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Researchers studied current and projected needs for engineering technicians in the United Kingdom, the match between training supply and demand, and trends in direct recruitment to Level 3 engineering training in order to identify models of best practice for promoting the uptake of engineering technician training. The following data collection activities were conducted: a literature review; a review of two national databases; and site visits to selected further education (FE) and training providers and careers services. The study established that although the total number of individuals employed in engineering will decrease by about 5% in the next 10 years, the demand to replace those leaving the industry for retirement or other reasons will lead to a positive net requirement for all engineering occupations, including engineering technicians. The data suggested that recruitment through work-based apprenticeships and full-time FE routes may be insufficient to replace those leaving employment. The following were among the 11 principles of good recruitment practice identified: (1) ongoing explicit partnership arrangements between schools, colleges, training providers, and industry; (2) information and awareness opportunities for all teachers about progression through vocational and work-based pathways; (3) assistance and support for learners; and (4) provision of extracurricular engineering activities to stimulate interest and enjoyment. (Contains 14 references.) (MN)

The Southern Regional Education Board partnered with the not-for-profit organization Project Lead the Way (PLTW) to develop a program connecting challenging academic courses with a pre-engineering program of study. The programs goal is to increase the number and quality of engineers and engineering technologists by providing the following items: (1) a fully developed curriculum for high schools; (2) a middle grades technology program; (3) extensive training for teachers; (4) training for school counselors; (5) access to affordable equipment; and (6) college-level certification and course credit. The program's middle grades component combines challenging academic courses with courses devoted to design and modeling, the "magic" of electrons, the science of technology, and automation and robotics. The high school component consists of a challenging standards-based pre-engineering curriculum that requires students to apply their knowledge and skills in mathematics, science, and technology to solving real-world engineering problems in five hands-on pre-engineering courses. The program's teacher and counselor preparation component includes preassessment, a summer training institute, and ongoing training. The estimated costs of 1 middle grades laboratory with 26 student stations and the high school component for a class of 20 students are estimated at $54,147 and $95,508, respectively. Students who have participated in the program have spoken of it very highly. (MN)

A study examined the technological competencies of the electronic engineering departments of junior colleges in Taiwan. It used a combination of two methods--a revised DACUM (Developing a Curriculum) process and a revised V-TECS (Vocational-Technical Education Consortium of States) process--to analyze the duty/task profile and task/element list of electronic technological competencies for junior college graduates. A questionnaire survey and interviews obtained opinions of electronic workers and teachers. Twelve duties were analyzed: select electronic components; operate electronic instruments; construct analog circuits; construct digital circuits; construct microprocessor system circuits; software design; construct communication circuits; use computer aided drawing; projects; use application software; monitor production management; and conduct technical services. Each task was analyzed into one of three categories: "must-prepared,""should-prepared," and "could-prepared" technological competencies. Results indicated that 11 tasks could be categorized as must-prepared, 53 as should-prepared, and 9 as could-prepared. Most duties contained mainly must- or should-prepared tasks. Contains a list of 11 references and a table illustrating categorization of technological competencies.) (YLB)

The Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program specifically addresses the education of science and engineering technicians. In 1994, the National Science Foundation, through the ATE program, awarded 58 grants to improve the quality of advanced technological education in science and engineering technology fields. This document contains information on the awards that support projects in curriculum and laboratory development, teacher preparation, faculty and teacher enhancement, and planning grants for Centers and a few Centers of Excellence. Section I contains information about the ATE program and fiscal year 1994 awards; a U.S. map of all awards; a listing of awards by technology; and a history of the ATE program. Section II provides abstracts of awards divided into Centers for Excellence, planning grants, and projects in advanced technological education. Section III is an appendix providing an index of awards by state, award maps, and an index of principal investigators. (LZ)

A study assessed labor shortages in the United States by conducting case studies of four occupations: special education teachers, paraprofessional home care workers, electrical and electronic engineers, and tool and die makers. The research approach combined analysis of existing data sources and interviews with individuals knowledgeable about the labor markets for the occupations. Theoretical background on the causes and consequences of labor shortages was examined. Research indicated the presence of occupational shortages in two of the four occupations--special education teachers and home care workers. In these two occupations, labor market conditions were more directly influenced by government intervention and other institutional barriers. Although strongly linked to low wage levels, shortages of home care workers also resulted from an explosive growth in the demand for home health care services and poor working conditions. Shortages of special education teachers were linked to inflexibility in wages, "burnout," and government actions that have increased the demand for these teachers. Labor shortages could result in loss of production of goods and services. Employers were more likely to implement strategies to respond to shortages that involved relatively short-term commitment of resources. Strategies to anticipate or recognize labor shortages and approaches to reduce or eliminate shortages were suggested. (Appendixes include the instrument used with tool and die makers.) (YLB)

