SURVEY OF UNIVERSITY/TAFE WRITING COURSES - TAFE/CAES
2009 - Barbara Flowers
The TAFE courses faired very well compared with University courses. I didn't receive any response from a TAFE student which was not appreciative of the value of his or her particular course.
TAFE SA
What kind of writing do you do? Non-fiction Can you add anything to this? - Poetry
Do you make a living as a writer? No
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course?3 = Good
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 3 = Good
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 4 = Excellent
Would you recommend your course to others? Yes
*****
What kind of writing do you do? Fiction Non-fiction
Do you make a living as a writer? No
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course?3 = Good
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 3 = Good
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 3 = Good
Would you recommend your course to others? Yes
UNSPECIFIED TAFE
Did the course meet your requirements? Yes I've published 48 books, various articles and am now teaching in the program at my local TAFE. I am currently assisting with coordination and course development and marketing
What kind of writing do you do? Fiction Non-fiction Journalism
Do you make a living as a writer? No
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course? 4 = Excellent
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 4 = Excellent
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 4 = Excellent
Would you recommend your course to others? Yes
*****
Did the course meet your requirements? In some respects yes I went into this course straight after highschool. It offers a range of writing subjects/disciplines. I found this useful in identifying my area/s of interest, and was able by the end to do an extended period of study on my chosen field. I don't feel the course offered enough publication/presenting opportunities (none at all really), though now i hear they have a spoken word night. And I found the external nature of the course meant that I wasn't able to take part in conversation around the information in the coursebooks, or with my fellow students, therefore a community of students and writing peers was not established or fostered during the course. I will mention that classes were offered, but I was unable to attend due to their being held at night.
What kind of writing do you do?
Can you add anything to this? - poetry
Do you make a living as a writer? No
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course? 3 = Good,
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 3 = Good
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 2 = Adequate
Can you add anything to your response?: depending on the tutor, responses would range from poor to around average. it was hard because they were all written responses, and so i assume it would depend on the tutors available time, and effort. Would you recommend your course to others? Yes I think it is a course that allows you to try before you buy, in terms of style of writing. This suited me at the time. So I would recommend it to someone in a similar situation. If someone wanted to study a particular writing style in depth, i would suggest that this course probably wouldn't give them what they were after.
*****
What kind of writing do you do? Fiction Non-fiction Corporate
Do you make a living as a writer? No
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course? 4 = Excellent
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 2 = Poor
Can you add anything to your response?: Being a distance student I have often felt isolated from my tutors and other students. Last semester I did an online trial for completion of one unit. While no other students participated I found it a very valuable tool as I could ask my tutor questions etc. All the other units for my course are sent via post - there is no online forum for students which I think is one of the course's biggest weaknesses.
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 4 = Excellent
Would you recommend your course to others? Yes
*****
What kind of writing do you do? Fiction Non-fiction
Can you add anything to this? - Educational pieces for Children's magazines, blogs, e-newsletters
Do you make a living as a writer? No I write therapy reports and present workshops ... I would starve if I relied on a pure writing income apart from my profession.
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course? 3= Good
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 4 = Excellent
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 4 = Excellent
Would you recommend your course to others? Yes
*****
Did the course meet your requirements? Yes It helped me get employment in publishing and I published a novel.
What kind of writing do you do? Fiction
Can you add anything to this? - Editing
Do you make a living as a writer? Yes If you count editing
How would you rate the lecture materials in your course? 4 = Excellent
How would you rate the tutorials and tutor input in your course? 4 = Excellent
How would you rate the quality of feedback you received from your tutors? 4 = Excellent
Would you recommend your course to others? Yes