ABSTRACT
In education, as in many other facets of Australian life, the British inheritance is patent and expresses itself in administrative structures, institutional terminology, and a detailed knowledge of British educational developments. In Australia, as in the United Kingdom, vocational education and training is provided by three main agencies: the public system of Technical and Further Education; private institutions offering vocational training; and industry itself. The widely dispersed nature of a high proportion of Australia's population has led to the development of a well-established network of Distance Education, including many vocational programmes. A subject of particular concern to the Commonwealth and state governments alike is to make suitable and sufficient provision of vocational training opportunities in Technical and Further Education for Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders. As a result of social, economic and demographic changes similar to those which have occurred in the United Kingdom, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of women employed in the Australian economy.
