Integration is the key to the future – TROY WILLIAMS

Australia needs an integrated tertiary education system in which higher education plus vocational education and training operate as one but they retain their separate identities.

The rationale is strong. Those entering the workforce today are likely to have three or four careers before they retire, such is the changing future of work.

To equip themselves, it’s likely that they will move between the vocational education and training sector, and the higher education sector, to ensure they have the knowledge and skills required to remain employable. It’s in this context that we need to rethink the tertiary education system, ­ensuring that it supports the workforce of today and tomorrow. Australia’s tertiary education system currently is not equipped to deal with these challenges.

For more information, please refer here.

Skilled Occupation List overhaul thrills IT industry – List hasn’t been updated in 10 years. – ACS 

Skills-starved businesses have welcomed the chance for closer engagement with the government as it brings forward a review of Australia’s most in-demand technology skills.

Australia’s economy is facing up to the implications of chronic shortfall of skilled technology workers as it works to figure out how to meet industry demand that ACS’s recently released Australia’s Digital Pulse 2019 report projects will need an estimated 100,000 more workers – reaching 800,000 people in total – by 2024.

The review of the Skilled Occupation List will involve extensive consultation with industry, employers, unions, and individuals in an effort to ensure skilled migration programs better reflect the skills that employers need.

“As a Government, our role is to ensure that Australian employers can access workers with the skills needed to fill the jobs of today and tomorrow when they can’t be met by the domestic workforce,” Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business Michaelia Cash said during the announcement into the review.

For more Information, please refer here.

Times Higher Education’s World University Rankings 2020: Australia Rises Up

From nine universities cracking the list in 2018, Australia is now home to 11 universities that made it to the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2020, with the University of New South Wales (UNSW) managing the biggest leap in ranking since 2018 and standing at 71 climbing up the ladder by 25 positions. Leading at the forefront is the United Kingdom’s University of Oxford, that topped the world ranking for the fourth consecutive year, followed by the California Institute of Technology, the United States and the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.

35 Australian universities make in-roads

Overall, around 35 Australian universities made it to the list which included approximately 1,400 universities located across 92 countries. The University of Melbourne was positioned at 32nd place followed by Australian National University at 50th and the University of Sydney at 60th. Interestingly, the University of Canberra exhibited a noteworthy success story as it rose by 376 places since 2016, demonstrating the biggest ever institutional improvement in the world.

It is good news for all the stakeholders in the education sector in Australia.

For more information, please refer here.

International student enrolments hit by “substantial downturn”

Higher education providers are panicking over the purported “substantial downturn” in international student enrolments across Western Australian colleges and universities.

For more information, please refer here.

Producing ICT specialists for the 21st-century workforce

Information and Communications Technology’s (ICT) meteoric rise in recent years can only mean that such advances will continue to be further embedded in our personal and professional lives, especially as we delve further into the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Coupled with the rise of new tech waves such as cloud computing, big data and artificial intelligence, which are poised to drive ICT innovation, this means graduates and future professionals in the field must be equipped with the skills needed to solve 21st-century problems and evolve with future industry demands.

ICT’s importance can be felt in just about any industry. Factors such as the rise in global internet usage, affordable mobile devices flooding the market and the increasing popularity of streaming platforms can translate to rising demand for animation and visual effects (VFX) content, be it for entertainment or things like advertising, cutting through a saturated market. Meanwhile, as companies adopt more technology into their operations, more talent is needed in managing their information systems and the like, fuelling the need for professionals in the field.

The European Commission estimates that Europe faces a shortage of around 756,000 ICT professionals by 2020. Meanwhile, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment for computer and ICT occupations is projected to grow 13 per cent from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average for all occupations. They add that these occupations will add some 557,100 new jobs, with demand for such workers stemming from greater emphasis on cloud computing, the collection and storage of big data and information security.

For more information, please refer here.

Australia should try to keep more international students who are trained in our universities

Australia’s education system takes almost one in ten of all international students from countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

That’s according to the latest Education at a Glance report from the OECD.

