Microsoft Word 2007 ichrie conference Proceedings Final-Final 06-06-07. doc

 
2007 Annual International CHRIE Conference & Exposition 
268
In 1963 the 
Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act 
was introduced in the United States of America 
(USA) (VanLandingham, 1995a). This Act helped pioneer competency based training (CBT) within curriculum 
design and assessment in vocational education. CBT calls for the assessment of industry wide accepted skills 
(competencies) to gauge student skill level as opposed to assessing a student’s individual achievements measured 
against those of other students in their cohort (VanLandingham, 1995a; Smith and Keating, 2003). The change to 
CBT in the USA positively influenced the status of chefs; graduates entering the workforce were better trained, 
more suited to the working environment of their chosen discipline and hence considered more professional 
(VanLandingham, 1995a; 1995b). 
The 
Kangan Report 
in 1975
 
(Ray, 2001;
Pickersgill, 2004; Smith and Keating, 2003) found that, in 
Australia, vocational and technical colleges had been perceived as “the poor relation to universities and colleges of 
higher education” (Ray, 2001, pp. 26-27; Pickersgill, 2004, p. 36; Smith and Keating, 2003, pp. 10, 12). This lead to 
greater funding and support from the Commonwealth of Australia for vocational education programs and the 
establishment of the technical and further education (TAFE) industry sector, which introduced further regulation of 
skills training and qualifications (Smith et al, 2003, Pickersgill, 2004). This culminated in stronger financial support 
for TAFE students and targeted the introduction of training programs for disadvantaged students; such as new 
migrants and the long-term unemployed. 
Following the lead of the USA, the United Kingdom introduced a version of CBT ‘the National 
Vocational Qualifications (NVQ’S)’ during the 1980’s (Canning and Cloonan, 2002) and Australia, while having 
adopted CBT in some areas, fully implemented competency based training reforms in the TAFE sector in 1993 with 
the establishment of the Australian National Training Authority (ANTA) (Ray, 2001;
Smith and Keating, 2003). The 
establishment of ANTA was a response to discussions between industry and the education sectors, with a view that 
if technical and other forms of vocational education and training are to be successful, they needed to be based on 
practical developments in current workplaces (Pickersgill, 2004). Therefore, CBT training principles have been an 
important element to the continuing development of curriculum design, innovation and assessment practices (Smith 
and Keating, 2003; VanLandingham, 1995b).
In 1993, the same year that CBT was taken up throughout Australia, the Australian Quality Framework 
(AQF) was endorsed by the Federal Government to ensure all states complied with nationally standardized training 
requirements. This standardization provided for greater recognition and portability of qualifications (Pickersgill, 
2004). ANTA served as the regulatory body for vocational education and training until 2005 when the most recent 
reforms to education in Australia saw it absorbed by the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST), 
which is now the national regulatory body for vocational education (VOCED).