Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! – comment by CEO Jenny Dodd

Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! – comment by CEO Jenny Dodd

‘Yuma’, readers of the TDA newsletter this week. Yuma is ‘hello’ in Ngunnawal, the language of Canberra’s custodians of country. I am writing this newsletter from Ngunnawal country. In the spirit of reconciliation, TDA acknowledges the traditional custodians of country throughout Australia. We pay our respects to elders past and present.

Advocate for traditional language, proud Ngunnawal woman and long-term TAFE leader, Caroline Hughes, said in March ‘the traditional language can and should be spoken by every Canberran in their daily lives.’

During the last decade we have seen the emergence of language. In 2018 for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, TAFE Queensland, supported by Yugambeh elder Ted Williams, developed the training for the 15,000 volunteers to begin with ‘Jingeri’ – ‘hello’ in Yugumbeh language.

Realising what is possible is important at the start of NAIDOC Week. NAIDOC Week began yesterday with the theme Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!.

In the words of Ryhia Dank, Gudanji/Wakaja artist from the Northern Territory and the winner of the 2022 National NAIDOC Poster competition with her entry, Stronger “… it is all about the strengths”. Ryhia’s story is best heard in her words which are at naidoc.org.au. You can both listen to her speak and you can download the poster there.

TDA congratulates Ryhia. We also once again acknowledge the eight 2021 finalists for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student of the Year Award at last November’s Australian Training Awards. These vocational education and training students from every state and territory epitomise this theme of Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!. Collectively they represent great strength and leadership.

TDA members will be celebrating NAIDOC across our various locations. Sometimes those celebrations will be deferred a week or two, such as at TasTAFE, as for many of our TDA members NAIDOC week falls between the two major teaching periods of the year. Whenever it is celebrated, this is an important time of remembrance for us all.

Brotherhood of St Laurence examining impact of green economy on skills

The Brotherhood of St Laurence has launched a program of research and systemic change work on the impact of climate change and the transition towards a ‘green’ economy on foundational vocational qualifications.

The first phase is underway and involves consultations with interested stakeholders across the training, industry and government sectors. This will inform the Brotherhood’s youth transitions policy and advocacy agenda, ensuring that young people have equitable access to secure and meaningful employment as Australia transitions to a sustainable economy and workforce.

As part of this work the Brotherhood aims to:

  • Develop a comprehensive understanding of the current state of sustainability skills education within the VET sector and the emerging development of sustainability skills training across states and industries.
  • Design a set of policy and practice recommendations for future training system strategies, research, advocacy efforts and to inform training system policy making.
  • Enable collaboration, coalition building and fostering of understanding between key representatives across systems.
  • Partner with and leverage insights from experts across multiple sectors who have an enduring commitment to workforce development.

Brotherhood of St Laurence is interested in hearing from TAFE leaders and practitioners who are involved in delivering qualifications related to clean energy, the circular economy, or who are adapting course design and delivery to account for the altered work practices which will come with a changed climate.

Partners are also sought to participate in consultations, guide policy and advocacy, and collaborate in pilots to test research findings.

If you would like to be involved, please contact David Longley at the Brotherhood of St Laurence, via email at david.longley@bsl.org.au

NCVER releases 'No Frills' discussion paper

The National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) has released the official discussion paper for the 31st National Vocational Education and Training (VET) Research Conference ‘No Frills’, being held online, 6-8 July.

The paper outlines the key talking points of the conference theme VET’s role in transforming the future and examines how the sector is adapting, anticipating and activating change in response to future skill demands.

“The aim of this conference is to examine how the VET sector can continue to innovate and respond to Australia’s shifting future skill demands,” NCVER Managing Director Simon Walker said.

Topics to be discussed include forecasting future skill needs, qualification development and design, micro-credentials, ensuring quality and building the capacity of our VET educator workforce will also be discussed.

It will also be the first major address by the Minister for Skills and Training Brendan O’Connor.

See the discussion paper, ‘VET’s role in transforming the future’

TAFETalks: The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning – register now!

 

Wednesday 27 July at 2.00pm AEST (Canberra/Melbourne/Sydney time)

Register here

TDA is delighted to announce that we will be joined by Professor Sally Kift for a panel discussion on the scholarship of teaching and learning.

Sally is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA), a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law (FAAL) and President of the Australian Learning and Teaching Fellows (ALTF). Sally is a renowned higher education expert and academic and has published widely on transition pedagogy, legal education and student transition. Sally was a member of the Australian Qualifications Framework Review Panel that reported to Government in September 2019. Sally’s role will be to reflect on the discussions of our TDA members including:

  • Associate Professor Melanie Williams, Associate Dean (Scholarship) at William Angliss Institute, where her primary role is to lead and support vocational and higher education teaching staff in taking a scholarly approach to improving their learning and teaching practice.
  • Dr Fiona Wahr, Senior Lecturer, Applied Research and Scholarship, Melbourne Polytechnic. Fiona led the revised scholarship model introduced at Melbourne Polytechnic
  • Vanessa Crawford, Associate Dean, Higher Education, TAFE Queensland. Vanessa will reflect on TAFE Queensland’s practices related to the scholarship of teaching and learning. Vanessa is also the chair of TDA’s Higher Education Provider network.

Places are filling fast! Register here

Higher level apprenticeship program extended

A pilot program offering higher level apprenticeships in the manufacturing and engineering sector is set to be extended for a second round.

