Shifting mindsets
Harris, R; Simons, M & Clayton, B 2005, NCVER, Leabrook, South Australia.
The changing work roles of vocational education and training practitioners
We thought this research report a fitting one to feature here, as we launch the new ICVET presence. VET practitioners have experienced rapid change in their work in the past decade and this research assists an understanding of the changes.
It is a study of Australian VET practitioners that explores the nature of their changing work environment and how this has impacted on their role, especially in the last five years.
The sources of information were teachers and trainers, industry mentors, training brokers, assessors, providers of learning support and managers, in a range of public and private, large and small registered training organisations in five states/territories. The majority (80%) of the participants in the focus groups (67 people) and individual interviews (64 different people) were permanent full-time practitioners.
There are many conclusions drawn from the study, a summary of which includes:
- The changes have required a lot more than substitution of one set of pedagogic practices for others, in the words of the report, the change process has been…. 'multi-faceted, fast-paced, and unrelenting' (p70)
- They experienced huge shifts in work roles and responsibilities, with their work growing in complexity and scope
- They perceived large changes to relationships both within their organisations and with outside organisations
- Personal reactions to the changes were mixed
- Practitioners see government policy as having the most marked effect on their practices
Why read the report? It helps those of us struggling every day to maintain some order in our practice, by acknowledging many of the key causes of the 'chaos'. However, the study focuses on full-time practitioners, and an important question is whether casuals employed in these organisations have experienced the changes in the same way, given that in TAFE NSW, at least, they comprise more than half of the teaching force. We have included a study of TAFE casual teachers elsewhere in the Research section that may throw some light on any differences.
The report also gives a voice to practitioners who have been calling for policy-makers to reconsider practitioners’ place in the processes of policy-making and their need to access appropriately-funded professional development that will assist them meet the changing roles.
See also
HARRIS, R; Simons, M & Clayton, B 2005, Shifting mindsets – the changing work roles of vocational education and training practitioners NCVER, Leabrook, South Australia.
This paper was reviewed in ICVET Zine, August 2005.
VET practitioners have experienced rapid change in their work in the past decade and this research assists an understanding of the changes.