Going the distance
If you live in a rural area you could benefit hugely from distance learning. As one of many people across Australia that live in remote communities, you’ll know that access to vocational education and training at a TAFE or Community College can be restricted by your far-flung location.
Reaping the benefits
Vocational education is of great importance if you live in a rural area. It can build on the schooling you’ve had, giving you a better grounding in the career you decide to pursue. Correspondence courses such as those provided by Cengage Education can provide training that’s otherwise unavailable in your area, making you an invaluable and very employable part of the local workforce.
Vocational education should ultimately “help rural educational institutions become job incubators and help students become job creators, rather than simply job applicants.” (William T Grant Foundation, 1988)
A well-trained workforce makes rural communities a more attractive proposition for expanding industries. Vocational education can help local businesses to expand as well by giving the owners valuable business or practical skills. All of which adds up to an improved and healthy local economy.
Difficulties of distance
Education in remote communities has a long history of steady but slow improvement. Pre-1950s children either had to go to boarding school or be taught via mail, which meant they were either away from their families or suffered from no interaction with teacher or other students.
The School of the Air solved this somewhat – children could use the Flying Doctor radio service to communicate with teachers. In 2005 there were 16 Schools of the Air across Australia, but they still did not resolve the difficulties of supplying further and vocational education to those communities.
There are a number of factors that can prevent rural communities from providing vocational education. That’s where Cengage Education comes in. Many of the problems can be resolved by distance learning.
Rural education issues
- Isolation - across Australia there are towns and communities situated hundreds of kilometres from the nearest regional centres. Often people have to travel great distances to study at TAFE or University campuses
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Cengage Education solutions
- Cengage Education’s convenient distance learning set-up allows students to study wherever they like at a time of their choosing. As you can set your own timetable you can allow for longer delivery times.
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- Surveys (by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research) have found that schooling in rural areas can suffer from a lack of quality. Often it’s a case of the curriculum not being relevant to the needs of local industries and businesses. There is little or no access to formal training qualifications.
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- Rural educational institutions can have problems in hiring and keeping teachers. The job demands flexibility and many other skills to accommodate a small but varied range of students.
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- All our tutors are specialists in their field with years of experience under their belts. Their professionalism and knowledge will ensure you get the best help and advice throughout your course.
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- Children often leave school early in rural areas, as there is less opportunity for further education. They are unaware of further options that could improve their employability, give them skills to either run their own business or get started in a more knowledge-based career.
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- People in rural areas are more likely to have low income and education levels.
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- Our courses can be paid for in a number of easily affordable ways – get a discount for paying upfront, or pay in monthly instalments. That way students can improve their level of education without breaking the bank.
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- Whether it’s children going to boarding school, or adults moving away to attend TAFE or University, many people in rural areas find themselves having to travel great distances for their education. Not only is the travel itself a pain, but it also takes them away from helping out on farms and other family-run businesses.
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- The small communities people live in in rural areas offer limited opportunities for work placements.
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- Some of our courses require work placements in order to complete them. These can be easily arranged but may include travel.
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- Rural educational institutions sometimes have weak financial support.
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- Make your own money work for you when you take one of our rewarding courses. Each course provides all the materials you need and is compiled by experts to make sure you get the best training.
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- Rural workforces are unattractive to developing industries because of their limited education and training.
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- Our courses can provide training in a number of industries and are recognised qualifications accepted by those industries across Australia.
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- The ‘greying’ of rural populations. As young people head to urban areas, rural communities are increasingly made up of retirees or people returning to their hometown after.
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- This can actually bring employment growth – there’s an increased need for goods and services. We provide all kinds of training for people who want to set up a new business.
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- Students rarely feel the benefits – learning from classroom discussion, having a study partner - of studying alongside many other students doing the same thing.
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- Using our online student forums you can interact with other Cengage Education students and get assistance in completing your course.
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- Leaving town to get further education is costly.
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- With our distance-learning set-up there is no need to move anywhere!
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Lets hear it from our students
We work hard to provide our students with unsurpassed levels of education and service. Many of our courses are nationally recognised and accredited which means they have been found to meet the stringent education quality standards set by the government.
Here are some comments from students about their experience of learning with Cengage Education.
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