Where did TAFE NSW come from?

TAFE NSW has evolved directly from the community. It has grown into its present shape by responding to, and sometimes prompting, the community's needs – whether they be vocational or recreational. Fittingly, the infrastructure of TAFE NSW sprouted from a variety of technical education 'seeds'.

In the beginning

First represented by the apprenticeship system, which had become prominent in the 1800s because of a need to train unskilled convicts for a life in a new society, 'technical' education can be traced back to the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts, 1833. Although firmly established before Australia's first university (the University of Sydney, opened in 1850), the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts didn't run a recognised 'technical' class until 1865 when it offered Mechanical Drawing.

Through the middle of the nineteenth century, the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts balanced its courses: popular music and dancing were offered, as were geometry and architectural drawing; public lectures were delivered as well as classes. Even from the early days the deliverers of technical education in NSW took the view that education should not only strengthen job prospects – it should enrich society.

Although essentially a private concern, technical education in NSW responded to community demand – appealing to those members of the public who were interested in science and art for interest's sake, as well as those who were interested in what was to become known as vocational training.

As technical education in NSW evolved, institutions such as the Orphans' Schools and the Female School of Industry came and went, all contributing components.

In 1878, the Committee of the School of Arts made what was to prove to be an auspicious decision – it formed the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts Working Men's College. Sensibly referred to as Sydney Technical College, it occupied premises in Pitt, Sussex and Castlereagh streets, and although it didn't train apprentices, it became the hub of activity for technical training.

The Government steps in

Financial responsibility for the Sydney Technical College was assumed by the state government in 1883, but they appointed a distinct board – the Board of Technical Education – to operate it. This date has often been quoted as the year TAFE NSW was born, but this owes much to convenience and coincidence. When the Australia had emerged from a prolonged economic recession in 1908, the NSW Government set about looking for a way to promote technical education. They found that 1883 was a convenient date from which to mark an anniversary: '25 years of technical education'.

In 1889, the NSW Government, already financially responsible for the College, increased its stake by assuming control from the Board of Technical Education; technical education became the concern of the Department of Public Instruction. Now with state-wide responsibilities, the system expanded and consolidated, absorbing education infrastructure until the establishment of a separate Department of Technical Education in 1949.

Adapting to a rapidly changing society

As it fostered relationships with the communities it served, an innovative approach was characteristic of centralised technical education in NSW. After the First World War, many servicemen returned to Australia without any peacetime qualifications. Although altered and aged by the battlefields of Europe, a lot of these men had never had the chance to learn a trade before enlisting to serve their country. The Technical Education Branch designed and ran trade courses for these men, many of whom were still very young. Courses set up at short notice for men who might otherwise have never entered the technical system. They were free of charge to disabled ex-servicemen and any serviceman who had joined the war effort before the age of 20. They covered a range of topics, including sign-writing, coopering, upholstering, tailoring and piano-making. Participants were trained to "40 per cent proficiency" and then employed (the employer paying 40 per cent of wages, and the Government the balance). An employer's share of the wage bill increased as a worker's skills increased.

An early form of vocational guidance was also set up as part of the repatriation effort. Representatives of employers and employees sat on committees that interviewed and advised the returned servicemen.

Technical education's stronghold was naturally the urban areas – industry's domain was the cities. However, after a departmental investigation confirmed that many country areas were poorly served, the novel concept of the Mobile Instructional Unit was implemented. Train carriages were converted, sometimes at considerable expense, into travelling workshops and classrooms. These mobile units would be taken to all points of country NSW, shunted and parked. They became teaching facilities, enabling instruction for farmers and giving non-farmers an opportunity to study a trade. In time, some mobile units became the foundations for new colleges.

During the Great Depression, day classes were opened in Sydney and Newcastle to help fill the demand created, in part, by the rapidly swelling ranks of the unemployed. Day and evening classes were offered in general commercial subjects: English, arithmetic, shorthand and typing, accountancy and local government clerkship. During the lean years of the 1930s, these courses may have served to constructively occupy people as much as to provide immediate employment opportunities.

The Second World War brought about an obvious need to change the focus of training. Workers, a large number being women, were trained for traditionally male occupations, specifically for the war effort. Conversely, because troops would have to be fed, cooking classes were held for servicemen. Men trained and toiled over hot stoves; women donned overalls on the factory floor.

Again the technical training sector took the lead in helping ex-servicemen and women readjust to civilian life when it formed the Commonwealth Reconstruction Training Scheme.

The war continued to exert an influence on training throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Technology, spurred by the war effort, developed quickly. And as industry subsequently evolved and expanded, courses changed. Technical and paraprofessional occupations grew and the technical training sector embraced them.

TAFE takes a name

In the 1970s, economic recession and the Kangan Committee were the dominating influences on the direction of the sector which was renamed "technical and further education" or "TAFE". The Kangan Report named and defined the TAFE system. Many of the carefully cultivated components of the sector were recognised by the report and consolidated in the 1970s by the Whitlam and Fraser governments. Individual opportunity and social improvement became catch-cries and important philosophies.

Economically, the 1970s was a very different decade. The concept of recurrent education, where the community had to cope with a fickle job market and changing job specifications, was born. With climbing unemployment and economic trepidation, education and training assumed a role and an importance never before seen: it was readily accessible; it was crucial.

As the economy recovered and then celebrated in the 1980s, the TAFE sector also spread its wings. By 1982 there had been a great increase in short and special course enrolments – 195,000, up from 25,500 in 1949. These courses were designed to meet specialised vocational demands, for personal development and to help people fill in gaps in learning. This dynamic new aspect led to the expansion of the Department's role, and a change of name in 1983 to the NSW Department of Technical and Further Education (TAFE NSW).

