In this edition of the L&W Newsletter, you should note in particular the call for proposals to the following conferences: the ESREA online conference on 'An ecology of life and learning', the online conference on Crossing Boundaries in VET, the AVETRA online conference 'All eyes on VET', the VET conference NordYrk in Linköping, the conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society in Sofia and the conference on Science and Technology Education in Porto (see Conferences), and the call for papers for special issues on: 'The role of education and training in labour market integration' [Education + Training] and 'Financial literacy in VET' [ERVET] (see Publications).  And not to overlook: the range of stimulating projects, books and articles on learning and work across Europe (see Projects and Publications)!  

Special thanks to all who contributed information for this edition, and also to our partners CR&DALL, CVER, Education & Employers Research, ILO Employment Policy Department, PASCAL International Observatory, UFHRD, UNEVOC, VET&Culture and VETNET for providing input and sharing the L&W Newsletter via their mailing lists and web portals.

The L&W Newsletter focuses on transnational research activities across Europe in the field of human resource development (HRD) and vocational education and training (VET), centred on major categories: conferences, networks and organisations, programmes, projects and publications. The next edition will appear in early February 2021. You are invited to submit short texts (100 to 200 words, including links to web pages, but without attachments) - please by 31 January 2021 at the latest!

The L&W Newsletter reaches you via a mailing list of experts in and beyond Europe. You can also view the latest edition in the WIFO Gateway and download the L&W Newsletter in PDF. Please pass the Newsletter on to your colleagues and networks.

Best wishes
Sabine Manning
Research Forum WIFO
Editor of the L&W Newsletter
Contact: [email protected]

Please note: My new email address [email protected] has replaced the former address <sabine.manning[at]wifo.b.shuttle.de>. My contact address [email protected] continues to be valid.

Conferences

SIF – Skillman International Forum 2020
The Skillman.eu Network launches the 6th edition of the yearly SIF – SKILLMAN.EU INTERNATIONAL FORUM 2020, about redefining the future of learning, on December 10th and 11th 2020 online [Details]
SIF 2020 is aimed at improving TVET and education in the field of the advanced manufacturing sector bringing together practitioners, innovative academics and industrial experts in the field of  Vocational Education and training to a common forum. The primary goal of the conference is to encourage the adoption of systematic approaches to skills anticipation/foresight: we need to join forces to promote an approach to curriculum design based on skills foresight analysis. We believe that ethical principles for education should not only inspire strategic action plans and systemic changes but also make possible the recognition and integration of ethical competences in new and revised curricula for promoting equity, justice, fairness and a culture of peace in societies. The Skillman Alliance includes SKILLMAN, IVETA, AER, EAPRIL and ETF. Full details of the Forum 2020 are available on the website.
(Info received from Skillman Secretariat <[email protected]>)

Call for proposals: An ecology of life and learning
ESREA Life History and Biography Network: Annual Conference on "An Ecology of Life and Learning: Discourses, dialogue and diversity in biographical research" 4th to 7th March 2021 online [Details]
The Life History and Biography Network of ESREA (European Society for Research on the Education of Adults) invites you to participate in its online conference  4-7 March 2021. The conference will draw its inspiration from the forthcoming book ‘An Ecology of Life: Discourses, dialogue and diversity in biographical research' which forms part of the ESREA book series 'Research on the education and learning of adults'. As we did with the book, we want to weave together a variety of contributions and voices on biographical struggles to define and live sustainable lives, located within families, communities, cultures and our relationships to the natural world. We aim to illuminate what amounts to an ecology of life and human flourishing, no less, in a tortured, fractious, and fragmented world. Deadline for submission of abstracts: Monday 19th December 2020
(Info provided by Education & Employment: Research Digest October 2020 <[email protected]>)

Crossing Boundaries in VET: Call for papers
The 4th International VET Conference Crossing Boundaries 8 to 9 April 2021 goes online! [Details]
The Conference Crossing Boundaries in Vocational Education and Training is an expert meeting organised around the topics of socio-culturally different systems, institutions and agency, practice and actors in VET and lifelong learning. It is a conference of the European Research Network on Vocational Education and Training (VETNET). The call for papers is open until 15 December 2020. You can find the call for papers here. Please direct any questions to [email protected].
(Posted by Christof Nägele <[email protected]>)

