1 Researching the pedagogies of the new vocationalism Clive Chappell, Nicky Solomon, Mark Tennant, Lyn Yates OVALresearch University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Introduction Broadly speaking, many current theoretical analyses converge on the changed demands being placed on workers in the new economy. Moreover these analyses place greater significance on ‘the self’ and ‘identity’ in understanding contemporary social forms such as education and training for work. This paper discusses these matters, which form the foundation for a new 3-year research project, Changing Work, Changing Workers, Changing Selves funded by the Australia Research Council (ARC). The project is concerned with contemporary forms of Vocational Education and Training (VET) across a range of sites in relation to learners, to broader social changes, and to productive work and education practices. It develops out of three diverse but interrelated sets of theorizations of change that have significant implications for Australia. These include the rise of new economy discourses and the emergence of new vocationalism in education and training; new forms of identity and new interests in the construction of self ; and the contemporary re-conceptualization of knowledge that is now occurring both inside and outside of educational institutions. These three areas of research, theory and public debate have significant implications for contemporary educational policies and practices. Yet no previous research has embarked