This post by Jeremy Baker, Industry Training Federation Executive Director, is the second in our series of guest posts from sector groups on the 2010 Budget.

Prepare to be surprised.

A Budget wish list from the education sector that does not include a cry for more money.

Taxpayers already contribute $4 billion towards Vote:  Tertiary Education.  It’s fair for the Government to say ‘that’s enough’.  It’s also reasonable for them to want better results for that extremely significant investment.

But (and this is the hard part) it’s also time for some gutsy decisions in changes in the way the funding is allocated.  With more effective and targeted allocation, we could achieve much greater outcomes.

The main purpose of a state funded education service is as a tool for economic development.  It make sense therefore that the overarching principles for allocation should be relevance, effectiveness and efficiency.

• relevance: the education and training meets a clear need
• effectiveness: the education and training delivers to that need
• efficiency: the cost of doing so is reasonable in comparison to the need

Almost 2/3rds of tertiary education expenditure is on education and training that relates to a vocation.  More than half is related to vocations within particular industries.  In our Matching Supply and Demand report we put forward a vision to give industry more say over how education spending in areas that related to their industries was best used.  In other words make that spending more relevant, effective and efficient by involving the end user of the product in the decision making process.

Part of this involves industry-developed national qualifications and standards. This is what the Targeted Review of Qualifications is setting out to do and in this year’s Budget we will be looking for funding allocation to support this work.

We’re also aware that 70% of school leavers do not go to university.  Of those that do, 40% drop out before the end of their first year.  Why then is the school system structured in a way that means that the only students who have a clear pathway from school to work are the ones whose pathway goes through university? It is possible to include in the school system some core learning that lends itself more towards vocations within different types of industries.  The Trade Academy funding in last year’s budget was a step in the right direction for this. If there is funding for more initiatives like this in the Budget, we will welcome them but we will be looking for a clearer intent that they will be focused on excellence to support a range of industries and not perceived as a secondary option for those students who are considered less able.