This blog is intended to be a diary of how the project team members go about setting up the the systems and processes to capture evidence of that learning and credit that towards apprentice's qualifications.
So if you have an interest in the future of Vocational Education and Training and innovative practices there may be something of interest here for you.
As part of the project a pilot program has been started at Swan TAFE Midland Campus in Perth Western Australia for Carpentry and Joinery apprentices.
In 2007 all 32 Units of Competency for the Carpentry and Joinery qualification were divided into:
- an on campus 3-day Foundation program
- an on campus 10-day Trade Induction
- 6 Work Tasks
These Work Tasks represent areas of the Carpentry and Joinery trade in WA, most employers specialise in one or more of these areas and their apprentice becomes very familiar with that particular work. TAFE has received criticism from employers for duplicating training that has already occurred in the workplace, and my experience as a VET teacher is that sometimes I am teaching the basics to an apprentice who is quite skilled in a particular area. For this reason we are now offering a system where employers and apprentices can choose not to have training duplicated at TAFE.
During an Employer Profile visit by a TAFE representative the employer and apprentice can nominate to have workplace learning acknowledged in any Work Task that they regularly preform. That means the apprentice will have to produce a Portfolio of Evidence to address the Units of Competency attached to that Work Task, when this has been completed they will attend TAFE for assessment. All the other Work Tasks not nominated the apprentice will be called up to TAFE for.
One of the Work Tasks is Stick Roofing the local term for pitching a timber framed roof without using trusses, this is the Work Task I am going to focus on for this pilot.
