Episodes
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
VET In Schools and the shadow of ATAR
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Thursday Apr 28, 2022
Participation in higher education by school leavers has increased significantly in the last decade. VET participation has lagged by comparison. Are students headed for university accorded higher status at school than those who prefer to pursue a trade apprenticeship or traineeship?
While the general outcomes for students who participate in VET in Schools is good, choosing the right VET course or VET pathway is critical, as some pathways are undoubtedly better than others in terms of employment outcomes.
Professor Peter Shergold AC, who chaired a major review for Commonwealth, State and Territory Ministers of Education on senior secondary school pathways (Looking to the Future), and Simon Walker, Managing Director, NCVER talk to Steve Davis about whether people are overestimating the impact of ATAR on a student’s future career prospects, and the proliferation of pathways that can be followed to find a future career.
The discussion draws from VET for secondary school students: insights and outcomes, published by NCVER on 14 October 2021.
Thursday Dec 09, 2021
Best of 2021: highlights from Season 6
Thursday Dec 09, 2021
Thursday Dec 09, 2021
Steve Davis, Simon Walker, Linda Simon, Martin Powell, Kira Clarke, Joanne Waugh, Bryan Palmer, Professor John Buchanan, Megan Lilly, Dr Kaye Bowman, Michael Hartman, Dr Martha Kinsman, Professor Stephen Billett 9 December 2021 (45 mins)
In 2021, we invited expert vocational voices from the VET sector to share their views, stories, experiences and insights on a range of hot topics.
‘Best of 2021’ is a roundup of interesting snippets and research findings from across the four podcast episodes we released during the year. Full of short and sharp insights from each of our guest speakers, we cover off some of the best bits of Season 6.
Thursday Aug 12, 2021
Past informing the future
Thursday Aug 12, 2021
Thursday Aug 12, 2021
Steve Davis interviews a collection of presenters from three panel discussions at the 30th National VET Research Conference 'No Frills', held on 7-9 July 2021.
Topics covered in the lively discussion include future-focused education and training delivered with, and in, industry; the 'futures' of work; understanding employers' training choices; and what is a VET system fit for the future?
Speakers are Professor John Buchanan, The University of Sydney; Ms Megan Lilly, Australian Industry Group; Dr Kaye Bowman, Callan Consulting Group; Mr Michael Hartman, Skills Impact; Dr Martha Kinsman, Australian National University; and Professor Stephen Billett, Griffith University.
Tuesday Jun 01, 2021
The role of micro-credentials in VET
Tuesday Jun 01, 2021
Tuesday Jun 01, 2021
Short-course training, often referred to as 'micro-credentials', is seen as an increasingly important form of training, particularly as governments respond to the social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Steve Davis talks to Bryan Palmer, Private Consultant and author of An analysis of micro-credentials in VET, and Simon Walker, Managing Director, NCVER about the different interpretations and definitions of a micro-credential, why so many students pursue enrolments in subjects not part of a nationally recognised program, and why a majority of activity in this space is privately funded.
The discussion largely draws from An analysis of micro-credentials in VET, published by NCVER on 3 June 2021.
Thursday May 13, 2021
VET's role in youth unemployment recovery
Thursday May 13, 2021
Thursday May 13, 2021
Youth unemployment post-COVID is an all-hands-on-deck challenge. For young people who have lost work or have been looking for work, post-COVID recovery is going to be a fraught time if Australia doesn't take a well-structured pathway to recovery.
Join Steve Davis as he talks to Kira Clarke, Senior Research Fellow at the Brotherhood of St Laurence, Jo Waugh, Senior Research Officer, NCVER and Simon Walker, Managing Director, NCVER about the role the VET sector can and should play in the process. They discuss why vocational pathways in schools, work-based training, and career guidance are critical to youth employability, especially for disadvantaged people.
The discussion refers to research What VET can offer to COVID-19 youth unemployment recovery, published by NCVER on 13 May 2021.
Tuesday Mar 16, 2021
Quality of VET teaching: perceptions and realities
Tuesday Mar 16, 2021
Tuesday Mar 16, 2021
Should we be concerned about the quality of VET teaching? Recent research suggests there are key issues affecting the quality of VET teaching that need to be addressed. These include entry level requirements, limited career pathways, workforce casualisation, and lack of support for professional development.
Steve Davis talks to NCVER Managing Director, Simon Walker, Educationalist and Researcher, Linda Simon and VET Development Centre CEO, Martin Powell about what helps build capability and quality in VET teaching.
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
Best of 2020: highlights from Seasons 4 & 5
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
Tuesday Dec 15, 2020
In 2020, we invited expert vocational voices from the VET sector to share their views, stories, experiences and insights on a range of hot topics.
‘Best of 2020’ is a roundup of interesting snippets and research findings from across the eight podcast episodes we released during the year. Full of short and sharp insights from each of our guest speakers, we cover off some of the best bits of Seasons 4 and 5.
The transcripts and recordings of all eight podcast episodes we've drawn from can be found on the NCVER Portal.
Monday Nov 30, 2020
Rationalising VET qualifications: support for a clustered model
Monday Nov 30, 2020
Monday Nov 30, 2020
Are there too many underutilised qualifications in the Australian VET system? Are some qualifications past their expiration date?
One method of reducing qualifications involves grouping them into vocational clusters so individuals can train for several jobs at once. This approach also creates greater transferability of skills in the labour market.
Do we have the appetite for such transformative change? Is there a role for good quality training that may sit outside the formal national training system?
Steve Davis talks to Professor John Buchanan, Business School, University of Sydney, David Morgan, CEO, Artibus Innovation and Simon Walker, Managing Director, NCVER about the notion of ‘clustering’ qualifications into vocational streams for a range of occupations and how it could be achieved.
Tuesday Nov 17, 2020
Investing in our workforce: cadetships vs apprenticeships
Tuesday Nov 17, 2020
Tuesday Nov 17, 2020
Young people are finding it harder and harder to get a foothold into those highly-skilled, better paying jobs that will set them up for the future.
How can we increase the number of jobs available, and provide better pathways into jobs and industries that have been increasingly out of reach?
Join Steve Davis as he talks to Simon Walker, NCVER Managing Director; Dr Peter Hurley, Education Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute for Education and Health Policy at Victoria University; and Ian Curry, National Coordinator - Skills, Training & Apprenticeships at the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) about:
- The concepts of cadetships, higher apprenticeships, and work-ready skills
- What are the merits of a national cadet program for those jobs more often associated with diploma or bachelor degree qualifications? Will it lead to better employment outcomes for young people?
- Do employers expect too much of new recruits in terms of skill sets?
- Do we focus too much on training for the skills employers want, rather than creating more broadly-skilled people?
Thursday Nov 05, 2020
Traditional trade apprenticeships: still a trusted brand?
Thursday Nov 05, 2020
Thursday Nov 05, 2020
Do we value tertiary and vocational education equally? Have apprenticeships lost their sense of purpose?
With recent budget announcements and the need to build a skilled workforce to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing economy, apprenticeships are in the spotlight. Steve Davis talks to NCVER Managing Director, Simon Walker and Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) National Coordinator – Skills, Training & Apprenticeships, Ian Curry, about the future of traditional trades and how the perception of apprenticeships has changed over the years.
Discussion focuses on regulation, flexibility, completion rates as well as the complexity around the status of VET.