Information technology in education and employment : a critical examination of developments in both areas and the relationship between them.

The main aim of this thesis is to examine critically the position
of information technology (IT) in both the employment and education
sectors and investigate the liaison between them.
The principal focus of the thesis is a detailed enquiry into the
needs of employers in the IT area, and their perceptions of education
and training in relation to those needs. This enquiry utilises a range
of methods: interview, questionnaire, and case study. Evidence from
the employer's enquiry is compared with evidence gathered from a
survey of IT education and training in secondary education and in the
Information Technology Centre (ITeC) programme of the Youth Training
Scheme.
As a background to the empirical enquiries and to place them in
their broader context, the thesis also broadly examines four areas:
the nature of information technology; its place within and effect upon
employment patterns; the growth of IT in education, both as a subject
in itself and as a tool; and the terms and general language used in
linking education to employment.
These investigations, together with existing research and other
empirical enquiries, show that the crucial skill shortages relating to
information technology exist at the higher levels. It is suggested