Tag: TAE

During the first week of May 2025, I conducted a LinkedIn poll asking people who work for a TAFE or other types of RTO the following question, “What is the typical size of a group of learners?”

Here are the results.

The results of this poll would indicate that a competent trainer working in the Australian VET sector should have the ability to deliver training to a group of at least 9 learners.

The TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment is the current qualification designed for trainers working in the Australian VET sector. It requires a person to have the ability to deliver training to a group of 4 learners. This group size is significantly less than what’s required. More than 80% of the poll respondents said that the typical group size is more than 9 learners.

Why is there a discrepancy relating to group size?

The following table shows the history of group size requirements for the current and previous two Certificate IV in Training and Assessment qualifications.

In 2010, the TAE40110 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment did not specify a group size. There was significant inconsistency relating to group size because each RTO delivering the qualification determined what was an acceptable group size. The committee with the responsibility for updating the qualification had to determine what was a group size that would be relevant for trainers working in the Australian VET sector. It decided that the minimum group size would be 8 learners. Therefore, in 2016, the TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment specified that a trainer should have the ability to deliver training to a group of at least 8 learners.

The next committee (different to the previous committee) with the responsibility for updating the qualification received submissions from RTOs delivering the qualification saying that it was often difficult for their learners to organise at least 8 people, being the specified group size. This is not a valid reason for reducing group size. Group size should be determined by the realistic requirements of performing the role of a trainer. Trainers working for a TAFE or other types of RTO will typically be expected to delivery training to nine or more learners.

Anyway, in 2022, the TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment specified that a trainer should have the ability to deliver to a group of at least 4 learners. This group size is significantly less than what’s required to perform the job. Competency is defined as the consistency application of knowledge and skills to the standard of performance required in the workplace. Hence, a competent trainer should be able to delivery training to at least 9 learners, and the current TAE40122 qualification does not represent this reality.

Sadly, many newly trained TAE40122 graduates will not have the ability to perform the role of trainer. They will not be work-ready. This isn’t how the Australian VET system should work.

Does group size matter?

Group size does matter. Communication complexity and the impact of other challengers increases with increased group size.

Communication complexity

The following dramatically shows how communication complexity increases with the increased number of people.

The greater number of people, the greater number of lines of communication. And the greater number of lines of communication, the greater the communication complexity.

The following shows the increasing communication complexity for 5 people, 9 people, and 17 people.

In the above table, the complexity of training 8 learners compared with training 4 learners is more than threefold. And the complexity of training 16 learners compared with training 8 learners is again more than threefold.

It is important to note that 33% of poll respondents said that trainers had to deliver training to group sizes greater than 16 learners. This tells us that trainers need the ability to deliver training in learning environments with high communication complexity. This performance standard is not adequately addressed by the current TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment qualification. Also worth noting, is that more than 80% of the poll respondents said that trainers had group sizes greater than 8 learners. The current training of people entering the Australian VET workforce as trainers is inadequate.

Impact of other challengers

A group of 4 learners is a small group. The challengers associated with training a small group are limited compared with training a typical group size. My LinkedIn poll indicates that a typical group size is greater than 9 learners, and in many cases, it is greater than 16 learners.

Increasing group size in training can lead to a range of challengers, for example:

• Reduced individual attention
• Decreased participation
• Superficial discussions
• Logistical challenges
• Weaker group cohesion
• Potential for disengagement
• Difficulty in addressing individual needs.

Reduced individual attention

Trainers have less time to dedicate to each participant, potentially leading to some learners feeling overlooked or not receiving the specific guidance they need. This can be particularly challenging when participants have diverse learning needs or paces.

Decreased participation

Larger groups can make some individuals, especially those who are less confident or hesitant to speak up, ask questions, or actively participate in discussions and activities. This can limit their learning and the overall richness of the group’s experience.

Superficial discussions

With more people wanting to contribute, discussions may become less in-depth, and there might be less opportunity for individuals to share detailed insights or experiences.

Logistical challenges

Managing larger groups can be more complex. Activities may take longer to complete, and organising breakout sessions or individual feedback can become cumbersome.

Weaker group cohesion

It can be harder to build a strong sense of community and trust in a larger group, which can affect the willingness of participants to share openly and learn from each other.

