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The topic of more frequent and timely vocational education and training (VET) data has been an issue of interest for a number of years. Since 2015, the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) has collected and reported data on government-funded students and courses on a quarterly basis. These quarterly data submissions are cumulative and allow additional data to be reported and corrections made to previously submitted data. The first year of quarterly reporting has provided a useful insight into how training activity is reported by the different jurisdictions over a calendar year. This paper presents the results of some initial analysis of that data using the reporting scope that was in place for 2015 reporting, broadly defined as all activity delivered by government providers and government-funded activity delivered by community education and other registered providers.

This is a support document to the "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide" report. Developed for users of LSAY, the user guide consolidates information about the LSAY 2009 cohort into one document. This support document provides school and school transition information for the guide. [For the main report, "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide. Technical Paper 74," see ED536971. For other supporting documents, see "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements A--Demographics. Technical Paper 74A" (ED536979); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements B2--Education (Post-School). Technical Paper 74B2" (ED536975); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements C--Employment. Technical Paper 74C" (ED536974); and "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements D--Social. Technical Paper 74D" (ED536972).]

This is a support document to the "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide" report. Developed for users of LSAY, the user guide consolidates information about the LSAY 2009 cohort into one document. This support document provides demographics information for the guide. [For the main report, "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide. Technical Paper 74," see ED536971. For other supporting documents, see "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements B1--Education (School and School Transition). Technical Paper 74B1" (ED536973); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements B2--Education (Post-School). Technical Paper 74B2" (ED536975); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements C--Employment. Technical Paper 74C" (ED536974); and "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements D--Social. Technical Paper 74D" (ED536972).]

Developed for users of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), this user guide consolidates information about the LSAY 2009 cohort into one document. The guide aims to address all aspects of the LSAY data including: how to access the data; data restrictions; variable naming conventions; the structure of the data; documentation; classifications and code frames used; weights; and derived variables. Updates to the Y09 data file are appended. (Contains 14 tables, 9 figures and 6 footnotes.) [For supporting documents, see "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements A--Demographics. Technical Paper 74A" (ED536979); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements B1--Education (School and School Transition). Technical Paper 74B1" (ED536973); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements B2--Education (Post-School). Technical Paper 74B2" (ED536975); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements C--Employment. Technical Paper 74C" (ED536974); and "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) 2009 Cohort User Guide: Data Elements D--Social. Technical Paper 74D" (ED536972).]

Despite significant improvements in the areas of education and employment, the gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth remain. Across some indicators--for example, university participation--the gap has actually widened. This is mainly because improvements for non-Indigenous young people have matched or surpassed the gains made by Indigenous young people. Governments at both federal and state levels are striving to improve Indigenous people's educational attainment and employment participation. The consistently lower scores in reading and maths assessments achieved by Indigenous youth have meant that improving their performance in literacy and numeracy has become one of the key target areas on the national agenda to assist in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Using data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), this briefing paper explores the impact of literacy and numeracy levels on the educational gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth. The paper focuses on the early post-school outcomes of Indigenous and non-Indigenous young people between 1999 and 2007. Appendices include: (1) Measuring the Gap; and (2) Additional Table. (Contains 11 tables and 3 footnotes.)

This research used a survey to investigate the attitudes of people with a disability towards undertaking training. The findings show very positive attitudes towards training by participants and, although the ability to generalise to the wider population is limited, one thing is clear: generally, people with a disability are willing to undertake vocational education and training (VET) and consider it a good option in helping them find employment. Some factors affected attitudes more than others, including level of school-based education; highest qualification level completed; whether people had single or multiple disabilities; and, to some extent, gender. (Contains 10 tables and 1 footnote.)

