6.10.24
Despite being promised to arrive in 'early' 2024, then August 2024, when they finally did arrive on 1 October 2024 it was a little disappointing to note that the revised Standards for RTOs were still not 'final' FINAL versions.
The Policy Drafts were released with anticipated enactment on 1.1.25; full regulatory effect 1.7.25, but...
The Credential Policy and Compliance Requirements were still out for consultation, with DEWR requesting feedback by 20.10.24. Given these two documents are relied upon and referenced within the Outcome Standards, it was disappointing to not have a definitive 'ok' to move ahead, but on the other hand, it might be good too.
You see, there are some pretty radical changes proposed in the Credential Policy that DEWR would do well to get feedback on. Namely, that the TAE40110 has been included back into the list of credentials to train and assess VET in Australia.
On the one hand, people are applauding the move saying it will entice those who may have left the sector to return to the training room and potentially ease trainer shortages.
In the other camp are those who worry that these people left for a reason and despite the requirement to undergo PD to 'get back up to speed', haven't been in the training environment for about 5-6 years (since the requirement became TAE40110 + TAEASS502 unit + TAELLN unit) and are missing vital currency about changes to the facilitation of learning (e.g. technology (think new tools and methods - not just generative AI - but things like online via Zoom/Teams too), changes to student cohorts (think the influx of a new generation - Gen Z would have been 6-21 years old when TAE10 left), and the VET sector in general (think, for example, COAG, SSOs and IRCs are no longer around).
Sure, all of these things can be learned – after all, that's why Skills Education exists! – but it will take time to achieve currency from quality PD activity. So, is the move to ‘let TAE40110 back in’ really going to supply the fix it seems to have been intended for? Time will tell, but in the meantime, this is a perfect example of just one factor within the Credential Policy that DEWR should receive sector feedback about. (Education Matters members: see the recorded panel discussion about the draft Credential Policy).
The Compliance Requirements designed to set out the conditions that all RTOs must meet to obtain or maintain registration, have components suggesting changes to strengthen the sector, including, but not limited to:
A longer retention time of student evidence (up from 6 months to 2 years for VET regulator purposes)
A reduction of retention time for AQF certification documentation issued for training products completed on or after 1 January 2015 (down from 30 to 7 years)
Eliminating set transition timeframes but retaining the one-year timeframe to cease enrolment of new learners into a superseded product (set transition periods replaced with “in a timely manner”)
A reduction in timeframe for notifying the VET Regulator of material changes (from 90 days to 10 business days)
Streamlining requirements for: prepaid student fee protection and, use of the NRT logo
All of the information is available in the multiple documents released this week.
There are:
From DEWR:
Outcome Standards
Compliance Requirements (including the Fit and Proper Person Requirements and NRT Logo Conditions of Use Policy)
Credential Policy
Overview of the Draft Credential Policy and Compliance Requirements
Outcome Standards Policy Guidance
From ASQA:
Preparing for the revised Standards – Guide
If you’re like us and have already gone through the six (6) documents to understand what is coming in/what is proposed, you know you haven’t had much of a life this week!
For ease of reference, we have updated our Skills Education website with all of the documents linked in one place.
We also realise that many people were familiarising themselves with the draft revised Standards that were released in October last year thinking “there won’t be that much change. Surely (?!)”. However, there has been significant change from that document to the Policy Version Outcome Standards released 1.10.24.
As has become our habit for these things, to support VET practitioners, we have created a comparison document for you to see the changes across iterations.
We have also created a ‘Revised Standards Ready Reckoner’ which is a ten (10) tab spreadsheet showing the collation of the six documents mentioned above in a convenient reference format.
These materials are up for complimentary download from our Skills Education website. We’re not asking for payment but if you do happen to like the work and would like to shout us a coffee, there’s space for that too (and we'd gratefully accept more coffee!)
Please let us know what you think of the tools and if they are useful to you and/or your RTO!