Young people are more schooled
- But are they more educated?
Disengagement. Early school leaving. Rising university costs. There are many reasons why young people find it hard to pursue a tertiary education.
Back in the early 2000s Australia's former Prime Minister John Howard said that people have become "obsessed" with gaining a tertiary degree. However, the numbers today do not support his statement: Fewer young Australians now obtain a university degree.
The Education Alliance Quarterly has asked Melbourne University education expert Richard Teese about the current situation in Australia.
Education Alliance Quarterly: An increasing number of students fail to pursue further education in Australia. Could you briefly describe this situation? Why don't they opt for further education?
RICHARD TEESE: "The biggest single factor is low achievement. If young people have struggled with schoolwork for much of the time, they will either drop out before gaining a school qualification or will 'carry failure' to the end of school and then make a very problematic transition into working life - either unemployed or only part-time employed. Their aspirations are low and their ability to undertake further studies is limited. We are able to provide them with opportunities in further education, but at a very basic level."
EAQ: What kind of benefits do students currently not gain from school?
RT: "I would say the broader benefits of intellectual growth and fuller personal development through an enriching experience of school. Many young people are not successful at school. They stay on for want of better opportunities. Their engagement with schoolwork is limited, and their marks poor. We have not provided them with stimulating opportunities and have not supported them well enough. So they are 'marking time'."
EAQ: What is the most important outcome of education for young people today?
RT: "This depends on which young people we are talking about. For some, it is getting an apprenticeship - the traditional 4-year indenture with an employer plus accredited training. For others, it is going to university or perhaps technical and further education (TAFE), where they can complete middle-level to advanced technical training. But, in general, most importantly in the Australian context, it is finishing secondary school - and doing well in their studies."
EAQ: Have the educational outcomes changed within the past decades?
RT: "Yes, things have definitely improved, but not in all areas. More children today study mathematics to a high level, but fewer undertake critical studies, such as economics and history, if they do reach the final years of secondary school."
EAQ: Is the young generation today more skilled or better educated than their parents' generation?
RT: "On the whole, they are more schooled, but not necessarily better educated. However, it depends on the group. Today many working-class students complete school and go onto to university. About 1 in 3 young people from the poorest tenth band of socio-economic status will both complete school and enter university. So a lot of progress has been made. Nevertheless young people today, taken as a group, are less likely to have undertaken liberal studies in their program, i.e., to have studied ideas and institutions or social forces. They may be better prepared to enter the labour market through the rise of vocational studies, but less well-prepared to reason about state and society, less conscious of their history and even their geography."
EAQ: In the recent past, we have seen an increase in vocational educational training (VET). Does the increase in VET lead to improved educational opportunities?
RT: "One important impact relates to early leavers. If they have included some VET in their studies, they are more likely to secure full-time work and less likely to be unemployed one year after leaving school. This is after controlling for achievement level. In other words, VET can overcome the disadvantage of leaving school without a qualification. It is still not necessarily a longterm advantage, as early leavers remain uncompetitive and vulnerable in the labour market and may lack the personal attributes as well as their school qualification that would assist them to be flexible in changing economic circumstances.
Another important benefit of VET is that it appears to improve study motivation while at school. For many students, it makes the difference between staying on at school or leaving.
Having included VET in a school program does improve the employability of young people as they have employer-recognized skills and usually also a period of structured workplace learning under the supervision of an employer."
By Camilla Mehlsen cme@dpu.dk
RICHARD TEESE
Richard Teese is Professor and Director of the Centre for Post-Compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning in the University of Melbourne. He has enjoyed a long career studying the unequal operation of school systems and investigating the social processes underpinning inequality. He has authored or co-authored over one hundred research papers on schools, vocational education and training, higher education, and adult education.
Richard Teese
Richard Teese is Professor and Director of the Centre for Post-Compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning in the University of Melbourne. He has enjoyed a long career studying the unequal operation of school systems and investigating the social processes underpinning inequality. He has authored or co-authored over one hundred research papers on schools, vocational education and training, higher education, and adult education.