Abstract:
Government policy across Australia has looked to developing effective partnerships between schools and workplaces as a strategy to engage young people in 'hands-on' learning. The rapid growth of Vocational Education and Training (VET) in schools and other youth education settings has placed particular emphasis on the need for partnerships that engage 15 to 19 year old students in workplace learning and their development of employability skills. This policy direction has required schools and industry to interact more cooperatively and created new roles in schools for industry liaison personnel to develop and manage effective partnerships between schools and their industry partners. In this paper the author reflects on her role as an industry liaison officer working at a medium-sized technical school in regional Victoria. It presents two case studies of school-industry partnership initiatives and explores the opportunities for learning created by these. The paper draws on the following key questions: how are the partnerships being used to prepare students for life beyond school; how are anticipated learning outcomes are being measured; and what challenges are being confronted by the role of industry liaison officer. The author discussed how 'doing partnership work' requires the facilitation of mutual understandings between schools and industry. While partnerships creates opportunities for young people to assemble new learning from these two different settings, the experience of transcending different institutional cultures can be challenging for students, educators and industry partners. The author concludes by discussing how the school-industry partnerships outlined in this paper have required changes in the way both the school and industry partners work.