Claire unpacks the 2021 Federal Budget looking at what measures were (and were not) announced in it and what they mean for the VET, higher education and international education sectors. For a fuller rundown on the international education measures - Claire provided some analysis in this recent article: https://campusmorningmail.com.au/news/claire-field-not-overwhelmed-by-the-private-provider-help-package/ ----------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and T...
May 13, 2021•26 min•Ep. 44
In this episode Claire speaks with David Riordan , former CEO of NSW DET International, Director of City Services at the City of Sydney and Director of TAFE NSW Sydney Institute. David is now consulting to the sector and has some very useful insights on where international education is at and where the future lies. During our conversation we discuss the consultation paper the government has released to help shape the next International Education Strategy. If you haven't seen a copy yet, it's ava...
Apr 18, 2021•25 min•Ep. 43
Claire is joined in this episode by renowned mental health expert Prof. Patrick McGorry AO (Executive Director, Orygen ), Prof. Kylie Readman (PVC Education, Murdoch University) and Jack Goodman (Executive Chairman, Studiosity ) to discuss how institutions need to adapt their student support to an increasingly online environment. During the discussion Patrick refers to MOST, moderated online social therapy for young people. The website with details is: http://most.org.au ------------------------...
Mar 23, 2021•30 min•Ep. 42
In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Prof. Ly Tran from Deakin University to discuss the current state of Australia's international education sector and the experiences of students here in Australia and offshore. Ly also shares her views on where the sector might find itself in the next 5-10 years and some of its key challenges. ----------------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s t...
Mar 11, 2021•29 min•Ep. 41
This week Claire has 5 guests on the podcast across two episodes to unpack what's in the Productivity Commission's report on the new National Skills Agreement. On this episode she speaks with Dr Don Perlgut from Community Colleges Australia (CCA), Chris Butler from the Enterprise RTOs Association (ERTOA) and Dr Sally Burt from Independent Higher Education Australia (IHEA). The Victorian government's "Macklin Review" also gets a mention. If you'd like to have a read it's available here . --------...
Feb 10, 2021•40 min•Ep. 40
This week Claire has 5 guests on the podcast across two episodes to unpack what's in the Productivity Commission's report on the new National Skills Agreement. On this episode she speaks with Craig Robertson from TAFE Directors Australia (TDA) and Troy Williams from Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA). The Victorian government's "Macklin Review" also gets a mention. If you'd like to have a read it's available here . ---------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ pod...
Feb 10, 2021•32 min•Ep. 39
In this episode Claire unpacks the Productivity Commission's final report on their review of the National Agreement for Skills and Workforce Development - and crucially their recommendations for the next National Skills Agreement. The report identifies a raft of changes to VET funding which the sector can expect from 2022 (subject to their acceptance by the Commonwealth and then the State and Territory governments). The full report is at: https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/skills-workforc...
Jan 26, 2021•34 min•Ep. 38
On this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Patrick Kidd OBE OAM, CEO of the Digital Skills Organisation , to explain what the DSO has been set up to do and the results of a recent tender process for the ‘Train 100 Data Analysts’ project. The DSO is an initiative led by the Department of Education, Skills and Employment to take an industry-led approach to digital skills training and employment. More details on the Skills Organisations are available on the DESE website: https://www.dese.go...
Dec 07, 2020•29 min•Ep. 37
Sveto joins Claire on the podcast to share her experiences as an international student, a women's rights activist, and a social entrepreneur. Sveto's current activities include founding the Chadari Project which uses poetry and storytelling to enable Afghan women to tell their stories, and co-founding AYAT Modest Clothes - a social enterprise providing work for illiterate women creating high quality, fashionable, modest clothing. She is also a contributor to the Afghan Women's Writing Project an...
Nov 10, 2020•31 min•Ep. 37
Claire is joined by the CEO of ITECA (the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia), Troy Williams, to discuss a range of issues within the sector, as well as the changes Troy and his members have been focussed on over the last two years. ------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a...
