VET ________________________________________Page

2015 has been a great year for VET at St Joseph’s College. The Joseph Innovation Trade Training Centre completed its first full cycle of course delivery and provided students with a hands on learning experience. Over 150 students completed VET on-site at St Joseph’s in 2015 in the areas of Building & Construction (Carpentry), Furniture Making, Electrotechnology and Sport & Recreation with another 50 students completing VET courses such as Agriculture, Horticulture, Hospitality and Information Technology across the Geelong region. The students produced some amazing work. In building & construction (carpentry), 2nd year students hand built cubby houses. The cubby houses were used as a final assessment piece to show that the boys were competent in units such as sub flooring, wall framing and power tools. The cubby houses were sold with a portion of the proceeds being delivered to local Geelong charity Give Where You Live. In Furniture Making students produced beautiful handcrafted desks and chairs as well as making their own toolboxes and hand tools. Students also had the opportunity to attend excursions throughout the year. The VET Electrotechnology students visited the Newport Power Station and were amazed at the scale of the operation and amazing state of the art technology used to make power. VET Building & Construction along with Furniture Making students attended an excursion with the Master Builders Association of Victoria to various job sites in the Geelong region. The boys were able to see real life tradesman working, hear from industry representatives about career opportunities and explore options for further study after school. Although the boys had an amazing experience, the common feedback regarding the highlight of the day was the free BBQ lunch! School based apprenticeship/ traineeship numbers continued to rise during the year with more and more students enquiring and obtaining positions. The students worked in a number of different fields ranging from plumbing and carpentry through to youth work and hairdressing. The students completing a school based apprenticeship/traineeship worked towards gaining a nationally recognised qualification whilst still attending school. Feedback from the employers hosting the students was very positive with one employer naming their school based trainee the employee of the month. A number of students completed a structured work placement alongside of their VET course. The placement allowed the students to apply the skills and knowledge learnt in their VET courses to their work. The students showed a high level of maturity and work ethic whilst on their placements and this cemented the fact that St Joseph’s students are highly sought after by local employers when they finish their schooling. The students undertaking VET are extremely enthusiastic about their studies and can’t wipe the smiles from their faces every time they step foot into their classes. There is not a better feeling in the world than seeing students follow their dreams and career aspirations. It is both a pleasure and rewarding experience to coordinate such an amazing VET program. With state of the art facilities, St Joseph’s provides students with the best quality training and learning experiences. With strong numbers of students continuing to elect VET as part of their senior studies I am looking forward to 2016 and the years to come.

Jarrod Gore - VET Coordinator ELECTROTECHNOLOGY

It was fantastic to see the Joseph Technical Training Centre open at the end of 2013 providing our students with the opportunity to complete their VET Electrotechnology course at the Edmund Rice Campus. Two years later we now see the very first group of VET Electrotechnology students complete their Certificate II in Electrotechnology qualification and a new group commence at the beginning of this year. The students (including one from Sacred Heart) enjoyed the course, though finding it a little challenging at times, found it of great value in providing them with an insight in the electrical trade with a few of the students having already now commenced or seeking an electrical apprenticeship. As a part of the course, the students went on an excursion to the Ecogen Energy Newport power station. They got to stand on top of the boiler plant where they generate the steam to drive the 510MW turbine that generates the electricity. A few had to overcome their fear of heights, but enjoyed the fantastic view they had looking out over Melbourne. Students also spent time learning how to wire up a variety of different lighting circuits as well as gaining an in-depth understanding of the fundamentals of electricity. Congratulations to the completing 2nd year group this year and good luck to the ongoing group for 2016.

Andy Heath - Posttrade & Split System A/C

Co-ordinator/Teacher .

Electrotechnology

2nd year VET Electrotechnology

1st Year VET Electrotechnology at Newport Power station