The Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) recently invited members of the Professional, Vocational and Continuing Education (PVCE) (formerly AVE) team to participate in focus groups to tackle the task of creating standards for Vocational Education Training (VET) teachers.
The QCT has been tasked by the Queensland Government to define a set of professional standards for VET Teachers in the state, as part of the Government’s ‘Great Skills, Real Opportunities’ action plan.
The PVCE team, including Dr Sarojni Choy, Dr Ray Smith and Dr Steven Hodge, are contributing to scoping the standards, and addressing thorny issues around accreditation processes and ownership of the standards.
The focus group work is now being written up and further consultations at state and national levels are taking place to build on different aspects of the project.
The EPS staff will continue to engage in the initiative to consolidate the consultations before finalising the set of standards for implementation.
The QCT VET Teacher Standards project, headed by Tassia Knack, reflects a broader move at all levels of Australian VET to improve the quality of teaching in the sector.
After an absence of more than a decade from official policy on VET teacher education, references are now being made to the value of VET teachers undertaking degrees in adult education.
The QCT Standards work paves the way for degrees such as Griffith’s Bachelor of Adult and Vocational Education to play a strong role in building quality in the VET sector.