AVETRA conference: Save the date
AVETRA Conference Online 19-23 April, 2021 - Recover, rethink and rebuild: All eyes on VET
The Australasian Vocational Education and Training Research Association (AVETRA) is Australasia's only national, independent association of researchers in vocational education and training (VET). In 2021 the AVETRA conference is going virtual! In April 2021 we will come together for a multi-day conference with speakers and sessions drawn from researchers, practitioners and policymakers across Australia and internationally. More information to follow on the AVETRA website [> AVETRA conference].
(Posted by Lizzie Knight <[email protected]>)

VET conference NordYrk: Call for abstracts
The NordYrk 2021 conference will be hosted by Linköping University, Sweden, 7–9 June 2021. The conference theme is "Transitions to, between and within School and Working life in Vocational Education and Training." Key aspects of the conference theme include: Transfer and connection between school and work; Cooperation between teachers, trainers and other key participants in VET; Digital media, learning supported by digital technology, Augmented Realty; Transitional differences and similarities between the Nordic countries; Connections between specific and generic professional competence. The conference keynote speakers are: Professor Christian Helms Jørgensen (Denmark), Associate Professor Elsa Eiríksdóttir (Iceland) and Postdoc Maarit Virolainen (Finland). The conference will, if possible, take place at one of the campuses in either Linköping or Norrköping. Alternatively, it will be organised as a digital conference. Abstracts should be submitted by 31 January 2021 in the abstract template. For further details please visit the conference website.
(Info received from Per Andersson <[email protected]> via vetnetsite news)

BCES conference 2021: Call for papers
XIX Annual International Conference of the Bulgarian Comparative Education Society (BCES): New Challenges to Education - Lessons from Around the World. Sofia, Bulgaria, 22 - 25 June 2021 [Details]
The BCES Conference 2021 focuses on "New Challenges to Education: Lessons from Around the World". Participants are invited to present their theoretical, methodological or empirical studies on the most challenging processes in education and the most powerful factors that have recently caused various changes in national education systems.  The conference is planned to be conducted physically in Sofia, Bulgaria, with opportunities for virtual presentations. If the pandemic in Europe remains at its current high level, the conference will be conducted virtually. The early bird registration deadline is 30 November 2020. The abstract and full paper submission deadline is 12 February 2021. All accepted papers will be published in Vol. 19 / 2021 of BCES Conference Books. You are invited to join the BCES international conference community in 2021. For more information, please visit the conference website.
(Info received from CR&DALL Site Digest for 20/11/20 and CR&DALL Website)

STE 2021: Call for papers
2nd International Conference on Science and Technology Education STE 2021 to take place in Porto, Portugal, 7-8 October 2021 [Details]
The conference venue is the campus of the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP), which offers excellent facilities for high quality scientific interactions. The conference is chaired by Lucas F. M. da Silva and co-chaired by António Ferreira (University of Porto, Portugal). The focus is on education in science and technology. The conference will provide an international forum for the sharing, dissemination and discussion of research, experience and perspectives across a wide range of teaching and learning issues. Authors who wish to make a presentation (oral or poster) are requested to submit a short abstract by 30 April 2021. The abstracts should be sent electronically to [email protected]. The abstract template can be downloaded from the conference website. Conference proceedings (cd-rom) with the accepted abstracts will be available at the registration. The full papers will be published in special issues of international journals.
(Info received from STE 2020 mailing list <[email protected]>)

NOTE: Forthcoming and recent events related to European research in work and learning are listed on the WIFO Conference page [www.conferences.wifo-gate.org].
 

