Shared responsibility underpins the approach to education and training across Australia, as reflected in the National Skills Agreement and the Universities Accord.
Victoria has adopted a shared responsibility model for some time. The VSA works with the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions, Apprenticeships Victoria and the Office of TAFE Coordination and Delivery to set and respond to skills priorities in Victoria. The VSA also acts as a central point for determining and communicating skills in demand through engaging closely with industry and learners.
The insights in the Skills Plan signal a strong Victorian economy and show that skilled workers are needed across most industries.
This is why the VSA is recommending further work to reshape vocational qualifications so VET graduates are prepared for a wider range of roles in the workforce. At the same time, workers who have acquired skills through experience must be assisted – through improved Recognition of Prior Learning – to have those skills recognised so they can pursue new career opportunities.
Building and construction feature strongly in this year’s Skills Plan, with plans to lift the state’s housing stock over the next decade and to build new energy generation, storage, transmission and distribution systems. The care economy underpins the health and well-being of Victorians and continues to need highly-skilled workers. The digital economy, which supplements and even transforms existing industries, is seeing growing demand for specific digital skills. This highlights the need to lift digital literacy for more workers.
Core skills such as literacy, numeracy and digital literacy are key to developing technical and human skills and improving productivity and wages. Cognitive skills are ever more important. Teaching and learning that recognise the criticality of these skills is the next stage of reform in vocational education and training.
Better connecting school students to the world of work will help them find the career pathway that suits them best and achieve the most out of their schooling.
This year’s Skills Plan benefited from insights through the VSA’s Industry Advisory Groups and other regular engagement channels and webinars. The VSA’s Advisory Board continues to add rich perspective to the priorities and recommendations set out in each Plan.
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