Are employability skills learned in U.S. youth education and training programs?

an article by Robert Lerman (Urban Institute, Washington DC, USA; American University, Washington DC, USA and IZA, Bonn, Germany) published in IZA Journal of Labor Policy Volume 2 Number 6 (2013)

Abstract

Skills are a central source of high productivity and economic well-being. But what do we mean by productive skills?

Both with regard to measurement and policy, the primary focus in the U.S. has been on academic skills, as measured by tests of reading, writing and math abilities and by educational attainment, including degrees completed.

However, a new consensus is emerging that an array of non-academic skills and occupational skills may be at least as important for labour market success.

After reviewing the evidence on respective roles of various types of skills required by employers, this paper examines the skill-enhancing roles of several youth programmes and demonstrations, with an emphasis on how well these efforts raise non-academic skills directly through purposeful activities or indirectly as a result of other employment-enhancing services.

JEL classification: I28, J08, J24

Full text (PDF 23pp)

---