The Australia India Education Council’s (AIEC) Skills Working Group is leading a number of bilateral projects with an objective to build industry, institution and government partnerships in quality skills development.
The working group leads are:
- Prof Ved Prakash, Chairman, University Grants Commission
- Ms Megan Lily, Head of Workforce Development, The Australian Industry Group
Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Workshop held in Colombo - May 2016
The project brings together five IORA member countries (India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Australia), to develop transnational skills standards in the region for select occupations in port operations. The project is supported by the AIEC Skills Working Group, to provide greater international skills mobility and meet skill development needs in ports of partner countries.
A workshop was held on 10-12 May 2016 in Colombo, Sri Lanka to validate and finalise the draft occupational standards. The finalised standards will be presented to the other IORA member nations for their consideration in October 2016.
Workshop participants engaged with their local industry representatives to validate the job descriptions and draft occupational standards. The participants also validated the relevant APEC occupational standards with their industry stakeholders.
The project has resulted in twenty−six occupational standards being developed for three occupations:
- Gantry crane operator;
- Port operations supervisor; and
- Yard planner.
The positions were selected and agreed by the working group as priority occupations for all participating economies.
Environmental Scan workshop with India’s Sector Skill Council held in Delhi, 23-25 June 2016
Partnering with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the AIEC Skills Working Group facilitated a workshop with representatives of India’s forty Skills Sector Councils (SSCs). The workshop built the capacity of the SSCs to engage with industry, in order to provide training and advice through a well-researched environmental scan of labour market needs.
The workshop was facilitated by Mr Bob Paton, Chief Executive Officer of Manufacturing Skills Australia and Ms Jeanette Allen, previously Chief Executive Officer of Service Skills Australia. Both Mr Paton and Ms Allen have broad experience in developing environmental scans and providing advice to industry and governments on industry workforce needs, including skills and training. They also have experience of international vocational education and training policy and systems across a range of countries, including India.
Participants from SSCs were given advice on how to:
- Define and describe the purpose and application of an industry environmental scan and to workshop its applicability to the Indian context;
- Engage with industry in the development of an environmental scan for specified industry sectors;
- Undertake research to inform the document; and
- Provide a template for use by SSCs as a basis for authoring environmental scans.
Following the workshop, the SSCs were asked to develop an environmental scan for their own sector by October 2016.
Australia India Skill Conference
The 3rd Australia India Skills Conference – Skills for Better Business was held in Mumbai on 11 November 2014. The conference was facilitated in partnership with the Australian Government Department of Education and Training, the Australian Government Department of Industry and Science, the Indian National Skill Development Corporation and the Confederation of Indian Industries. The conference brought together over 400 delegates from across Australia and India to foster and strengthen Australia India Skills partnerships with a focus on:
- industry’s role in an industry driven skills training system
- workforce development and the return on investment for industry
- emerging bilateral skills collaboration opportunities for increased global labour mobility
- partnership models in India that meet the price, quality, training levels and volume requirements of the market, and
- feasibility of transnational industry training standards.
The former Australian Minister for Industry, the Honourable Ian Macfarlane MP, and Indian Minister for Labour and Employment, the Honourable Bandaru Dattatreya, delivered the keynote and reply addresses. Minister Macfarlane also launched the three International Skills Training Courses currently being piloted in India.
During the conference, three Australian winners of skills excellence awards, Mr Joshua Mason (Cookery Gold medalist of the 2014 World Skills Australia National Competition), Ms Jessica Martin (International Silver medalist in Restaurant Service from World Skills Competition 2013, Leipzig) and Ms Morgan Clementson (2013 Australian Apprentice of the Year—Runner Up, Australian Training Awards) demonstrated their skills.
Business networking was held and seven MoUs between Indian and Australian organisations were signed at the conference. Case studies demonstrating sharing knowledge and expertise in Vocational Education and Training and skill development in India and Australia were also presented.
