Identifying VET teacher knowledge and skills at higher AQF levelsSteven Hodge, Roslin Brennan Kemmis, Jillian Downing and Michele Simons

Introducing ACDEVEG

• The Australian Council of Deans of Education Vocational Education Group

• Productivity Commission study of the VET workforce

• Task of identifying the higher education contribution to VET teacher and trainer development

Mapping HE VET teacher qualifications

• Involved analysing 30 VET teacher programs offered by 11 higher education institutions

• Programs include Associate Degrees (AQF 6), Bachelors Degrees (AQF 7), Graduate Certificates and Diplomas (AQF 8) and Masters Degrees (AQF 9)

Knowledge & skill focus areas

• Context – social, policy, systemic• Curriculum, program and learning strategy• Teaching and learning • Literacy and numeracy• Learner diversity

Knowledge & skill focus areas (continued)

• Assessment and evaluation• Workplace and organisational context• The VET profession • VET research• Leadership and management

One qualification mapped to the AQF

• The University of Tasmania Bachelor of Education (Applied Learning)

• The AQF ‘dimensions of learning outcomes’ as a mapping framework

• Yields a rich picture of the knowledge and skills developed by VET teachers undertaking the program

Current focus

Analysing models for representing professional knowledge and skills, e.g.

• IBSA VET Practitioners Capability Framework• AITSL Professional Standards for Teachers• Turner-Bissett’s Teachers’ Professional

Knowledge Bases• Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy

Favoured model

Heath et al’s Education Discipline Threshold Learning Outcomes model (ALTC/ACDE 2011)

• Aligns to AQF levels and dimensions of learning outcomes

• Provides a rich picture of the body of knowledge and skills underpinning teachers’ work

• Can be customised to reflect the knowledge and skills specific to VET teachers (as revealed in the ACDEVEG mapping work)

Next steps

• Build on the ALTC/ACDE TLO model to produce a statement of the VET teacher and trainer body of knowledge and skills

• Used in future development and refinement of ACDEVEG qualifications

• Used to represent VET teacher knowledge and skills at higher AQF levels for prospective students and stakeholders

Questions? Suggestions?