Friday 6 September 2013

Trivia with a Cause – TAFE too important to lose!

Over 300 people will be attending the Trivia with a Cause event on Friday 24 May at the Addison Road Community Centre.  The event is jointly sponsored by the TAFE Community Alliance and the Addison Road Community Centre. 

The Alliance includes community members, educationalists, students and academics, all who support TAFE and its important role in delivering quality education and training to students across the state. 

Rosanna Barbero, the General Manager of the Community Centre, has hosted a number of trivia nights at the centre, but considers the TAFE issue a really critical one for the local community. She is concerned with what could happen to the outreach programs that TAFE runs for the centre, if a competitive training market allocates government funding instead to for-profit providers.  “Private providers,” she said, “have one main goal, to maximise profit. This conflicts with TAFE’s mandate to ensure quality, equality and a right to education for all”.

The TAFE Community Alliance opposes the proposed changes to vocational education and training, as outlined in the State Government’s ‘Smart and Skilled NSW’ plan.  Under such a plan a competitive training market will be created with government funding being allocated on a contestable basis.  TAFE, instead of focusing on quality education and the skills required by NSW citizens, will instead be focused on winning tenders and securing sufficient funds to continue to operate. 

“NSW is at risk of going down the same track as Victoria,” said an Alliance spokesperson Linda Simon.  “TAFE Institutes could face a financial crisis and become just another provider in a market focused on low-cost and low-quality courses.  We don’t believe that this is what the people of NSW want, and believe it is important that they are aware of what the Government is proposing. TAFE is and must remain part of the community, providing affordable and accessible training in skills needed by the community and valued by employers.”

“We’ll keep highlighting these issues through events such as the one tonight,” said Ms Simon. “There is a groundswell of concerned people, and some will be at the trivia night to hear more and find out what sort of action they can take.”

Media are welcome.
Friday 24 May 2013

7.00 pm – 10.00 pm
Speeches at 8.00 pm
The Hon Carmel Tebbutt, Opposition spokesperson for Education/Member for Marrickville
Dr John Kaye, Education Spokesperson for the NSW Greens

The Gumbramorra Hall,
Addison Rd Community Centre
142 Addison Rd, Marrickville


For further information, contact:

tafecommunityalliance@gmail.com

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