But Australia should do more to retain some of those students after graduation or it risks losing good talent overseas.

For more information, please refer here.

How Vocational Education in the USA Got a 21st Century Reboot

Suriana Rodriguez is only 19, but she’s already lined up a full-time job at IBM. After her junior year in high school, she interned at the tech giant’s Poughkeepsie, N.Y., campus, 20 miles north of her hometown, for $17 an hour. For a year, Rodriguez has worked 40-hour weeks as an apprentice test technician, examining IBM mainframes to confirm they work before shipping them to customers. In January, she’ll move to a permanent position with a future salary that she says is “definitely much more than I ever thought I’d be making at 19.”

For more  information, please refer here.

Australia-wide plan to ban mobile phones in schools divides educators

A push by the federal government to impose an immediate ban on mobile phones in Australian classrooms has divided education professionals across the country.

The technology crackdown, raised by Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan, is intended to curb cyberbullying and follows Victoria’s decision to introduce a phone ban in all state schools from next year.

Mr Tehan met with state and territory counterparts on Friday to persuade them a ban on phones during class time would help alleviate anxiety and depression, as well as combat cyberbullying among students.

“We’re also starting to see a causal link when it comes to social media and the impact that is having on student wellbeing,” Mr Tehan told ABC radio.

For more information, please refer here.

Minister urges TAFEs to get closer to universities, business as part of VET reform

The Assistant Minister for Vocational Education, Training and Apprenticeships Steve Irons has urged TAFEs to examine closer links with universities and businesses at the local level as part of a “once in a generation” effort to reform the VET sector.

Speaking at the TDA Convention in Brisbane, Mr Irons said everyone in the sector would need to be “open to new ways of working and being ready to collaborate across traditional boundaries.”

For TAFE, he said this may entail stronger links with universities and larger employers in the regions, as well as bringing together small business, community groups, and different levels of government to devise local solutions to skills gaps.

He said the recent COAG agreement by the Commonwealth, states and territories should be seen as “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to strengthen VET.”

 “I cannot overstate how important it is that we now have this top-level agreement across jurisdictions on the future direction of VET in Australia,” he said.

He noted the key elements in the planned reform process to date – the National Skills Commission, National Careers Ambassador, National Careers Institute and new Skills Organisations. 

“These organisations will benefit greatly from practical input from TAFE representatives, and this in turn will make them more useful to you,” he said.

See the full speech here.

We can see the after effects of MP Andrew Laming’s speech in parliament. Many people have started talking about the vocational education and training sector, and the processes and procedures of the current regulator. 

His video that we have shared last week has received over 9,300 views, 1600 likes and 5 dislikes.The video is available through the following link: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNnwn5gY8OM 

We are sharing some of the comments people have made publically on the above video: 

“This is extremely disturbing that auditors can walk into any brilliantly run RTO establishment and threatened to shut down due to inconsistent auditors that have a hidden agenda. Well said Andrew!” 

“Thankfully someone has taken up the plight of small rtos.  ASQA continually exibit “burearatic bastardry” , answerable to no-one. Our proposed Aboriginal RTO failed audit 3 times. First they took so  Laming MPlong to look at the application, the qualification it was superseded. Second and third, due to minor point scoring that could have been fixed by a short phone-call, were rejected again. This has now cost a small Indigenous RTO, $60k+ and 4 years no income meaning no jobs for Indigenous Students in the unique qualification we were to offer. We are at the stage of giving-up until we watched Andrew Laming MP’s incitefull video that gives us hope!” 

“Great summary of what is occurring, deeply concerning Andrew, we look forward to the follow-up…” 

“Don’t ask for a “helping hand” you’ll get a kick in the guts.  RTOs know this. 100%” 

“Great speech, Andrew.  Private RTO’s have lived in fear ever since ASQA came about.” 

“Thank you! It has always been said, someone needs to stand up and talk! Who? An RTO owner/employee? Ha! Sure way to get an audit scheduled and more than likely closure of the RTO.  Please let us know how you go with this Andrew. Thank you again for taking this on!” 

