Training
As part of your work life, training activities:
- teach you how to do new things
- upgrade your skills and knowledge
- maintain your levels of competency.
Training can be formal, resulting in a qualification when you complete it. It can also be informal, adding to your general skill base without giving you a qualification.
Formal training
Many people take on formal training at different points in their careers. Some people study for an initial or extra qualification when they leave school; others only train when changing careers.
Formal training gives your learning some structure. It’s often organised around lectures or classes. Your performance and competency are assessed using assignments or examinations. When you attend and complete these successfully, your efforts are recognised with a formal qualification—for example, a certificate.
Formal training can involve on-the-job training, off-the-job training or a combination of both.
- On-the-job training is done in the workplace as part of your work. An assessor visits you regularly to check that you’ve reached the required competency levels for your training qualification. In school-based VET courses, this is also called ‘structured workplace learning’.
- Off-the-job training is performed away from the workplace and sometimes out of working hours. It can take place in a TAFE college, a school or a private training centre. You can study internally at classes or externally at home, perhaps through online learning. Trainers use tests, completed projects or research reports to assess your progress.
Many Australian Apprenticeships offer a combination of on-the-job and off-the-job training.
Informal training
Informal training is a lot more flexible than formal training. It generally requires someone to show you how to perform a task, so it is usually done on the job.
You are not formally assessed on your performance—your trainer lets you know when you’re doing the new task correctly and to the required standard.