austraLasia 1477
Major Australian Technical initiative based at
Melbourne Salesian School
MELBOURNE: 6th March 2005 -- The Australian
Commonwealth
Government, which has gradually become the major player in education
over the local State Governments has, over recent years, been planning
for a major initiative to provide sorely needed traditional technical
skills for the Australian labour market. In January 2006, 25
Australian Technical Colleges opened across the nation. One of
those
is based in Eastern Melbourne on two campuses, one of which is St.
Joseph's College Ferntree Gully, a Salesian school.
Appropriately, the
new St. Joseph's-based campus opened on 31st January.
The initiative puts St. Joseph's College as a
Catholic and Salesian
school in the forefront of technical training innovation in the
country. ATC schools involve local industry (therefore their local
offerings respond to local needs), fit in with local infrastructure -
and this includes, in the case of St. Joseph's College, that there are
effectively two schools operating on the same campus, independently but
connectedly. Hence local business, industry representatives,
schools,
Technical and Further Education bodies combine in supporting and
administering the entity known as the Australian Technical College -
Eastern Melbourne (in this case). The scheme responds to needs
that
were once only met through the apprenticeship system.
Each campus specialises in a particular trade
area. In 2006, the
St. Joseph's-based trade specialisation is Cabinet-making and
Electrotechnology. Elsewhere, in the other campus at Ringwood,
there
is Automotive and Hospitality trades. In the future, the Ferntree
Gully campus will add in Building and Construction. Students who
take
part in the ATC may often be normal Victorian Certificate of Education
(VCE) students, that is Years 11 and 12 students who wish to complete a
range of academic subjects but combine that with a Trade
Certificate.
The idea is to widen the options for employment and further training
for all students while providing for the local needs. It is, in
educational terms, the best of both worlds, something Don Bosco could
only dream about - and he dreamed about many things we know!
If you wish to follow up on the notion of the ATC as
such, then a
simple search on Australian Technical College in Wikipedia offers clear
information. As the entry currently stands there are several
referecnes to 'St Joseph's College' but none of them refer to the
Ferntree Gully Salesian entity. There are any number of St.
Joseph's
Colleges in Australia! Anybody may add to Wikipedia, so undoubtedly
this omission can soon be remedied.
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