Leesa Wheelahan, Gavin Moodie, Stephen Billett, Ann Kelly
Contact:
Leesa Wheelahan
Griffith University
School of Education and Professional Studies
Mt Gravatt Campus
Griffith University
Brisbane QLD 4111
phone: 07 3735 6843
fax: 07 3735 6868
email: l.wheelahan@griffith.edu.au
This project will research the way in which and the reasons why TAFEs are offering higher education qualifications and the internal governance, institutional, administrative and policy arrangements they have developed to support this provision. It will also investigate how student and staff VET and higher education identities are formed and shaped through the provision of higher education in TAFE, and the way these boundaries are navigated within TAFE.
The key question for this topic is: What is the nature of higher education in TAFE?
The purpose of this specific project is twofold. The first is to map the provision of higher education qualifications offered by TAFE institutes in Australia. It will seek to understand why TAFEs are increasingly offering higher education programs, the way in which they are doing so, the policy, institutional, governance arrangements they have in place to develop and support this provision, and the impact of higher education accreditation and quality assurance processes on the development of their higher education awards. The second purpose is to understand the perceptions of participants concerning the provision of higher education in TAFE, and in particular, to understand the impact of this provision on the nature of VET and higher education identities in 'mixed sector' TAFEs and the way the sectoral divide constituted and navigated within TAFE by staff and students. Consequently, the key research question has been divided into two main questions which are:
1. What higher education does TAFE offer? Why and how?
2. What is the nature of VET and higher education identities in 'mixed sector' TAFEs and how is the sectoral divide constituted and navigated within TAFE by staff and students?
The first research question is informed by the following sub-questions
* What is the international experience of mixed sector institutions in comparable systems in expanding opportunities for students to participate in higher education and what impact is this having on the structure of education in those countries? What lessons can we learn for Australia?
* What is the international experience concerning quality assurance issues associated with mixed sector provision and what lessons can we learn for Australia?
* What are the broad social, economic and policy drivers and the specific national and state policies that are encouraging TAFEs to offer higher education and what are the perceived needs TAFE is seeking to address through offering higher education qualifications?
* What sources of differences are there among TAFEs offering higher education qualifications in different state jurisdictions?
* How are TAFEs determining industry 'needs' in developing higher education qualifications, and what are the collaborative arrangements with industry partners in developing these qualifications?
* How are TAFEs positioning themselves through offering higher education qualifications and how do they differentiate their provision from that offered by public universities and private educational providers?
* Does offering higher education qualifications affect TAFEs' partnerships with universities and what pathways do TAFEs have in place for their higher education graduates to degrees and post-graduate qualifications in public universities?
* What is the impact of State higher education accreditation processes on the way TAFEs construct higher education qualifications and create appropriate institutional settings?
* What are the internal governance, institutional and pathways arrangements in mixed sector TAFEs, and how is the boundary between VET and higher education programs navigated?
The second research question is informed by the following sub-questions
* What is the international experience of the way in which student and staff identities are shaped in mixed sector institutions and the way in which they navigate the sectoral divide? What lessons can we learn for Australia?
* What is the international experience concerning the professional development issues associated with mixed sector provision and what kinds of professional development programs have been implemented to support this provision? What lessons can we learn for Australia?
* How do teaching staff understand their role within mixed sector institutions? Do staff who are teaching mixed sector programs differentiate between VET and higher education programs, learning outcomes, and pedagogies, and if they do, how? What issues and concerns do they have about mixed sector provision? How do they see the future development of higher education programs, and their role in their development and delivery? What recommendations do they have for the way in which such provision should be developed and supported? How do they see their own career trajectory? How do they understand the nature of the sectoral divide?
* What is the nature of student identities and student experiences for those undertaking higher education programs in TAFE? Do they differentiate between VET and higher education students in TAFE? Why did they enrol in these programs? What led them to this point? What are their aspirations and how do they see their own career trajectory? What is the nature of their experiences in their programs? What recommendations do they have for the way in which such provision should be developed and supported?
* Examining multiple sources of information and data to gauge the scope and nature of provision and the policies that are influencing growth of higher education in TAFE.
* Interviews with stakeholders in TAFEs that offer higher education across five of the eight staes and territories that are currently registered to offer higher education qualifications, including interviews with teachers and students.
The Adult and Vocational Research group within the School of Education and Professional Studies at Griffith University has a long standing and demonstrated capacity for quality research and its conduct in an effective and timely prompt manner. The Griffith Institute for Educational Research leads research into major issues related to learning, focusing particularly on issues impacting on learning in a rapidly changing world and how individuals and communities can be assisted to learn to engage effectively with social change. This project involves experienced and new researchers at Griffith University. Dr Leesa Wheelahan and Dr Gavin Moodie both have had extensive experience in undertaking research that examines the sectors of education and the relations between them. Professor Stephen Billett is a very experienced internationally recognised VET researcher and has produced many NCVER reports. Dr Ann Kelly is a new researcher with many years experience as a TAFE teacher, and she will bring these understandings to this project.