“Hit the nail on the head Andrew. As a small, regional private RTO in direct competition with TAFE for over 20 years, we are struggling to keep up with the demands ASQA puts on us merely to keep our qualifications on scope. Speak to industry, clients and students to verify quality training.”

“Very well spoken Andrew and thanks for taking this to everyone notice. Hope ASQA commissioners, Auditors and Managers watched this and realized what they have done to this industry and reputation to Australian Education. We are small RTO and CRICOS provider and it took 1 year for ASQA to approve a add on course to our current scope which also have an other campus. We were just paying rent for that new campus for 1 year while waiting for ASQA’s decision. We wait for any developments in ASQA’s processes.”

“You are more correct than you even realise, Andrew. ASQA has in fact been acting ultra vires the NVR Act and abusing process since it commenced operations in July, 2011. I lead the call for the first raft of regulatory reforms including changing the standards which occurred in January, 2015. My own RTO was destroyed by ASQA due to their corrupt conduct and defective decisions after 14 years of quality training and assessment. I have been pursuing these thugs for compensation ever since and will never back off. Only money talks in these matters.”

“Andrew Well Done you have addressed all the issues faced by RTO’s and the threat of ASQA wheeling their “big stick”. This is not how a regulator is suppose to assist an education institution.”

“Note the lack of people in the chamber. Seems pollies aren’t really interested in education”

“ASQA Auditors need more knowledge across the board and all on the same line in the sand, then we may start to see continuity.Internal training needs a boost. Providing feedback along the way to increase depth of knowledge embedded for all as a learning tool.”

Andrew Laming will always be remembered as the man who stood up for vocational education and training and a fair-go. We need a regulatory body in Australia to regulate the Vocational Education and Training sector but at the same time the principles should be based upon fairness, transparency and accountability.  

Poorer and regional Australian students lag behind richer peers, report finds

Poorer Australian students are 18 months behind their better-off peers at school, a report by Deloitte has found.

And regional students were on average eight months behind at school.

If academic results could be improved by 50% for poorer and Aboriginal students, the economy could get a boost of more than $200bn over 50 years, the report released on Sunday said.

For more information, please read here.

Bumpy road ahead for Australian universities

Australia’s higher education success has rested on policy reforms that started in the late 1980s. These reforms resulted in the amalgamation of institutions and the creation of a unified national system; an increase in the number of publicly funded places available for study; and a new funding model based on discipline and level of study, among many other changes.

The main argument for the reforms, which continued into the 2000s and were influenced by neo-liberal forces which underpinned market-driven approaches, was that Australia needed to be more competitive internationally. 

With each subsequent wave of reform, the Australian government further advanced liberalisation, heightened institutional competition and increased deregulation and marketisation of the higher education sector.

For more information, please read here. 

Chinese students paid to rort Australian universities as government tackles cheating

In a toilet stall at Monash University, I see advertisements in Chinese for essay writing services plastered across the door.

Every time I go on Chinese social media there they are again. International students with poor Englishcan pay to have all their essays completed for them by ghostwriters.

Two-and-a-half years ago, I came to Melbourne from Shanghai in China to start a master’s degree in journalism because standards here are said to be very high. I expected to find a fair and honest academic environment.

But what I found when I arrived in Australia was a thriving contract cheating industry.

The proliferation of advertisements on the Chinese social media app WeChat suggests scammers are increasingly targeting Chinese students, the biggest international student group in Australia.

Universities around the world compete for a slice of the education market. Indeed, international student fees contributed 23.3 per cent to Australian universities’ revenue in 2017.

For more information, please read here. 

The hidden stories of Australia’s first women working in computing

In 1907 Prudence Valentine Williams became one of 72 Australian women tasked with cataloguing all of the stars in roughly one fifth of the night sky.

Williams was just 15 years old when she was recruited to work at the Perth Observatory as a “star measurer” on an ambitious international project called the Astrographic Catalogue.

The 72 women who worked on the catalogue in Australia were also among the very first women in the country to work in computing.