In the 1990s, as Vocational Education and Training (VET) became the term associated with the private and public components of the sector, which by now was an industry in itself, the national nature of training was strengthened. The National Training Board was set up to maintain and oversee the industry and the competency-based components which had become such important features in the 1980s. The Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) was established to provide a national focus for the entire VET sector. The New Apprenticeship system and Training Packages – innovations responding to the new national strategy and to the changing face of the 'trades' – consolidated strengths.

In 1991, the NSW TAFE Commission replaced the Department of Technical and Further Education. This led in 1992 to the formation of TAFE NSW Institutes – campuses grouped geographically into administrative units. This has helped foster the competitive but progressive and responsive approach of TAFE NSW.

By the end of the twentieth century, and with the Australian Qualifications Framework and the Australian Recognition Framework facilitating a national approach, 'choice' and 'flexibility' had become commonplace phrases and important components of the delivery of TAFE NSW courses to more than 450,000 enrolments. Only around 10 per cent of TAFE NSW students are full-time, and many study online or from home or work. The gender split at TAFE NSW is more or less 50/50. Training is organised for specific industries and businesses, and is conducted on and off the job. Most TAFE NSW students are employed. And whether they're working or not, students come from every conceivable walk of life: over 20 per cent are born overseas; over 2 per cent are indigenous; 4 per cent are with a disability; and 18 per cent are from a language background other than English. Thousands of school students study VET courses as part of their HSC; thousands of older students study for their HSC through TAFE NSW.

Our society and our communities have changed incredibly since the days when echelons of women sat in classes behind typewriters. TAFE NSW, now the embodiment of NSW State Government-run technical education, continually refines its approach to education and training.

These days TAFE NSW is still evolving

Adaptation and innovation are evident in many of the programs and support services that TAFE NSW offer today.

TAFE NSW conducts special Outreach programs in the community to help groups overcome barriers to learning. With a view to modifying courses, Outreach coordinators talk with groups to ascertain the most appropriate location, length, time and type of course. Further, Correctional Centre Liaison Officers help to deliver TAFE NSW courses in prisons and correctional facilities.

The Aboriginal Programs Unit is responsible for improving the outcomes for the more than 15,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who study through TAFE NSW each year. Many of these Indigenous people are studying courses specifically designed for them.

And there are many other programs, quite distinct from the huge range of standard and special courses that are now available, that respond to the particular needs of the community. Childcare services are available at some campuses to help serve the needs of the many students with children. Disabilities Services work with students with disabilities and TAFE NSW staff to make reasonable adjustments to learning environments. The Multicultural Programs Unit and Institute Multicultural Education Coordinators ensure that the special needs of students who are from language backgrounds other than English are met.

Although Commonwealth funding and a national approach were entrenched by the 1970s and early 1990s, TAFE NSW remains very much state and regionally based. Campuses and Institutes continue the tradition of creative programs that embrace community needs and endeavour – programs like the handmade paper mill, Euraba, a partnership between the TAFE NSW New England Institute and the Toomelah Co-operative Society at Boggabilla. It operates the commercial production of unique handmade paper using cotton off-cuts and other natural fibres donated by local clothing manufacturers, creating employment opportunities and helping to promote tourism and reconciliation.

TAFE NSW Riverina Institute's one-of-a-kind initiative with the Indigenous community sees TAFE NSW working with the people of Murrin B ridge to plant a vineyard as part of a practical horticultural course. Its location and microclimate mean fruit is ready for harvest up to three weeks before other vineyards, creating a significant competitive advantage. The scheme has been further enhanced by a recent agreement between the community, the Institute, ATSIC, the National Aboriginal Housing Scheme and the Department of Aboriginal Affairs. This 'value adding' phase will provide the community with housing and, at the same time, enable formal trade (Carpentry and Joinery) on-site training of 8 to 10 apprentices.

TAFE NSW is also involved in commercial business initiatives that benefit and respond to the needs of urban communities – from a groundbreaking TAFE NSW Western Sydney Institute scheme which sees high school students getting paid work in the smash-repair industry while they still study at school, to Northern Sydney Institute Marketing students successfully forming strategies for real clients. One of the hundreds of examples which benefit all parties is the partnership between TAFE NSW and the NRMA. Cars that are not commercially suitable for repair are repaired as projects by TAFE NSW students – the completed rejuvenated cars are then donated to charity to help assist with operations or fund-raising.

TAFE NSW also works closely with other education providers. TAFE NSW Illawarra Institute is home to the South Coast Education Network (SCEN), a co-operative project between the Department of Education and Training, Eurobodalla Council, Illawarra Institute, Shoalhaven Council and the University of Wollongong . The SCEN initiative brings higher education opportunities to the far south coast of NSW by providing online high technology service delivery and video-conferencing.

At the other end of the state, the TAFE NSW North Coast Institute boasts the Coffs Harbour Education Campus, an innovative learning environment incorporating a Senior High School, TAFE and Southern Cross University.

Close working links between TAFE NSW, industry and the community help to keep training productive, relevant and on the cutting edge. Technical and vocational education in NSW, from its meagre beginnings under the auspices of private and community organisations, operated innovative and productive programs. And TAFE NSW, will continue to do so.

Bibliography

'Look how far we've come', Chris Robinson, Campus Review, Vol 11, No 36.

Sweet Road to Progress: the history of state technical education in New South Wales to 1949, Joan Cobb, NSW DET, 2000.

Spanners, Easels & Microchips: a history of technical and further education in New South Wales 1883–1983, Information Services Division, NSW Department of Technical and Further Education, 1983.

Thanks also to Gillian Goozee, whose research and advice was invaluable when compiling this document.

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