In March 1997, all State, Territory and Commonwealth education ministers agreed on the national goal: that every child leaving primary school should be numerate and able to read, write and spell at an appropriate level. To provide focus for this goal, ministers also agreed to a sub-goal: that every child commencing school from 1998 will achieve a minimum acceptable literacy and numeracy standard within four years. To help support the achievement of these goals, ministers agreed to the implementation of the National Literacy and Numeracy Plan, the essential features of which are: (1) early assessment and intervention for students at risk of not achieving minimum required standards; (2) development of national benchmarks for each of years 3, 5 and 7; (3) assessment of student progress against these benchmarks; (4) national reporting of benchmark data, and (5) professional development for teachers. Education authorities in all States and Territories, assisted by the Commonwealth, have been engaged in implementing these elements of the plan since its formulation. This paper concerns the national reporting of benchmark data for 2007 and follows on from earlier editions of the "National Report on Schooling in Australia," which published data for 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. The publications reflect the continuing development of the benchmark reporting process. This 2007 edition also provides data on the performance of students in metropolitan, provincial, remote and very remote areas. In each State and Territory, students' school locations are categorised using the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) Geographical Location Classification, and procedures closely related to the approaches of the Australian Bureau of Statistics. From 2005, States and Territories commenced collecting information on student socioeconomic background through school enrolment processes. Preliminary data from this collection approach has indicated there is a relatively low response rate from parents/care-givers. Information about student socioeconomic background will be published in the relevant chapter of the full "National Report on Schooling in Australia." (Contains 36 tables and 12 figures.) [For "National Report on Schooling in Australia, 2006. Preliminary Paper. National Benchmark Results Reading, Writing and Numeracy Years 3, 5 and 7," see ED534692.]

The relationship between prior educational attainment and participation in formal and On-the-Job Training (OJT) in Australia was examined through an analysis of unit record data from the 1993 Survey of Training and Education that was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Univariate analyses were performed to document employee participation by level of educational attainment in three different types of training activities: external training, in-house training, and OJT. Multivariate analyses were then conducted to separate the effect of educational attainment from other variables (for example, age and occupation) that might affect training participation. Educational attainment was found to have a significant impact on employee participation in both formal and on-the-job training. Low levels of participation in training were particularly evident for individuals who had not completed secondary school and who held no postschool educational qualifications. Females, individuals in the 30-44 age bracket, individuals born in Australia or other English-speaking countries, individuals with their current employer for fewer than 3 years, individuals working in the public sector, and full-time employees in nonmetropolitan rural locations were most likely to participate in training. (Five tables and two graphs constitute approximately 50% of this document. (Contains 16 references.) (MN)

An epidemic of obesity has been developing in virtually all OECD countries over the last 30 years. Existing evidence provides strong suggestions that such epidemic has affected certain social groups more than others. In particular, education appears to be associated with a lower likelihood of obesity, especially among women. A range of analyses of health survey data from Australia, Canada, England and Korea were undertaken with the aim of exploring the relationship between education and obesity. The findings of these analyses show a broadly linear relationship between the number of years spent in full-time education and the probability of obesity, with most educated individuals displaying lower rates of the condition (the only exception being men in Korea). This suggests that marginal returns to education, in terms of reduction in obesity rates, are approximately constant throughout the education spectrum. The findings obtained confirm that the education gradient in obesity is stronger in women than in men. Differences between genders are minor in Australia and Canada, more pronounced in England and major in Korea. The causal nature of the link between education and obesity has not yet been proven with certainty; however, using data from France we were able to ascertain that the direction of causality appears to run mostly from education to obesity, as the strength of the association is only minimally affected when accounting for reduced educational opportunities for those who are obese in young age. Most of the effect of education on obesity is direct. Small components of the overall effect of education on obesity are mediated by an improved socio-economic status linked to higher levels of education, and by a higher level of education of other family members, associated with an individual's own level of education. The positive effect of education on obesity is likely to be determined by at least three factors: (a) greater access to health-related information and proved ability to handle such information; (b) clearer perception of the risks associated with lifestyle choices; and, (c) improved self-control and consistency of preferences over time. However, it is not just the absolute level of education achieved by an individual that matters, but also how such level of education compares with that of the individual's peers. The higher the individual's education relative to his or her peers, the lower is the probability of the individual being obese. (Contains 3 tables and 10 figures.)

