1Description
Since 1999
2Foundations
ORPdE is part of the Development Centre for Teachers and Vocational Education, and its research activity is focused on relations between education and the labour market.
Supplying young people with information about the present situation and trends in the regional and global labour market, to help them in making educational and professional decisions; supplying vocational counsellors, teachers, parents with the same range of information to make them able to help young people in their decisions; and monitoring the labour market for education authorities. Support for decision making for pupils, young graduates, career counsellors, parents, regional authorities, and school authorities is provided by popularizing analyses of regional labour market.
Research conducted by ORPdE aims to protect regional labour market from skills mismatch by popularizing information about present and future demands for jobs, qualifications and competencies.
Regional government
Cooperation agreements with Voivodship Labour Office (support), Regional Statistical Office (help in getting access to statistical data) and other regional stakeholders, including industry and academia (support/cooperation in organizing and conducting research, publishing research reports etc).
Source of funds - city budget (ORPdE budget is a part of the Development Centre for Teachers and Vocational Education budget) and project-based activity. As a result, the amount of funds is hard to estimate.
Young graduates - receive information about present and future regional/global labour markets in order to make proper educational and job decisions.
Vocational counsellors, teachers, parents - use analyses to support young people in their school and job choices.
Regional authorities, school authorities - get data to shape formal education, e.g. to open or close vocational education profiles.
3Processes
Includes skills anticipation practices (ad hoc sectoral and/or occupational studies to analyse labour market prospects and skills demand in different fields and sectors; meetings with pupils, teachers, counsellors) and dissemination activities (seminars, conferences, reports etc).
Irregular basis taking the form of research projects.
Methods of research and providing access to analyses are both still improved. Improvements (like new tools: e-library, newsletter) aim to disseminate results of ORPdE research.
Systematic and constant approach.
Annual reports and monitoring of degree of completion of annual plans (research projects, consultations, conferences, publications etc).
ORPdE is a unique regional observatory in Poland serving education with information from labour market. ORPdE makes research based on both quantitative and qualitative methods of social research.
4Sustainability
There is a constant need for information about the current situation on the regional labour market from schools (e.g. vocational schools need expertise before opening a new class), counsellors and authorities. Reports and analyses by ORPdE are used by all of them and adapted to their needs. Some of them participate in the co-development of subsequent surveys, with the aim to conduct them in a practice-oriented way.
The effective exploitation, dissemination and communication strategies, and the need for permanent actions to analyse and improve labour market conditions.
The idea of an organisation that researches mutual connections between education and labour market seems to be worth transferring, as it gives opportunity to both sides to react as quickly as possible on a constantly changing labour market.
Yes, there is a need for information about the changing situation in labour market from wide range of decision makers.