Competency-based assessment, employment and immigrant background: an exploratory investigation of adult language learners in Australia

Ehrich, John; Kim, Sun Hee Ok; Ficorilli, Laura

doi:10.1080/09500782.2010.499173

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 20 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In the structured interviews, all of the HR managers specifically mentioned that new engineering professionals lack both oral and written communication skills (Ehrich et al, 2010). Some believe that their oral communication is better than their writing ability and others reported that they are able to write better than they speak.…”

Section: Conducting Structured Interviews -Hr Managers' Responsesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Journal of Languag and Education,4(4), 42-53. doi: 10.17323/2411-7390-2018-4-4-42-53 JOB FOCUS: REVISITING STUDENTS' COMMUNICATIVE NEEDS AND INDUSTRIAL DEMANDS French, 1994;Ehrich et al, 2010;Lester, 2014). This research focuses on understanding the reflections of the technical students, alumni, and HR managers regarding the development of skills relevant for employment.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Job Focus: Revisiting Students’ Communicative Needs and Industrial Demands

Fareen

2018

JLE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In an attempt to develop students’ employability skills through a job-specific, needs based English for Specific Purposes (ESP) course, this paper investigated conducting a needs analysis to understand the perceptions of the final-year technical students, alumni, and Human Resources (HR) managers for promoting placements in the campus recruitments. By employing a qualitative ethnographic approach, an open-ended questionnaire was conducted with final-year information technology students and structured and unstructured interviews with the HR managers and the alumni respectively. In this study, the communicative needs of the final-year technical students were specifically addressed to provide them with career education and placement training and raise employment opportunities in their course of study. Based on the results of the questionnaire-based survey and subsequent observations in the structured and unstructured interviews, it is widely examined that all of the HR managers reflected on the importance of English language in corporate communications. The findings of the survey also reflected that the perceptions of the alumni and the expectations of the HR managers on verbal and nonverbal skills were well received by the final-year technical students. This is a positive development on the part of students as they were found to be thoroughly aware of their workplace needs and were keen to develop language, communication, and soft skills for successfully entering into the job market. This research implies that connecting institution and industry is a significant factor in helping students obtain job offers and develop the job-specific skills that meet the requirements of the industry.

show abstract

Section: Conducting Structured Interviews -Hr Managers' Responsesmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Job Focus: Revisiting Students’ Communicative Needs and Industrial Demands

Fareen

2018

JLE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…There have long been calls for greater emphasis to be placed upon the assessment of skills and competence rather than qualifications (Ehrich, Kim, & Ficorilli, 2010;Hawthorne, 2002Hawthorne, , 2015Iredale, 1989), and the study's findings suggest that opportunities for overseas-qualified professionals to demonstrate competence are currently limited. Any moves towards an increase in competency-based assessment, however, must be done in an appropriate manner if recognition outcomes are to be improved.…”

Section: The Demonstration Of Competencementioning

confidence: 95%

Overseas-qualified professionals: the search for professional re-entry and its perceived impact on settlement

Scull¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Gaining recognition of overseas qualifications represents a major barrier for skilled migrants in Australia and is a primary cause of underemployment. While recent immigration policy initiatives have had some positive impacts on labour market outcomes among skilled migrants, the challenges posed by qualifications recognition remain and skill under-utilisation is a significant issue, particularly for migrants from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. The recent Australian literature on skilled migrants focuses predominantly on broader labour market trends and there is little qualitative research that has explored the labour market experiences of these migrants, or the perceived impact of their experiences on settlement.This exploratory study aims to address this gap by focusing on the subjective experiences of overseas-qualified professionals seeking professional re-entry in Australia. Specifically the research focuses on their search for qualifications recognition and skill utilisation, and the perceived impact of this search on settlement. Adopting a qualitative methodology, the study targeted migrants with qualifications and work experience in legally-regulated professions. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 CALD overseas-qualified professionals in southeast Queensland. These interviews elicited an in-depth account of their search for professional re-entry, together with their perceptions of how these experiences had affected their settlement. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data, which was guided by a conceptual framework that draws together aspects of recognition theory, cultural and social capital.The findings suggest that regardless of outcome, the majority of participants perceived that their search for professional re-entry had been to some extent negative. The search for registration was often characterised by the need for participants to make significant investments of time, money and effort. Despite such investments, many participants perceived that the design and implementation of the qualifications recognition process restricted their ability to demonstrate their linguistic and professional competence. Over half the participants had managed to gain registration, an outcome that represented formal recognition of their professional status. Registration itself, however, did not ensure skill utilisation, and professional re-entry was dependent upon gaining informal recognition in the labour market. In response to challenges encountered in the search for work, participants described a range of strategies they used to develop their employability. Despite these efforts, only six of the 20 participants had achieved professional re-entry at the time of interview.iii Participants' perceptions of how their search for professional re-entry had affected their settlement were inextricably linked with their understandings of settlement. Participants understood settlement as a sense of security and belonging, which could be facilitated by meaningful work. Those ...

show abstract