Oct 21, 2020•27 min•Ep. 36
Professor Judyth Sachs and Jim Micsko join Claire on this episode of the podcast. They share their insights on the importance of the school to tertiary education transition as well as what institutions and policymakers need to do to support students during this crucial phase. With COVID-19 having impacted both senior secondary students and first year tertiary students this was a very timely discussion, with both Judyth and Jim providing important insights and lessons to help ensure students get ...
Oct 08, 2020•31 min•Ep. 35
In today's episode of the podcast, David Linke, the Managing Director of EduGrowth joins Claire to discuss the current state of play in the Australian EdTech sector. You can find out more about EduGrowth and their activities at: https://edugrowth.org.au ---------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consu...
Sep 22, 2020•24 min•Ep. 34
On this episode of the podcast, Kylie Wilson, CEO of the New Zealand School of Tourism joins Claire to share her insights on regulatory self-assurance. Recent reports have recommended that ASQA should look at the New Zealand Qualifications Authority's approach when they design their new regulatory model. Kylie explains how different the NZQA's approach is from our current audit model in Australia and why she's passionate about the role the NZQA's reviews play in helping her improve her instituti...
Sep 05, 2020•28 min•Ep. 33
In this episode Claire explains the details of the JobTrainer scheme, what's been agreed by the Commonwealth, States and Territories in the Heads of Agreement for the next National Skills Agreement, and what advice people gave to the Productivity Commission on VET funding reform and what that is likely to mean for the sector. Claire has also compiled a summary of the submissions provided to the Productivity Commission on their interim report on VET funding. It's accessible at: https://www.claire...
Aug 24, 2020•35 min•Ep. 32
In this episode Claire is joined by Dr Laura Hougaz to discuss the independent higher education sector and how it is managing its way through the COVID pandemic. Laura shares her insights on both the challenges and opportunities for these institutions and their entrepreneurial leaders. Laura's book 'Entrepreneurs Creating Educational Innovation - Case Studies from Australia' is well worth a read if this is a sector you don't know much about and are interested in learning more. It's available thr...
Aug 10, 2020•26 min•Ep. 31
Claire is joined on this episode of the podcast by Mike Larsen, the CEO of Studiosity to discuss the "Herculean" effort tertiary education providers have made during COVID to move their content online and what that's meant for student support. We were delayed in publishing this episode because we were busy writing a submission to the Productivity Commission's inquiry into Commonwealth-State VET funding. If that's your thing you can read the submission at: https://www.clairefield.com.au/a-respons...
Jul 20, 2020•18 min•Ep. 30
On this episode Claire is joined by Prof. Andrew Norton from the Centre for Social Research at the ANU, Luke Sheehy from the ATN, and Conor King from the IRU to discuss the government's higher education reforms and their likely impact on the sector. ----------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as ...
Jun 30, 2020•45 min•Ep. 29
In this episode Claire discusses the Productivity Commission's Interim Report on the National Agreement for Skills and Workforce Development. She outlines where it fits with the other recent reviews of the VET sector, as well as discussing the report's findings and the interim recommendations and options it proposes for future VET funding. This report is a key part of the government's JobMaker plans for rebuilding the economy post-COVID so if you work in an RTO or dual-sector provider (public or...
Jun 22, 2020•43 min•Ep. 28
Belinda Robinson, Vice-President University Relations and Strategy at the University of Canberra, joins Claire on this episode of the podcast to discuss her time as Interim Vice Chancellor of the university. Belinda took the reins as the university, its staff and students were emerging from the drought, summer bushfires and a very destructive hailstorm - then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Belinda shares her insights on what those challenges meant for the university and for her as a leader. --------...
Jun 12, 2020•25 min•Ep. 27
Claire is joined in this episode by Alex Chevrolle, Managing Director of Study Group Australia and New Zealand. During the show Alex mentions the EdTech platform insendi ( https://insendi.com ) which is part of Study Group's global operations and has assisted them and their university partners in moving rapidly online and keeping students engaged. ---------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s tra...
May 29, 2020•27 min•Ep. 26
On this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Renata Aldana an international student living in Sydney. Renata describes why she chose Australia for her studies, what it's like being far away from her family during the COVID-19 pandemic and what it's meant to lose her job as businesses have been forced to close. If you're interested in finding out about Renata's photographic work - check out her website: https://araldanas.myportfolio.com ---------------------------------------- The ‘What now...
