Welcome to the April TAC Update
On 7 April 2022, the Council reached a significant milestone - its 300th meeting.
Following Council's establishment under the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996, the very first Council meeting convened 25 years ago on Saturday 11 January 1997.
Since Council's inception, five chairpersons and a total of 30 members have together made a significant contribution to quality assurance arrangements across the VET sector, both within Western Australia and nationally.
The important contribution of both past and present Council members to achieve ongoing quality VET outcomes for learners is acknowledged.
Review into Delivery of First Aid Units of Competency
The Council's Focus on Quality: Regulatory Strategy 2021-2023 identifies First Aid units of competency within the HLT Health Training Package as a continued area of focus.
Due to the critical role these units play across many occupations, the Council will continue to focus on: quality of training and assessment, including online practices and third party delivery; amount of training; industry currency and vocational competency of trainers and assessors; and RTO facilities and equipment.
The First Aid Strategy will focus on the following units of competency for both implicit and explicit scope:
- HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation (previously HLTAID001)
- HLTAID010 Provide basic emergency life support (previously HLTAID002)
- HLTAID011 Provide First Aid (previously HLTAID003)
- HLTAID012 Provide First Aid in an education and care setting (previously HLTAID004)
Further information on the Strategic Review is contained within the TAC Special Bulletin. TAC RTOs selected to participate will be contacted directly.
Please feel free to contact the TAC Secretariat directly on 9224 6510 or tac@dtwd.wa.gov.au should you have any queries regarding the strategy.
TAC Education Program - upcoming events
May 2022
10 - BUNBURY EVENT
- Designing RTO Training and Assessment Strategies
- Making an Assessment Decision
24 - Understanding RTO Responsibilities in Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)
Click here to view the full TAC Education Program schedule and/or register for an event:
The full list of Education Program recordings and resources is available on the TAC Website
Focus on quality - What's the difference between performance evidence and knowledge evidence in a unit of competency?
Knowing and performing are different but related attributes. You can perform without knowing, and you can know without being able to perform. VET by its very name is about knowing (Education) and performing (Training), with the two brought together through the workplace (Vocational).
They are also brought together through the specification of a unit of competency which comprises skills (elements, foundation skills and performance requirements) and knowledge (knowledge evidence). These must always be interpreted in the context of the unit title (where are these skills and knowledge used) and the unit’s application (how are these skills and knowledge used). This is where trainer and assessor current industry skills are critical to understanding the full meaning of the unit of competency.
The knowledge evidence is what it says - it is the list of the knowledge that the learner must acquire in order to be able to perform the unit and its skills. To understand the knowledge you need to see it in the context of the unit outcomes, the industry it serves, and the skills within it. One attribute that knowledge has is that it can go beyond your region or state, beyond specific enterprises or protocols, beyond the limitations of your local environment to reflect the competency on a national level.
Performance evidence is not a list of performance requirements (these are in the performance criteria that make up each element of competency) but rather a specification of requirements to observe the performance. It may specify the number of observations, the range of performances, the range of resources, equipment or procedures to ensure that performance across the elements of competency are consistent and transferable.
TAC RTO Event - You're invited!
It is with pleasure we announce the annual TAC Event, a workshop and networking opportunity open only to TAC RTOs and their staff.
This year's event will explore two topics to help your RTO achieve quality outcomes, meet TAC Secretariat staff and to network with other TAC RTOs.
The two session topics include:
- Assessment - avoiding pitfalls; and
- Strategies for quality training and delivery.
An E-Invite containing further details and a registration link will be sent shortly to TAC RTOs via the RTO's nominated contact person. Be quick to register - places are limited.
When: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
Where: The Boulevard Centre - Floreat
Duration: 8:30am - 12.30pm (start time 9.00am) Light refreshments provided.
Delivery sites now on training.gov.au
Maintaining accurate and factual information, including advising the Council of current delivery sites, is a requirement for RTOs under
Standard 5 of the Standards for RTOs.
Your RTO's delivery sites have now been added to training.gov.au providing learners with important information about where your courses may take place.
We recommend that you check your RTO’s delivery sites, referred to as ‘Delivery Locations’ on TGA, and if you need any information updated, please submit an (RTO4) Change of RTO Details Application through the RTO Portal.
Transition Extensions
At the 300th meeting in April 2022, the Council agreed to extend the transition periods for two qualifications from the Sport, Fitness and Recreation (SIS) Training Package.
A full list of training products approved for an extended transition period is available on the TAC Website.
Course Accreditation updates
Council extended the accreditation period for the following courses:
- 52792WA Advanced Diploma of Holistic Classical Yoga Practices to 31 December 2022; and
- 52784WA Course in Painters Registration to 31 July 2023.
Other important updates
Skills Reform update
The Commonwealth Government's Department of Education, Skills and Employment has released a National Microcredentials Framework.
The framework was the product of broad consultation and it is hoped the implementation of the framework will encourage greater cohesion in the design, development and delivery of microcredentials across higher education, vocational education and industry. To view the Framework, click here.
To stay informed about the Commonwealth Government Skills Reform agenda, other items now available include:
- Draft National Foundation Skills Framework 2022 to 2032 paper
- Independent Training Product Assurance - Fact Sheet
Latest NCVER Reports
NCVER have released a number of new reports including:
