Pivot Point International Academy
The Pivot Point International Academy was established in 1987 by Pivot Point Australia. Pivot Point Australia (est. 1962) is the Australian research and development centre for hairdressing and is the most respected company in hairdressing education in Australia and New Zealand.
Background
The College is known as a fine benchmark for quality training and has in excess of 350 students. International students make up 20 percent of the student body. They are from Korea, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Germany, Norway, Vietnam, Mauritius, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
Pivot Point offers intensive training in the Diploma of Hairdressing Salon Management, Certificate III and IV in Hairdressing as well as apprenticeship training, advanced courses, study tours and teacher training, for the hairdressing industry.
Innovation
Pivot Point continually looks for opportunities for innovation and has introduced many dynamic and inventive processes and products for both the hairdressing industry and its students.
In 2004 Pivot Point introduced Australian School-based Apprenticeships (ASBAs). Pivot Point, the Australian Council for Private Education and Training (ACPET) and the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA) jointly brokered an agreement to provide an opportunity for students to enter the hairdressing industry while continuing their studies for their Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL).
The project provides additional apprenticeship opportunities to young people as well as address the skills shortage in the hairdressing industry.
Pivot Point has an ongoing commitment to innovative and professional training and technology has become an integral part of the academy. To enhance the training experience Pivot Point has embraced e-learning through an online academy.
Online learning and assessment through their online academy allows students to undertake a series of lessons which will lead them through a set of competencies, and finally to an assessment process which deems them competent or not yet competent. If they are unsuccessful in their assessment the system allows them to review their weaknesses and reassess until they pass. The system also captures the number of assessment attempts made on any lesson and unacceptable numbers will trigger intervention by one of the college's trainers.
The lessons are in three types:
‘Show me' - a self-paced demonstration lesson which walks the student through a process using audio, text and dynamic screenshots.
‘Guide me' - an interactive lesson where the student can try the process demonstrated in ‘show me' and receive feedback on their efforts.
‘Assess me' - an assessable lesson, which provides the student with real life scenarios to test their understanding of concepts and their ability to perform tasks. Successful completion of these lessons will grant the student competency.
The college has a fully equipped computer room where students can log on to the password-protected system and work at their own pace. With more speed if their understanding is more advanced then their fellow students, or at a slower pace, to focus on areas they feel may be of particular concern.
The concept of training is naturally followed by employment, either ongoing as part of an apprenticeship, or new following an intensive institutional-based program. An appropriate resume and the ability to write application letters is therefore an important skill. Pivot Point's Portfolio Builder is designed to help educators teach the fundamental skills of resume and portfolio development.
Success
Kristina Simeoni, a student of St Columba's College in Essendon, was one of the first 20 students to undertake a school-based apprenticeship through Pivot Point. In 2006 Kristina was runner-up in the National Training Awards Stella Axarlis Australian School-based Apprentice of the Year.
Kristina said "Its hard work, as I still have to fit in time for all my other school subjects, but the opportunity to start my Nationally Recognised Certificate III in Hairdressing qualification while completing school is fantastic."
Testament to its continuing innovative approach Pivot Point has been nominated for numerous awards and was recently a finalist in the Victorian Training Awards as Training Provider of the Year (Small) 2007 and a finalist in Training Initiative of the Year.
In 2007 the academy was awarded the Three Gold Stars awarded by the hairdressing industry and presented by ITSE. In 2007, the Director of Studies, Sarah Conlon won the "Hairdressing Trade Teacher of the Year ITSE Award".