Data from Australia's Department of Employment, Education and Training were analyzed to determine the relationship between the costs and returns of secondary education in Australia. The analysis focused on changes in the following: the earnings premium from having a level of educational attainment equivalent to completing at least secondary school; the demand for employees who left school before graduation; full-time employment opportunities for teenagers; and the income support available to young people who stay in school. The earnings premium from having a level of educational attainment equivalent to completing at least secondary school was found to have increased in the 1980s after having declined in the 1970s. Changes in occupational structure and increases in the labor force participation of workers beyond their teens have substantially reduced the number of full-time jobs available for teenagers. Two other factors have also likely helped to more than double the rate of student retention in the final year (year 12) of secondary education since the early the 1980s: a long-term increase in the proportion of schoolchildren in part-time employment and substantial increases in government allowances for students who stay in school. (Thirteen tables/figures are included. Contains 50 references.) (MN)

This technical paper details the derived variables developed for users of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) data. These variables fall into the categories of education, employment and social, and help to simplify the use of the data by providing useful indicators for analysis. This paper provides descriptions, formats and additional notes for each variable, as well as the SAS syntax used to create the derived variables for the LSAY 2009 commencing cohort.

The Australian Education Union (AEU) commissioned the Monash University-ACER Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET) to review funding and staffing for VET (vocational education and training), and especially for TAFE (technical and further education), in the context of the recently set COAG (Council of Australian Governments) targets for educational attainment. The paper is motivated by the apparent increase in VET provision implied by government educational attainment targets in the context of stable or declining funding for VET and the conclusion that funding needs to increase if the targets are to be met. The topics canvassed include: (1) The decline in funding levels for public VET; (2) The government targets for increased levels of educational attainment in the population and the workforce; (3) Increased demand for the different types of educational qualifications; and (4) The implications for future funding for VET. (Contains 11 tables, 1 figure and 20 footnotes.) [This paper was prepared for The Australian Education Union.]

This technical paper contains information about the variables in the LSAY (Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth) Y95 cohort data set. It groups each variable into data elements which identifies common variables within and across waves. Information is provided about each data element including its purpose, values, base populations and relevant notes. [For the main report, "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort User Guide. Technical Report 49," see ED536757. For related reports, see "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements B1: Education. Technical Report 49B1" (ED536761); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements B2: Education. Technical Report 49B2" (ED536759); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements C: Employment. Technical Report 49C" (ED536762); and "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements D: Social. Technical Report 49D" (ED536760).]

The Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) program studies the progress of several groups of young Australians as they move from school into post-secondary education and work. This technical paper contains the frequency tables for the LSAY 2009 cohort Wave 2 (2010) data set.

The Australian vocational education and training (VET) system provides training across a wide range of subject areas and is delivered through a variety of training institutions and enterprises (including to apprentices and trainees). The system provides training for students of all ages and backgrounds. Students may study individual subjects or full courses that lead to formal qualifications. This publication estimates the qualification completion rates of publicly funded VET qualifications in Australia, in order to fill a gap in performance measures for the VET sector. For qualifications commencing in 2009: (1) The national estimated completion rate for VET qualifications at certificate I and above was 31.7%, up from 28.8% for qualifications commenced in 2008; (2) For students in full-time study aged 25 years and under with no prior post-school qualification, the national estimated completion rate for VET qualifications was 42.9%, up from 37.9% for qualifications commenced in 2008; (3) VET qualifications at certificate IV (38.5%), diploma and above (37.4%) and certificate III (37.3%) had the highest national estimated completion rates; (4) For students in full-time study aged 25 years and under with no prior post-school qualification, the national estimated completion rate for VET qualifications at certificate III was 50.1%; and (5) VET qualifications in education (51.5%), society and culture (44.3%), and natural and physical sciences (43.3%) had the highest national estimated completion rates. (Contains 6 tables and 3 notes.) [Funding for this paper was provided through the Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education.]

The Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) program studies the progress of several groups of young Australians as they move from school into post-secondary education and work. This technical paper contains the frequency tables for the LSAY 2009 cohort Wave 3 (2011) data set. [For the related questionnaire, see ED536306.]

In this paper the researchers ask how completing Year 12 and undertaking vocational education and training (VET) and university studies assist young people to make a successful transition from school. As part of their research they analyse whether those who are less academic benefit from completing Year 12 and post-school education and training options to the same extent as the more academically inclined. Unlike other studies addressing the issue of successful youth transition, this research looks at the education path chosen (or not), rather than an individual's return from the completion of a particular path (qualification); not all those who embark on a path complete it. The researchers are interested in finding out how the route an individual chooses affects the later employment, wages, job status, financial wellbeing and happiness of young people. They do this by analysing data from the 1995 cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY). The analysis suggests that, on average, completing Year 12 is no longer sufficient; rather, young people today need to have Year 12 plus further study to get them on a path to success. For males an apprenticeship after Year 12 is an attractive route, as is university study; for females the best choice is university, even for those with lower levels of academic orientation. The researchers are not suggesting that everyone should be forced to complete Year 12 and to go on to further study. While the best paths involve Year 12 and certain types of post-school study, it is also the case that paths that include Year 12 do not necessarily lead to superior outcomes, relative to those involving leaving school before Year 12. In addition, Karmel and Liu find that the choice of path is not always of consequence. For males, paths only have salience for satisfaction with life, the occupational status of full-time workers and the pay of full-time workers. For the other variables they investigate--engagement with full-time work or study, full-time employment, financial wellbeing, satisfaction with work--the paths do not really matter. That is, the transition from school to adulthood can work well--in relation to these outcome measures--for young men following any of the paths. For females, educational paths matter for attaining full-time engagement and pay for full-time workers and occupational status for full-time workers, but do not matter for financial wellbeing, satisfaction with life and job status for part-time workers. Finally, the researchers note that the analysis relates to people who did Year 12 in 1998, during a buoyant economic period, which, they point out, is also an important factor in contributing to good transitions for young people. Appended are: (1) Final propensity score models; (2) Full outcome models; and (3) Final outcome models. (Contains 46 tables and 6 footnotes.)

The Australian vocational education and training (VET) system provides training across a wide range of subject areas and is delivered through a variety of training institutions and enterprises (including to apprentices and trainees). The system provides training for students of all ages and backgrounds. Students may study individual subjects or full courses that lead to formal qualifications. This publication estimates the qualification completion rates of publicly funded VET qualifications in Australia, in order to fill a gap in performance measures for the VET sector. For qualifications commencing in 2008: (1) The national estimated completion rate for VET enrolments at certificate I and above is 28.4%, and the subject load pass rate is 80.4%; (2) For students in full-time study aged 25 years and under with no previous post-school qualification, the national estimated qualification completion rate is 37.3% and the corresponding subject load pass rate is 77.5%; (3) Students enrolled in qualifications at certificate IV level (34.6%), certificate III level (33.5%) and diploma level and above (32.9%) have the highest estimated completion rates; (4) Full-time students aged 25 years and under with no previous post-school qualification enrolled in a certificate III have estimated completion rates of 45.9%; and (5) Enrolments in education (52.0%), society and culture (37.3%) and health (37.2%) have the highest estimated qualification completion rates. (Contains 6 tables and 4 notes.) [For related report, "The Likelihood of Completing a VET Qualification: A Model-Based Approach. Technical Paper," see ED511677.]

