School students' learning from their paid and unpaid work

Introduction

This project set out to examine the different ways in which young people still at school experience workplaces. The research, carried out in two States - New South Wales and South Australia - during late 2000, contained both qualitative and quantitative components.

There is currently intense policy interest, in Australia as in other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, on school-to-work transitions. Allied to this there has been rapid expansion of vocational education and training (VET) courses in schools since the mid 1990s. Before this time, the major way in which school students experienced workplaces was through work experience programs. In addition, many children start part-time work whilst still at school, although this phenomena has been little examined in Australian literature. The project therefore set out to examine participation in, and learning from, three forms of workplace engagement: work experience, paid work, and vocational placements (or 'structured work placements') forming part of VET courses.

Research questions

The three primary research questions were as follows:

1. What is the extent and nature of the way in which Year 10, 11 and 12 school students experience the workplace?
2. What is the nature and relative importance of learning gained from these experiences?
3. Are there variations in the way in which different equity groups access these experiences and learning?

In addition, the foundations for answering a fourth question were laid. This question was:

1. What effects do such experiences of the workplace have on later access to employment and higher education?

The study secured a database of 413 students who indicated willingness to be involved in a follow-up study that will examine the employment and further education experiences of these students in the light of their workplace engagement whilst at school.

Research method

A full literature review, mainly of Australian literature but including some works from the United States and United Kingdom, was carried out. The review covered literature on senior secondary students' work placements and work experience as well as issues associated with part-time work. The most relevant literature regarding employees' learning in workplaces was also briefly examined. Interviews were carried out with 16 key stakeholders in Australia, with a particular focus on the two States in the study - New South Wales and South Australia - enabling a picture to be built up of current policies and practices on schoolchildren and workplaces.

The quantitative phase of the study involved administration of a questionnaire to Year 10, 11 and 12 students in 13 schools in New South Wales and South Australia. The questionnaire included personal details, a record of participation in a number of paid and unpaid activities in workplaces, and detailed sections about learning in work experience, paid work and vocational placements. 1451 responses were received to this questionnaire. In the qualitative phase, case studies were carried out in five schools, including interviews and focus groups with students and teachers involved in various ways with students and workplaces. In addition, a special focus group of Year 12 students was convened. Also, interviews and focus groups with employers in both States were carried out. The quantitative and qualitative data were analysed separately and were then drawn together to form some overall conclusions.

Findings of the study

What is the extent and nature of the way in which Year 10, 11 and 12 school students experience the workplace?

The survey found that around 60 per cent of students in Years 10, 11 and 12 had had formal part-time work (50.1% when family businesses were excluded). Around two-thirds had done work experience and around 11 per cent had undertaken vocational placements. Analysis of Year 11 and 12 figures showed that participation in work experience for those students was 87 per cent, and in vocational placements was almost 18 per cent. Of those in the study, 14.6 per cent had not had any experience in workplaces at all. Participation rates were found to be higher in government than non-government schools, and, because non-government students were over-represented in the study - owing to better response rates from Catholic and Independent schools - these figures may not be fully representative of Australian schoolchildren. Paid work was highly concentrated in certain industry areas -- two-thirds worked in retail or fast food -- while work experience was widely distributed across a range of industry areas.

Because there had been very few large-scale studies of students' part-time work, a number of general questions about part-time working were included in the survey. Findings included:

• the major reason for seeking work was for extra spending money, although around ten per cent needed the money to help support themselves or their families. Around 20 per cent sought work mainly to get experience
• student jobs differed from the general workforce in two major respects: they were more likely to be casual, and they were concentrated in two industries (fast food and retail)
• students worked on average 8.5 hours a week and generally found little difficulty in fitting in their school work around their jobs
• there were many reasons why some students did not engage in paid work; these were both positive (for example wanting to focus on study or sport) and negative (for example unable to find a job in the local area)

What is the nature and relative importance of learning gained from these experiences?

Both the survey and the qualitative research confirmed that the three major forms of workplace activity had different purposes:

• Work experience was viewed as a process of career sampling and of familiarisation with work habits. Even those with paid jobs and/or vocational placements still found work experience useful. However, some employers were not sure how to handle work experience students and seemed to prefer vocational placement students.
• Vocational placements were clearly seen as sites for developing specific skills. For this reason, employers found them easier to manage.
• Paid work was primarily undertaken as a way of earning money; nevertheless significant learning occurred. Much paid work was undertaken alongside other teenage workers rather than with adults.

