Duelling targets

Targets can be easy if you’ve got momentum on your side. But they can be much harder if you’re fighting the headwinds created by other targets, writes <<<John Ross>>>.

Some of the new tertiary education targets are starting to look as if they'll achieve themselves. But some are headed for dirty air - the turbulence created by the other targets. The federal government's higher education completion target - to raise the proportion of degree-qualified 25-34 year old Australians to 40 per cent by 2025 - is a case in point. Some commentators say it's too modest and could be achieved years ahead of schedule, but it could nevertheless thwart progress against other tertiary targets. The Bradley panel originally proposed a 2020 deadline for the HE completion target,...