Overview
Everyone need skills for life and work. These skills include vocational skills and non-vocational or “soft skills” like managing money, travelling independently, communicating effectively, and living independently.
Vocational skills are developed in secondary school as well as in later learning opportunities in TAFE, University, on the job, and through other programs. Vocational skills can commence through school-based apprenticeships and traineeships and through learning through volunteering and paid work.
Evidence shows that best results come from combining formal skills development with on-the-job learning and experience. Classroom-only learning is less effective.1
It is important to match the skills development approach to the way each person with disability learns best.
Key strategies for success
People with disability have the same right to skills development as anyone else. Research highlights the effectiveness of approaches like:
- Formal vocational and post secondary training (link to guide page)
- Learning on the job (link to guide page)
- Work experience (link to guide page)
- Soft skills development (link to guide page)
Skills development can occur in two main ways:
- Train and place – this is the ‘traditional’ form of skills training where jobseekers acquire skills, usually through formal training, before they gain employment. It is often linked to the idea of ‘work readiness’ prior to employment.
- Place and train – this is where jobseekers are placed into employment and then supported to gain the relevant skills both on and off the job.
Different strategies work best for different groups. For example, people with intellectual disability often acquire vocational skills most effectively when training happens directly within the workplace.2