La participación de las Comunidades Autónomas en el proceso

With the post compulsory sector developing now if we were truly being offered a resource by the federal government this thing wouldn’t be called a Technical College, it would be called something completely different and it would have been something that the whole region could have created and it would have been another piece to our post compulsory puzzle. But instead they put us up there saying, ‘It’s either a government school led or industry led’ and there is nowhere else to go with it. (Anne-Marie, Executive Officer, 2005)

As I portrayed in the second Panel of this thesis, up until the mid-1980s the Victorian state education system had a ‘long and proud tradition’ of dual schools: high schools offering an academic curriculum alongside technical schools offering applied curriculum leading to job related skill development (Cairns 2003, p. 2). As schools became more comprehensive in their offerings the dual system was

abolished and secondary colleges emerged, often with multiple campuses reflecting the amalgamation of the previously separate entities. These single purpose

secondary schools were to offer a broad curriculum however their focus was increasingly academic and their successwithin an increasingly competitive and marketised education sector measured by way of comparison of VCE results and ENTER scores105. As a consequence many students who did not intend

progressing to university106 would not stay to complete Y12, some leaving school when they reached the minimum school leaving age at Y10, with no senior qualification. Over recent years, vocational education and training VET options have been added to the school curriculum. The VET in Schools initiative was a major federal development for schools seeking to enhance certificated opportunities for senior students interested in vocationally-oriented courses107 (Henry and Grundy 2004) thereby making school more relevant to their aspirations. In Victoria, an

104

This heading is taken from a quote of the LLEN Executive Officer reflecting on effect of the Technical College initiative as it had evolved by June 2005.

105

Even for those not intending to progress to university it is common knowledge that having an offer of a university place enhances one’s chances in the labour market. This is illustrative of Beck’s (1992) individualisation of risk.

106

The percentage of those not intending to progress to university is around 70% (Smart Geelong Region Local Learning and Employment Network Inc 2002).

107

Henry and Grundy argue the injection of federal funds into VET in Schools in 1997 saw the increasing integration of these courses into the VCE. In Victoria these courses became VCE VET. They argue that this was a mixed blessing. While students now gained dual accreditation for their studies from the then State Training Authority (VLESC post-Kirby) as well as the then Board of Studies (Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority [VCAA] post-Kirby) the integration worked against the ethos of flexibility and responsiveness of these courses which became moulded into a better fit with the dominant academic forms of learning of the senior school certificate.

alternative senior qualification, the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL), has also been implemented to better meet the diverse needs and interests of those students who have been failed by a system focused on university entrance (Teese and Polesel 2003); this and other policy initiatives that I have detailed in this thesis supported the government’s target that 90% of young people would

successfully complete Y12 or its equivalent by 2010.

Notwithstanding these initiatives, the argument for a reintroduction of technical secondary schools had remained a media issue and formed part of the state Liberal party’s unsuccessful platform in the 2002 state election. At the same time, the issue was fuelled across Australia by industry claims of skill shortages. Regardless of differences between state education systems, the federal government took a broad brush to the problem: if the states couldn’t respond to the alleged skills shortage crisis then the federal government would ‘make sure they do it’ (Minister Hardgrave, 2005)108. As part of its successful 2004 campaign for federal government re-election, the Australian Liberal Party proposed a budget

commitment of $289m for the establishment of 24 Australian Technical Colleges in regions with a significant industry base, skill shortage issues and high rates of youth unemployment109. Geelong was one of six Victorian locations selected for the implementation of the policy which involves provision of a School Based New Apprentice (SBNA) and academic study for the relevant senior school certificate for up to 300 Y11 and Y12 students. Each Australian Technical College, intended to commence operations from 2006, was to specialise in a particular trade and would offer trades from at least four industries including metal and engineering,

automotive, building and construction, electrotechnology and commercial cookery. In the area of specialism the Australian Technical College would be a Centre of Excellence (Department of Education Science and Training 2005).

Two principles were central to the Australian Technical College policy framework: that they be demand driven and community based. As such, on the surface, such

108

This comment is drawn from the community consultation undertaken by the federal Minister for Vocational and Technical Education in March 2005. In this forum the political nature of the initiative was clearly underscored, in particular the industrial relations agenda. The response to the consultation was marked: ‘We all gathered together afterwards and people were really really angry and then they just started laughing. They said, “It’s a circus . . . we just keep moving”’ (Anne-Marie, Executive Officer, 2005).

109

This was a significant commitment given the federal investment in both education and training had been reducing since 1996.

an approach had potential to accord with post compulsory initiatives underway in Victoria and would certainly contribute to the target for increased retention. However, Technical Colleges were also an example of the federal government’s desire to ‘interfere in a new way’ (Brett, Department staff member, 2005). While education is a state responsibility in Australia over the past two decades the federal government had exerted increasing influence (Cairns 2003). The weaving on this loom portrays what happens when the policy of a Liberal federal government comes into relationship with the policies of a Labor state government in the arena of post compulsory education training and employment.