Walking the trade route to a dead end? Exploring journey stories of early completers of Victorian School Vocational Programs
- Authors: Grinham, Fiona
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Thesis , Masters
- Full Text:
- Description: In Victoria, there are some school students who, having completed Year 11, as Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) Intermediate students, leave school. They do not go on to complete Year 12 [or equivalent] either in other institutions or as part of an apprenticeship or traineeship. This group of students is quite a substantial proportion of the total VCAL student cohort, and their numbers are increasing every year. This behaviour is juxtaposed with government policy that is emphasizing youth participation in schools or vocational alternatives. The Compact with Young Australians (COAG, 2009) set a new target of 90% attainment of Year 12 or equivalent by 2015 and expects an additional 92,527 young people across Australia (23,500 in Victoria) to remain in school. A survey of the literature indicates that there is a significant gap in our knowledge of what behavioural intentions drive vocational students to leave school early. By using in-depth conversations with selected students, this study seeks to determine the factors that students see act as drivers in their decision to get to this level, and then to leave school. This study provides, in the words of the students, some of the reasons for their choice for their non-continuance of the secondary school programs that are available to them. This will enable education policy makers to understand these students’ perspectives and to examine the VCAL programs in a new light. As educators, they can then respond to the challenge to develop and sustain vocational programs and retention strategies that will engage young people and assist them to build work-ready skills.
- Description: Master of Business (Research)
Serving multiple masters : Reviewing the role and recognition of VET within the Victorian Senior Secondary School Certificates
- Authors: Brown, Michael , Sutton, Daryl
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Paper presented at AVETRA 2008 Conference, Adelaide : 3rd-4th April 2008
- Full Text: false
- Description: This paper reviews a selection of the policy, curriculum, operational and research literature associated with the recognition of Vocational Education and Training (VET) within the Victorian senior secondary certificates; the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE), and the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL). The central tenet of our paper is that VET in Victorian schools serves multiple purposes and in doing so it offers both risks and opportunities. While the achieved outcomes of the Victorian VET programs achieve national recognition, the recognition of these programs for broader educational certification has become diverse and complex. We use statistical participation data to argue that the incorporation of VET into these senior secondary certificates, appeals to students and offers increased options and pathways in the post-compulsory years of schooling. A range of assessment strategies and procedures have been developed to assist in the recognition of VET within these senior secondary school certificates. In particular, scored assessment and its contribution to national tertiary entrance (ENTER) scores is at the centre of the debates over recognition of VET within VCE. Also in this mix for recognizing VET within the senior secondary certificates are pre-apprenticeship programs, (included as part of the VCE VET suite of programs), school-based apprenticeships and traineeships. The operational, procedural and research literature associated with the complexities of the tandem usage of competency-based and scored assessment are reviewed as they apply in the Victorian context. As with the VCE, VET is also incorporated into VCAL programs through the industry specific and work-related skills streams. VET is mandatory within the intermediate and senior levels of VCAL. Our paper tries to identify and discuss the complexities in this area of VET provision.
- Description: 2003006632