For registered training organisations (RTOs), high-quality delivery of vocational education and training (VET) is transformational, student-centred, fit-for-purpose and adapts well to changing stakeholder needs.
New research Delivering high-quality VET: what matters most to RTOs released by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) reveals what high-quality training delivery looks like in practice, how it is measured and what are the barriers and enablers for RTOs.
A total of 44 RTOs from the public, private, adult and community education and enterprise sectors – all recognised for quality delivery – participated in the research.
Given the disruptions due to COVID-19 and the national VET reforms underway, examining quality of delivery will play an important part to support RTOs to reflect on and improve their performance. While coming up with a single and definitive concept for quality of delivery in VET is difficult due to the diversity within the sector, the research found common themes.
For the RTOs interviewed, the concept of quality VET delivery covers more than teaching and learning, encompassing the whole student experience from before enrolment to after completion. It should not only lead to good learning experiences and outcomes for students, but also meet the needs of employers, communities and other stakeholders.
RTOs work to achieve these by delivering programs and support that:
- inspire students to engage, learn and achieve goals (transformational)
- enable students to succeed and prevent disadvantaged and vulnerable ones from falling through the cracks (student-centred)
- meet the needs and goals of diverse stakeholders (fit-for-purpose)
- adapt to changing stakeholders needs and continually improving (evolutionary)
RTOs use a wide range of data sources and other information to evaluate the quality of the training they provide. The types of information used can depend on the size and type of RTO.
While many RTOs are strongly focused on quality delivery, they are faced with barriers. The participating RTOs report that achieving high quality delivery is challenged by funding issues, a compliance view of quality, the inflexible nature of training packages and difficulties in recruiting, developing and retaining teachers and trainers.
To address these, they recommend establishing a national VET body to coordinate, promote and support high-quality delivery, developing a genuine approach to quality assurance, creating funding models that incentivise efficient but excellent delivery and applying findings and insights from VET research.
Background:
This research is the second part of a project that investigates how the quality of delivery in VET in Australia is currently defined and measured, how RTOs use and value measures of quality and what approaches might better encourage and sustain good quality VET delivery into the future.
Quotes attributable to Simon Walker, Managing Director, NCVER
- High-quality delivery involves more than just the contact hours between teachers and students. It depends on various dynamic factors, many of which are beyond the control of RTOs. All aspects of VET’s quality system need to work together to enable and encourage high quality.
- Teachers and trainers are major contributors to quality delivery, but recruiting and retaining them is a significant challenge.
- Some of the challenges mentioned by RTOs are already the focus of current VET reforms underway.
Download the report: Delivering high-quality VET: what matters most to RTOs.
Enquiries: Mariane Umali M: 0406 824 184 E: marianeumali@ncver.edu.au
About NCVER: we are the main provider of research, statistics and data on Australia’s VET sector. Our services help promote better understanding of VET and assist policy makers, practitioners, industry, training providers and students to make informed decisions.
This work has been produced by NCVER on behalf of the Australian Government and state and territory governments, with funding provided through the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment.