STAFF and students at Armidale TAFE are happy with computer and enrolment changes to the organisation, Managing Director Pam Christie said yesterday during a visit to the city’s campus.
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“A lot of the problems have been resolved and staff are more confident using the system,” Ms Christie said.
“We did have a challenging period at the beginning of the year and there was a very big change… [But] we have been working hard to prevent our staff feeling over-worked.”
The claims from Ms Christie come after TAFE New England staff told The Express in June they were ill-equipped to deal with a new computer enrolment system.
A leaked document of the minutes from an Armidale campus staff meeting highlighted a growing list of issues.
The document revealed staff were disgruntled with not being trained on the new system, pressure from managers and staff leaving because of mental health issues related to an increased administrative duties workload.
Ms Christie said she had received “positive feedback” from Armidale staff during a teleconference with other New England TAFE campuses on Wednesday.
“Certainly staff are much more comfortable,” Ms Christie said.
The managing director was visiting Armidale as part of a tour of New England campuses.
“We are running a current campaign about building TAFE for the future,” she said.
Ms Christie said one way TAFE was looking at adopting learning in regional areas was by offering more online or “blended” study options.
“Students want more flexible ways to access classes,” she said.
TAFE was also hoping to expand study offerings by having students on different campuses teleconference with one teacher.
“At Moree I sat in an aged care class with five students that was connecting with other students and a teacher in Tamworth,” Ms Christie said.