This document summarizes the accomplishments of the first year of the Cornell Youth Apprenticeship Demonstration Project in Broome County, New York, a program in which six high schools and six employers in the Binghamton area have joined forces to prepare noncollege-bound young people for careers in manufacturing and engineering technology, administration and office technology, or health care. The first of the document's three sections provides an overview of the program, which placed 40 students in apprenticeships between fall 1991 and fall 1992, as well as discussions of the program's participating employers, schools, and parents and their motives for participation. Section 2 is an overview of research on the following topics related to creating the infrastructure for youth apprenticeship: learning objectives/competencies; work-based curricula; apprenticeship progress reports; teaching and learning at work; career pathways; school-based curricula; and the institutional base of apprenticeship. In section 3, the role of youth apprenticeship as a means of preparing students to perform all tasks within a broadly defined occupational area is emphasized and discussed in relation to the health care, office occupations, administration/office technology, and manufacturing/engineering technology fields. Sample instruments used by the project employers to evaluate apprentices' progress are included. (MN)

Statistical information about employment in 13 engineering trades occupations in Australia was examined to identify skill shortages in the country's engineering trades. Data from various Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business (DEWRSB) reports regarding the supply of and demand for skills in the engineering trades including a 1999 DEWRSB survey of Australian employers' recent experience of skill shortages in the engineering trades were analyzed. Overall, the combination of commencements in new apprenticeship training, the availability of nonapprenticeship training pathways to the engineering trades, declining employment growth in recent years, and projected low growth in the future has been sufficient to keep pace with employment trends in the trades. However, despite continuing declines in total employment in the engineering trades, skill shortages are likely to persist especially for the more specialized metals trades. The study suggested that the issues of relevance and quality of training for existing workers and new entrants to the engineering trades will be even more critical than increasing the numbers of individuals in training. The biggest challenge to meeting Australia's rapidly changing engineering skill needs appears to be ensuring that the content and coverage of training keeps pace with the rapid rate of technological change in engineering. (Contains 14 tables, 6 figures, and 7 boxes.) (MN)

The CET (Civil Engineering Technology) project was a statewide curriculum development effort to develop an instructional format to train civil engineering technicians in South Carolina. It was designed to: (1) identify specific job competencies; (2) develop an individualized, self-paced instructional format complete with software and equipment; and (3) test and validate all items being developed. This report offers background information, describes the curriculum that was developed, and summarizes the result of the project evaluation. (EMH)

This pilot research project analyzes the role related classroom instruction plays in training journeymen in three Boston area trades-machinist, electrician, and operating engineer. Information was gathered from apprentices, journeymen, apprentice coordinators, and others by means of personal interviews and/or mail questionnaires. The data were used to estimate the impact of related instruction on individual job performance. The principal hypothesis was that related instruction has multiple roles, varying by trade and the particular objectives of different sponsors. It was possible to identify the independent effect of related instruction on job performance. In all three crafts the primary objective of related instruction was to equip apprentices with the technical knowledge and manipulative skills to become versatile all round journeymen. Only in the electrical trade did related instruction seem to offer a significant explanation of the variation in individual performance. It was almost impossible to coordinate related instruction with on-the-job training in construction. In the machinist trade, the degree of coordination varied from firm to firm. (Author/SA)

This practicum studies the future educational and/or occupational plans of 223 technical program students enrolled in Brevard Community College (BCC) during the Fall 1973 term in order to suggest adjustments in college procedures to facilitate student transition to continued college or to their chosen professions. The characteristics of technical program students, their employment opportunities, and the general characteristics of community college technological programs in Florida are described. Reference is made to the similarity of engineering and engineering technician programs and the emerging controversy between the two disciplinines. Of the 223 respondents, 136 (58 percent) indicated plans to earn the Associate of Science degree. Students' future plans show 39 percent seeking employment only, 34 percent seeking part-time employment while they continue college, and 27 percent planning to attend college full-time. Twenty-eight percent indicated an interest in attending Florida Technical University (FTU) and obtaining the Bachelor of Engineering Technology (BET) degree. As a result of the study, a junior year BET fore curriculum was established at the FTU Residence Center located on the BCC Cocoa Campus, with plans being formulated for senior year curriculum as well. Additional recommendations are also made. (Author/AH)