In 2008 as part of a national push to increase Australia's skill levels, the Council of Australian Governments agreed on targets that would see, by 2020, a doubling of diploma and advanced diploma completions and a halving of the proportion of 20 to 64-year-old Australians without at least a certificate III. Such targets assume there is a financial return as a result of undertaking vocational education and training (VET). Using data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics' (ABS) Surveys of Education and Training (1993-2005), this study investigated this assumption by looking at the employment and earnings for individuals who had completed a VET course and how these may have changed over time. This work examines the effect of field of education on the returns from VET for individuals, as well as the returns from VET for mature-age students (defined here as persons between 30 and 64 years). It also compares these with higher educational qualifications. This paper suggests that: (1) Compared with those who have completed Year 12, employment and earnings benefits are only gained by completing a VET course at the diploma level. This result differs from some previous studies (for example, Long & Shah 2008). However, by comparison with individuals who do not complete Year 12, both employment and earnings benefits can be gained from completion of a VET qualification at any level, an outcome which accords with previous research; (2) Undertaking courses in the area of business, engineering, architecture, building and automotive provides the greatest benefits relative to those who did not complete Year 12; (3) For mature-age students, those who have not completed Year 12 and undertake a VET course at the certificate III level or higher gain the greatest employment and earnings benefits. However, there is a lag of several years before these benefits materialise; and (4) The study covers the period 1993 to 2005 to assess whether VET qualifications have continued to attract similar returns relative to Year 12 and non-school completers. The earning benefits from completing a diploma were shown to be relatively stable during this period. At the sub-diploma level there were more fluctuations but, relative to non-school completers, returns from these qualifications were positive. This was not the case when comparisons were made to Year 12 completers. This study makes it clear that people cannot assume VET has a financial return to the individual; it all depends on educational background and the level and field of the qualification being undertaken. Appendices include: (1) How propensity-score matching works; (2) The two-step matching/ regression approach; and (3) Sample sizes of treatment and comparison groups in the 1993, 1997, 2001 and 2005 SET data. (Contains 74 tables and 9 footnotes.) [For the support document, see ED508929.]

This technical paper contains information about the variables in the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) Year 95 cohort data set. It groups each variable into data elements that identify common variables within and across waves. Information is provided about each data element, including its purpose, values, base populations and relevant notes. [For the main report, "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort User Guide. Technical Report 49," see ED536757. For related reports, see "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements A: Demographics. Technical Report 49A" (ED536756); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements B1: Education. Technical Report 49B1" (ED536761); "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements C: Employment. Technical Report 49C" (ED536762); and "Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY): 1995 Cohort--User Guide. Data Elements D: Social. Technical Report 49D" (ED536760).]

This annual publication provides a summary of training activity in apprenticeships and traineeships in Australia, from the period 1998 to 2008, including information on training rates, attrition rates, completion rates, training within the trades and duration of training. The figures in this publication are derived from the National Apprentice and Trainee Collection no.59 (March 2009 estimates), which is compiled under the Australian Vocational Education and Training Management Information Statistical Standard (AVETMISS) for Apprentice and Trainee Collection Specifications, Release 6.0, March 2008. (Contains 22 tables and 5 figures.) [Funding for this paper provided through the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.]

This technical paper contains information about the variables in the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) Year 1998 cohort data set. It groups each variable into data elements which identifies common variables within and across waves. Information is provided about each data element including its purpose, values, base populations and relevant notes. This document focuses on the education information of the respondents. [For the main report, see ED507545.]

Discussion about Australia's ageing population has focused on the importance of increasing labour force participation rates of older people. This paper examines the influence of education and training on the participation of older people in the labour market, and the pay-off of undertaking education and training as an older-person compared to earlier in life. On the whole, the results indicate the more qualifications the better, and education, lifelong learning and training are beneficial to maintaining and increasing employment rates. Qualifications acquired later in life have as good, and in some cases, better, pay-off to employment-to-population rates for older age groups, suggesting education is an effective strategy for older people seeking employment. The authors also suggest that increasing education levels will partially offset the impact of ageing on labour force participation. (Contains 93 tables and 8 figures.)

This paper reports that between 2008 and 2009, unemployment rates across OECD countries increased among people at all educational levels, but rose to especially troubling heights among people without an upper secondary education. In 2009, the average employment rate across OECD countries was much higher for individuals with a tertiary (i.e. higher) education--indicating a better match between the skills these people have and the skills the labour market required. Between 2008 and 2009, the earnings advantage for people with a tertiary education remained strong in OECD countries. In some countries, earnings inequality between people with a tertiary education and those without an upper secondary education widened even further.