Vocational Voices

Digital skills are now essential for almost all occupations and workers in Australia. So how do we best incorporate them into VET courses? And how do we make sure our VET educators have the digital skills they need? Join Steve Davis as he talks to Suzi Kuti, Head of Organisation Development and Learning at Metro Trains Sydney, and NCVER researchers Michelle Circelli and Bridget Wibrow about what t...

Thirty years ago, the Australian VET system was on tenterhooks as two major reports were released into the management and costs of training for enterprises against a backdrop of award restructuring that was being championed at the time by the government. How do the projections and goals in these reports compare to the reality facing TAFE today? How has TAFE embraced fee-for-service, and are there...

Are skill sets likely to take on extra significance as Australia responds to the shifting workforce demands and challenges, particularly in the health sector during the COVID-19 pandemic? ? Looking ahead, can skill sets or micro-credentials play a role in getting vital competencies into the workplace so the economy can rebuild? To find out, Steve Davis talks to NCVER Managing Director Simon Walker...

Online learning can be just as effective as face-to-face instruction if it’s done well. But what makes for good quality and good practice? While subject withdrawal rates are higher and course completion rates lower for VET courses delivered entirely online, new research has shown that the outcomes for those students who do complete online courses are similar to those of other delivery modes. Steve...

Qualifications are an essential part of the VET system, and therefore a key consideration in the broader approach to VET sector reform. Join special guest Peter Noonan, Professor of Tertiary Education at Victoria University and Expert Panel Chair of the recent AQF Review, as he talks with Steve Davis and Simon Walker, Managing Director NCVER about the recently released Review of the Australian Qua...

New research has revealed how young people’s post-school pathways are diverse, individualised and complex. Steve Davis, Simon Walker Managing Director NCVER, and William Stubley CEO & Co-founder Year13, discuss if the reliance on ATAR, the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank, as our lens for evaluating educational achievements is too narrowly focused, and if so, what are some of the options for bro...

Competency based training (CBT) is the model of curriculum at the heart of the VET system and for some it’s a shorthand way of referring to the system of VET training packages, but critics are arguing that the VET sector’s reliance upon training packages is failing to meet the real-world needs of students and industry due to how they define and therefore teach competency. Steve Davis discusses thi...

Why do around half of Australian employers look outside the nationally accredited VET system to provide their employees with training? To find out, Steve Davis talks to NCVER Managing Director Simon Walker and NCVER researcher Ian White, who discuss the reasons why employers choose unaccredited over accredited training, and whether it meets their skills needs.

Steve Davis interviews a collection of presenters from the 28th National VET Research Conference ‘No Frills’, held on 10-12 July 2019 in Adelaide (80 mins) While every student's journey is different, more and more research and discussion underlines the importance of workers becoming lifelong learners so they can grow and evolve with their jobs. And more than ever before, Australia relies on the VE...

It is hard to dispute that the apprenticeships model, which combines employment with formal training in a trade, is an effective way of developing skills while still earning a wage. So why do apprenticeship numbers appear to be so dire? To find out, Steve Davis talks to NCVER Managing Director, Simon Walker and National Australian Apprenticeships Association Chief Executive Officer, Ben Bardon, wh...

How will Industry 4.0, or the Fourth Industrial Revolution as it’s also known, affect the jobs we do and how we train for them? To find out, Steve Davis talks to NCVER Managing Director, Simon Walker and AiGroup Head of Workforce Development, Megan Lilly. The challenge, they say, is to develop an agile skill base that can continually learn and grow, which means traditional education systems will a...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher Michael Dockery about his report, Cultural dimensions of Indigenous participation in education and training . This study provides an important innovation to the existing literature by explicitly attempting to measure 'cultural attachment' and its relationship with post-compulsory education and training. Original broadcast date: 4 November 2009  

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with former NCVER Managing Director, Tom Karmel, about his report Apprenticeships and traineeships in the downturn . The essence of the apprenticeship is the contract of training - a legal contract between an individual, an employer and a training provider. The defining characteristic is the combination of employment and training. The purpose of this paper is t...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher Cain Polidano about his report on the role of vocational education and training in the labour market outcomes of people with disabilities. Low levels of education generally among people with a disability is one of the factors contributing to their lower rate of labour market participation. What role vocational education and training (VET) plays...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher Tanya Bretherton about her report Developing the child care workforce: understanding 'fight' or 'flight' amongst workers . The early childhood education and care sector in Australia has long been characterised by low-skill/low-pay jobs. The current policy environment, however, may offer scope for the sector to move towards a path of skill growth...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher Cain Polidano about the report Outcomes from combining work and tertiary study . This study investigates the motivations for and the education and employment outcomes from working while studying for both VET and higher education students. While, in general, tertiary students who work while studying are less likely to complete than those who do n...

In this 9 minute interview, Steve Davis talks with former NCVER Managing Director, Tom Karmel, about the report Attrition in the trades . This report investigates attrition in the trades by comparing the rate at which tradespeople leave their occupation with that of professionals. It also determines whether attrition is influenced by economic conditions, and if a trade can provide a good start to...

In this 13 minute interview, Steve Davis talks with Leesa Wheelahan about the report Shaken not stirred? The development of one tertiary education sector in Australia . This report examines universities that offer a small amount of VET and private providers that offer both VET and higher education, building on previous research examining TAFE intitutes that offer higher education. This research su...

In this phone interview, Hielke Buddelmeyer, talks about his report which explores the impact of education and training on social exclusion using a multidimensional measure that focuses on seven domains. Education, he says, is a 'sleeper factor' in that it operates on many different levels and has an impact on the other six domains, such as health. Hielke also points out that the current focus on...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with former NCVER Managing Director, Tom Karmel, about his report which uses data from the 2006 cohort of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) to investigate how schools influence tertiary entrance rank and university enrolment over and above young people's individual background characteristics. A point of discussion was the authors' finding that...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with researcher, Berwyn Clayton, about the report  Industry currency and professional obsolescence: what can industry tell us? . The purpose of the study is to take an industry focused approach to investigating the issues of professional obsolescence and industry currency and how they apply to VET practitioners. Issues covered included, the importance of indust...

In this interview, Steve Davis talks with author Francesca Beddie about her paper,  What next for tertiary education? Some preliminary sketches , which presents the culmination of the ideas discussed between prominent tertiary education thinkers who came together to reflect on the Committee on the Future of Tertiary Education report (the Martin report). These ideas are intended to generate discuss...

In this interview Steve Davis talks with former NCVER Managing Director, Tom Karmel, about his report Is VET vocational? , which explores the issue of how vocational education and training (VET) is actually used in the labour market and in particular the match between what graduates study and the jobs they get. Original broadcast date: 29 July 2008