The survey is the fifth in a series covering the salaries of engineering technicians, conducted biennially since 1969. The format for salary presentations is maturity curves in which salary is plotted as a function of years of experience, accompanied by the data tables from which the curves were plotted. The survey covers three groups of personnel under the general category of engineering technicians: (1) graduates of two-year college-level programs leading to an associate degree in technology, (2) non-graduates qualified to perform the same kind of work on the basis of equivalent education and experiences, and (3) graduates of four-year bachelor of technology programs. The first two groups are distinguished between in some of the data tables. Bachelor of technology graduates are called "technologists" and are reported separately. The survey does not attempt to establish salary standards for any industry or employee group; the curves simply show what various sectors of employment were paying as of August 1975. A three-part questionnaire was used (facsimile appended) on which respondents indicated the number of individuals in appropriate boxes of a salary-versus-experience matrix, and the report is based on returns submitted by 630 different establishments employing 61,537 technicians. (Author/AJ)

Newly graduating engineers and technicians of the class of 1974 enjoyed the best job prospects since 1970, according to data compiled by the Engineering Manpower Commission from a survey of the nation's engineering and technical schools. The pattern of persons seeking employment and those seeking further study seem to have been changing gradually in the last three or four years. At both the bachelor's and master's level in engineering, and the two-year associate level in technology, fewer graduates were continuing their education. As usual, the Ph.D. in engineering and the bachelor in technology degree represent terminal points for practically all graduates, with only a few percent pursuing further full-time study. Among master's and doctor's degree graduates the percentage with other plans remained at fairly high levels comparable to 1973. The strong demand was reflected in higher salaries offered to new graduates. Women graduates averaged slightly higher salary offers than men. No specialties appear to have had significant placement problems in 1974, although architectural engineering, computer science, and engineering sciences were somewhat weaker than other areas. (Author/KE)

This report provides results of Phase I of a project that researched the occupational area of instrumentation technology, established appropriate committees, and conducted task verification. These results are intended to guide development of a program designed to train instrumentation technicians. Section 1 contains general information: purpose of Phase I; description of the occupation, including nature of work, working conditions, and related occupations; direction of the occupation, including employment, training and other qualifications, advancement, job outlook, and earnings; program development committee; areas of concern; and State Technical Committee developmental recommendations. Section 2 presents research findings: accreditation and certification; list of typical job titles; and appropriate trade resources and sources, including references and textbooks, audiovisuals, curriculum materials, periodicals, safety manual, standards and recommended practices, test materials references, and sources of additional information. A verified occupational duty and task list is comprised of 27 duties, including AC and DC circuit theory application; matter; shop practices; safety; hand tools; blueprints, schematics, drawings; technical writing; electronic, hydraulic, pneumatic, and thermal test instruments; troubleshooting; and servicing equipment, systems, and measuring instruments. Other contents include staff and facilities recommendations. (YLB)

A survey of 470 graduates of the six engineering technology programs at Wake Technical Institute--Architectural, Chemical, Civil Engineering, Computer, Electronic Engineering, and Industrial Engineering Technologies--and 227 of their employers was conducted in October, 1979, to determine the science and mathematics topics most needed by engineering technicians. The survey instrument, developed by two juror groups and subjected to a stability-reliability test, contained 81 items under 17 topics and an open-ended question. The 17 topical areas were mechanics, fundamentals of electricity/electronics, light, sound, heat, modern physics, chemistry, biology, geology, data processing, algebra, trigonometry, logarithms, geometry, analytical geometry, calculus, and statistics. The survey revealed that: (1) mathematics topics were important to all graduates; (2) various science topics were needed for different technology areas; (3) knowledge of a computer language was important to all but architectural technicians; and (4) science and mathematics topics were more important to graduates than to employers. A sample questionnaire and over 100 tables are appended. (JP)

A survey was done to determine nationwide salary averages and distributions for seventy-eight work level categories covering nineteen occupations in private industry. Occupational groups included accountants and auditors, attorneys, buyers, personnel management, chemists and engineers, technical support, and clerical. Results showed that the average salaries of workers rose 7.9% from March 1977 to March 1978. Increases for eight of the twelve professional, administrative, and technical support occupations surveyed ranged from 7.8 to 9.1%; the average increase was 8.3%. The average of the increases for the clerical occupations surveyed was 7.4%; increases ranged from 6.0 to 9.7%. Average monthly salaries for the seventy-eight occupational levels varied from $552 for clerks engaged in routine filing to $4,317 for the highest level in the attorney series. For most occupations, salary levels in metropolitan areas and in large establishments were higher than the average for all establishments within the full survey scope. Salary levels and reported averages for standard weekly hours were generally lower in finance industries than in other major industry divisions represented in the survey. (CSS)

A study assessed the need for technology programs in the Bedford and Bloomington areas of Indiana. After compiling such background data as population projections for the cities, the educational level of adults living in the region, and the number and size of firms located in the area, the researchers formulated projected requirements for engineering technicians, computer programmers, supervisors, and quality control specialists in the area. Next, these projections were corroborated through interviews with representatives of local industries and appropriate agencies and by comparing the local projections with national employment projections for the same occupations. As a result of an analysis of these data the following actions were recommended: authorization to implement an electrical engineering technology associate degree program, authorization to implement a supervision technology associate degree program provision of related adult continuing education and service courses, development and implementation of computer technology and quality control specialist programs, formation of technology advisory committees, and expansion of existing efforts in the areas of liaison and coordination. (MN)