Employers reported they gave paid workers more training than work experience or vocational placement students, although they did not regard themselves as responsible for paid workers' learning in the same way. Similarly, student workers reported feeling better trained and more secure in the workplace. Responses to questions about learning, both generic and specific skills, indicated that students learned more from paid work than from other forms of workplace activity (although vocational placements came a very close second). This was partly because paid jobs lasted longer than work experience or placements, but there were other reasons as well. The best learning results came from school-based apprentices and trainees, although only a small number (28) were captured in the study.

The skills which were best developed in all three forms of workplace activity were:

• verbal communication
• how to behave at work
• using your initiative

Written communication was the least well developed of the generic skills. The most common specific skills mentioned by students were also common to all three forms of workplace activity, and were:

• dealing with customers
• communication skills
• operating a computer

Learning methods were also similar in all three forms of activity: being shown by a supervisor or fellow workers were the most common forms of learning. Paid workers also commonly learned by watching and were less likely than work experience or placement students to ask questions (perhaps because they were afraid to appear inadequate). Employers reported that those students who were most motivated received more training and learned most.

There was not much linkage between school and workplaces, except in the case of vocational placement students. Only 30 per cent of paid student workers ever discussed their jobs in class. A small percentage of students (13%) were counting their paid jobs towards their school qualifications. Of those who were not, only a small minority (17%) wanted their jobs to count; although a third said they might like to consider the idea. Some groups of students such as the 'less academic', Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (ATSI) and those from a non-English-speaking background (NESB) were more likely than others to want their learning from paid work to count.

Are there variations in the way in which different equity groups access these experiences and learning?

The following findings emerged from the survey and the case studies:

• rural students had more involvement in workplaces than urban students
• girls had more involvement in workplaces than boys
• NESB students were less likely to have had paid jobs for an employer than the average
• ATSI students and those with physical disabilities relied more upon work experience and vocational placements than upon paid work for their workplace activities
• ATSI students were likely to rely mainly upon schools to help them access workplaces
• NESB students, like ATSI students, did not have much help from family and friends in accessing workplaces but were likely to rely on their own resources rather than utilising school help

It should be noted, however, that the NESB group was particularly diverse and NESB students were by no means all disadvantaged. Employers and education department policy officers discussed particular groups of NESB students (such as Muslim girls) who had problems accessing workplaces, and special programs were in place for them, as well as for ATSI students. The results for ATSI students, although marked, may not be representative, as few ATSI students responded to the survey. Study of ATSI participation would need to be more targeted. The case studies and employer interviews suggested that, for both ATSI and NESB students, lack of confidence and a desire to stick to industries where there was a tradition of participation of the particular group might affect participation.

Implications of the findings for policy and practice

The study showed very clearly that part-time work is now a normal part of life for the majority of students in Years 10, 11 and 12. While some groups of students are less likely to access paid work than others, the differences in labour force participation among equity groups are less than might have been expected. Work experience remains an almost universal experience, at least by the end of Year 11, and vocational placements are increasing in importance. However, experiencing workplaces through vocational placements is still relatively uncommon (involving less than a sixth of Year 11 and 12 students in the sample surveyed) and is not likely to become as common as either paid work or work experience.

Thus, while State education departments, teachers and specially formed bodies such as the Enterprise and Career Foundation (ECEF) have been working hard to increase students' participation in workplaces through vocational placements, students have been mounting their own assault on workplaces through paid work, as well as continuing their involvement in work experience. The emphasis on vocational placements, as a part of VET-in-Schools programs, has perhaps diverted attention and resources away from ways of improving students? experiences in paid work and in work experience.

In the scramble to find and administer vocational placements, less attention has been paid to the issue of learning in placements, except insofar as such learning can be turned into VET qualifications. A similar process of 'capturing in qualifications' is currently being envisaged for part-time work. The evidence, however, suggests that school students do not have an interest in having their part-time work 'colonised' by the education system. Yet, on the other hand, the study suggests that the learning outcomes of part-time work may be greater than those of other means of experiencing workplaces. However, paid employment for student workers is available only in a limited range of industries. The most common form of experiencing workplaces -- work experience -- has been virtually ignored in recent debates, yet the study has shown that there is clearly room for improvement of learning outcomes in work experience.

The study therefore raises some questions, which need further investigation:

• How can learning from part-time work be captured and utilised in a way which is both attractive to students and practicable for employers?
• How can student workers be encouraged to begin their careers as lifelong learners through seeing their paid work as a learning opportunity?
• How can the lessons which have been learned from vocational placements be transferred to work experience to make the latter a more satisfying experience for all students and employers?
• How can those 'pockets' of students who face challenges in accessing workplaces continue to be assisted to ensure they are not disadvantaged as more of the ?mainstream? student population expands its involvement in workplaces?