University degrees have become increasingly less popular for prospective students according to the latest census data, which showed a 109,000 drop in full-time enrolments in the year to May. According to the ABS, there has been a 23.6 per cent ...
More »Will a new government undo knotted problems in the stalled reform of the VET National Agreement and the Australian Qualifications Framework? Opinion
Introduction, problem and purpose Australia has a new national government. All participants in the higher education (HE) and research sectors and the vocational education and training (VET) sector will build fresh relations with the new government, including all state and ...
More »New course created to improve frontline workers’ responses to sexual violence survivors
A new RMIT vocational course aims to educate students to better recognise and respond adequately to victim-survivors of sexual violence and harm. The Course in Recognising and Responding to Sexual Violence is targeted at practitioners, support workers, service users and ...
More »Expert says teachers’ learning is ‘critical’ in the VET sector – podcast
In a rapidly changing society, ongoing learning is important for vocational training teachers; one way for them to keep learning is through the workplace. In her new book, Supporting the Workplace Learning of Vocational and Further Education Teachers: Mentoring and ...
More »Outreach program needed to re-engage disadvantaged learners impacted by COVID – opinion
Community Colleges Australia (CCA) is proposing a national outreach program to re-engage disadvantaged and vulnerable learners who have left training because of COVID-19 concerns. Adult and community education (ACE) providers over-perform in reaching disadvantaged groups, but have experienced a significant drop ...
More »The skills we need for the future we want: Part 2 – opinion
This paper represents the second of a 2 part series designed to interpose a manufacturing workers’ union view into the debate about the future of Australia’s vocational education & training (VET) system. The debate comes at a time when crucial ...
More »The skills we need for the future we want: Part 1 – Opinion
The future we want will not fall from the sky. Like any period of great challenge that we have had to confront, it will take careful planning, sound strategy, leadership, and a clear sense of purpose if we are to ...
More »Will Omicron devastate Australian vocational education and training in 2022? Opinion
Now is the time to start planning for re-engagement of vulnerable and disadvantaged VET learners; both our economy and our society depend on it.
More »Independent peak body calls Labor’s 2022 election announcement ‘TAFE-centric’, not ‘student-centric’
The peak body for the independent tertiary education sector has voiced disappointment with Labor’s $1.2 million skills and higher education package, labelling it TAFE-centric and saying it provides students with little choice over where they choose to study. The federal opposition’s ...
More »How students’ socioeconomic background could be turning them away from university study – podcast
Accessing a university education is nowhere near as competitive or elitist as it was in times gone by, with institutions taking into account a number of factors when assessing applicants' suitability for courses in the spirit of social justice and ...
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