To assess the need for technology programs in the Kokomo, Indiana area, such background data (population projections for the region, the educational level of adults living in the region, and the number and size of firms located in the area) concerning Kokomo and the counties surrounding it were compiled. The researchers formulated projected requirements for engineering technicians, computer programmers, computer-integrated manufacturing technicians, and quality control specialists in the area. Next, these projections were corroborated through interviews with representatives of local industries and appropriate agencies and by comparing the local projections with national employment projections for the same occupations. As a result of an analysis of these data the following actions were recommended: development of a computer-integrated manufacturing technology program, provision of training for quality control specialists, development of flexible course offering schedules and special admission and counseling procedures to accommodate the special needs of adult learners, formation of an advisory committee, and increased efforts in the areas of coordination and liaison. (MN)

A study assessed the need for technology programs in Grant County, Indiana. After compiling background data (population projections for the region, the educational level of adults living in the region, and the number and size of firms located in the area), concerning Grant County and the counties surrounding it, the researchers formulated projected requirements for engineering technicians, computer programmers, and supervisors in the area. Next, these projections were corroborated through interviews with representatives of local industries and appropriate agencies and by comparing the local projections with national employment projections for the same occupations. As a result of an analysis of these data the following actions were recommended: authorization to implement a two-year supervision technology associate degree program in the city of Marion, provision of related adult continuing education and service courses, formation of a supervision technology advisory committee, and implementation of further labor force and training needs studies and plans. (MN)

Powerplant systems and procedures that ensure the day-to-day health and safety of people in and around the plant is referred to as operational safety. This safety is the result of careful planning, good engineering and design, strict licensing and regulation, and environmental monitoring. Procedures that assure operational safety at nuclear powerplants are as follows: (1) training and updating of reactor operators in procedures of powerplant operation; (2) maintenance of strict security at the powerplant; (3) control of radiation releases; (4) storage of the spent (used) fuel in deep pools of water within the powerplant to allow cooling and handling of the spent fuel by remote control; (5) certification of powerplants by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in design, construction and safe operation; and (6) ongoing inspections and environmental monitoring programs to ensure that nuclear powerplants comply with all requirements for public health, safety, and environmental protection. Topics discussed include operational safety; personnel training programs; categories of reactor operators; security; control of radiation releases; handling spent fuel; role of NRC; and sources of radiation to the United States population. (RT)

A study was undertaken to provide information on the overall structure of the engineering workforce in Australia and the job functions of each occupational cluster. In the study, the term "engineering technical workforce" was defined as all staff primarily performing engineering functions between the levels of tradesperson and professional engineer or surveyor. The study involved a review of literature, interviews with Technical and Further Education and Training Authority staff and engineering workers, and two national surveys that obtained data from more than 2,000 persons throughout Australia. Data were analyzed through cluster analysis. Ninety-nine primary clusters were identified; these merged into intermediate clusters and then four major clusters: engineering systems and administration, civil engineering and surveying, drafting and design, and electrical and electronic engineering. The job function profile and background characteristics of each occupational cluster were drawn. The study found that the duties important to most workers were written communication, oral communication, general administration, the use of calculators and computers, and engineering drawing. The study showed that there are two primary levels of technical engineering workers: associates and technicians, with associates having completed more education and technicians having more on-the-job training. Recommendations for changes to course organization and content were made as a result of the study. (KC)

A study examined the overall structure of Australia's engineering technical work force, the relationships between occupations in each branch and level of the engineering work force, and the job functions of each occupational cluster. The primary purpose of the study was to gather data to assist Technical and Further Education (TAFE) curriculum planners and planners working with other education and training bodies. The analysis was based on two national surveys. The first survey, which was intended to collect general information on the number of workers in each occupational level and branch of engineering, involved a net sample of 1,089 government and industry organizations and 1,090 TAFE and college of advanced education students. The second survey (of a net sample of 1,230 engineering technical workers from all of Australia's states and territories) examined workers' background characteristics and detailed each respondent's job functions. Cluster analysis sorts were carried out by using a statistical rather than a judgmental process, and a cluster diagram was developed after each sorting procedure. Ninety-nine primary clusters were identified. These primary clusters were merged into four major clusters given the following designations: engineering systems and administration (438 respondents), civil engineering and surveying (318 respondents), drafting and design (123 respondents), and electrical and electronic engineering (188 respondents). Job function profiles and background characteristics (including average age, salary, highest education, and proportion of females) were compiled for each cluster. (MN)