Skills Development: Vocational Education
in the Islamic Countries
147
 FromEnglish-speaking backgrounds
 From schools in the lower ICSEA 6 quartiles
 Perceiving themselves as average or below for academic performance relative to their
peers.
The study confirmed that students and parents still have different perceptions about TVET
sectors and higher education. Gore et al. (2017) reported “Many students, parents/carers and
teachers perceived TAFE as only for the less academically capable students. Some students, in
particular, believed that their occupational futures would be more constrained without a
university education, in terms of both options and future success” (P.49).
Objectives of VET programs: The main objective of vocational education and training (VET)
sector in Australia is to provide trainees with the opportunities to gain necessary skills which
are required to:
 enter theworkforce for the first time
 re-enter theworkforce
 upgrade skills for an existing job
 retrain for a new job
 obtain new qualifications
 attain credit towards higher qualifications pathway
Source: Skills and Training, Department of Education and Training7
6.7. Any special emphasis onPoor student
Generally, VET courses and programs are not free in Australia. Students (bothmale and female)
need to pay for the enrollment, course registration and administrative fees. There is scholarship
provision for young people who are experiencing disadvantage such as young people leaving
out-of-home care, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people, those experiencing
homelessness, young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds, or with disabilities. Action,
Uniting, and Australia (2018) study reports:
In 2015, the NSW Government allocated $48 million over four years to fund 200,000
fee-free scholarships for young people experiencing disadvantage (aged 15–30) to
access training under Smart and Skilled. There is a limit of 50,000 scholarships per
year, but this limit does not apply to students in social housing (or on the NSW
Housing register) or students who meet the OOHC criteria. Eligible students can
receive a single fee-free scholarship in a financial year, and a maximum of two fee-
free scholarships over four financial years. However, the fee-free scholarships have
not beenwell promoted and take up has been limited. As at 30 June 2016, only 24,197
people had received a scholarship (p. 19)
Many young people even did not access this scholarship due to restrictive policies.
Therefore, VET is not free for poor people in Australia. In order to attract poor and
disadvantage people, VET courses and programs need to be easily accessible in aspect of
financial matter. Despite this fact, “further increases in fees for VET are likely to thwart
attempts to widen participation overall, especially if this group of less advantaged students
is unable or unwilling to find viable ways to overcome financial constraints” (Gore et al.,
2017, p. 49 ).
6 ICSEA = Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage. See for details.