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Today we continue with our theme on 
qualification design reform that was the subject of my CEO piece on Monday 15 July. This time I’m considering foundations skills and putting forward the proposition that foundation skills are not best delivered as units of competency, nor within units of competence. The focus on assessment of competency-based training does not lend itself well to the development of foundation skills.
While it is pleasing to see priority being given to foundation skills, have we gone far enough? As we know, and as is the constant for VET generally, there are many reviews and reforms currently being undertaken. For example, recently Lisa Paul in her update to RTOs on the review into incentives for apprenticeships said “LLN (language, literacy and numeracy) is a big thing”. While simple words, it is significant that LLN is being called out within this review.
There have also been other important areas of development. For example, SEE funding is now more flexible as well as available beyond job seekers. There is progress towards a foundation skills ten-year strategy, and Jobs and Skills Australia is underway with a capacity study of the foundation skills workforce. And this is just some of the work being undertaken.
In our VET architecture framework, foundation skills have always been identified as important. For example, Standard 10.6 of ASQA’s Users’ guide to Standards for VET accredited courses states “Foundation skills are an integral part of a unit of competency and need to be assessed by the course provider. Foundation skills that are essential for performance can be explicitly included in the performance criteria of a unit of competency. Or, if not explicitly included in the performance criteria, they should be described in the ‘foundation skills’ field of the unit of competency in the course document.”
In the Unlocking the Potential of VET, Advice from the Qualification Reform Design Group March 2024 there is a specific principle relating to foundation skills. That is, principle six which is “consider and integrate foundation skills, general capabilities, and knowledge progression”.
However, as we also know, and as was mentioned in Unlocking the Potential of VET, Advice from the Qualification Reform Design Group March 2024, “Ministers have directed that Units of Competency remain the building block for VET in Australia.” While matching people into the right level of study is important, which will embrace an appreciation of the foundation skills they currently have, assessing foundation skills using the performance methodology of units of competency may need review.
The question remains for the Qualification Design Reform Group – have they gone far enough in their recommendations to government concerning foundation skills. Does this area still need new thinking?
The number of VET-in-School students in Australia rose by 3.8% to more than a quarter of a million last year, according to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research.
There were 252,105 VET-in-Schools students, comprising 19,310 school-based apprentices and trainees, and 232,795 students undertaking other VET in Schools programs.
An estimated 27% of 15 to 19 year-old school students participated in VET-in-Schools in 2023, with the number growing by 7% over the last five years.
Queensland has the largest number of VET-in-School students – 101,780, followed by Victoria (53,820), NSW (46,525), Western Australia (31,440), South Australia (11,855), Tasmania (2,350), Northern Territory (2,315), and ACT (2,015).
In 2023, there were 342,090 VET-in-Schools enrolments in training package qualifications, an increase of 4.2% from 2022. The most popular training package was Tourism, Travel and Hospitality (52,915 or 15.5%), followed by Sport, Fitness and Recreation (48,060 or 14.0%).
Jobs growth in Australia’s manufacturing industries is forecast to climb by almost 17%, or 120,000 additional workers over the next decade, according to the 2024 workforce plan prepared by the Manufacturing Industry Skills Alliance.
The 2024 Workforce Plan says the biggest challenges faced by the industry are attracting and increasing the pipeline of apprentices, lack of diversity, an ageing workforce, and emerging skills, occupations and industries.
The manufacturing industry employs approximately 875,000 workers, with about 730,000 in the remit of the Manufacturing Alliance.
The workforce plan highlights sectors with the greatest opportunities for growth, development and expansion including the defence, clean energy, medical and space sectors, and the urgent need for skilled workers.
Within the Manufacturing Alliance’s remit, the sub-sector with the greatest projected increase in jobs is general manufacturing and engineering which is forecast to add about 62,000 jobs over the decade. However, pharmaceutical manufacturing will see the biggest percentage increase, with a projected 35% increase, or 9,300 additional jobs.
Manufacturing Alliance CEO Sharon Robertson said the objective is to not only fill the existing skills gaps but to build a resilient and skilled workforce that can drive the industry forward.
“By focusing on practical, actionable strategies we are building priority actions that can offer solutions to supply side skill shortages,” she said.
TDA has urged the new Minister for Skills and Training, Andrew Giles to maintain the momentum toward a harmonised tertiary education sector, as outlined in the report of the Australian Universities Accord.
TDA last week congratulated Mr Giles on his appointment, as well as Senator Murray Watt on his appointment as Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations in the senior Cabinet portfolio.
“We warmly welcome Minister Giles and Senator Watt at a time of important reforms across the tertiary education and skills sectors and look forward to continuing the strong cooperation with the TAFE sector,” TDA Chief Executive Officer Jenny Dodd said.
