Efficiency and Effectiveness in the Australian Technical and Further Education System
The beginnings of the Australian TAFE system can be traced back to the early 19th century when the first Mechanics Institutes were established in Tasmania and New South Wales. Since then, a growing population and the increasing need for a skilled workforce have led to an expanding network of modern TAFE institutes across Australia. Constraints on the public purse, stakeholder demands for transparency and accountability and the ever increasing availability of data have in recent decades seen a growing trend for performance measurement in public institutions, including TAFE institutes. In this study, we investigate aspects relating to the measurement of effectiveness and efficiency in the Australian TAFE system, using predominantly publicly available data. The empirical analyses are presented in a portfolio-based format composed of three separate, but interrelated papers. Our portfolio seeks to make a contribution to the development of quantitative methods in the field of vocational education research, with a strong emphasis on practical usability of such methods.
Efficiency of Australian technical and further education providers
Budgetary constraints on the public purse have led Australian Federal and State governments to focus increasingly on the efficiency of public institutions, including Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes. In this study, we define efficiency as the relationship between financial and administrative inputs and educational outputs. We employ stochastic frontier analysis in determining the efficiency of Australian TAFE institutes using data sourced from institutional annual reports, the Student Outcomes Survey and administrative databases. We found significant economies of scale effects and conclude that increasing institutional size for very small institutions may result in increased efficiencies.
Two dimensional efficiency measurements in vocational education: Evidence from Australia
Purpose: In Australia, the vocational education and training (VET) sector accounts for approximately A$8 billion of public spending, of which around A$6.6 billion is spent on government providers that include Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes. The TAFE institutes in Australia are large, public VET providers, generally funded and managed by state government. Measuring the efficiency and effectiveness of TAFE institutes is of great interest to policy makers, regulators, consumers and to the institutions themselves. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach: In this study the authors use data relating to student cohort demographics, institutional characteristics and educational outcome data, while employing stochastic frontier analysis, to develop two distinct efficiency measures and models. The first model examines institutional efficiency in the transformation of financial resources into teaching loads. The second model evaluates efficiency in the transformation of institutional resources into post-study employment outcomes. K-means cluster analysis is used to establish groupings of similar institutes and subsequent canonical discriminant analysis is employed to develop a typology of these clusters. Findings: In both models the authors find significant inefficiencies in the Australian TAFE system. The relationship between both efficiency measures is then assessed. While there is no direct linear relationship, a distinct pattern could be detected. Finally the authors develop a typology of efficient institutions. Originality/value: This study contributes to the existing research by defining efficiency in vocational education in two distinct ways and by the utilisation of the derived efficiencies in the development of a typology of efficient institutes. In doing so, this research makes an original contribution to the understanding of the drivers of efficiency in vocational education.