Fed: Students taking on VET subjects in greater numbers

AAP General News (Australia)
08-14-2000
Fed: Students taking on VET subjects in greater numbers

(EMBARGOED UNTIL 0001 AEST, TUESDAY AUGUST 15)



By Debra Way

CANBERRA, Aug 15 AAP - Senior school students are increasingly abandoning traditional
subjects in favour of the more workforce-related technical and vocational studies, a new
study has found.

An Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) study found one in six Year 12
students are now enrolled in at least one vocational education and training (VET) course.

Participation in those courses was even greater for students from a less wealthy background,
and those whose parents had lower levels of education.

The study was carried out from comparisons of subject enrolment patterns from Year
12 students in the period from 1993 to 1998.

ACER deputy director John Ainley said in 1993, enrolments in technology subjects were
10.6 per cent of total subject enrolments.

By 1998 that figure had grown to 13.5 per cent.

In 1998, nearly 28 per cent of students studied at least one computing subject in year
12, compared with up to 20 per cent in 1993.

Dr Ainley said about 16 per cent of Year 12 students in 1998 included at least one
VET subject in their program.

"Participation in VET subjects was greater for those from a lower socioeconomic background,
for those with parents with lower levels of education and those with lower levels of early
school achievement in literacy and numeracy," he said.

"Students from a non-English speaking background were not as likely to participate,
nor were students from independent schools or students in capital cities."

The study found the increase in VET and technical studies enrolments came at the expense
of subjects from the humanities, which fell from 22.9 per cent in 1993 to 20.1 per cent
in 1998.

The percentage studying economics fell from 18 to 11 per cent, geography from 18 to
15 per cent and history from 21 to 17 per cent.

Enrolments in English and maths remained stable, but the numbers studying science fell,
the study found.

It also found more boys chose to study maths, sciences, technical studies, computers
and physical education.

Girls were predominant in the humanities and social sciences, biological sciences,
the arts, languages and home sciences.

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