A better job needs to be done in providing career options and a broad range of study options in high schools, to engage with young people, Otago-Southland Employers Association chief executive Virginia Nicholls says.
The association would like to see schools provided with more funding for careers advisers and held more accountable for providing access to high levels of advice and information.
''We will also support high schools providing career guidance at an earlier age, starting in year 10. Part of this could be spending more time with future employers, to find out if their career choice is something that appeals to students.''
Such efforts needed to complement efforts to ensure NCEA prepared young people to be successful independent learners, she said.
Mrs Nicholls was asked by the Otago Daily Times to review the Productivity Commission's report on new models for tertiary education. Submissions close on November and the final report is to be presented to the Government by February 28.
The commission said the tertiary system needed less focus on input measures and more on student outcomes; specific standards for teacher performance; new quality control approaches to encourage agility, innovation and quality; and to achieve more value for students.
Mrs Nicholls supported the report which focused on the needs of the pupils, improving access to careers information and advice.
''The challenge is to ensure learning leads to improved economic and social outcomes, today and into the future.''
The report placed a lot of emphasis on pupils leaving high school and, at 18 years, making good decisions to address the needs and demands of the labour market. That placed a great deal on young people knowing what they wanted to do in their future career at a young age, she said.
There were now four government agencies supplying career and tertiary education information. The association would like to see information for pupils, their parents and supporters to be less fragmented and be consolidated in one place, including an easily accessible website so the information was better utilised.
However, the association did not agree with the report's statement that the university entrance exam did not reliably signify preparedness for higher-level study.
The examination was a useful starting point to assess a student's ability to start work and attend future study.
Tertiary institutions could then set their own requirements, including subject prerequisites or higher academic requirements for different courses. The University of Otago and the Otago Polytechnic had already done this for different courses, Mrs Nicholls said.
Consideration should be given to renaming those examinations as not all pupils were preparing to attend university.
When employers were looking for graduate applicants, they placed importance on tertiary education, work experience which also came through industry placement or internships, and voluntary work.
''Graduates who have lived away from home - which is the case for many students in Otago and Southland - have had an excellent education, but they have also learnt to live with others, have good teamwork skills, and they are more independent, which makes them attractive to employers in their first year of employment.''
The report was weak in addressing skill shortages, particularly in the Otago-Southland region which was experiencing rapid growth in many industries, including construction and tourism.
It was pointless to pretend supplying more skills would address labour and skill shortages, she said
In addition to an open and efficient labour market, responsive immigration policies, the imperative was to ensure higher levels of skills were really needed and were used to maximum productive effect. The outcomes of learning needed to be defined and aligned with workforce needs.
''We live in a world where much is changing, quickly. Those who can respond to constantly changing economic and social environments will be better off from those that lack these skills.''
The association was calling for more debate on changing the student loan scheme so more funding was available within the tertiary education institutions or schools to address social inequity and to improve student outcomes and achievements, Mrs Nicholls said.
''It is disappointing to see politics trump improvements in student learning.''
The commission's recommendation to have a student ombudsman was welcomed. Students should be able to mix and match courses from a variety of tertiary institutions
The association would support a more flexible tertiary system which provided a variety of options, including part-time study to enable access to quality opportunities to improve skills, she said.
The commission did not go far enough in considering the role of tertiary education in lifelong learning, and largely ignored the workplace, much of which offered rich opportunities for learning. It would make sense to have a stronger focus on learning at work in the final report.
''We would like to see more short courses, limited credit programmes and bite-sized chunks of learning, rather than long qualifications.''
That would meet the needs of a fast-changing business environment with employees who, in some cases, were in the workforce for longer periods of time. The changes to industry training were positive, Mrs Nicholls said.
