Australian Quality Training Framework
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The National Training System is the
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
n system for
vocational education Vocational education is education that prepares people for a skilled craft. Vocational education can also be seen as that type of education given to an individual to prepare that individual to be gainfully employed or self employed with req ...
and training (VET) under the '
VET Quality Framework (VQF)
'', in which
employer Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any ot ...
s, the
States of Australia The states and territories are the national subdivisions and second level of government of Australia. The states are partially sovereign, administrative divisions that are self-governing polities, having ceded some sovereign rights to the f ...
, and the
Commonwealth Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government or simply as the federal government, is the national executive government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The executive consists of the prime ...
, formalise a curriculum available for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) to teach and assess the competency of students. The Australian Quality Training Framework (AQTF) sets the standards for the operation of training organisations registered to deliver training services and to issue VET qualifications. Training products include national training packages and accredited courses which outline the qualifications, competencies and assessment criteria for specific areas of training. These two dimensions form the National Skills Framework. The National Quality Council is responsible for overseeing the effective operation of the Framework. Training received and certified under the framework is 'portable' across state boundaries and industries. All students doing nationally recognised training need to have a
Unique Student Identifier Unique Student Identifier (USI) is a unique educational reference number issued by the Australian Government to all higher education students (including universities, TAFEs and independent tertiary colleges) for the purpose of collecting informa ...
(USI).


Training organisations

Australia has a system of
Technical and Further Education Technical and further education or simply TAFE () is the common name in Australia for vocational education, as a subset of tertiary education. TAFE institutions provide a wide range of predominantly vocational courses. Colloquially also known ...
colleges, which offers courses in most larger towns and cities at technical schools and
community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...
s. Additionally, individuals and companies can be accredited as a Registered Training Organisation and offer courses and modules of training.


Hierarchy

The courses available are listed by th

The hierarchy of courses available for VET under the Australian Qualifications Framework#Vocational Education and Training and Higher Education sectors, Australian Qualifications Framework is: *
Advanced Diploma is the Japanese original academic degree given to people who had spent more than 4 years and successfully completed a particular specialized course of study at the vocational schools certified by Japanese MEXT (the educational ministry of the Jap ...
*
Diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...
*
Certificate Certificate may refer to: * Birth certificate * Marriage certificate * Death certificate * Gift certificate * Certificate of authenticity, a document or seal certifying the authenticity of something * Certificate of deposit, or CD, a financial p ...
(ranked 1–4, with 4 being the highest) The training packages at the Cert II-IV levels offer options as well as the mandatory courses. A person founding out their training would be able to group these extra training courses and be assessed for additional or higher certificates. Hence: * Certificate 1 is a basic qualification, necessarily linked to other simple vocational competencies. Example:, Cert I in Furnishing * Certificate 2 is a trade-specific competency, that would be linked to other competencies to become a trade qualification. Example: Cert II in Furniture Finishing * Certificate 3 is a trade qualification, wherein several competencies are brought together as a demonstrated trade. Example: Cert III in Furniture Making (Cabinet Making) * Certificate 4 demonstrates the person's qualification in a field of vocational education and training. Example: Cert IV in Furnishing Technology (that brings together a group of skills and workplace leadership competencies.)


Recognition of prior learning

A person's experience can also be assessed without formal training under a system of "
recognition of prior learning Recognition of prior learning (RPL), prior learning assessment (PLA), or prior learning assessment and recognition (PLAR) describes a process used by regulatory bodies, adult learning centres, career development practitioners, military organizati ...
" (RPL). In such cases, the assessor (who would hold a Training & Assessment qualification at a minimum o
Certificate IV in Training and Assessment - TAE40122
from the Training and Education Training Package TAE) can take evidence of the person's abilities, experience, and training the particular skill area, plus similar and other fields, and issue a certificate; or, require the person to undertake certain courses to round out the person's competencies before the issue of a certificate.


History

The RPL for history in Australia dates back to 1993 when it was first introduced by the Australian Government as part of a National Qualifications Framework. RPL has been the mainstay of all assessments conducted under national vocational education and training systems since the late 1980s and continues to evolve as different VET systems evolve. It was first introduced into the UK by Susan Simosko, a consultant with the National Council for Vocational Qualifications, who adapted it as the central element of all competency-based assessments. A similar process was adopted by all countries during the development of their own vocational education and training systems, some aligned solely with the need to assess competence in line with the needs of private and public sector organizations, and others as a critical element of the assessment of skills and knowledge in order to grant vocational qualifications. As of 2015, it is part of the Australian Quality Training Framework (AQTF) charter and the standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) delivering accredited training. There are numerous companies that offer training online that help Australians get qualified and improve their careers. There is no RPL model that is suitable for all qualifications throughout Australia.{{cite web, url=http://www.aqf.edu.au/rplnatprin.htm, title=RPL National Principles, publisher=Australian Qualifications Framework Advisory Board, year=2004, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070202071608/http://www.aqf.edu.au/rplnatprin.htm, archive-date=2 February 2007


References


External links


deewr.gov.au
- Former Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
training.gov.au
- the official national register of information on Training Packages, Qualifications, Courses, Units of Competency and Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) Technical and further education