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Competence Development and Workplace Learning: Enduring Challenges in the Interplay of Policy and Practice in the UK

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Competence-based Vocational and Professional Education

Abstract

UK policies for post-school education and training have continued to focus, in the twenty-first century, on the significance in modern societies of human capital, lifelong learning and work. The competence development of individual workers is expected to play a crucial role in employability and adaptability to economic shifts and changing demands in extended working lives. The nature of competence and its various configurations, as well as the contexts where it could be developed and exercised, continue to be debated as research evidence accumulates on the processes and practices of competence development in large-scale programmes that have been implemented nationally. Because of its complexity and strong dependence on the context where it is applied, the concept of competence has been interpreted and conceptualised in a variety of ways. The meanings given to competence in everyday life, in vocational education and training settings and in academic settings are quite different. What is more, the meaning is likely to change over time. This chapter critically reviews developments and identifies some enduring challenges in the interplay of policies and practice in competence development and workplace learning in the United Kingdom, drawing on examples from contrasting occupational fields.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UCL Institute of Education, University of London, London, UK

    Karen Evans & Natasha Kersh

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  1. Karen Evans
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  2. Natasha Kersh
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Correspondence to Karen Evans .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Education and Competence Studies Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands

    Martin Mulder

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Evans, K., Kersh, N. (2017). Competence Development and Workplace Learning: Enduring Challenges in the Interplay of Policy and Practice in the UK. In: Mulder, M. (eds) Competence-based Vocational and Professional Education. Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Issues, Concerns and Prospects, vol 23. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41713-4_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41713-4_15

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