More Funding For TAFE To Give Students The Skills They Need

12:17' 11-07-2018

More students will get the skills and experience they need to get a job with the Andrews Labor Government rolling out more funding for courses that give real-life practical experience.

Photo: TAFE Western

The Labor Government is providing $43.1 million from the Workforce Training Innovation Fund for industry to develop courses with TAFE and training providers which meet changing workplace needs – giving industry a real say in the training being delivered.

Acting Premier James Merlino and Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney today announced $1.4 million from the fund for Curve Tomorrow to launch the Jasper Virtual Reality Simulation Program, which will give paediatric health professionals training in true-to-life crisis situations.

Developed by health innovation company Curve Tomorrow in collaboration with Holmesglen TAFE and Swinburne University, the program will give students the opportunity to experience a series of realistic scenarios with actors playing the parts of patients or parents.

Scenarios include responding as a team to critically injured patients, dealing with a stressed and aggressive parent, or resuscitating an infant. Using a virtual reality headset, students will be fully immersed in a 360 degree, pre-recorded virtual environment, helping them to develop the skills they need to get a job.

This is all part of the Labor Government’s work to give every Victorian the opportunity to get the training and skills they need to get a job.

To make it easier to access training, the Government is investing $172 million to make 30 priority TAFE courses and 18 pre-apprenticeship courses that lead to jobs that are most in demand from Victorian employers tuition free. A further 10 free TAFE courses will be confirmed in time for students to enrol for the 2019 training year.

The Victorian Budget 2018/19 is investing an additional $644 million to strengthen TAFE, address skills shortages and ensure all Victorians can access the training they need to get a good job.

The former Liberal Government decimated our TAFE system – cutting funding, sacking teachers and closing campuses. We’ve turned that around and we’re continuing to invest in TAFE to make it even bigger and better than before.