Continuing Education and Training: Purposes, Practices and Futures

This book elaborates on the project of continuing education and training (CET), its purposes, practices and prospects for future models and approaches. As such, it also seeks to elaborate the needs for a means by which this important educational sector can achieve its goals both now, and in the near future. Often seen as a supplementary or additional educational sector, CET is gaining increased relevance and importance given the need for individuals to remain employable across lengthening working lives, enterprises needing to maintain their viability and nation states requiring skilled workforces to deliver the goods and services they require. Drawing upon an extensive review of literature and grounded in a national multi-phased investigation of how CET is currently provided, might be enhanced and envisaged for the future, this book provides both clear premises for proceeding with this important educational sector in an era of growing concerns about the currency of workforce capacities, and sustaining employability across lengthening working lives. It also provides advice on how its goals can be achieved drawing upon evidence from this investigation, and associated literature from the broader field.

Dr Stephen Billett is Professor of Adult and Vocational Education in the School of Education and Professional Studies at Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia, and a National Teaching Fellow and Australian Research Council Future Fellow. After a career in garment manufacturing, he has worked as a vocational educator, educational administrator, teacher educator, professional development practitioner and policy developer in the Australian vocational education system, and as a teacher and researcher at Griffith University. Since 1992, he has researched learning through and for work and has published widely in fields of learning of occupations, workplace learning, work and conceptual accounts of learning for vocational purposes. His sole authored books include 'Learning through work: Strategies for effective practice' (Allen and Unwin 2001); 'Work, change and workers' (Springer 2006) 'Vocational Education' (Springer 2011), 'Mimetic learning at Work' (2014), and 'Integrating Practice-based Learning in Higher Education Programs' (Springer 2015). His edited books include 'Work, Subjectivity and Learning' (Springer, 2006), 'Emerging Perspectives of Work and Learning' (Sense 2008), 'Learning through practice' (Springer 2010), 'Promoting professional learning' (Springer 2011), 'Experiences of school transitions' (Springer 2012), 'Promoting, assessing, recognizing and certifying Lifelong Learning' (Springer 2014), 'Francophone conceptions of Learning through practice' (Springer 2015), 'Supporting learning across working life: Models, processes and practices' (Springer 2016), 'Enhancing Teaching and Learning in the Dutch Vocational Education System' (Springer 2017), and 'Augmenting health and social care students' clinical learning experiences: Outcomes and processes' (Springer 2019).

Dr Anthony Leow is currently the Assistant Director (Continuing Education and Training), and Assistant Director (Capability and Industry) at the Centre for Educational Development of Republic Polytechnic, Singapore. He completed his PhD at the University of Queensland on an Australia Government International Postgraduate Research Scholarship, researching on the interface between public health and education policies. During his undergraduate education, he won the prestigious Lee Kuan Yew Gold Medal and was also awarded the Singapore National Olympic Council Gold Medal. Anthony was a past recipient of the International Association for Physical Education in Higher Education (AIESEP) Young Scholar Award, and the Australian Association for Research in Education (AARE) Postgraduate Student Research Award. His current research interests include adult learning, workplace learning, continuing education and training of adults and lifelong learning.

Dr Anh Hai Le is a lecturer and research fellow at Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia. Her research interest focuses on workplace learning and curriculum development in tertiary education, with a specific emphasis on the process of building knowledge through scholarly engagement with industry and tertiary institutions. Much of her recent research has focused on lifelong and adult education. She has diverse experience in teaching and curriculum development, across various disciplines in the higher education sector. She also has expertise in quantitative research with extensive experience working on a range of large projects.