Their story was almost entirely omitted, and nearly forgotten — and they aren’t the only women of computing who have been sidelined in the history books.

For more information, please read here.

TAFE going backwards under Annastacia Palaszczuk 

A national biennial survey of employers released today shows that employers in Queensland are losing confidence in TAFE.

Shadow Minister for Training and Skills Development Fiona Simpson said it was a concern that only 41.6% of employers with apprentices or trainees are choosing TAFE.

“This is a drop of more than 10% since the Palaszczuk Labor Government came to power in 2015,” Ms Simpson said.

“In the last two years alone, confidence in TAFE dropped more than 7%.

“Annastacia Palaszczuk’s plan for TAFE clearly isn’t working.

Since March 2015 apprenticeship and traineeship completions have fallen by nearly a third (29%) and there are also almost 9000 fewer students in-training under Labor.

“Apprenticeship and traineeship commencements also fell by over 5% since 2018.

For more information, please read here.

Trade apprenticeships: The most popular ones in Australia and how to sign up

New entry-level jobs are being created across the trades, with 2.9 percent more people starting an apprenticeship this year than last.

The biggest jump in commencements were within the fields of automotive and engineering (up 8.4 per cent year on year) and electrotechnology and telecommunications (7.2 per cent), the Federal Government’s NCVER March quarter figures show.

There were 4270 apprentice automotive electricians and mechanics (up 6.1 per cent), 1975 apprentice mechanical engineering trades workers (14.8 per cent), 1710 apprentice fabrication engineering trades workers (10 per cent) and 1440 apprentice electronics and telecommunications trades workers (13.8 per cent) who started their training.

For more information, please read here.

Government funded training effort appears to rise, but is it real? 

The number of students in government-funded training in Australian has shown a rare rise, after years of bad news for vocational training in Australia.

A report by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) shows a rise in government-funded students this year.

However the research organisation warns that the rise may be a result of a change in the way student numbers are reported.

A series of NCVER reports has shown Australia’s training effort has been steadily falling since 2014 ranging from STEM education in schools to apprenticeship completions, as reported in numerous stories in @AuManufacturting.

For more information, please read here.

Supporting a job ready generation

The Tasmanian Liberal Government is investing in the skills and training needed to boost apprenticeship and trainee numbers and deliver a job ready generation.

We want to support our kids to succeed, which is why we’re delivering a target of 300 new apprenticeships and traineeships as part of our Growing Apprenticeships and Traineeships: Industry and Regionally-led Solutions program.

A further seven projects will be supported under the initiative totalling $1.3 million, and will include small to medium enterprises operating in the early childhood, health care, aged care, disability, aquaculture and construction industries.

This program specifically targets industries and regions that have barriers preventing employers from hiring apprentices and trainees. It takes a demand-driven, industry-led approach and uses a successful model of collaboration between a number of partners.

Tasmania continues to perform better than the Australian average across most key indicators with 5,140 more apprenticeship and traineeship commencements in the past 12 months, and we have a target to increase the number of apprentices and trainees by 40 per cent by 2025.

For more information, please read here. 

Vocational traineeships to be fee free from January 2020 

Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education Geoff Lee and Minister for Education and Early Childhood Learning Sarah Mitchell are calling on employers to take on more trainees following the launch of a new $54.3 million NSW Government Budget initiative to make government-subsidised traineeships fee-free.

Traineeships, through the NSW Smart and Skilled vocational education and training (VET) system, will join apprenticeships in being fee free from 1 January 2020.

Mr Lee said the NSW Government would be picking up the tab for the fees on all new traineeships, including school-based traineeships.

In announcing the initiative at Friendly Faces Childcare in Padstow, Mr Lee and Ms Mitchell congratulated the centre on its enviable reputation for training early childhood workers.

“We hope they’ll continue their great work and take on many more trainees after this announcement,” Mr Lee said.

For more information, please read here.

Roadmap to national VET sector reform

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Skills Council met in Brisbane today to agree on an ambitious approach to enhancing the vocational education and training (VET) system.

