In 1996, Rosny College became involved in a specific partnership with TAFE Tasmania, industry and unions to provide a secondary college-based industry-training program. The two-year course is a pathway for those wishing to pursue apprenticeships in the building and construction industry. Since then, four other colleges (St Brenden Shaw College in Devonport, Launceston College, Hobart College and Claremont College) have joined the program.
The program has a very clear set of objectives, namely to:
offer vocational education and training in secondary colleges;
provide clear pathways and improved opportunities for entry into the building and construction industry;
expand the links between the education system, industry training and enterprises
increase the participation by industry in entry-level training;
introduce the industry as an attractive career option, and to provide experience in four specialist occupations; and
improve the quality and suitability of people entering the industry.
provide a reliable recruiting vehicle for employers
connect employers with young people to better foster understanding
Underpinning the program is the belief that schools should not be developing vocational programs without understanding where the particular industry is headed and to do this close dialogue between school and industry is required.
To meet these ends, the secondary college-based industry program is a two-year course with a flexible timetable directed towards the building and construction industry. The key aspect of the course is that it is a genuine dual partnership between Rosny College and TAFE. The TAFE system delivers the specialised industry skills off-site, in its well-equipped campus, while the school provides a balanced general curriculum with a building and construction focus plus some industry training. Work placement is an integral component of the program. Students study carpentry and joinery, plastering, bricklaying, and painting and decorating.
Students attend TAFE and Rosny College in two, four or ten-week blocks, with two-week blocks in the workplace. In the first year, students attend college for 25 weeks, TAFE for six weeks and have 200 hours of work placement. In the second year, TAFE increases to eight weeks and there are 240 hours of work placement. All students receive a placement in each of the trades and their final placement is based upon their chosen area of interest. At the conclusion of the course, students receive a Certificate II in General Construction or a Statement of Attainment from TAFE as well as a Tasmanian Certificate of Education (TCE).
The program, with its intention to create bridges, has a management body which comprises representatives from all the stakeholders. A committee operates in three regions of the State and the role of each of the committee members is determined by the function they provide to the program itself. Each of the partners brings particular expertise to the program:
TAFE representatives are responsible for the co-ordination and delivery of the TAFE-training component;
Colleges provide a program co-ordinator and other assistance through their VET in Schools Development Officer (one is appointed to each senior college in the State but has State-wide responsibility for particular industry areas);
Employers are represented collectively by their industry associations and actively support the program by assisting with work placements. However, they do not participate in decisions regarding the delivery or content of curriculum, assessment of learning or day-to-day management of the program;
The Tasmanian Department of Education provides a link with wider developments in the educational field; and
The Tasmanian Building and Construction Industry Training Board plays a similar role and provides a critical link with developments from an industry perspective.
No specific funding has been allocated to the program. The program operates on recurrent funding from Rosny College and TAFE Tasmania.
Almost all of the attributes of the program, and its implementation, that are cited as ‘success’ factors relate to the exemplary cooperation amongst the stakeholders and participants. These include:
The considerable support for the program from the Training Board, the industry and TAFE which has given the program credibility in industry circles;
That Rosny College and TAFE have been willing to work in genuine partnership with one another and to see the students as their shared responsibility;
The high level of dedication, commitment and communication skills among the people involved in the program, in particular the co-ordinators and teachers who participate in the day-to-day management and administration of the scheme – they are able to look beyond the education sector and have the communication skills and knowledge to liaise with business, industry and unions;
The very close liaison between the co-ordinators, teachers, students and employers during work placements and their willingness to be flexible and negotiate solutions to problems as they arise;
The considerable effort made to ‘match’ students carefully with work placements and employers - taking into account the nature of the work, transport issues, personal attributes etc. This is said to be enhanced by having a program co-ordinator in each college who knows the young people and employers concerned and is in a good position to make judgements about work placements; and
The close co-operation between Rosny College and TAFE has facilitated pathways into industry areas, which the school alone would have been unlikely to access.
In sum, the breadth of the program equips the students to be ‘work-ready’ when they gain employment. It helps that the Training Packages themselves are of a high standard and that any literacy and numeracy problems can be addressed during the course. Occupational health and safety issues are also addressed and there is a good support service available to the students to assist with their social development during the course. Combined with work placements and on-the-job training, this produces a more ‘well-rounded’ young person who is better able to cope with the world of work upon leaving school. The proof of this "work-readiness" can be easily gauged through the employment statistics, to date, 159 students have exited the Rosny program: 144 have been apprenticed in the construction industry with the majority of the remaining 15 have found employment in other industries.
In 2001 the College received the prestigious ANTA award for the most outstanding Vocational Educational and Training schools program in Australia.
SOURCES:
Keys Young, May 2000 Identifying good practice in supporting youth transitions to independence, Report prepared for the Analysis and Equity Branch of DETYA (now DEST) Appendix 1d to Footprints to the Future Report from the former Prime Minister Howards’s Youth Pathways Action Plan Taskforce.
Additional information added by the Rosny College VET program co-ordinator, March 2004