The Australian government has adopted a ‘social inclusion agenda’ that aims to bring together social and economic policies in order to reduce disadvantage in the Australian community. Increasing participation and success in education and training is a key aspect of the social inclusion agenda. The government acknowledges that low levels of skill and education attainment contribute to disadvantage because they are associated with poorer labour market experiences and non-participation in the labour force.
The National VET Equity Advisory Council (NVEAC) has been established to provide high level advice to the Ministerial Council for Tertiary Education and Employment (MCTEE) to guide equity reform in the national training system.
The paper aims to contribute to the development of a new equity blueprint for VET by exploring the past – what has already been achieved and learned – and looking to the future – where further efforts are required.
With a renewed effort to increase the numbers of people from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds continuing their education beyond school, there is fresh interest in how equity is achieved in vocational education and training (VET).
The Australian Flexible Learning Framework Strategy Stage 2 investigates: women learners in VET; rural and remote learners; isolated learners in metropolitan areas, and the concept of the “digital divide” to determine the extent to which it is a significant factor impeding or facilitating VET provision around Australia.
With a renewed effort to increase the numbers of people from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds continuing their education beyond school, there is fresh interest in how equity is achieved in vocational education and training (VET). Equity will be the subject of a keynote address at the 19th National Vocational Education and Training Research Conference, No Frills.
The national research priorities for tertiary education and training 2011-2013 were endorsed by the Ministerial Council for Tertiary Education and Employment (MCTEE) in June 2010. This document sets out the context for the priorities, what was learnt from the consultations and the final advice on the priorities by the NCVER Board to MCTEE. The five priority subject areas endorsed are: skills and productivity, structures in the tertiary education and training system, the contribution of education and training to social inclusion, learning and teaching, and the place and role of VET.
