Description
Student intentions and outcomes in regard to studying the Certificate IV in Training and Assessment at NSW community colleges is the subject of this paper. Gaining employment and acquiring presentation skills were the most common reasons given for undertaking the course, but for many students the course did not deliver this. Those students who accessed pre-course information and thus had more realistic expectations of what the course would entail were more likely to report that the course met their expectations. The research was funded through the NCVER's Building Researcher Capacity initiative and was undertaken by a novice researcher in the Community of Practice scholarship program.
Summary
About the research
Building the research capacity of the vocational education and training (VET) sector is a key concern for the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). To assist with this objective, NCVER supports a community of practice scholarship program, whereby VET practitioners without research experience are given the opportunity to undertake their own research to address a workplace problem. Scholarship recipients are supported by a mentor, and NCVER publishes their research results.
Ruth Walker participated in the 2009 community of practice program. Ruth is the accredited training manager at Kiama Community College. Her research explores the goals of a sample of people who had undertaken the Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, their initial expectations of the course, and how their intentions compare with their actual outcomes.
The study used a mixed method approach that comprised a quantitative survey of people who had enrolled in the qualification at one of the 25 adult and community education institutions in New South Wales in 2008, as well as semi-structured phone interviews with some of the survey participants to explore in more depth the themes emerging from the survey.
Key messages
- Eighty per cent of respondents reported that they had achieved what they wanted from the course, despite only a third of respondents gaining a training job.
- Students gained social capital from the course, with respondents reporting that they had increased their confidence, expanded their professional networks, and made employment links with the college at which they undertook their training.
- Participants were more likely to report that the course met their expectations if they also reported that pre-course information was important to them in choosing their training organisations, suggesting that preconceived notions about course content may have a significant impact on satisfaction.nceived notions about course content may have a significant impact on satisfaction.
Tom Karmel
Managing Director, NCVER