Where’s the Other Half of the Story?

There’s something about the Black Friday Sales and the massive hype that goes with this event that reminds me of what’s happening in the VET sector, and it’s got nothing to do with sales.

I asked some students recently if they knew what the Black Friday sales were all about – and no one could relate this to the tradition in America of the shopping spree that happens the day after Thanksgiving.

So what’s the connection?

I often find that people working in the VET sector also hear the hype – however, they can’t actually relate this back to why we do what we do.

Here’s my wish for “COAG and friends” to consider as they start their urgent reviews of many things in the VET sector.

Let’s go back to basics and help all trainers understand the expectations of the Training Packages and how each component relates to each other.

1. Wouldn’t it be great if Training Package units all followed the same naming conventions for units of competency!  Take the model from the BSB Training Package e.g. BSBWHS201  (Why Business – well they did come first with the original BSA Training Package and they have had a consistent track record of Qualifications and Unit codes that are easy to understand.
2. How much more consistency could we get if Training Package Developers mapped the performance evidence and the knowledge evidence to the performance criteria. We could ensure that assessment requirements were being interpreted consistently regardless of the industry, state or RTO.
3. What if the companion guide or the unit of competency indicates the Core Skills levels (ACSF) of each unit – You can find this for the Community Services Training Package – again it would provide a more consistent approach throughout Australia.

Why does the sector provide half the information, hoping for a 100% guess?

If trainers and assessors had better guidance, then they would be in a better position to challenge the resources.

Let’s recognise that everyone wants to do their job well.  What other occupation sets you up with half the story and hopes you will fill in the rest?

(Note: – this doesn’t stop unique and niche delivery – this all comes with the contextualisation that must be done to effectively assess learners).

Published 3 December 2019

What do you think?

Join the discussion of this and other Challenges at the VET PD Group – Community of Practice.

About the Author:

Jenny Field is an Independent Education Consultant.

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