TAFE tells students teach yourself

7th August 2009

The Chronicle

STUDENTS who splashed out upwards of $2000 for an art course at CQ Institute of TAFE didn’t expect they’d be teaching themselves.

But, a student says that’s what is about to happen from Monday after the mid-semester slashing of teacher hours for the Certificate IV in Visual Arts and Contemporary Craft and a diploma course.

As well as 15 students in the course’s painting program there is a much larger number in the printmaking elective, who are in the same boat with many more in other areas also set to be impacted as the TAFE hierarchy cuts costs.

According to the Queensland Teachers’ Union things are only going to get worse with “untold numbers of students” in the firing line as moves are made to set up CQ TAFE as part of a rural and regional statutory authority, where the emphasis won’t be on delivering a broad spectrum of courses, but on the bottom line.

Yesterday, a student from the art course contacted The Morning Bulletin to say the class was outraged at what had happened.

From Monday popular teacher Patrick Connor will now be in the classroom for just one of the two days the course is taught each week.

“We still have to turn up on Tuesdays even though we won’t have a teacher and if we get stuck we’ve been told we can ask the print making teacher for help, but only in an emergency,” the student said.

She said a “government worker” painted a bleak picture to the upset students on Wednesday as she outlined the new measures, explaining they were the result of budget cuts.

“We’ve been told there’s nothing we can do and though we’ve started a petition who knows what will happen?” the student said.

Another student described the measure as “a band-aid solution” and unworkable in the long-term.
Many are using the study to gain employment or move onto university for teaching degrees.

Queensland Teachers’ Union TAFE organiser Paul Reardon said the future didn’t look good for niche courses in Central Queensland.

Mr Reardon said the situation happening in Rockhampton was also occurring in other parts of the state.

He said the problem was firstly that the State Government was short of cash and, secondly, the Federal Government’s push towards contestable funding – which enabled different providers to put in tenders.

Mr Reardon said the emphasis for TAFEs was ensuring they didn’t go into the red.

The statutory authorities will see campuses run by boards.

CQ TAFE will be linked with other establishments in Toowoomba, Wide Bay, Cairns, Townsville and Mt Isa.

“Where in the past we had a public provider delivering what a community needed through government funding, these boards will make clinical decision on what will be offered and where,” Mr Reardon said.

He said the focus would be on courses that bolstered the economy, with others likely to fall off the radar.

A statement from CQ Institute of TAFE released last night said: “Arts teachers gave input into recent changes in the course delivery at Central Queensland Institute of TAFE.

“The institute is adopting some different delivery methods for some courses, such as more online programs because it gives students of all ages more flexibility to learn and study, regardless of other commitments.

“Overall training hours planned for Rockhampton for the current financial year have increased by 20% compared to 2008/09.”

The statement did not respond to questions about the regional statutory authority.