Alternative mechanisms to encourage individual contributions to vocational education and training

• Stephen Lamb, Sandra Haukka, Jack Keating
• National Centre for Vocational Education Research

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04 February 2005Financing vocational education and training, as part of Australia's commitment to lifelong learning, will become a greater challenge as increased spending on other public services, such as health and welfare caused by an ageing population, constrains government education expenditure. Sandra Haukka, Stephen Lamb and Jack Keating examine a range of mechanisms to encourage individual contributions to and participation in vocational education, drawing on international examples, and present available findings about the effectiveness of these mechanisms in the Australian context.

The research suggests learning accounts and paid educational leave offer the most potential. Mechanisms must offer incentives for individuals to invest, preferably in conjunction with incentives for employers, such as taxation breaks and superannuation.