Training the TAFE Sessional Workforce: A New Dynamic in Professional Development.

As part of a larger project, this study was conducted to provide a snapshot of the characteristics, size, work patterns, and training needs of the sessional teaching work force in technical and further education (TAFE) in the vocational education and training (VET) sector in Victoria, Australia. Twelve research questions formed the basis of two printed surveys that were distributed to 5,000 sessional (part-time) teachers and 613 managers in November 2000. The response rate was 19 percent for teachers and 36 percent for managers. Among the findings of the survey were the following: (1) about 10 percent more females than males were employed in the TAFE sessional work force, and about 67 percent of both genders were aged 40 and older; (2) the majority of sessional teachers work for one organization only; (3) the majority of sessional teachers at both public and private providers held teaching or training qualifications; (4) the majority of sessional teachers considered that work to be their career and thought they would be still working in that capacity in the next 5 years; (5) 38 percent of public and 21 percent of private sessional teachers were dissatisfied with the quantity of training provided by their employers; and (6) teachers indicated they are mainly interested in training in computers, information relevant to the areas they were teaching, and teaching and education skills. The study concluded that further research is needed into the type of work force that sessional teachers make up and how their needs should be met. (Contains 14 references.) (KC)