Potential for disengagement

If participants feel lost in the crowd or that their individual needs aren’t being met, they may become disengaged from the training.

Difficulty in addressing individual needs

Identifying and addressing specific learning gaps or challenges becomes more difficult for the trainer in a larger setting.

Trainers need the ability to adapt their training techniques

While increasing group size can offer some advantages in terms of cost and diversity, it often introduces communication complexity and significant challenges related to individual attention, participation, and engagement. Trainers need the ability to adapt their training techniques to mitigate the negative impacts of challengers associated with larger groups.

There are some skills and knowledge required to deliver training to a small group of 4 learners that are the same as those required to deliver training to a larger group. But the ability to deliver training to a larger group is different. The current TAE40122 qualification is not adequately covering the capabilities required to be a trainer working in the Australian VET sector.

In conclusion

I think the committee responsible for the TAE40122 qualification got it wrong. Having the ability to train 4 learners is insufficient. The committee responsible for the TAE40116 qualification would have deliberated the group size that would allow for a relatively realistic assessment of a person’s ability to deliver training to a group. The group size does not need to be 16 or more learners. A group of at least 8 learners is probably about right. A group of at least 8 learners add sufficient complexity and challengers.

There are many things wrong with the TAE40122 qualification. This article has only addressed one of those things: group size of 4 learners is not sufficient.

Let’s hope that a future committee with the responsibility for updating the TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment will not make the mistakes made by the previous committee. I had predicted that the previous committee would make mistakes, and it did. It did not want to listen to me. Maybe it should’ve.

There is no timeline for reviewing and updating the Certificate IV in Training and Assessment qualification. However, the qualification or credential designed for trainers working in the Australian VET sector has been updated every 6 years: 1992, 1998, 2004, 2010, 2016, and 2022. If this pattern continues, the next Certificate IV in Training and Assessment qualification is due in 2028. Usually, it takes about 2 years to gain project approval, obtain project funding, review, design, and develop the qualification and associated units of competency.

The TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment is not fit-for-purpose. The qualification design is wrong, and there are many things wrong with the TAE units of competency.

This qualification is important for the quality of the entire Australian VET system. It is too important to get wrong again.

The current Australian VET system was implemented in 1992. Since it was implemented, there has been many changes. One of those changes is how units of competency have been documented. The initial units of competency looked very different to today’s units of competency.

The first training packages in the Australian VET system were endorsed in 1997. This began the standardisation of units of competency across the different industry sectors. It should be noted that ‘standardisation’ has never resulted in all units of competency looking the same. There have always been some variations.

In 2012, a ‘new’ format for units of competency was introduced. The Standards of Training Packages specified this new format.

The changes specified by the Standards of Training Packages included:

• Inclusion of Foundation Skills
• Separation of the Unit of Competency and Assessment Requirements (to separate documents).

It took ten years before all units of competency complied with the 2012 Standards of Training Packages.

And this year, effective from the 1st of July 2025, there will be another ‘new’ format for units of competency. However, to add to the complexity of the Australian VET system, there will be two new formats for units of competency, rather than one. One of the new formats is very similar to the current format, but the other new format looks more like a description of curriculum, rather than a description of competency. This is turning back the clock to before 1992, because it was 1992 when competency-based training and assessment was being introduced to replace the failing curriculum-based system.

These changes are specified by the Training Package Organising Framework.

An example: changing units of competency

The ability to make presentations has not significantly changed over the past decade. However, the relevant unit of competency was updated in 2015, and updated again in 2020. Why did we need to change from the 2015 BSBCMM401 Make a presentation unit to the 2020 BSBCMM411 Make presentations unit? Let’s quickly compare these two units.

The first difference is that the BSBCMM401 Make a presentation unit is singular, and the BSBCMM411 Make presentations unit is plural. Singular refers to making one presentation, while plural refers to making more than one presentation. It could be argued that if you can competently make a presentation, you would have the ability to make another presentation.

The second difference which follows on from the first difference relates to the performance evidence. The performance evidence for the BSBCMM411 Make presentations specifies the delivery of two presentations, while the performance evidence for the BSBCMM401 Make a presentation unit specified that at least one presentation was delivered. This change is underwhelming.