Networks and Organisations

Workshop on VET research in Europe
Workshop, held 11.11.2020 during the European Vocational Skills Week 2020, on VET research in Europe: topics, structures and cooperation [Details]
The European Research Network on Vocational Education and Training (VETNET) held a joint workshop with the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training, Germany (BIBB) in cooperation with the European Commission, Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusions. Find the presentations and more information on the workshop here. Further information on the European Vocational Skills Week, which was held 9-13 November 2020 as an online event, is available here.
(Contributed by Christof Nägele <[email protected]>)

VETNET ECER Proceedings 2020 published
The European Research Network on Vocational Education and Training (VETNET) published the VETNET ECER Proceedings "Trends in Vocational Education and Training Research. Vol II". Although the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER) in Glasgow UK was cancelled, we invited authors of accepted presentations in network 2 to submit a paper for the VETNET ECER Proceedings - also to support scientific communication. We invite you to read the articles here.
(Contributed by Barbara Stalder <[email protected]>)

Education and Employers Research: Online library
The online library of Education and Employers Research marks its tenth anniversary. It provides a comprehensive repository of different and effective approaches to employer engagement and careers education. It brings together the latest thinking with selected research published over the past 40 years. Free to access and searchable by keyword, it features summaries of a wide range of studies with abstracts and links to the full reports. Visitors can examine issues such as employer-led learning, youth employment, career-related learning in primary schools, and social mobility, as well as information on gender, ethnicity, and specific subject study such as STEM. The main library is complemented by an extensive on-line  video collection and a physical library. The online library can be accessed here.
(Info received from Education and Employers Research: Special Announcements November 2020 <[email protected]>

NOTE: References to research networks in the field of European work and learning are available on the WIFO page Networks at a glance [www.networks.wifo-gate.org]. Contact: Sabine Manning

Programmes and Projects

Artificial intelligence in a post-pandemic world of work and skills
Cedefop has been monitoring the adoption of artificial intelligence and new digital technologies by EU Member States, as these are becoming part of the EU’s new reality in a post-coronavirus world. As part of its Digitalisation, AI and the future of work project, Cedefop will continue carrying out research and collecting comparative information on the adoption of AI and new digital technologies in EU job markets and VET systems in the post-coronavirus world. Stay tuned for the 2nd wave of the Cedefop European skills and jobs survey, which will focus on the impact of changing digital technologies and automation on the skill requirements, skill mismatches and continuing education and training of EU adult workers. Check out Examples of AI reaction areas in EU Member States (+UK).
(News from Cedefop 5.10.2020 on website)

EcoMode: Innovative business model for SMEs
EcoMode is an Erasmus+ strategic partnership project and contributes to the promotion of eco-innovative business model training programs to become a sustainable part of the hospitality industry. EcoMode aims to improve the quality of training of professionals in Eco-innovative Business Management through flexible, transferable innovative learning outcomes and design of a new learning pathway based on competence development. The project’s main aim is to create framework conditions regarding Eco-innovation business models for SMEs in the hospitality industry in partner countries and to combine existing best practices to develop a standard practice to be used as a training methodology and certification. The EcoMode project primary target group are trainers in VET organizations, who will train managers and companies in the hospitality industry on eco-innovative business models. Online training materials, in the form of OER, have already been published and are freely available here, while the EcoMode APP has been created and can be downloaded here.
(Contributed by Kylene De Angelis - Training 2000 <[email protected]>)

New project: Value chain competitiveness
Céreq and Inapp (Italian National Institute for Public Policy Analysis) have launched a new phase in their partnership by signing a convention for the "Value Chain Competitiveness" project funded via the EaSI programme. Cereq's contribution includes an analysis of workers' skills and access to training, and firms training practices based on Defis data, and field research on the CLEA qualification pathways. Started in September 2020, the project is due to run for 2 years.
(Info received from Céreq News - Fall 2020 <[email protected]>)

