Like everyone else in the community, staff and students of Tocal College are quickly adapting to our new way of life with COVID-19 movement restrictions.
Tocal College is a specialist training college for agriculture and land management.
The college delivers full-time and block release residential training at Paterson and a wide range of short courses right across NSW and nationally.
Much of Tocal College training has a focus on teaching practical, hands-on farm skills which must be demonstrated to students and then practiced in order become proficient and safe.
Tocal College has cancelled or postponed all face-to-face delivery of training away from the Paterson campus where the full-time youth education program is continuing to operate until the end of Term 1.
Tocal College will also delay the commencement of Term 2 for students at the Paterson campus until late May, provided it is consistent with the directions from government, and it is appropriate and safe to do so.
In order to maintain safety and comply with NSW Health advice, Tocal College made the difficult decision to cancel graduation ceremonies at both the Paterson and Yanco campuses.
The annual Tocal Field Days in May, and functions at Tocal Homestead complex have also been cancelled.
To maintain safety while students remain in residence at the Paterson campus, students have been assisted to maintain social distancing and good hygiene practices.
Their travel away from the campus has been restricted and visitors onto the college are not permitted.
This has required a very significant and constant effort from all college staff.
Practical work on the college dairy, beef, sheep and poultry farms has continued where possible.
Even while dealing with the challenges of the COVID19 lockdown, Tocal College staff are using the situation as an opportunity to expand the college offering of online learning in order to better service the needs of the rural industries and regional communities.
Digital delivery offers great potential to build new opportunities for training and greater access for isolated people.
Tocal College already delivers a wide range of online training - offering Diploma of Agriculture and Conservation and Land Management as fully online qualifications.
The college also has many other training courses either partially of fully delivered online.
In response to COVID-19, the college is working to develop and deliver as much new online training as possible in order to support the rural industries and continue the delivery of training.
- Education officer, Tocal College, Charlie Bell.
So, in response to COVID-19, the college is working to develop and deliver as much new online training as possible in order to support the rural industries and continue the delivery of training across the state.
This is doubly important to contribute to drought and bushfire recovery.
The full-time students at the Paterson campus will be able to commence some of the theory components of their Term 2 studies from home using online training resources.
Tocal staff are working to redevelop and repackage for delivery online some of the training material currently delivered face-to-face with student groups.
This will allow students to continue their studies from home and then undertake the practical application and skill components of their course when studies resume at the Paterson campus.
Tocal College staff are also redeveloping for delivery online much of the face-to-face training currently delivered in regional and remote centres.
While ever it is not possible to deliver face-to-face training in regional areas, Tocal College will be offering some full courses online, and the theory components of practical courses online in order to maintain training opportunities for rural communities.
The college will recommence face-to-face delivery of training as soon as it is safe to do so.
Above all, staff at Tocal College will be working hard to maintain continuity of training services for all the individuals and groups in the rural industries who require training.
Up to this point, most Tocal College staff are still working onsite at Paterson, Yanco or other offices in regional areas.
Like many others in the community, some staff may choose to work from home. facilitated by the prompt action of the NSW Department of Primary Industries to provide the technology required to support this.
