In the Dutch Vocational Education and Training (VET) system, competence-based education is the leading paradigm for innovation, both at the system level and at the level of learning environments. This article provides an historical analysis of the development of competence-based education in various countries and explores the concept of competence and its popularity. Possible pitfalls with respect to the concept of competence, standardisation, school and workplace learning, determining learning activities, assessment of competencies, changing teacher roles/identity and competence-based management will be discussed. Taking these pitfalls into account, roads for future development will be sketched. A learning policy connecting governance, practice and research is believed to be the most fruitful way to develop flexible VET systems that are suited to the emerging knowledge-based economy.

If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The aim of this paper is to present an inventory of expert opinions on the factors that influence the participation of registered nurses in continuing professional development (CPD) activities. Design/methodology/approach -A Delphi study was conducted among 38 Dutch experts (nursing employers, managers, education institutions, and professional associations). Data collection comprised three rounds: experts completed two consecutive rounds of questionnaires and participated in a discussion meeting. Findings -Main influencing factors were: a CPD registration system, the attractiveness of the nursing profession, nurses' identification with the nursing profession, opportunities for workplace learning, the line manager as role model, and attractive education programs. Research limitations/implications -Being part of a larger study, for the present paper only nursing experts were asked their opinion about shaping CPD for nurses. Further research should bring in the views of nurses themselves and investigate how the wider environment influences CPD participation. Practical implications -As all stakeholders were found to have their own roles in the CPD process, collaboration among employers, managers, education institutions, and professional associations will be crucial to create a conducive learning climate for nurses. HRD practitioners in healthcare can use the study findings to advise hospitals about implementing the right conditions to support CPD for nurses. Originality/value -A qualitative study using the Delphi method to discover factors influencing CPD in nursing had not been conducted before. Unlike many studies looking essentially at formal education, the present paper takes into account workplace learning among nurses as well.

On assiste dans le domaine du développement des ressources humaines à un passage de l’optique formation à la perspective apprentissage. La formation est de plus en plus perçue comme seulement l’une des solutions disponibles pour mettre en place les processus d’apprentissage dans les organisations de travail, et pas toujours comme étant la plus efficace. Les autres formes d’apprentissage ont pris beaucoup d’importance dans la dernière décennie, en particulier celles étroitement reliées au travail quotidien, sur le lieu de travail et dans le cadre élargi de la culture organisationnelle qui devient un puissant outil d’apprentissage. Après avoir retracé l’histoire du passage de la formation à l’apprentissage, l’article propose trois orientations pour de futures investigations: le travail comme facteur potential d’apprentissage, l’apprentissage sur le lieu de travail et les environnements formateurs. A l’intérieur de chacun de ces thèmes, on analyse d’éventuelles pistes de recherche et quelques problématiques stimulantes sont présentées. The field of human resource development is in the process of shifting from a training to a learning orientation. Increasingly, training is viewed as just one possible way to organise learning processes in work organisations, and not always the most effective one. Other ways of organising learning processes have gained much interest in the last decade, particularly those closely related to everyday work, in the context of the workplace, and in the broader organisational culture as a powerful learning environment. After explaining the history of the shift from training to learning, the article proposes three domains for further research: (1) the learning potential of work, (2) learning in the workplace, and (3) learning environments. Within each of these themes, possible research avenues are discussed and some challenging research questions are put forward.

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