TACCLE4 CPD: Work of ITB successfully completed
The TACCLE4 CPD project was launched as a successor to three earlier TACCLE projects that focused on promoting the digital competences of classroom teachers. The project aimed to shape strategies for continuing professional development (CPD) of teachers and trainers in different educational sectors. The work of ITB has focused on the field of vocational education and training (VET), and built upon the work in the Learning Layers project (2012 – 2016). ITB has produced special reports that link the issue of promoting digital competences to contexts of vocational and work process-oriented learning. The reports include policy analyses, explorations on prior and parallel innovation projects and case stories on the use of Open Educational Resources (OER) in the field of VET. Two of the reports prepare the grounds for a new CPD framework based on training with Theme Rooms. In the final phase ITB has presented the TACCLE4 CPD Showcase powered by the Learning Toolbox (LTB). It presents the work of the project as a digital resource environment that is based on LTB-stacks. In this way the showcase provides a comprehensive overview and an easy access to the digital resources that have been produced and used in the project.
(Contributed by Pekka Kämäräinen <[email protected]>)

TRACK-VET: Final conference
How can the development or proof of transversal key competences (TKC) be promoted in vocational training? Which methods and approaches are already being followed in different European countries, and which good practice approaches can be identified? These and other questions on the topic of transversal key competences were discussed at the final virtual conference of the TRACK-VET project (Erasmus +) on November 24, 2020. During this event 13 international speakers presented their views and exchanged experiences and opinions. A total of 160 participants from more than 10 countries took part in this event. The agenda and all materials presented during the conference are available on the project website www.track-vet.eu. The recording of the conference will be uploaded to the project website shortly.
(Info received from Norbert Lachmayr <[email protected]>)

NOTE: Contributions are invited to update the Overview of European research projects [www.projects.wifo-gate.org], provided as part of the WIFO Gateway. Contact: Sabine Manning
 

Publications

Call for papers: The role of education and training in labour market Integration
Call for papers for a Special Issue of Education + Training (Emerald Publishing) on "The Role of Education and Training in Labour Market Integration". Guest Editor: Vidmantas Tūtlys, Vytautas Magnus University, Kaunas, Lithuania [Details]
This special issue is devoted to the labour market integration of those who have not recently graduated from educational programmes but who are seeking to enter or re-enter the labour market. We expect to bring an interdisciplinary view to issues and challenges of labour market integration in different regions of the world, paying special attention to the possible solutions and policy responses in this field. The focus of papers should cover a variety of vulnerable groups facing challenges of labour market integration in different institutional and socio-economic contexts.  We welcome contributions that address the education and training issues associated with labour market integration and re-integration including, but not restricted to, specific themes set out in the call for papers. The papers can be submitted online. The final date for submission of papers is 1st March 2021. The publication date of this special issue is September 2021.
(Contributed by Vidmantas Tūtlys <[email protected]>)

Call for papers: Financial literacy in VET
Call for Papers: Promoting financial literacy in Vocational Education and Training. Thematic issue of Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training. Guest editors: Prof. Dr. Eveline Wuttke, Prof. Dr. Carmela Aprea, Prof. Dr. Bärbel Fürstenau [Details]
In recent years, financial literacy has been identified as an increasingly important skill, both for shaping personal lives and as a basis for informed social participation and decision-making. Previous studies, however, show that financial literacy varies within and across age and population groups, but that overall deficits must be assumed. In order to remedy this problem and to promote financial literacy effectively, research is needed that focuses on the development and evaluation of support measures. We welcome papers that include but are not limited to: (1) Systematic literature reviews of interventions that promote financial literacy and their effectiveness; (2) Theory-based conceptual considerations for designing interventions to promote financial literacy; (3) Intervention studies to promote financial literacy at a high methodological level. This Call for Papers is open from now until 31 December 2022. Submitted papers will be reviewed in a timely manner and published directly after acceptance.
(Info obtained from ERVET website)

Teaching and learning for sustainable development and active citizenship
Sandra Saúde, Maria Albertina Raposo, Nuno Pereira, Ana Isabel Rodrigues (2020). Teaching and Learning Practices That Promote Sustainable Development and Active Citizenship. IGI GLOBAL [Details]
We are pleased to share the news that the book "Teaching and Learning Practices that Promote Sustainable Development and Active Citizenship" is already available in its online version. Coordinated by Sandra Saúde, Albertina Raposo, Nuno Pereira and Ana Isabel Rodrigues, from Portugal, it brings together 15 chapters authored by several international authors specialized in the field of global education. The importance of providing education and training that enables critical and active citizenship is reflected, and concrete examples of how to implement it are presented, in the context of formal and non-formal education. Please take a look at the detailed table of contents in the Annex. We share the assumption that education must play an even more active role in building critical citizenship aware of the risks to global sustainability! The printed version of the book will be available in January 2021. At the same time, an online session for the official launch of the book is planned to take place, involving authors and other specialists in the area. For the time being, we invite you to explore the available online version and to share and disseminate this new publication among your contacts and networks.
(Contributed by Sandra Saúde <[email protected]> on behalf of the Editorial Team)

