Success stories

Deadly Days Aboriginal Youth Festival

This yearly Festival hosted by North Coast TAFE and funded by DEEWR, has the objective of engaging young Aboriginal students enrolled in secondary school Years 8-10 across the north coast of NSW, in further education. The Festival includes opportunities to explore career options, listen to and talk with Aboriginal role models in various occupations.  An overriding objective of the programs architects is to introduce young Aboriginal people to TAFE as a safe place where they can explore and further their aspirations.

Partners of the Festival include over 40 private and public schools, Aboriginal community members and elders and Beyond Blue.  Various government agencies such as Rural Health, NSW Police, RTA and local councils participate in the festival providing information on career pathways in their industry sectors.  This year Saltwater Freshwater Arts Alliance Aboriginal Corporation were contracted to work with a cohort of Aboriginal Certificate III Events students from North Coast TAFE to organise and manage the Festival.

The success of the Festival, now in its fourth year, lies in raising aspirations amongst Aboriginal youth in the early stages of their development, promoting educational pathways to TAFE Delivered Vocational Education programs in schools, mainstream vocational education programs, School Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships, and encouraging young people to build relationships with Aboriginal elders and their communities.

With the festival in it’s fourth year improvements in the engagement of young Aboriginal learners with vocational education programs is becoming apparent.  Enrolments of Aboriginal Learners in North Coast TAFE programs at Certificate III or above has increased by more than 50% (739 in 2007 (prior to the Deadly Days program) to 1,243 in 2011YTD).

For photos, programme and testimonials please visit http://deadlydays.com/

Community Pharmacy

The level and range of skills needed in community pharmacy workers is increasing. Employees are expected to be able to work with sleep monitoring technologies, blood pressure equipment, administer blood glucose tests and assist with or deliver other health services.

With the advent of Training package qualifications in Community Pharmacy North Coast TAFE was one of the first Registered Training Organisations to develop teaching and learning materials to support the delivery of Certificate II - IV qualifications in this field. Working closely with it’s industry partners North coast TAFE develops learning material that are relevant, current and engaging.  Suitability for online, flexible and self paced delivery methods is a priority.  The Institute has also developed customised programs such as The Refresher training to assist pharmacies meet their ongoing Quality Care Pharmacy Program (QCPP) accreditation - a pharmacy standard administered by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia designed to increase the level of business and professional quality in community pharmacies.

North Coast TAFE also assists employers’ create efficiencies by giving advice on cost-effective training options such as traineeships, facilitating the traineeship sign up process and helping in sourcing suitable staff.

 90% of the learning and assessment for these programs are conducted on-the-job or online. This gives employees the flexibility to learn in their own time, at their own pace and it has resulted in increased productivity for employers as the pharmacy workers don’t have to leave the workplace to learn,  and can practice skills in the context of their workplace whilst carrying out their duties.
 
North Coast TAFE offers these programs through traineeships, including School Based Trainees, in northern, central west and New England regions of NSW, in Southern Queensland and Canberra. In 2010 NCTAFE offered a Certificate II program to a cohort of 15 Aboriginal students which resulted in 7 learners gaining full time employment in local pharmacies. For North Coast TAFE, enrolments in Community Pharmacy programs have increased by 43% in the last five years.

 Pharmacies report that the skills and knowledge gained by their employees has allowed the pharmacies to increase their promotion and delivery of health care services, be more competitive and provide good health outcomes for the community.  

Hairdressing

Coincident with changes to the Training Package employers of Hairdressing apprentices approached North Coast TAFE seeking more flexibility in the way their apprentices were trained.  Head Teacher, Betty Rensink, identified that as the industry moved towards three year (rather than four year) apprenticeships employers were seeking the ability to start an apprentice at any time of the year and to incorporate some of their “in house” training into the apprenticeship training and assessment.

By developing a client workbook in conjunction with employers and students North Coast TAFE is able to individualise and track students training plans in a way that compliments their work in their employer’s salon.  Skills checklists enable employers and teachers to discuss the incorporation of skills practice and assessment into the apprentice’s daily tasks.

Recognising that sometimes salons must wait for a suitable client to present wanting a particular style or procedure before they have an opportunity to have the apprentice assessed Ms Rensink was one of the early adopters of “camera glasses” technology in North Coast TAFE and now students can video themselves performing a task, Email the vision to the teacher and discuss the work by telephone.  Students are able to review their performance with peers or employers and it can be used for assessment.

Employers report that these flexible arrangements have shortened completion times, allowed for individual learning styles and maintained quality.