May 21, 2020•17 min•Ep. 25
Claire is joined on this episode of the podcast by Katrina Higham, the Head of Training and Education at the Restaurant and Catering Industry Association. Katrina shares her insights and experience in shifting to online learning even when your courses must contain face-to-face practical components. She also offers details of the new microcredentials RCA is developing to help the hospitality sector emerge more resilient after the coronavirus crisis. ---------------------------------- The ‘What no...
May 07, 2020•23 min•Ep. 24
Peter Giutronich is a leadership facilitator and mentor to organisations and CEOs across the education, banking and the mining sectors. In this episode of the podcast he shares practical suggestions for managing your team through the COVID-19 crisis and emerging with hope out the other side. Peter's also got some helpful insights and case studies for keeping connected during this period of isolation and the benefits that can bring to you and your colleagues. You can also check out his new 'Mates...
Apr 24, 2020•37 min•Ep. 23
The Australian CEO of OpenLearning, Cherie Diaz, joins Claire on the podcast to share her experiences as a former educator and education administrator in taking face-to-face delivery models online. She also shares details of the new platform for micro-credentials (OpenCreds) developed by the team at OpenLearning. If you're interested in the OpenCreds framework you can find details at: https://solutions.openlearning.com/opencreds/ ----------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ pod...
Apr 10, 2020•30 min•Ep. 22
Maria Spies returns to the podcast to share her insights from her recent presentation to the Reinventing VET for the Digital Age conference. Looking beyond the VET sector to how the coronavirus is impacting education and training across the globe, and the global outlook for education, you won't want to miss Maria's data driven insights. To access a copy of the slides which accompany her presentation go to: https://www.clairefield.com.au/news/ and on that page you'll also find some of Claire's re...
Mar 26, 2020•27 min•Ep. 21
Firstly an apology - the audio quality in this episode is a little bit scratchy towards the beginning of the interview with Janelle BUT fortunately not from Janelle's end - so she's crystal clear! In this interview Claire discusses the international education sector with Janelle Chapman, Executive Director, TAFE Queensland International. Janelle is currently the Deputy Chair of the International Education Association of Australia and the VET Expert on the Council for International Education. Jan...
Mar 12, 2020•18 min•Ep. 20
Dr Don Zoellner, University Fellow at Charles Darwin University, discusses why we should be looking at the role of TAFE and the broader VET sector through the theories of 'delivering public value' and 'institutional logics'. That might sound like a dry topic for a podcast but let me assure it wasn't at all that kind of conversation. With a range of policymakers now identifying flaws in the way the market has been used as a funding construct for VET - I believe Don's views are likely to gain trac...
Feb 19, 2020•34 min•Ep. 19
Claire is joined on this episode by Emma Pollard from the Taronga Conservation Society (which operates both Taronga and Western Plains zoos and has its own enterprise RTO), Paul Saunders an expert on Training Packages to discuss the Sustainability Training Package, and Ailsa Lamont an expert in the international education sector who now runs her own business (Pomegranate Global) and is a co-founder of CANIE. The discussions focus on a range of ways the VET and international education sectors can...
Feb 13, 2020•53 min
Joining Claire on this episode of the podcast, industry specialist, Leon Drury from Manufacturing Skills Australia shares his insights into what's working and what's not when it comes to the VET sector meeting the needs of industry. --------------------------------- The What now? What next? podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia's traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend John Briggs Consulting as a leader in Reconcili...
Feb 06, 2020•28 min•Ep. 17
Claire is joined by Celia Yeo, Senior International Development Advisor at Melbourne Polytechnic https://www.melbournepolytechnic.edu.au Celia has a wealth of experience in international education and offers her insights into what's working and what the challenges are for Australian providers wanting to operate in the ASEAN region. She also shares examples of what's working including the different partnerships that Box Hill Institute https://www.boxhill.edu.au and Chisholm Institute https://www....
Dec 13, 2019•22 min•Ep. 16