The lament of the bad applicant
Lea Zenner-Höffkes (2020). The lament of the bad applicant - A comparison of historical roots and current references of the discussion about insufficient employability in Germany and England (Original title: Das Klagelied vom schlechten Bewerber - Historische Wurzeln und aktuelle Bezüge der Diskussion um mangelnde Ausbildungsreife in Deutschland und England im Vergleich). Springer [Details]
From an international and historical perspective, the book provides empirical findings for answering the question of whether employability is a construct that is used for political purposes, and whether there is a connection between the narratives used and the situation on the training market. While the question can be answered in the affirmative for the German context, it is answered in the negative for the English context. The results thus show that national discourses are highly dependent on country-specific framework conditions.
(Contributed by Lea Zenner-Höffkes <[email protected]>)

Training pathways and career trajectories
"Training for 'small' jobs: international perspectives".  Formation Emploi (in English), n° 150, September 2020, 233 p. [Details]
This issue of Formation Emploi explores the professional socialisation of young people who have attended technical and vocational schools, in different countries. Themes include: Apprenticeship "on the horizon": how pupils with working class backgrounds internalize an upset sense of their school orientation; Early professional socialisation in secondary school; Vocational education and training in French-speaking Switzerland; The Balearic Islands: When relational support promotes the pursuit of studies in basic vocational training; On-the-job trainers: impact of their stance on the various forms of professional socialisation of apprentices. Please note: The abstracts are in English, the full articles are in French.
(Info received from Céreq News - Fall 2020 <[email protected]>)

Transversal competences in VET
Inmaculada Calero López & Beatriz Rodríguez-López (2020). The relevance of transversal competences in vocational education and training: a bibliometric analysis. Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training, Volume 12, Article number 12 [Details]
Vocational Education and Training (VET) programmes have included the acquisition of transversal competences in their curricula as a tool to increase employability. The number of researches has grown exponentially in the last years, emphasizing its relevance and the multiple approaches and factors involved in the learning process. The present bibliometric study aims to provide an overview of the scientific research carried out during the last 10 years and to shed some light on several relevant topics in this field. The results indicate the need to improve students' transversal competences in order to meet the demands of the labour market, the importance of the collaboration of all the actors involved in the process (policy makers, industry and educators) and, from a pedagogical point of view, the necessity of introducing new teaching approaches to implement and assess the acquisition of transversal competences. However, and despite the surge of interest in the study of transversal competences in the last decade, further empirical research is needed, especially at Vocational Education and Training level, to understand how transversal competences develop and what kind of initiatives have an impact of their acquisition.
(Abstract provided on publishers' page)

Skills needs, integrative pedagogy and case-based instruction
Paul Lyons, Randall Paul Bandura (2020). Skills needs, integrative pedagogy and case-based instruction. Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol 32, Issue 7 [Details]
The purpose of this study is to advance the proposition that organizations involved with training of employees should make. First, CBI is linked to skill development areas recognized as high value in the contemporary and future workplace, such as analysis, problem-solving and soft skills such as active listening, collaboration and compromise. A second linkage is to an emerging, tested model of integrative pedagogy (IP) focused on improving workplace learning for adults. Reviews were completed of empirical literature and expert opinion from three different domains: current and future skills needs, IP for adult learners, and CBI. Review information was analyzed and incorporated into a proposal. Identified are some of the current and projected employee skill needs in the increasingly complex digital work place. Explained are features of IP as well as how the features help advance a learning environment for adults. The authors explain the application of CBI and how it meshes with IP to leverage workplace learning of needed current and future skills.
(Abstract provided on publishers' page)

