The adoption of the appropriate standards throughout the VET sector will provide the following benefits in the implementation of flexible delivery via two partially related mechanisms:
Standardisation will enable the States/Territories to achieve economies of scale in the purchase and operation of
equipment within the sector. Aggregation of standardised equipment types will allow the VET sector to arrange for bulk
purchasing and negotiate price reductions from manufacturers, subject perhaps to Whole of Government mandates as
discussed below. It also reduces the skills required and the risk involved in purchasing decisions.
Importantly, the adoption of standardised equipment, software and operating environments reduces subsequent
development, maintenance and training costs. These operating cost components can be considerable, and consequent
savings are therefore highly beneficial in supporting the economic attractiveness of online delivery.
Standardisation encourages the development of an open market for the supply of telecommunications and information technology hardware and software: when tenders are expressed in terms of the preferred standards, new suppliers are able to enter the market and supply to those standards because the specifications that they are required to meet are publicly available. This will result in access by the sector to a greater range of products at a lower cost.
The recommendations of the project represent a coordinated plan for investment in technology. Commitment to the Standards Policy and Maintenance Process will assist long-term planning and purchasing arrangements through an ongoing process of development and review involving environmental scanning and projection.
Interoperability is defined as the ability to interwork systems across the sector, allowing the interchange of information. This has the following advantages:
It allows universal access - based on the telecommunications infrastructure - by learners to course material and thus directly supports the National Strategy for VET 1998 - 2003 'Bridge to the Future' agreed by Ministers, which acknowledges that 'new forms of educational and communications technology will generate increasing demands for flexible, convenient and accessible training'.
It will allow the sharing of content and resources across the sector. This has both supply and demand advantages.
Interoperability allows a tool built to work within one learning environment to work across multiple environments.
Content developed according to common specifications can be therefore be sold into a wider - in fact, global - market,
at incremental cost. Standardisation therefore offers business advantages to content developers.
On the other hand, standardisation will allow learners to access a wider range of course material. This means that they
will be able to locate material which is most relevant to their needs and of the highest quality. Multiple authoring tools
may be used to develop content that can then be pieced together.
Teachers can tailor material for particular learners by selecting and combining material from a variety of sources and
customise it to suit the needs of individual users.
Open markets for content stimulate content providers to produce product of the highest value. This is of direct benefit to learners.
Interoperability of communications systems enables the sharing of information and, thus, the avoidance of duplication and rework. This benefits the overall efficiency of online delivery in the VET sector.
Interoperability at the learner level encourages the development of team processes, collaborative working and peer-to-peer learning.
Access to evaluation and assessment systems allows learners to monitor and track their own progress and chart a personalised course through a training course.
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Last modified on January 25, 1999.