Foster, Pauline Adele (1990) Retraining adults : an examination of national training policy, its influence on the structure and content of adult job retraining in further education and industry, and consequent impact on the experiences and perceptions of participating adults. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

This is a study of adult job retraining in further education and industry. Through indepth
case studies of a small number of chemical and engineering companies and one
college of further education, it attempts to develop an understanding of the broader
relationship between further education, industry and government as it pertains to
retraining. Data was collected by unstructured interview and participant observation.
Supporting data was collected by means of postal questionnaires.
The thesis is divided into four parts. Part one examines national government training
and retraining policy; a policy characterised by ambiguity and ambivalance. Part two
reviews the development of further education, and assesses the adult job retraining
provision within one particular college. Part three examines retraining in industry and
describes the enterprise restructuring under which retraining took place in three
chemical companies. On the basis of findings outlined in Parts two and three, Part four
asks whether further education is equipped to provide the type of retraining which
industry believes it requires. The thesis concludes that, because industry and further
education acknowledge two different concepts of retraining, a structural disengagement
occurs. Further education seeks to provide individuals with general competencies
whereas industry is concerned with enterprise specific retraining. The remainder of Part
four examines the retraining experience from the point of view of trainees and students
and looks at the way skills, in the context of training and retraining, undergo
reconstruction.
This thesis contributes to an area which is currently under-researched; and at a time
of structural change within industry and further education, issues relating to retraining
become important. The thesis examines this restructuring and suggests ways in which
retraining can be reorganised for the benefit of industry, communities and individuals.

Item Type:	Thesis or Dissertation (PhD)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Occupational retraining -- Great Britain, Adult education and state -- Great Britain
Official Date:	January 1990
Dates:	Date Event January 1990 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of Sociology
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Fairbrother, Peter ; Frith, Simon
Extent:	x, 339; iii, 96 leaves
Language:	eng

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