Commercialisation and Flexible Delivery: Access in Vocational Education and Training.

Overview & Synopsis

This book examines flexible delivery of vocational education and training in Australia's technical and further education (TAFE) sector. Discussed in chapter 1 are issues in the invention and implementation of flexible delivery with general reference to Victoria's TAFE sector, vocational education and training, and selected precursors of flexible delivery. Chapter 2 reports a case study of off-campus teaching at six TAFE colleges that were selected to include a mix of small, medium, and large urban and rural institutions and a mix of styles of managing flexible delivery (management by dedicated off-campus centers, individual teaching departments with academic responsibility for particular courses/modules, or a combination of dedicated center- and department-based management). The findings regarding student support services, administrative services, open learning and off-campus services, course production and development, off-campus centers and departments, institutional and cross-college arrangements, teachers and modes of instruction, and use of technology that are presented in chapter 2 provide empirical evidence that implementation of flexible delivery is not living up to its promises of equity and openness. Chapter 3, "Off-Campus Study Meets Entrepreneurialism," considers global issues shaping the organization and practice of flexible delivery. The book contains a 59-item annotated bibliography and 66 references. (MN)