Ministers discussed a draft COAG VET Reform Roadmap that will guide reforms to improve the vocational education and training sector.

The roadmap will reinforce the priorities agreed at the Council’s inaugural meeting in September: to ensure VET is responsive to the job market, employers, industry and learners; to support public confidence in the quality and value of the sector; and to ensure all prospective students and employers can access information and training easily.

Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business and Chair of the Skills Council, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, said that the second meeting reaffirmed the commitment of the Commonwealth, States and Territories to strengthening and modernising the VET system.

For more information, please read here. 

Inspiring VET alumni stories shared via new portal

The Morrison Government is making it easier to engage with Australia’s world-class vocational education and training (VET) graduates, training providers and employers.

The Australian VET Alumni portal, available through MySkills.gov.au, provides a place to showcase the inspirational professional journeys of the best and brightest in vocational education and training.

Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, said she was delighted to launch the portal to coincide with the 2019 Australian Training Awards.

“I am passionate about raising the profile of Australia’s VET system and highlighting the exciting and financially rewarding opportunities it provides across all industries,” Minister Cash said.

For more information, please read here.

New Australian Industry and Skills Committee Chair

The Morrison Government is ensuring the nation has the agile, skilled workforce it needs, with the appointment of the new Australian Industry and Skills Committee (AISC) Chair. Though the AISC industry plays an integral role in the Australian vocational education and training sector.

Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, today announced Emeritus Professor Tracey Horton AO has been appointed as AISC Chair.

The AISC gives industry a formal role in approving VET training packages for implementation. It will work with government to strengthen industry engagement to drive improvements for courses and training based on industry need.

The important work of the AISC, Skilled Services Organisations and Industry Reference Committees is continuing as the Morrison Government implements its Skills Package and works with the states and territories to reform the VET sector.

As Chair of the AISC, Professor Horton will lead this work bringing a wealth of experience from a range of government and not-for-profit boards, and I thank her for taking on this important role,” Minister Cash said.

For more information, please read here.

Better support for Australian Apprentices and Employers

The Morrison Government is making it easier than ever for employers to recruit, train and retain apprentices.

Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, today announced the seven providers that have been chosen to deliver the expanded and improved Australian Apprenticeship Support Network services nationally.

“The Australian Apprenticeship Support Network is a key component of the Morrison Government’s investment in vocational education, training and apprenticeships, to support the skills needs of employers and industry,” Minister Cash said.

“We are improving the Support Network to help get even more apprentices enrolled and trained up for rewarding careers and to help meet employers’ skills needs.”

For more information, please read here.

National vocational education regulator to focus on training excellence

A review of the national regulator for the vocational education and training sector, the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA), has commenced with a focus on the regulator’s governance, policies and culture.

Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, said excellence in training lies at the heart of the Government’s skills agenda. 

“The Government’s rapid review will inform a 12 to 18 month program of improvements that will ensure regulation by ASQA is transparent and effective,” Minister Cash said. 

For more information, please read here.

ASQA Welcomes Convictions for Dodgy Training Providers

The national VET regulator has welcomed the conviction of four people who falsified documents. 
For more Information: visit this link.

Updates to the BSB Training Package

Updates to the BSB Training Package were released last week and Release 3.0 is now published on the national register of VET, training.gov.au (TGA).

A number of units of competency have been updated to align with industry skill needs and/or standards, six qualifications have had updates to core units and two new units have been introduced:

• BSBWRK311 Develop self-awareness
• BSBWRK412 Contribute to personal development

For more information about the updates and to understand which changes may impact your RTO, please refer to the TGA website

Industry update: AISC endorses training package reviews

The Australian Industry and Skills Committee (AISC) has announced the approval of Industry Skills Forecasts and Proposed Schedules of Work, including Cases for Change, that have been submitted by PwC’s Skills for Australia.

For more information, please refer this link.

Appointment of new Chief Executive Officer, ACPET 

The Australian Council for Private Education and Training (ACPET) Board has appointed Troy Williams as its new Chief Executive Officer. For more Information, please visit this link.