Third Education and Employers Taskforce Research Conference: Exploring School-to-Work Transitions in International Perspectives

Thursday 23rd January 2014, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, London

View the conference programme

View the complete set of research paper abstracts

View presentations, papers and videos

Background

The Third Research Conference hosted by the Education and Employers Taskforce explored themes relating to employer engagement in education, from primary level through to higher education and work-related learning and apprenticeships. It focussed on approaches to employer engagement that support student learning and progression and particularly on school to work transitions.

The Third Research Conference offered the opportunity to hear from leading researchers, policymakers and practitioners in the field of employer engagement in education. It brought together a unique community of interest: practitioners from the worlds of education and employment, policymakers with wide ranging interests and scholars working across many disciplines.

We are very grateful for the strong support of Bank of America Merrill Lynch and the Edge Foundation, our two conference sponsors.

Keynote Speakers and Panellists

We were pleased to welcome Professor Alison Wolf and Andreas Schleicher as our keynote speakers.

Professor Alison Wolf is the Sir Roy Griffiths Professor of Public Sector Management at King’s College London, and specialises in the relationship between education and the labour market. She is also highly involved in policy debate, both in this country and more widely. She has been a specialist adviser to the House of Commons select committee on education and skills; writes widely for the national press and is a presenter for Analysis on BBC Radio 4; and in March 2011 completed the Wolf Review of Vocational Education for the Secretary of State for Education.

Andreas Schleicher is Deputy Director for Education and Skills at the OECD and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the OECD’s Secretary-General. He also provides strategic oversight of OECD’s work on the development and utilisation of skills and their social and economic outcomes. This includes the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), the OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC), the OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) and the development and analysis of benchmarks on the performance of education systems (INES).

We were also delighted to be joined by five of the world’s most influential figures on employer engagement in education for a special panel discussion on the relationship between education and the twenty-first century labour market. Andreas Schleicher was joined by:

Professor Chris Husbands who, as Director of the Institute of Education, occupies one of the most influential positions in British education and is engaged in detailed policy discussions relating to the relationship of education and employment as leader of the independent Skills Taskforce.

Professor Hugh Lauder, Professor of Political Economy at the University of Bath and author of many important works related to skills policy including most recently The Global Auction: The Broken Promises of Education, Jobs and Income with Phillip Brown and David Ashton.

Professor Robert Schwartz of the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University who is co-author of the hugely influential US report Pathways to Prosperity: Meeting the Challenge of Preparing Young Americans for the 21^st Century.

The panel session was chaired by Professor Prue Huddleston, Emeritus Professor at the University of Warwick and lead author of numerous important books and articles in the field including Work-Related Teaching and Learning, edited with Julian Stanley of the University of Warwick.

Papers and Presenters

During the day, 12 papers were delivered by leading scholars working in the field of employer engagement in education during parallel conference sessions. The full list of speakers and their presentations and papers are above.

Conference Programme Committee 2014

The conference programme was agreed by an independent Conference Programme Committee chaired by Professor Prue Huddleston and we are very grateful to her and to the members of the Committee for their time and thoughtful consideration:

• Karleen Dowden: Apprenticeships, Employability and IAG specialist, Association of School and College Leaders;
• David Harbourne: Director of Policy and Research at The Edge Foundation;
• Dr Deirdre Hughes OBE: Commissioner at the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, Chair of the National Careers Council England;
• Professor Hugh Lauder: Professor of Education and Political Economy at the University of Bath;
• Dr Anthony Mann: Director of Policy and Research at the Education and Employers Taskforce;
• Raj Patel MBE: Impact Fellow at the UK Longitudinal Studies Centre, Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Essex;
• David Pollard: Chairman for Education, Skills and Business Support, Federation of Small Businesses;
• Professor Ingrid Schoon: Professor of Human Development and Social Policy at the Institute of Education, University of London;
• Julian Stanley: Head of the Centre for Education and Industry at the University of Warwick;
• Martin Ward: Senior Business Development Manager, National Apprenticeships Service.

About Our Sponsors

We remain very grateful for the strong support of Bank of America Merrill Lynch and the Edge Foundation, our two conference sponsors.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch Corporate Responsibility

Developing solutions for social and environmental challenges is at the core of Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s responsibility platform. In more than 100 markets around the world, the company partners with employees, clients and stakeholders to make financial lives better. Bank of America Merrill Lynch focuses on responsible business practices, environmental sustainability, advancing opportunity in local communities through education and employability programmes, investing in global leadership development, and promoting cultural understanding. By harnessing our intellectual resources, sharing knowledge and connecting capital with need, we are providing opportunities that effect positive change. Learn more at www.bankofamerica.com/about and follow us on Twitter at @BofA_Community.

The Edge Foundation

The Edge Foundation is an independent education charity. It is dedicated to raising the status of technical, practical and vocational learning. All young people should have the opportunity to achieve their potential and the UK’s future workforce needs to be equipped with the skills to be successful in the modern, global economy.  Edge believes that “learning by doing” should be valued equally with academic learning and that all learners should experience a mix of both. There are many paths to success. To find out more, visit www.edge.co.uk.