More information on the 3rd Australia India Skills Conference and previous Australia India Skills Conferences is at:
2014 Conference
2013 Conference
2012 Conference
Supporting Policy Frameworks for Quality Standards
The Skills Working Group facilitated the second phase of collaboration between Indian Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) and their Australian counterparts in the areas of automotive, health, IT and telecommunications in 2014.
The work involved the development and benchmarking of occupational standards, capacity building, mentoring and greater industry engagement. This initiative supports the interoperability of Australian and Indian skills standards and qualifications benchmarking, to assess the comparability of standards.
The benchmarking project mapped 24 Indian qualification packs in the automotive, health, information technology and telecommunications sectors to comparable Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) qualifications in the Australian system. There was found to be high alignment in twelve occupations. Specifically, the outcomes achieved through these successful collaboration projects form a strong foundation to develop transnational standards and applicable courses for improved skills recognition.
International Skills Training course
Three competency-based International Skills Training Courses (ISTC) have been developed by the Australian Government, in consultation with industry.
1. Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Trainer
2. TVET Assessor
3. Advanced TVET Trainer and Assessor
This project evolved from a recognition of the need for upskilling of trainers and assessors in India. In India, the ISTC Pilot will assist with building training capacity to meet the target of skilling 500 million working age people by 2022. It provides a model for the adoption of Australian qualifications to meet India’s needs, and could serve as a model for further courses in a wide range of sectors.
The ISTC fulfil training and assessment needs and have been benchmarked against Indian national occupational standards. The TVET Trainer course and TVET Assessor course provide participants with vocational background skills to train or assess learners in their industry of expertise. The TVET Advanced Trainer and Assessor course provides skills to take a leadership role within an organisation, enterprise or industry.
A delivery pilot commenced in India in October 2015 and is expected to be completed by early 2016.
Vocational Education Leadership Training Workshop
The 2014–2015 Vocational Education Leadership Training Programme (VELT) provided professional development training delivered by TAFE Directors Australia to 40 community college leaders under the purview of the University Grants Commission (UGC). The programme is aimed at building the leadership and organisational capacity of India’s Community Colleges. The training involved a three day customised and interactive workshop in Delhi in June 2014, on:
- college governance and funding, industry engagement, competency-based standards, qualifications frameworks, quality standards for providers, and delivery and assessment
- teaching, learning and assessment—approaches to competency based training, recognition of prior learning, assessment and skills testing, and formal and informal learning
- regulatory frameworks and quality assurance approaches to quality assurance and meeting regulatory requirements
- leadership—identifying strengths and weaknesses, and strategies for improving leadership abilities, and
- international partnerships and networks.
The Australian system was used as a case study to inform this training.
The workshop was followed by a study tour of TAFE institutes in Australia (for 12 select candidates) in February 2015. The Community College leaders were embedded in TAFEs across Australia to receive training through professional shadowing and mentoring. The participating TAFEs were Canberra Institute of Technology; Central Institute of Technology, Perth; TAFE Illawarra; TAFE Queensland.
The focus of training covered a gamut of TAFE administration and delivery issues including engagement with local industry as a driver of course selection and content and leadership, organisational structure, planning, management systems and approaches.
A three day mentoring workshop was held in February 2016. The workshop focused on key aspects of leadership, including governance, engagement with industry and students, and qualifications frameworks.
Implementation of another two rounds of the VELT programme will be initiated in mid 2016.
Sports Skills Collaboration
An Australian expert worked with India’s new Sports, Physical Education, Fitness and Leisure Sector Skill Council (SSC) in September and November 2015 to identify national occupational standards for a qualification in Sports Development, and create sustainable linkages between industry participants, training providers and other partners in the sports sector. A report of recommendations for further collaboration has been submitted for consideration by the Skills Working Group.
Transnational Skills Standards
A project to develop occupational standards specifying the core skills required for the occupations of diesel fitter and welder in India and Australia is being implemented. 10 core functions for the diesel-fitter job role have been identified and an industry expert will be contracted to develop these core functions into occupational standards.
