Recommendations from recent reviews (and likely an outcome of the in-progress rapid review), are that ASQA needs to take an educative role to guide registered training organisations toward compliance expectations.
Included in the many challenges facing VET are the interpretation and application of the operating requirements Read more…
Challenges facing VET – Courses of Concern Create More Concerns
The move to have Courses of Concern is in itself concerning, and makes the playing field anything but level.
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Challenges facing VET – Do learning resources motivate learning?
I was talking to a client yesterday about learning resources. He is happy to write his own assessment resources (and prefers to do so because he can tailor them to the learner groups). On the other hand, he says he doesn’t have time to write the learning material. He has tried several approaches, and the last approach was to provide a textbook. That didn’t work either. It was a good textbook but the learners were resistant to reading so much information.
Then there is the dilemma Read more…
A Place for Training Products – In Defence of the Standards for RTOs
In his essay on jargon and terminology, Bryan West raises what could be an engaging topic. However, there must be better examples, than the one he raises, of jargon which causes irritation to students in VET. Specifically, Bryan raises concerns about the term: “training product”.
I seek to argue that there are no problems with this usage that cause “trouble”. Read more…
Challenges facing VET – is there a place for Training Products in a Service Sector?
A common complaint among TAE Cert IV students is that it has far too much jargon and terminology. Many of those students find the qualification somewhat impenetrable because of that language, and this reduced the qualification’s effectiveness.
That is not new to anyone.
But what if the language used more broadly in VET was also reducing the effectiveness of qualifications?
I am referring here to one term in particular: Training Product. Read more…
Who was Boyer and what has he got to do with me?
The name Boyer (and, no, that is not him above!) is probably unfamiliar to most professional trainers and assessors in Australia, but his model of scholarship is bound to be affecting the work that they do. This article will explore that a little more, and share just why research among VET professionals is so important. Read more…
When it comes to upgrading the Cert IV TAE, meeting the April 1 deadline might be the most risky approach.
As the deadline for the change in Standards draws ever nearer, so the emotions surrounding the TAE Upgrade situation continue to rise. Amid those emotions is the question of what will happen to people who have not upgraded?
Before launching into what we think, it is safe to say that the sky will likely not fall in and, to our minds, this means it is better to take a bit more time to get the Upgrade done properly, than try to shortcut it just to meet the deadline. Read more…
In defense of TAEASS502 – the single unit that might help the VET industry regain its confidence.
On the surface, it would seem that the majority opinion is that TAEASS502 does not belong in the TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training & Assessment. We do not need to look far to find some very assertive – and often very aggressive – comments that lambast the decision to include it as a Core in the new Cert IV TAE.
We disagree. And it is not because of the effect on people doing the whole TAE40116 qualification, who are starting from scratch. Rather, it is because it of the effect on people who have done the old one. It is quite possible that this effect will help the VET sector as a whole regain some confidence. Read more…
Taking Longer to Get Assessments Done Sooner
I get it. Study is not the only thing on your plate right now. And assessments can sometimes take a long time, so it is tempting to take shortcuts. Your assessor probably won’t read everything anyway, right? Read more…
Amy talks about her study routine and getting in the zone
Fortress Learning’s very own Amy Weeks kindly sat down with me to discuss what it was like studying her Cert IV TAE.
From start to finish, how long did your Cert IV take?
6 months. It was probably 4 months of not much at all except resentment, and then the last two months it was crackin’. And, with far less resentment.
Conversations: Meagan talks about her Diploma with Fortress Learning (video).
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Conversations: Sun talks about doing her Cert IV TAE with Fortress Learning
I had the pleasure of speaking to Sun Hae Kim, a Community Centre Supervisor for a council in New South Wales.
Sun completed a Cert IV in Training and Assessment with Fortress Learning and was kind enough to have a chat with me about her experience. Read more…