The role of reflection in the formal–informal learning interaction
Svenja Richter, Timo Kortsch, Simone Kauffeld (2020). Understanding learning spillover: the major role of reflection in the formal–informal learning interaction within different cultural value settings. Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol 32, Issue 7 [Details]
This study uses a holistic approach to learning at work to examine the role of reflection in the formal–informal learning interaction. The purpose of this study is to investigate how the reflection on a formal training affects the subsequent informal learning activities. This study also aims to provide insights into the effects of national culture values (in terms of uncertainty avoidance) on learning in the context of a globalized world of work. In a longitudinal study, 444 employees working for a global acting automotive company located in 6 countries were surveyed. Participants reflected on a training they participated in, and indicated their informal learning activities. Structural equation modelling was used to investigate the effect of the reflection of training on the proceeding use of informal learning strategies and how uncertainty avoidance affects the use of different learning forms. Results show a spillover effect: when employees reflect a formal training and rate it as satisfying, more use of informal learning proceeds. No effects were found for utility. Uncertainty avoidance had direct effects: high uncertainty avoidance results in better evaluations and more informal learning. Furthermore, uncertainty avoidance had an indirect effect on informal learning via reflection.
(Abstract provided on publishers' page)

E-learning training in work corporations
Kaizer, B.M., Sanches da Silva, C.E., Zerbini, T. and Paiva, A.P. (2020). E-learning training in work corporations: a review on instructional planning. European Journal of Training and Development, Vol. 44, No. 8/9 [Details] 
At work, training and education programs deserve attention because of the way they are being planned and offered, as they occupy a strategic position in organizations and are still in the process of adapting to the constant demands of personal and professional qualification to the entire value chain. Today, with the COVID-19 pandemic, the increase in the amount of distance training makes this research more relevant. The study is a bibliometric and analytical review of research that presents empirical models of design or planning of training actions, at the corporate level, offered in the e-learning modality. The article offers contributions to professionals who work in people management, to decision makers in the area of people development and to other researchers interested in the subject. Six planning models, from different countries, were analyzed; two types of academic software were used: Zotero, to compile the data and VosViewer for bibliometric analysis; the results showed that artificial intelligence resources, management tools and computer resources have helped in training planning. The data set covered a pre-pandemic period, from 2008 to 2018 and 5 databases were searched.
(Contributed by Betânia Mafra Kaizer <[email protected]>)

Response to mass emigration of skilled workers
Kaja Reegård & Horacy Debowski (2020). Exit, Voice or Loyalty? VET Stakeholders' Response to Large Scale Skilled Emigration From Poland. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training, Vol 3 No 3 [Details]
The topic of this paper is how mass emigration of skilled workers affects national policies and employers' willingness to invest in Vocational Education and Training (VET) in Poland. In the wake of EU enlargement in 2004, Poland became one of the biggest countries for sending skilled labour to Western European countries. These massive outflows of skilled labour, not compensated by adequate inflows of equally skilled workers, have led to serious skills shortages, especially in the construction sector. The analysis is based on an interview study of decision makers responsible for VET policies, employers, chamber of Craft and trade unions, principals of vocational schools, teachers and representatives of regional examination boards. We find that, after years of inattention, VET has been regaining a strong position in national policies. The study showed that one of the most significant obstacles to employers investing in the training of VET learners is the fear of losing a young skilled employee through emigration. Yet, dependent on skilled labour, employers of big construction companies saw no other option than to continue investing in training young learners.
(Contributed by Kaja Reegård / NIFU <[email protected]>)

