Stepping into the world: transitions to post-school life

Concerns about the relevance of educational systems to the economic and social needs of countries are growing internationally. Countries in Asia are confronted with the realities of economic development, technological change, urbanisation and demographic issues that require governments to design specific policies and strategies that enable them to invest in human capital and tackle these challenges. The considerable mismatch between the supply of skills and labour market demand is a common problem in the region, meaning that there are around 33 million unemployed young people across the Asia and Pacific. Therefore, the issue of transition from school to work is among the major concerns for the governments. This chapter serves as an introduction to issues associated with transitions and discussed in the book through the analysis of the experiences of different countries, such as innovative approaches in policy and practice, issues of selectiveness and inclusiveness, integration of transversal competencies, the vocationalisation of secondary schooling, approaches to bridging skill gaps and emerging models of student support.