Search Results

E-portfolios are becoming increasingly popular in the vocational education and training (VET) sector. They are exciting and potentially powerful tools for learners: undertaking course work; collating evidence of skills and achievements; to assist in the recognition of prior learning (RPL); or when seeking employment. These draft guidelines have been developed for e-portfolio service providers (service providers) and managers of learner information (MLI) in the VET sector. They are intended to offer practical guidance and some tools to assist service providers to: comply with obligations under applicable privacy law and avoid compliance problems which could lead to the need for costly changes or for e-portfolio systems to be under-utilised; and assure learners that they are in control of the personal information held in an e-portfolio system and that this information will remain secure and confidential, thereby building trust and confidence, and therefore take-up, amongst learners.

Edited excerpts from publication. Show less

The vocational education and training (VET) e-standards were developed by the E-standards for Training business activity under the Australian Flexible Learning Framework, and continue to be maintained under the National VET E-learning Strategy. The e-standards are reviewed and ratified by the E-standards Expert Group (EEG), which is the National Senior Officials Committee (NSOC) endorsed technical standards body for the VET sector. Standards ratified by the EEG are endorsed by the Flexible Learning Advisory Group (FLAG) for implementation by the states and territories and relevant national agencies. This document provides a summary of the VET e-standards. The e-standards recommendations are intended to remove barriers to e-learning, and ensure maximum interoperability of VET systems and content. The e-standards maximise the viability, integrity and portability of e-learning resources and are developed with the aim to ensure that resource development follows internationally accepted specifications. The technologies and applications used to build and deliver the resources ensure the most consistent operation and widest possible use and reuse of those resources.

Excerpts from publication. Show less

This guide, originally developed by the Australian Flexible Learning Framework's E-standards for Training activity, provides information on how to develop and customise e-learning content according to the e-learning standards (e-standards). These e-standards have been endorsed by the National Senior Officials Committee (NSOC) for use in all Australian states and territories. This guide has been updated to reflect the recently released e-standards for 2014. This guide is aimed at anyone involved in the planning, management or development of vocational education and training (VET) e-learning resources.

Excerpt from publication. Show less

This vocational education and training (VET) roadmap is a national strategic planning tool that identifies the key areas that require national action to enable Australian learners to utilise their e-portfolio to support learner pathways through training, education and employment. It explains the goals for a collaborative approach to e-portfolios in the VET sector and lays out a plan for the national VET system to realise these goals. The document was compiled following intensive research and national stakeholder consultations. This revised version identifies the actions completed and the work still to be done as part of the e-portfolios for learner pathways business activity, a project of the National VET E-learning Strategy 2012-2015. The project aims to support individuals’ lifelong learning goals by providing the basis for learners to progress through VET and gain recognition of their prior learning and experiences, and by enabling the national portability of learning evidence and verifiability of qualifications.

Excerpt from publication. Show less

This resource was developed within the context of the national VET E-portfolio Guidelines and is designed to support the implementation of e-portfolio systems in the vocational education and training (VET) sector. While e-portfolios are learner-driven collections of digital artefacts and can contain a wide range of content, this document focuses specifically on the role that e-portfolios can play in enabling learners to manage access to verifiable Attainment Information. Attainment Information includes units of competency, accredited modules and qualifications or accredited courses as defined by the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF). The purpose of this document is to provide practical, technically focused information for implementers of e-portfolio and related systems. It outlines a number of potential technical implementation approaches and considers the advantages and disadvantages of each one.

Excerpts from publication. Show less

The National VET E-learning Strategy for 2012–2015 will play a key role in enabling the Australian training sector to take advantage of the rollout of the National Broadband Network (NBN) to make major advances in the achievement of government training objectives. Coordinated action to develop sector-wide capability in using the new technological environment will, at the same time, stimulate innovative approaches to increasing participation in training and work, and improving the skill levels of the Australian workforce. The strategy has been developed as a three-year program of action with a series of ongoing business activities reflecting its strategic objectives. Continuous measurement of outcomes and an annual review of progress will influence approaches used from year to year to allow for ongoing improvements and responses to change in the environment.

Excerpt from publication. Show less

This enquiry was commissioned by the Flexible Learning Advisory Group (FLAG) to address stakeholder concerns regarding the veracity and authenticity of online e-assessment and the quality of training outcomes. The enquiry involved a wide ranging review of Australian and international research and policy reports, and includes an Assessment e-Risk Survey of key stakeholders: employer representatives, (Australian Skills Quality Authority) ASQA and Western Australian Training Accreditation Council (TAC) auditors, Polytechnic West and Central online assessors and online students. The purpose of the guide is to present an overview of the treatment options within a risk assessment context. A 'treatment options' checklist is included in the appendix to assist practitioners to undertake their own context specific risk assessment.

Edited excerpts from publication. Show less

Acuto was commissioned to undertake this research project, funded by the Australian Government's Flexible Learning Advisory Group, into strategies to make existing high technology, industry grade facilities, programs and/or technologies more generally available for training. This report provides a qualitative analysis of the nature and type of these specialist facilities, their applicability to wider user access and inferences regarding strategies to facilitate access and overcome any barriers to their wider utilisation. The purpose of the study is to identify: What specialised industry technologies/e-learning resources are currently in use in the training sector and how broad is the access to those resources? Whether there are specialised industry technologies that are currently only available to industry and if so, how they might be of use for training. What potential is there to facilitate access to those specialised industry resources and facilities for the widest possible user base? What possibilities are created in terms of virtual environments and video technologies in the context of increased availability of broadband connectivity? Whether there are specific software or hardware requirements to access the resources and facilities and if so, what might be the associated costs? What barriers are there to accessing the resources and facilities from both a technical and non-technical perspective? Any suggestions for overcoming the barriers to accessing the resources and facilities.

Edited excerpts from publication. Show less

The purpose of this report is to document the outcomes of research into the potential applications for the IMS Learning Tools Interoperability (IMS LTI) specification for collection/learning tool and system communication in the vocational education and training (VET) sector. The research was originally undertaken as part of an investigation into sharing data between student management systems (SMS) and e-portfolio tools but the LTI information was felt to be of wider interest to the sector, which resulted in the creation of this report. The report provides an overview of the LTI specification (contrasting different versions), considers potential uses for the specification and then considers a specific use-case for implementing LTI for accessing and tracking the use of learning objects hosted in the national collection.

Edited excerpt from publication. Show less

Despite systematic validation being an essential requirement within the National VET Regulator Standards for RTOs, numerous key stakeholders have continued to raise concerns with the quality and consistency of assessments being undertaken by [registered training organisations] RTOs for the purposes of issuing nationally recognised [vocational education and training] VET qualifications in Australia. In an attempt to improve industry confidence in such qualifications, six RTOs were commissioned, under the National VET E-learning Strategy, to engage industry employers and stakeholders to take part in the validation of assessments through the use of technology, referred to as e-validation.

This report first summarises the common features of the six e-validation programs piloted in terms of the unit/qualification focus, industry areas, partnership arrangements and assessment methods validated. It then attempts to summarise the common steps and activities undertaken by each RTO to prepare and conduct the e-validation. Next, the resourcing implications for the industry partners are discussed in terms of professional development needs, technology requirements, financial and workload implications. Finally, the benefits of the program and its implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Excerpts from publication. Show less