Training Packages Employability Skills

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UB T A F EFE Planning Day

• Training PackagesEmployability Skills
• And
• Further Education

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What are we covering today?

• Training Packages
• Whats in a TP?
• Context of Training Packages
• Unpacking a Training Package
• High Level Review of Training Packages
• Employability Skills

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continued

• ACCI and BCA Framework
• Identifying Employability Skills in a TP unit of
  competency
• Why the need to move beyond Mayer Key
  Competencies
• Learning strategies for Employability Skills
• Employability Skills Project _at_ UB

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continued

• Implications for FE teachers

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Training Packages

• What are they?
• set of nationally endorsed standards and
  qualifications for recognising and assessing
  peoples skills in a specific industry sector or
  enterprise (Back to basics, 2004).

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Training Packages

• What they are not
• They are NOT a curriculum document
• They do not describe how an individual should be
  trained
• They do not describe learning outcomes

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Whats in a TP?

• Endorsed component
• Competency standards define the skills,
  knowledge and how these are applied
• Qualifications groups of competency standards
  from Cert I to Advanced Dip
• Assessment guidelines industrys preferred
  approach to assessment including
• assessor qualifications
• design of assessment processes
• how to conduct assessments

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Whats in a TP?

• Non-endorsed component--Support materials (not
  available for all TPs)
• assessment materials
• learning strategies
• professional development materials
• These are optional, i.e. not prescribed

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Context of Training Packages

• Conceptualised in 1996
• Situated in an open training market
• 4,110 Registered Training Organisations across
  Australia
• Wide range of stakeholders
• Industry
• Enterprises
• Individuals
• Communities

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Context of Training Packages

• 72 Industry Training Packages
• In 2002, 56 of VET delivery hours were from TPs
• 95 of New Apprenticeship delivery is from TPs
• Challenge of aligning skill outcomes in VET to
  changing world of work

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Unpacking a Training Package

• Read entire unit of competency
• Relate to experience in the type of work
• Review the AQF descriptor
• Details work aligned to this level of
  qualification
• Unpack each unit of competency
• Unit of competency descriptor
• Unit title
• Unit code
• Elements
• Performance Criteria
• Range statement
• Evidence guide

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Unpacking a Training Package

• Review the dimensions of competency
• Task skills
• Task management skills
• Contingency management skills
• Job role environment skills

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Unpacking a Training Package

• Review key competencies/employability skills
• collecting, analysing and organising information
• communicating ideas and information
• planning and organising activities
• working with others and in teams
• solving problems
• using mathematical ideas and techniques
• using technology

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Performance levels within each key competency

• Level 1 undertake specific activities
  efficiently
• Level 2 manage activities requiring a number of
  elements
• Level 3 evaluate and reshape processesest.
  criteria for judging quality of processes and
  outcomes

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High Level Review of Training Packages

• When?
• Commenced November 2002
• Why?
• Primary focus was to ensure that teaching and
  learning are strengthened
• To ensure that Training Packages meet both
  current and future skill needs

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High Level Review of Training Packages also

• Supports strengthening and recognition of generic
  workplace skills
• Recognition that employability skills are
  embedded within units in various ways and to
  varying effect
• Support for new ES framework

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Employability Skills What are they?

• Skills required not only to gain employment, but
  also to progress within an enterprise so as to
  achieve ones potential and contribute
  successfully to enterprise strategic directions.
  (ACCI, 2002, p. 2)

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Employability Skills

• Employer groups and individual employers have led
  the debate on employability skills
• Australian employers propose an emergent skill
  set for consultation and debate comprising three
  domains

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Three domains Employability Skills

• Basic Skills
• Language, literacy and numeracy
• Intellectual abilities
• (Mayer Key Competencies are primarily situated in
  this domain critical and creative thinking,
  planning and organisation)
• Personal attributes

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ACCI and BCA Framework

• Skills
• communication
• team work
• problem-solving
• self-management

• Skills
• planning and organising
• technology
• learning
• initiative and enterprise

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Personal Attributes within ES Framework

• Loyalty
• Commitment
• Honesty and integrity
• Enthusiasm
• Reliability
• Personal presentation
• Common sense

• Positive self esteem
• Sense of humour
• Work / life balance
• Ability to deal with pressure
• Motivation
• Adaptability

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Why the need to move beyond Mayer Key Competencies

• Your ideas?

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Why the need to move beyond Mayer Key Competencies

• What do employers say?
• Nature of the economy has changed
• Casualisation of workforce
• Increasing numbers of career/job changes in a
  lifetime
• Rate of change in technical skills
• Inability to predict the skills required for the
  future
• New skills are being recognised as essential
• Renewed focus on the attributes/personal
  qualities of individuals

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Learning strategies for Employability Skills

• Built-in rather than bolted-on
• What does this mean?
• Do you agree with this approach?
• Why?
• Why not?

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Employability Skills Project _at_ UB

• Aims
• Examine ES framework to determine usefulness to
  UB
• Articulate importance of embedding ES into course
  delivery
• Identify exemplars where ES are embedded and
  assessed effectively
• Provide PD to TAFE teaching staff enabling them
  to
• Identify ES in Training Packages/Course Curricula
• embed ES into their learning programs
• assess ES appropriately
• Investigate ways to monitor the effectiveness of
  the PD program across the Division.

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Participants in UB Employability Skills project
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UB Transferable Skills list

• Refer to the handout
• Why have we made alterations to the other
  frameworks, eg. Mayer Key Competencies,
  Employability Skills Framework?

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Identifying Transferable Skills in a TP unit of
competency

• Try to identify where each of the Transferable
  skills is embedded within the unit of competency
  provided
• Use the proforma to help

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Implications for FE teachers

• With the advent of Training Packages, the renewed
  focus on generic/employability skills, what are
  possible implications for FE teaching staff?