Reaching a milestone for excellence
It’s a new era for training and evaluating apprentices as dual-system apprenticeships take off
HE QUEST of the manufacturing and engineering services seta (Merseta) for reviving apprenticeships and improving the quality of apprenticeship training has reached a new milestone.
In November, the first group of dual-system apprentices commenced their workplace orientation at Volkswagen SA, heralding a new era in training. Other companies, such as Johnson Controls, Dormac Marine and Westacor followed suit, taking on apprentices during the December 2013 to January 2014 period.
In the dual-system apprenticeship format, the further education and training (FET) college works with local companies to present both the trade curriculum and the three-year national certificate (vocational) curriculum in an integrated format supported by weekly exposure at the workplace.
This integrated model allows learners to reflect the theory and simulated practical taught at the college against the real world of work.
Preparations at a college level have been actively supported by the Department of Higher Education and Training with the objective of introducing dual-system apprenticeships across multiple artisan related occupations and many more FET college campuses.
At this time however, only three occupations are supported at three colleges: Mechatronics Technician at the Port Elizabeth FET College Struandale Campus, Welding at West Coast College Vredenburg Campus and Electrician at the Umfolozi FET College Richtek Campus.
Preparing colleges to start
Tdual-system apprenticeships is a key element in the process and requires an enormous effort from the college teaching staff, with support from their industrial counterparts.
Monitoring and evaluation of quality apprenticeships has entered a new era. All of the dual-system apprentices, as well as apprentices registered on the traditional learning pathways, will have the oppor- tunity to enter into a Comet (Competence Measurement in Education and Training) test during September of each year.
This opportunity will be open to the electrical, mechatronics and welding trades but will gradually be extended to more trades next year and in 2016.
It will help give companies a deeper understanding of the apprentices’ problem-solving competence before reaching the trade test milestone.
There are many benefits to participating in the annual Comet test.
Firstly, it’s important to note that Comet measures problemsolving ability against a registered trade.
Our research has established that being able to interpret problems associated with practising a trade helps develop an inherent understanding of skills to be mastered for sustainable employment. However, the trade test remains the primary external summative assessment that determines the competence status of the apprentice.
Another benefit of Comet is that the trade teacher/instructor is an integral part of the Comet implementation process and undergoes training in the Comet foundations and use of associated Comet learning tasks six months before the Comet test is applied to apprentices. This gives the teacher a chance to adjust lesson plans to include problem-solving exercises beyond the basic modules of learning in the curriculum. Industry partners are brought into the Comet test rating process to support their teaching counterparts.
After the test, each participating apprentice receives a report on how they performed against eight competence criteria. Weak areas are highlighted and the teaching system is then able to focus on those areas in the following year.
The test results are finally articulated into a benchmarking system to compare performance results between training institutions, between the same occupation among different employers, and between countries in the International Comet Network.
Any company interested in joining South African Comet Network for the first three occupations of electrician, mechatronics technician and welder can contact the Merseta directly through hbrown@merseta.org.za.
We also urge all Merseta employers with a keen interest in training apprentices in the dual-system apprenticeship approach to register their interest and join our journey in the Decade of the Artisan.
Helen Brown is the Merseta’s programme manager for artisan innovation and development.