The Engineering Technician – Industry 4.0 traineeship merges traditional and emerging technologies in manufacturing and engineering industries to build digital skills for the automation and digitisation of machinery.

The program is a partnership between the Queensland Department of Employment, Small Business and Training (DESBT), Ai Group and TAFE Queensland. It offers a work and training experience that combines specialised skills and knowledge with the traditional apprenticeship model. 

Industry 4.0 Higher Apprenticeship Project Officer Lisa Gilbert, an Ai Group Queensland Industry Skills Adviser – Manufacturing, said the program was a fantastic opportunity for industry and urged employers to register quickly as places on the program were limited. 

“Usually, apprenticeships are Cert III or IV, but this is a diploma. It means industry is getting those higher level skills that they wouldn’t get with an entry-level apprenticeship.”  

Apprentices gain work and training experience for tasks ranging from product design to manufacturing and production. 
The program will once again be delivered in Brisbane and North Queensland by TAFE Queensland in partnership with Skills Lab. 

Manufacturers are being urged to register their interest in the program. A subsidy is available per apprentice under the User Choice program, which represents the level of government contribution towards the cost of training.   

See more

TDA Convention 2022 – Registrations and Call for Presentations

 

Registrations are now open for the TDA Convention 2022, Courage, Change and Challenge – The Future of TAFE which will take place in Adelaide, South Australia from Tuesday 15 – Thursday 17 November 2022.

The TDA Convention 2022 will be the first opportunity in three years to bring together all TDA members with their key partners and stakeholders – an event not to be missed!

The TDA Convention 2022 is about coming together, reconnecting, collaborating, learning from change, rising to challenges and creating the future together.

It will be a convention to reconnect and reflect on the changes that are occurring within the vocational education and training (VET) sector. It will be a convention that celebrates excellence and innovation, where challenges are seen as opportunities and where delegates can collectively shape the future of TAFE.

Registrations
Delegates at the TDA Convention 2022 will be informed and inspired by courageous stories and innovative practices. Presentations will highlight the power of collaboration with colleagues, community and industry. The TDA Convention will bring together different perspectives including from students, staff, employers, industry, community and government.

For further information on registration packages and inclusions, and to register for the event, please click here.

Call for presentations
If you would like to be a part of the TDA Convention 2022 program and collectively shape the future of TAFE, the call for presentations is now open. The deadline for submissions is COB Monday 1 August.

This is an opportunity for TAFE staff and key stakeholders of TAFE to share their stories and experiences of courage and change, and to be the leading providers of solutions to the challenges of the future. Please click here for more information and to download the presentation guidelines.

Sponsorship opportunities
The sponsorship prospectus is out now. To discuss sponsorship opportunities, please contact tdaconvention@absoluteevents.com.au

Stay up to date on convention news and program updates 
For updates on convention news and programming, please subscribe to the TDA Convention 2022 e-newsletter here.

TDA looks forward to welcoming its members, partners and supporters to Adelaide in November 2022 to be part of the conversation on Courage, Change and Challenge – The Future of TAFE.

Wave 2 of VET student experience survey to commence

The VET Student Experience Survey (VETSES) is a short online survey that captures information from students currently enrolled in a qualification about their training experiences.

VETSES is being developed jointly by the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA), the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) and the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER).

Wave 1 of the survey was undertaken in May 2021 where 27,461 students from 171 small-medium RTOs were surveyed, with the summary and de-identified results shared with the participating RTOs.

Wave 2 will focus on students from the country’s 50 largest RTOs, and starts from the middle of October. ASQA, DESE and the NCVER are asking for support to make the survey a success and will be contacting selected providers in August  to help facilitate this new student survey.

See more

ASQA clarifies position on credit transfers

The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) has clarified its position on credit transfer for superseded equivalent units of competency.

A review of Clause 3.5 on Standards for RTOs identified a lack of clarity regarding credit transfer and superseded equivalence for students.

ASQA has issued the following advice on managing credit transfer for superseded equivalent units of competency:

When a student presents a superseded equivalent unit of competency for credit transfer for the purpose of reducing the amount of learning required to achieve a qualification or skill set, as the training package has determined the unit of competency to be superseded equivalent, a provider can grant credit for that unit without needing to map unit outcomes.

Although not required, providers may take a best practice approach and conduct mapping analysis, especially for those units that have been superseded twice or more despite still being deemed equivalent, to assure themselves the assessment of competence is still relevant.

Diary Dates

31st National VET Research Conference ‘No Frills’
National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER)
6-8 July 2022, Online
Program out, register now!
More information

TAFETalks: The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
27 July 2022
Register here

ACER Research Conference 2022
Reimagining assessment
22-25 August 2022
Online
More information

Victorian TAFE Association
State Conference
24-26 August 2022
Registrations open

National Skills Week 2022
22-28 August 2022
More information

Community Colleges Australia National Conference
13-14 September 2022
Sydney
More information

Australian International Education Conference 2022
18-21 October 2022
Gold Coast & Online
More information

2022 National VET Conference
Velg Training
3-4 November 2022
Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre
More information

TDA Convention 2022
Courage, Change and Challenge – the Future of TAFE
15-17 November 2022
Adelaide
More information

VDC Teaching & Learning Conference
VET Development Centre
17 & 18 November 2022 (Online)
More information