through college and show that they strongly depend on students' decisions at earlier stages of their college careers. Transitions through college are also found to be strongly related to students' socioeconomic backgrounds. In addition, we show that the penalties incurred from unfavorable earlier choices is greater for disadvantaged students. By fully appreciating the cumulative nature of educational pathways through college we provide an important new view on the complex routes to college completion and trace an important source of the socioeconomic gap in college completion. The relatively rigid structure of the U.S. four-year college system appears to produce strong path-dependent and status dependent cumulative advantages for high-status students. Appended are the following tables: (1) Variable Descriptions; (2) Multinomial Regressions (Odds Ratios); and (3) BA Completion (Odds Ratios). (Contains 4 tables, 4 figures, and 10 footnotes.) [An earlier version of this paper was presented at the spring 2008 conference of the Research Committee on Stratification and Mobility (RC28) in Florence, and the 2009 annual meeting of the Sociology of Educational Association (SEA) in Monterey.]

This paper, one in a series about the priorities of the professoriate, examines work-family issues as they affect faculty recruitment, retention, and productivity. Following a brief discussion of changing work-force demographics, the first part of the paper examines the structure of an academic career, focusing particularly on junior faculty and the tenure decision. The discussion covers workloads, the career path to tenure, and the effects of decentralization. The second section looks at various campus work-family initiatives, noting that "leadership" campuses tend to share certain family-friendly cultures at dual-career couples and at how a few medical schools have restructured their standard work and career arrangements. Section 3 looks beyond academe to see what can be learned from industry and other employers. It notes that development of work-family programs typically goes through several stages of evolution. It also finds that work-family programs are effective in addressing impediments to employee effectiveness. The final section suggests practical strategies for work-family programs, noting that such programs must be comprehensive and cover all career stages, that they require institutional support and leadership, that work must be redesigned so that faculty can integrate work-family responsibilities, and that they require fundamental changes in academic culture. (Contains 42 references.) (CH)

This paper provides an overview of the information currently available on the prospects of electronic work at home. The first major section examines the technological environment that makes electronic home work possible. Central and dispersed computer facilities, internal and external means of communication, work stations, software, and security factors are studied from the standpoints of present and future technology and from the point of view of a work organization considering the design of a system that could accommodate electronic home workers. The second major section considers likely human implications of electronic home work. These are classified as costs and benefits (interpreted broadly as disadvantages and advantages) to the worker, to the employer, and to society. The paper concludes that the electronic cottage option has costs and benefits that depend on particular circumstances and their interaction and that the option offers the potential to improve the quality of many workers' lives. (YLB)

The Vocational Interest Survey (VIS) is a set of six questionnaires for measuring vocational interests. It is designed to be used in career counseling with persons 15 years and over, who want to explore and understand their vocational interests. Completion of this inventory requires: (1) active participation of respondents, (2) a setting where individuals can concentrate, and (3) an understanding of the goal of this assessment. The purpose of this paper is to outline some aspects of the administration and scoring of the VIS, with special emphasis on the relative preference index. The VIS comes with instructions for administering and completing the survey. The reading level for the instructions is estimated to be at year 5/6 level. The VIS is designed to be essentially self-scoring. The procedure for computing raw scores is the same for all scales. Based on a sample of 2,459 men and women, combined-sex norms were developed as percentile ranks for each of the six scales. The Relative Preference Index (RPI) is used to make statements about a client's level of preference on each subscale. The RPI is a variation of a mastery score that shows quantity of preference. It describes the level of performance rather than the relative standing in a group. It is cautioned that any questionnaire should be employed as only one aspect of the vocational guidance process. (JAZ)

The Vocational Interest Survey (VIS) is a set of six questionnaire scales for measuring vocational interest. It is designed for Australian users and is consistent with Holland's theory that there are six basic career categories. This paper discusses the development of the VIS and presents some technical data on the questionnaires. Items were provided by the users (in the form of free-association responses) rather than by psychologists. Based on those items, a pilot questionnaire was prepared, which contained three separate lists of 138 occupations, 105 study courses, and 152 activities. Complete-link clustering was used to develop six temporary groups of occupational items. The 105 items relating to study courses were then correlated with the six experimental scales. Further item-analyses were conducted to produce six combined jobs/study courses scales with maximum internal consistency. Finally, activity items were selected and added to the combined jobs/study courses. Reliability of VIS scales was assessed using measures of internal consistency, split-half reliability, and test-retest coefficients. In addition, the intercorrelations of the six VIS scales, the construct validity of the VIS, and the relationship between vocational interests on the VIS and career related characteristics were measured. The appendix provides a listing which summarizes the overall responses to each item. (JAZ)

What is taught, what is learned, and how they relate to graduate employment are examined in an effort to interpret the trend toward vocationalism within higher education institutions. It is suggested that tightening of the graduate labor market inaugurated an accelerating trend toward vocationalism that has contributed to a deterioration of academic values and a demoralization of college faculty. The teaching responsibilities of colleges are discussed and divided into general knowledge, disciplinary knowledge, and instrumental knowledge. Instrumental knowledge is described as practical or vocational instruction. A general trend away from disciplinary majors in favor of the instrumental subjects is discussed. The values and outcomes of general, disciplinary, and instrumental education are explored and it is concluded from the research that the large increase in instrumental graduates does not represent a better articulation of education and employment, nor does it constitute a productive social investment. Therefore it is suggested that the traditional mission of American undergraduate education--disinterested learning for cultural enrichment and intellectual development--now appears in danger of being displaced by vocational programs of dubious value. (Author/SF)

The Vocational Interest Survey (VIS) is a measure of six vocational interests--practical, scientific, artistic, social, business and clerical--based on the model of interests proposed by Holland. Five broad design criteria for the development of the six interest scales are outlined, e.g., minimum reliability of 0.80. Each scale is organized into three parts: (1) occupational choices; (2) educational preferences; and (3) activity interests. Seven major applications of the VIS are described: individual assessment, diagnosis, selection and placement, guidance, prediction, evaluation, and research. A list of job names and courses for use with the VIS, and the six questionnaires are appended. (Author/JAZ)

The user of the Vocational Interest Survey (VIS) has available a number of interpretative approaches at various descriptive and qualitative levels. This report provides a brief outline of the various approaches. Whenever all six scales of the VIS are administered, the client's total score on all six scales should be within the average range. The average total score is 54. Fifty percent of all clients range from 26 to 72. The clients' highest scores determine their resemblance to one of the six vocational types. People who resemble many vocational types are labeled as undifferentiated or poorly defined; the average level of differentiation in a sample of 206 high school students was 58. The level of consistency refers to the compatibility between a person's highest interests. Compatibility is measured by the distance between the vocational types of interest on a hexagonal typology of interests described by Holland. The hexagonal model may also be used to obtain four degrees of person-occupation congruency. Results from the VIS can be used to search for occupations which are compatible with interests. A copy of the interest profile and list of careers in each vocational category is attached. (JAZ)

Companies are facing a persistent and growing skills gap, which has been exacerbated by the tight labor market. Employers use industry certifications, college degrees, boot camps, and badges to measure job skills, but until recently it was impossible to compare certifications or degree attainment. This paper describes credential transparency and its benefits--how it provides specific details on a credential program's length, cost, competencies, skills provided, level of mastery targeted, earnings potential, and employment outcomes, and allows individuals to compare credentials to see which is more likely to result in a preferred career or higher wages. The federal government has taken steps to promote the use of credential transparency and currently 26 states are engaged in important work around its use, allowing them to measure return on investment, align credential offerings with economic needs, and support the creation of digital transcripts and learning and employment records.