Education:

A Stage II Yr12 General Construction curriculum was developed several years ago, but has proven to be unworkable. Some 9 competencies cannot be delivered due to school resource issues, teacher skills, funding etc and as a result, those students wishing to develop higher order skills were being placed in the Design Stream. They found themselves back in classrooms developing theory work rather than the practical training they originally enrolled for.

As a result, these students often switched subject several weeks into the term, lost contact with the CITB and moved into other areas that gave them the opportunity to develop trade skills (ie Engineering).

 As a background to this:

• The start of the 2009 school year will see the implementation of raising of the legal school leaving age to 17. Students will need to demonstrate they are either in ‘learning or earning’ lifestyles

• The State Govt’s newSACE initiative will be implemented in 2010, with the requirement of over 30% of student’s assessment to designated or assessed off-campus. D2CPlus has already been used as a model by DECS as to how this can happen and has been presented to the Office for the FutureSACE for modeling. It is leading the way.

• Additionally, there appears to have been a shift in the cohort quality which is leading our students to want to continue further training. This is a direct result of the interview process now required at Y10. School are finding themselves in situations of having as many as three times as many students as there are places in the program. Schools are naturally selecting better candidates who are a) seeing long term association with the industry and b) are seeing the value of completing the SACE.

 D2CPlus Curriculum

Any program designed to deliver at Cert III level had to take account of all of the above. However, there was one other factor that needed to be addressed. The CFMEU has a 10 Point Plan for the employment of apprentices. D2CPlus manages to address seven of those points.

The Plus program now has several factors which both has SACE Board approval and impacts on the choices for students wishing to continue on into Yr12.

It is:

• Worth 40 newSACE Credits with additional credits possible for workplacement

• Entry is via D2C1 including the compulsory White Card / Work Method Statement

• Delivered by an RTO over 3 weeks or equal to 100-120 nominal hours with RPL form the previous training

• Students enroll twice per year in 2 training ‘banks’ providing they are related (this is the ‘Primary Trade-Secondary Skill’ concept)

• Up to 6 weeks of work placement but a minimum of 100hrs

• Students mentor the D2C1 cohort as ‘Leading Hands’ helping in both instruction and demonstration of their higher level training

• A TER score is available providing the SACE pathway is pre-planned

• Students will also enroll in 3 other subjects of their choice but we advise English, Trade Maths and Small Business Enterprise.

The Australian Apprenticeship Centres are looking on the program favorably with the view to taking time off the CoT requirements to the value of the training completed. RTO’s have been enthusiastic, adjusting their timetables and trainers to suit the needs of the students. This is a credit to them. It is anticipated that those students taken into a COT will, in all likelihood, stay with the RTO that delivered their training.

See below for the Draft Industry Pathway Program (I.P.P.) currently under construction.