Standing Committee on Employment, Education
and Workplace Relations
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Submission 36
INQUIRY INTO THE APPROPRIATE ROLES OF INSTITUTES OF TECHNICAL AND FURTHER
EDUCATION.
October 27 1997
Kangan Batman Institute of Technical and Further Education (TAFE) welcomes
the opportunity to make a submission to this inquiry. The submission addresses
the following terms of reference:
- the appropriate roles of institutes of technical and further education;
and
- the extent to which those roles should overlap with universities.
Being Victoria's newest TAFE Institute, Kangan Batman was formed on July
1st 1997 from a merger between the former John Batman Institute
of TAFE and the former Kangan Institute of TAFE. Its primary focus is
to meet the vocational education and training (VET) needs of Melbourne's
north west. The Institute also has an excellent national and international
reputation for specialised training in aerospace and automotive in addition
to curriculum research and development pertaining to VET. A key strength
of the Institute is its customer focus and our capacity to respond rapidly
to customer requirements.
It is the Institute's view that TAFE remains a separate but integral
choice for post-secondary education customers with well developed pathways
linking to universities across Australia.
In terms of public education, it is also this Institute's view that TAFE
be wholly responsible for the development and delivery of Certificates
I, II, III, IV and Diploma level courses with responsibility for Advanced
Diploma/Associate Degree and Graduate Certificate courses being shared
between Universities and TAFE Institutes. It is also proposed that TAFE's
service responsibility continue to be achieved within a multi-disciplinary
course environment where a vocational focus and industry links can be
sustained. Industry links are currently sustained both through the network
of statewide Industry Training Boards and locally through enterprises
and management/advisory committees.
It must be noted that Kangan Batman TAFE and Box Hill Institute of TAFE
will, for the first time in 1998, be delivering the equivalent of one
year of the Bachelor of Information Systems on behalf of the University
of Melbourne as part of the UMTC (University of Melbourne TAFE Collaboration).
Students who successfully complete the first step will articulate into
the Bachelor or Information Systems and complete their studies at the
University. Through evidence gathered as part of the UMTC staff exchange
scheme, TAFE students have demonstrated a greater capacity to succeed
in this course than exit year 12 school students.
The two sectors of education differ in the following significant ways:
- in the diversity of customer backgrounds and provider types;
- in the character of the products offered;
- in the disparity of service delivery styles;
- in government policy objectives;
- in the structure and governance of the sectors; and
- the basis, method and source of government financial support.
TAFE is aimed at "providing individuals with the skills and learning
expressly required by enterprises and industry" (Allen Consulting
Group). Whilst both sectors ascribe to generic knowledge and skills, vocational
and economic outcomes are more specific and explicit objectives for TAFE.
There are a range of mechanisms at both the state and national level where
industry bodies have direct input into and influence on product content,
delivery requirements and priority setting.
TAFE is also moving to a more market-based approach to funding intended
to emphasise responsiveness and training outcomes.
It is the Institute's view that further attention needs to be devoted
to student pathways between the two sectors within a clear and authoritative
national qualifications framework. In this regard, the choice for post-secondary
customers needs to be clear and relevant.
The Institute has a preference for the unique and distinct characteristics
of the public VET sector occupied by TAFE Institutes to be separately
preserved to guarantee a diverse range of customer choices for the benefit
of all Australians.
Yours sincerely
Andrew Hudson
DIRECTOR
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