The following table compares the elements and performance criteria for the two units.

The above shows that there are three differences:

• Performance criteria 1.4 for the BSBCMM401 unit has been removed
• Rewording has reduced the size of some performance criteria, and in some cases, this makes the performance criteria easier to read
• The number of performance criteria for Element 2 has been reduced from six to three.

This last point about a reduced number of performance criteria is deceptive because two of the three performance criteria that have removed from Element 2 are covered by the Foundation Skills for the BSBCMM411 unit. Overall, the change from BSBCMM401 to BSBCMM411 made a slight improvement. It is debatable that the change was necessary.

Déjà vu: changing units of competency

People who are new to the Australian VET system may not experience it, but many people who have been around for a while may experience déjà vu relating to the current and future changes to the units of competency. One document became two documents, then two documents have become one document again.

In 2012, a unit of competency was one document with two parts:

• Unit of Competency
• Evidence Guide.

After 2012, we introduced a ‘new’ format for units of competency consisting of two documents:

• Unit of Competency
• Assessment Requirements (replaced the Evidence Guide).

In April 2025, the training.gov.au website combined the two parts of the units of competency into one document again. This document has two parts:

• Unit of Competency
• Assessment Requirements.

The following illustrates how the make presentations unit has changed over the past decade, from one document to two documents, and back to being one document.

This recent change to a ‘one document format’ is consistent with the format for units of competency specified by the Training Package Organising Framework.

In conclusion

It seems that much effort goes into making changes, and the implementation of every change costs money and consumes valuable resources. Units of competency changing from one document to two documents, and back to one document may be considered trivial.

But be aware, the change from competency-based training and assessment to curriculum-based training and assessment is significant. Especially, if the providers of training and assessment begin to determine the curriculum, rather than industry and employers determining the competencies.

We seem to be returning the Australian VET system back to before 1992. It wasn’t great then, and it won’t be great for our future.

Students in the TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment course will unpack at least two units of competency before they develop training programs for them. Usually, unpacking a unit of competency requires:

• Interpretation
• Contextualisation
• Reconstruction.

Annotating the unit

By actively annotating the unit of competency and assessment requirements, you unpack the unit, effectively reading and analysing it to determine the content for a competency-based training program.

Competency-based training is training based on the competency, and competency is described by the unit of competency and assessment requirements.

Unpacking the unit of competency will identify:

• Task or tasks to be performed
• Knowledge required to perform the task or tasks
• Skills required to perform the task or tasks.

The annotated unit is a disposable document

The annotated unit of competency and assessment requirements is a disposable document. It can be disposed of after the training program has been developed. And it does not matter if anyone else can read your annotations. It is your document for you to identify and understand the content of the training program.

The process of unpacking a unit to what’s important, not the document resulting from the ‘unpacking process’. 

Annotation techniques

Unpacking can be done using:

• Pen on paper
• On the computer using the Word version of the complete unit of competency and assessment requirements.

The annotation techniques that can be used include:

• Write text
• Use colours
• Use highlighting
• Use arrows, circles or other shapes
• Give numbers to foundation skills (FS), performance evidence (PE), and knowledge evidence (KE)
• Make connections.

Every unit of competency is unique

There are different types of units:

• Some units are procedural and clearly describe the performance of a task
• Some units are procedural and relate to the performance of more than one task
• Some units are not procedural but do relate to the performance of one or more tasks
• Some units relate to learning a skill and do not directly relate to performance of a task
• Some units relate to learning knowledge and do not directly relate to the performance of a task
• Some units are vague and attempt to describe interpersonal and behavioural traits.

We should expect all units to be unique. And we should expect all units to be ambiguous, and this will require us to interpret and contextualise the unit.

Unfortunately, we can expect some units to have been badly written.

This article has been published as an introduction to how to unpack a unit of competency. Additional information shall be published and linked to this article.

Please contact me, Alan Maguire on 0493 065 396, if you need to learn how to unpack a unit of competency.

Do you need help with your TAE studies?

Are you a doing the TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, and are you struggling with your studies? Do you want help with your TAE studies?

Ring Alan Maguire on 0493 065 396 to discuss.

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Training trainers since 1986