“In particular, we encourage the fruitful dialogue that has occurred with ministers, including with Education Minister Jason Clare, to advance progress on a more harmonised tertiary education sector, as outlined in the report of the Australian Universities Accord.
“This landmark report recognised the enormous potential for TAFEs, with their established links with students and industry, to work with universities to deliver the significantly larger numbers of tertiary students.
“Its recommendations regarding self-accreditation for TAFEs delivering diploma level qualifications, and more Commonwealth supported places to TAFEs and TAFE Centres of Excellence are vitally important,” Ms Dodd said.
“We look forward to working with all ministers to maintain the momentum that has seen TAFE returned to the heart of the VET system and realising the vision for an expanded role for TAFE in higher education as recommended by Professor Mary O’Kane and the Accord panel.”
Preventing violence against women is critical to a thriving VET sector. It’s also a mandatory obligation under new Positive Duty Standards and the Action Plan Addressing Gender-based Violence in Higher Education which requires higher education providers, including TAFEs to embed a whole of organization approach to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.
Respect and Equality, a framework developed by national violence prevention organisation Our Watch can support your response to these initiatives.
Over the past two editions of the TDA Newsletter, you have heard about how Charles Darwin University and Canberra Institute of Technology have been implementing Respect and Equality to prevent violence at their institutions. Following the success of this work, the framework will be rolled out nationally in 2025.
For your chance to contribute to the future of preventing violence against women in TAFEs, join the conversation at the Respect and Equality in TAFE National Summit this September in Melbourne.
Whether you’re new to preventing violence against women or have experience, this National Summit is an opportunity to hear from senior leaders from TAFEs across the country and violence prevention experts from Our Watch.
The National Summit will showcase the incredible leadership of institutes already working within the Respect and Equality framework, and help TAFEs understand their obligations under the Positive Duty Standards and the Action Plan Addressing Gender-based Violence in Higher Education.
Contact Katie Yates-Burgess (katie.yates@ourwatch.org.au) to register your interest in attending the Respect and Equality in TAFE National Summit on Thursday 5 and Friday 6 September.
Migrants who arrived in Australia over the past 20 years generally have higher labour force participation than Australian born residents, and often lower rates of unemployment, according to new analysis from Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA).
JSA’s Australian Labour Market for Migrants report provides information on Australian labour market conditions and is intended to inform people interested in working in Australia on a temporary or permanent basis.
The report shows that labour force participation rates for people born in main English-speaking countries (MESC) and other than main English-speaking countries (OTMESC) are generally higher than for Australian-born persons, with the exception of those migrants who arrived more than 20 years ago.
The report also shows that the unemployment rates for people who migrate to Australia vary appreciably, influenced by factors such as skill level, age, English language proficiency, recent and relevant work experience and the period since arrival in Australia.
Recently arrived migrants have a higher unemployment rate on average than those who have lived in Australia for some years. Those migrants who have been in Australia longer generally have lower rates of unemployment than Australian-born residents.
The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) says it has received 2,119 tip-offs since establishing the VET tip-off line last October, with the top concerns being non-compliance, falsification of student records and academic cheating.
ASQA says that during 2023-24 it undertook 997 monitoring activities, including 379 performance assessments – of which 229 resulted in a finding of non-compliance with the law or regulatory standards.
Where non-compliance was identified, an Agreement to Rectify (ATR) may be offered – 33 providers entered an ATR within an agreed timeframe. In addition, 33 ATRs were also finalised – of these, 25 providers returned to compliance.
Where a provider did not demonstrate a commitment or capability to delivering quality training, or to make necessary changes in response to identified non-compliance, ASQA has an escalating range of regulatory tools.
During this period, ASQA took compliance action by issuing:
• 83 sanctions to cancel registration in full or not renew registration
• 20 sanctions to suspend registration
• 22 conditions on registration
• 345 written directions and 51 warning letters.
Victorian TAFE Association
TAFECreates 2024 State Conference
8-9 August 2024
More information
VET National Teaching & Learning Conference 2024
‘From Competence to Excellence – Strive to Inspire’
15-16 August 2024
Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre
Register here
National Skills Week 2024
‘It’s a Game Changer’
19-25 August 2024
www.nationalskillsweek.com.au
47th WorldSkills Competition
10-15 September 2024
Lyon, France
More information
WFCP World Congress 2024
22-27 September 2024
St James, Jamaica, West Indies
More Information
AVETRA 2024 Conference
3-4 October 2024
Deadline for abstract extended to July 8
University of Technology, Sydney
More information
2024 National VET Conference
31 October – 1 November 2024
Brisbane Convention and Exhibit
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