Empowering migrants for employment
Satu Heimo, Katriina Tapanila, Anna Ojapelto, Anja Heikkinen (2020). The Potential of Peer Guidance to Empower Migrants for Employment. European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults, Vol. 11, Issue 3  [Details]
Peerness is a common approach to learning, especially in Nordic adult education, but is also increasingly adopted by European Union (EU)-funded projects that aim to improve migrants’ employability. This article discusses action research that evaluated an ESF-funded project, run by a Finnish popular adult education association in collaboration with vocational adult education institutes, NGOs, and a trade union. The project trained migrants to become peer group guides and empower migrant-background participants for employment. The training prepared guides to become experiential experts, but increased the distance between the participants and themselves. The guidance could even strengthen the otherness of participants when the peerness was based solely on sharing a migrant background. Voluntary peer guidance may reinforce this separation, but dependence on ESF funding also shapes mainstream adult education; therefore, the empowerment of migrants should build on collaboration between experiential experts and guidance professionals as part of the regular adult education system.
(Abstract provided on publishers' page)

Educationalisation of youth unemployment
Oscar Valiente, Queralt Capsada-Munsech, Jan Peter G de Otero (2020). Educationalisation of youth unemployment through lifelong learning policies in Europe. European Educational Research Journal, Vol 19, Issue 6 [Details]
In the aftermath of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, European authorities reinforced the economic objectives of European lifelong learning policy, promoting employability solutions to address youth unemployment, and increasing their political influence on the implementation of national lifelong learning reforms. This article investigates to what extent these supranational policy orientations have been translated into concrete national lifelong learning initiatives. Although European countries were not equally affected in terms of time and intensity by the rise in youth unemployment rates, the political responses from their governments shared a central focus on employability solutions to youth unemployment in lifelong learning policy reforms. Our comparative analysis shows how different lifelong learning policy initiatives managed to 'educationalise' a structural economic problem (i.e. youth unemployment) into an individual educational concern (i.e. lack of education and skills). We argue that the 'educationalisation' of youth unemployment through lifelong learning policies is a crisis management strategy, which has allowed governments to focus on the individual symptoms of the problem while avoiding offering solutions to the underlying structural causes of young people’s poor labour market prospects.
(Contributed by Oscar Valiente <[email protected]>)

ETF: Human capital development, Career guidance and Youth potential
(1) Policies for human capital development: ETF Torino Process assessments
The ETF's assessments provide an external, forward-looking analysis of a country's human capital issues and vocational education and training (VET) policies from a lifelong learning perspective. These assessments are central to the Torino Process, an initiative launched by the ETF in 2010. ETF country and regional assessments are published on the ETF's website and ETF Open Space.
(2) International trends and innovation in career guidance – Volume I: Thematic chapters & Volume II: Country case studies
This report examines the mega-trends in career guidance – use of information and communication technologies, career-management skills, cooperation and coordination mechanisms, and the role of parents in young people's career choices. The report also presents a selection of inspiring examples from around the world.
(3) Unlocking youth potential in South Eastern Europe and Turkey: Skills development for labour market and social inclusion
This paper investigates youth participation and performance in education and the labour market and their entrepreneurial potential. The analysis illustrates that skills and labour market policies 'came of age' during the last decade, departing from rather weak links between education and labour market demand. The social ‘sensitivity’ of policies is discussed from the perspective of education systems and labour market.
(Info received from Julian Stanley <[email protected]>)

Big data for skills needs
The feasibility of using big data in anticipating and matching skills needs. ILO Publication 28.10.2020 [Details]
In dynamic and rapidly changing labour markets, the identification of skills needs is an important challenge. Imbalances on the labour market, reflected by difficulties faced by businesses in sourcing the skills they need, high incidences of skills mismatch, and significant unemployment or underemployment especially among youth, are common to most countries, independently of their level of economic development. In order to tackle these issues, policy-makers, employers, workers, providers of education and training and students all need timely and accurate information about the demand for skills on the labour market and how it relates to skills supply. This publication collects together the contributions presented during the ILO workshop "Can we use big data for skills anticipation and matching?", which took place on 19–20 September 2019 at ILO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, and the discussions during the workshop that considered the feasibility of using big data in the context of skills anticipation and matching, and both the potential and the limitations of big data in skills analysis.
(Info received from ILO Employment Newsletter November/December 2020 <[email protected]>)

NOTE: References to publications on European research in learning and work are provided by the WIFO pages on Books [www.books.wifo-gate.org],  Journals [www.journals.wifo-gate.org] and Articles [www.articles.wifo-gate.org].