Australia is not the only place considering how to improve pathways between vocational and higher education – this is also an issue Europe is grappling with.
What we call “tertiary harmonisation”, the European Centre for the Development of VET (CEDEFOP) calls “learning progression”.
And they note that: “as the learning landscape evolves – shaped by changes in the labour market, society, and the economy – so does our understanding of qualifications.
In response, both European and national efforts have sought to enhance the flexibility of VET systems and promote lifelong learning.”
In considering the drivers and hindrances of lifelong learning and therefore what needs to be strengthened and what should be changed in Europe to encourage more lifelong learning – CEDEFOP has developed five scenarios for lifelong learning to 2040. They are:
“Scenario 1 – Flex max: EU member states will have created a seamless learning ecosystem, supporting personalised learning paths within and across countries.
Scenario 2 – Rigid islands: Education and training are defined by comprehensive and standardised learning pathways, offering limited opportunities for personalisation and flexibility.
Scenario 3 – Fragmented flexibility: Education and training subsystems provide personalised, adaptable learning experiences but operate largely separately.
Scenario 4 – Rigid but connected: Learning pathways are structured and standardised, offering learners little or no room to customise learning to their needs. However, they offer transferability of learning across national borders for the same subsystem.
Scenario 5 – Gated communities: Learners can earn full or partial qualifications through units, modules, or microcredentials from various providers within a subsystem, with moderate level mobility across subsystems, and limited mobility across borders.”
If we were to replace “EU member states” with “Australian states and territories” in the above scenarios, we might argue Australia is in Scenario 4 – that is learners do not have many options to customise what they study and to have their studies fully recognised across different providers and different sectors (even though that is how the system should work), but we do have transferability across borders because we have a national VET system and the higher education system is also national (albeit all universities are self-accrediting and set their own rules on credit transfer).
How wonderful it would be for our learners and for industry if Australia, following the Jobs and Skills Australia roadmap, might arrive at Scenario 1 rather than staying where we are or being left stranded in Scenario 5 if we implement some but not all reforms for tertiary harmonisation.
And if we could reach recognition agreements with the EU and other countries as they embark on their own learning progression reforms – what great opportunities that might open up for our students.
