While accredited education is a mainstay of the New South Wales (NSW) Adult and Community Education (ACE) sector's delivery of quality training, in recent years non-accredited programs have been playing an increasingly vital role within the range of courses offered by the colleges. ACE forms part of an approach by state governments to providing lower-cost and/or fee-free training to students, particularly those from a disadvantaged background, who are interested in pursuing vocational education. In NSW, as well as allocating funds to more traditional vocational education, a proportion of... [+] Show more
While accredited education is a mainstay of the New South Wales (NSW) Adult and Community Education (ACE) sector's delivery of quality training, in recent years non-accredited programs have been playing an increasingly vital role within the range of courses offered by the colleges. ACE forms part of an approach by state governments to providing lower-cost and/or fee-free training to students, particularly those from a disadvantaged background, who are interested in pursuing vocational education. In NSW, as well as allocating funds to more traditional vocational education, a proportion of the ACE budget is assigned, every year, to delivering non-accredited (more informal, non-certificated) training.
This project investigated the potential benefits of such non-accredited training among community colleges in NSW, with a particular focus on training funded under the state government's ACE program, and how it impacts students in terms of their overall confidence, their engagement in the community and their employability as they transition to the working arena. The project used four different lenses, or approaches, to gather information and reach its conclusions. Firstly, it explored the current research literature base for relevant academic material. Secondly, it collated data about the sector stored with the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) and the ACE department in NSW. Thirdly, it used the resources of the Australian Social Value Bank (ASVB) to calculate the social impact of NSW ACE non-accredited training. Lastly, and perhaps most significantly, it gathered together the many voices of those actually working and studying in the sector, namely the leaders, managers and students at the community colleges. Findings from these four approaches are captured in this report, which includes: (1) valuable insights into the purpose of non-accredited training, the range of training available within the NSW ACE program, and its outcomes (see Sections 3 and 4); (2) a detailed analysis of students' experience of non-accredited training and of the types of outcomes for students that can emerge, including not only educational outcomes but also social and broader community outcomes (see Sections 5A and 5B); (3) an investigation of the multiple barriers that can impact student engagement with employment and of how the NSW ACE programs can assist students in overcoming these challenges and gain work (see Section 6); (4) key findings in relation to non-accredited training within the NSW ACE sector and accompanying recommendations as to how its delivery could potentially be enhanced (see Section 7); and (5) recommendations for future research (see Appendix III).
Edited excerpts from publication.
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