Thread: Getting a little angry with my Tafe

This is why they need "an education revolution" but I'm not holding my breath that anyone will deliver it!

check out the government funding over the last 10 years if it's anything like the NSW labour gov's commitment to tafe then there lies your answer
Having been on both sides at tafe , student and lecturer I can tell you the pressure put on tafe by the state government is almost to the point of being criminal
I am sorry you are the one who is the looser in this issue , I was looking at a tafe course next year in tig but think now I will just teach myself with the assistance ( here I am lucky ) of some friends who are well versed in the art
Rgds
Russell

Hi Paulo,

I used to teach at TAFE.. (night courses in post trade construction and remedial mathematics)

It makes me cringe to read your post.
The situation that you and others in your class face, is very poor, and just not good enough in my opinion.... especially considering the fees that are payable by students these days.

Since you say that complaints have already been made and ignored by the TAFE,
I would encourage you to write to your local state member.
Follow up your letter of complaint by telephoning the office of the member some days later, and ask the lacky if he/she feels that you should also write to the opposition party member over the issue. You know what I mean.... act a little dumb, but get the point across. You can then be assured the the poly will then read your complaint, and this will avoid getting a bureaucrats’ pro forma response in the mail.

If you don't get an acceptable answer, I feel you should then contact the opposition member and let the sparks fly.

Good luck.

The trouble with having a rant like yours on this forum, Paulo, is that it's like a red flag to a bull for some members. They usually wade in and start criticising the ranter. It's good to see that you've had sympathetic responses so far.

Can I suggest that you start buying gear and do your own learning at home in conjunction with the second-rate experiences of TAFE? Get some knowlege from the older instructor at TAFE and gain your hands on experience at home. Good luck with it mate.

Originally Posted by Fossil

Hi Paulo,

I used to teach at TAFE.. (night courses in post trade construction and remedial mathematics)

It makes me cringe to read your post.
The situation that you and others in your class face, is very poor, and just not good enough in my opinion.... especially considering the fees that are payable by students these days.

Since you say that complaints have already been made and ignored by the TAFE,
I would encourage you to write to your local state member.
Follow up your letter of complaint by telephoning the office of the member some days later, and ask the lacky if he/she feels that you should also write to the opposition party member over the issue. You know what I mean.... act a little dumb, but get the point across. You can then be assured the the poly will then read your complaint, and this will avoid getting a bureaucrats’ pro forma response in the mail.

If you don't get an acceptable answer, I feel you should then contact the opposition member and let the sparks fly.

Good luck.

Fossil has the right idea, but instead of one letter to the local member, send the letter to not only the local member but alos cc the oposition member and the TAFE as well, make sure everyone know the others have recieved a copy...

Whatch the spark fly. Though maybe I am just an itinerant stirrer

I think education should be considered like all other purchases in life - if they are important - shop around first. Ask others for advice and check out exactly what you are getting before you pay your money. I would advise anyone intending to enroll in any course to do their homework first - ask those in the field, ring a few potential employers, ask other students, search the web, ask questions on the forum. Eventually you'll find out what courses are good - and what are not. It can be an expensive waste of time and money completing a course that isn't well regarded.

In short, it might sound selfish, but I think it would be more productive use of your time and money to find another institution than trying to fix up the institution you are at.

You could look at it as they are trying to teach you "real world" situations for work, like where everyone else "borrows" your tools so they can return them when you are on smoko, in a totally buggered situation, or never to be seen again. No-one ever supplies the right gear, but they expect the job to be done anyway. I could go on, but TAFE jaded me too.
Keep your own standards up, and achieve the best result you can under the circumstances. When you do finally get the right gear, your job will be a doddle.

Totally unacceptable and potentially unsafe.

My TAFE experiences over 5 years (02-06) proved how underfunded and demoralising the system could be.

Things were run down, some machines were out of service occasionally for months or even years, I was told. Luckily staff, storemen and students were almost without exception (in my part time classes) were terrific people and we got through it well. I know at least 2 of my teachers though were eyeing early retirement.

It COULD be so good, what a waste.

Regards,

Richard

Hi Everyone,

thanks for the responses, and like rpepper said "it COULD Be soo good", how are we meant to produce world class welders like this. Its just crazy, i will be sending a letter to the TAFE director. Ill get the signitures of some of the fellows at TAFE. I dont usually do stuff like this but when you start messing with my chances to create a better life for me and my family then watch out buddy.

Dont get me wrong i know with the "skill shortage" larger class sizes have been called for by some tafes, and I know that there arent enough teachers. I dont blame teachers they are the ones that complain too, but what can they do most of them are part timers.

All in all i think it just makes me want it more and motivates me to be better, like benja said it just preparing you for the real world. Fabrication is a tuff industry and i gota be good enough to cope with every situation that comes my way.

Paulo

Hi all,
I am speaking from the Queensland perspective but feel it may well apply to the rest of the country by comments I am reading.

If you want to do something about the system, I AM SORRY GUYS ,IT WON'T HAPPEN HERE. There has to be enough of you giving your local pollies a hard time.Whole classes of students need to start complaining to the right people, it will happen. Write letters and make phone calls on an organised basis.

Tafe is a strange beast indeed It is not responsive,in the main, to needs of the very classes of people people whom primarily it was set up to serve.

My first request to get a course for welders in Gladstone (in the 70,s) was met by the response of-"We have looked at at it and there are not the numbers to run a course."

After I ran a personal ad in the paper ,I was able to supply the director of the college with 26 names ,when they only needed 14 to run the course.Needless to say,we got our course.

Teachers these days are regarded by the Tafe sytem as overpaid and are often treated as salesmen who should be out touting for business to generate funding.

A succession of governments in the federal and local spheres has been content to allow the Tafes to degenerate into mostly self funded systems.

Vocational and post trade training on a part time (night course) level has suffered greatly.

The Tafe service has been turned away from the needs of the individual learner to something that provides quick ,but expensive courses for industry.

The coal mines pay extremely large dollars for onsite courses and receive excellent services.

Those students that sign up for part time classes are treated shabbily as they can't hope to pay what the big companies are paying. It is money centered and will not change until governments realize that the skill shortage is a creature of their own making.

I believe it will take nothing short of a royal commission to get the Tafes back on track.

Thats my 2 bobs worth anyway
Grahame

I attended a welding course at TAFE northern NSW about 4 years ago.

It was an evening course.

No problems with the teaching no problem with the equipment.

It took 8 months on waiting lists to be able to enrol?

My night started with about 25 people doing various units.

By the end of the course we had less than 6 people attending.

Why do units have to be a set time period, when the assessment is on a topic and not time; why one cannot start after numbers fall?

You have x time to finish each unit, once either unit completed or times up another can enrol.

The administrator who ran the department seem to not break a sweat at my TAFE; hmm

My biggest beef is why tafe are so crowed and difficult to get a position yet skills are in such short supply.

WHo monitors the tafe's: their administration, their facilities?

Cheers

Pulpo

In the 80's when I attended my first night welding course I paid $5 for the 3months tuition and materials.Of course it would have paid for the electrodes ,but I was' nt about to complain. Even then when people dropped out the place was not filled as they had paid for the position and may have come back.

You have paid for a number of hours tuition ,thats whats available.If more hours are needed re enroll in the next course. If you are not happy ,do something about it don't whinge. See your local politician and present him him with a case .Your experience and that of others in the same group is what will sway the case . Administrations respond to numbers, my friends.


Current costings aside I assume little has changed .

Grahame