Bridging the Skills Gap

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxv

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2. Diagnosing the Skill Gap

   • Shubha Jayaram, Michelle Engmann

   Pages 1-14

3. Inclusive Skills Development

   • Modupe Adefeso-Olateju

   Pages 15-32

4. Technical Skills in the Classroom

   • David Sorrell

   Pages 33-53

5. Systemic Curricular Change

   • Katherine Namuddu, Nitika Jain, Bob Adamson

   Pages 55-75

6. Reimagining Pedagogy

   • Guitele Nicoleau, Risa Sackman

   Pages 77-100

7. Soft Skills: What They Are and How to Foster Them

   • Shubha Jayaram, Rose Musau

   Pages 101-122

8. Principles of Successful Skills Development Models

   • Michelle Engmann, Aarthi Rao, Bob Adamson

   Pages 123-141

9. Back Matter

   Pages 143-148

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This volume seeks to examine the skills development agenda for youth by exploring two key questions for sustainable livelihoods: What are the skills needed for employability in developing countries, especially in Africa and Asia?  And, what skills are currently possessed by students and secondary school leavers? An introductory chapter will set the stage for the discussion and analysis to follow by reviewing in broad terms the current research on relevant topics such as global youth unemployment, the relationship between skills and economic growth, and the expansion of secondary education. The following chapters synthesize a series of background studies focused on Africa, South Asia and South-East Asia, including both a general overview and an in-depth look at several countries. The chapters introduce innovative models for skills delivery, and highlight some of the key elements of successful skills models, including multi-stakeholder partnerships, updatedpedagogy, and innovative financing mechanisms. Each of the five core chapters of the book covers one theme, with the support of case studies to illustrate successes, challenges, and lessons in real world examples.

• Employability in developing countries
• Global youth unemployment
• ISESE project
• Inclusive skills development
• Innovative Secondary Education for Skills Enhancement
• R4D
• Skills development models
• Skills enhancement
• Sustainable livelihoods
• Systemic curricular change
• Workforce development
• Workforce readiness

• Results for Development Institute (R4D), Washington, DC, USA

  Shubha Jayaram, Wambui Munge

• Centre for Lifelong Learning Research and Development, The Education University of Hong Kong, Tai Po, Hong Kong

  Bob Adamson

• Print Perfect, Tai Po, Hong Kong

  David Sorrell

• UNESCO’s MGIEP, New Delhi, India

  Nitika Jain

Professor Bob Adamson is Chair Professor of Curriculum Reform, UNESCO Chair in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and Director of the Centre for Lifelong Learning Research and Development at The Education University of Hong Kong. He is a researcher and consultant in the fields of language policy, teacher education, comparative education, curriculum studies, pedagogy, and higher education.


Shubha Jayaram is a Senior Program Officer at the Results for Development Institute (R4D), where she works on the education portfolio. She leads initiatives focused on workforce development and youth employability, including the Rockefeller Foundation-supported project Innovative Secondary Education for Skills Enhancement (ISESE). 


Wambui Munge is a Communications Officer at the Results for Development Institute (R4D). At R4D, she conceptualizes, plans and implements communications activities in Global Education. 


Dr. David Sorrell is an independent education consultant based in Hong Kong. David currently serves as an Associate Editor for The International Journal of Comparative Education and Development; Associate Secretary for the Comparative Education Society of Hong Kong (CESHK); General Secretary for The Hong Kong Educational Research Association (HKERA); and Executive Director for The Asia Pacific Educational Research Association (APERA).


Nitika Jain works at UNESCO’s Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP), New Delhi, as part of a project that reviews the policy and curriculum documents of education systems in the Asia-Pacific region. Raised in Hong Kong, she received her BA in English from the University of Exeter, and completed her MEd in Comparative and Global Studies in Education and Development at the University of Hong Kong. 

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