TAFE Outreach programs are closely aligned to the Federal Social Inclusion Agenda ensuring NSW education is accessible to people who face barriers to learning including geographical and social isolation, language and cultural factors, financial hardship, lack of educational confidence, being unaware of opportunities to learn, a disability or family commitments.

Student Profile

Students in the Warwick Farm area come from a wide range of social, cultural, religious, and linguistic backgrounds. They have a variety of different levels of education and have had a variety of different experiences with learning. Some have experienced successful learning in the school or higher education environment in their country of origin; however, they lack the local language and knowledge to transfer these skills to the Australian Workplace. Many have had interrupted and disappointing experiences in school and have retained little of their learning or have difficulties with literacy and numeracy.
Their goals for attending this course are as many and as varied as their backgrounds, however, all seek to improve their skills, both academic and social, so that they can contribute to their community and find meaningful employment.
These students are among the most vulnerable to economic change and find it difficult to develop new skills and seek employment in the current economic climate.
0 comments

How It All Began

Warwick Farm Community is located in a housing estate. It is at postcode 2168 which is a highly significant postcode in terms of disadvantaged areas. (Vinson 2007) The aim of the partnership was to engage the community to develop their skills, their self awareness and to empower them to take control of all aspects of their lives and social settings. There was an intention to explore ways that we could assist those in the community to move on to work that they would be comfortable with and able to undertake without creating further stress.

This Doorways to the Future course is for anyone in the Warwick Farm community including long term unemployed, jobseekers. It is provided by TAFE Outreach, Liverpool at no cost. This course is a result of requests made by the local community to provide such training on a local level. Partners in this course include Warwick Farm Neighbourhood Centre and TAFE NSW. Other stakeholders in the overall project include the Salvation Army and Department of Health, working on the Food 4 Life Shopfront project.

At the end of the first round of subjects, students were able to work in the Food 4 Life Market which is providing Healthy Food Products at reduced costs and which encourages the community to endeavour to have healthy life and eating habits.

Vinson, Tony. 2007 Dropping Off The Edge The Distribution Of Disadvantage In Australia
0 comments
Labels:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)