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VET & VITA Skills for Life _________________________Page
VOCATIONAL EDUCATION & TRAINING (VET)
More students are starting to see the benefits of undertaking a VET subject as a part of their Year 10, VCE or VCAL studies. We now have over 300 students completing VET courses this year. This is nearly a third of the College senior years cohort! Students completed a number of different courses both on site and at other training locations and providers in the Geelong region. Sport & Recreation, Carpentry and Furniture Making continued to be most popular but it was refreshing to see growth in the areas of Allied Health which is one of the largest employment sectors in the Geelong Region. Students continued producing work of a very high standard. Some of the amazing projects completed included: hand built cubby houses, desks and chairs. Allied Health students conducted vital signs health checks for staff as a part of their training and VET Music students performed in concerts. Community partnerships were also formed this year with students supporting the Minerva Women’s Services and Auction at The Mill. Excursions are a great way for VET students to see their studies in practice. This year students attended a number of excursions. VET Building & Construction along with Furniture Making students visited the Master Builders Association of Victoria. Including a tour of various job sites as well as industry professional talks and the all-important BBQ! VET Allied Health students visited the Belmont Residential Aged Care Facility. Feedback received from students after attending the excursions was extremely positive and in most cases students found it made what they were learning more relevant. 2017 saw our first student participate in the Worldskills Competion. The competition showcases the best tradesman in the region with the winner moving on to compete at state level. Jacob Stevens represented the College in the VET Building & Construction event. Jacob was required to plan and construct a saw bench in an allocated time. The competition was very strong and Jacob ended up placing 6th out of 14 competitors which is an extremely great effort. The College was proud of Jacob’s efforts and will continue to support the event in the future. Structured Work Placement and School Based Apprenticeships were completed by a number of students alongside their VET classes. The students showed a high level of maturity and work ethic. The feedback from the employers was exceptional with numerous employers sighting that “Joey’s boys” are a great addition to their teams. The boys work hard, have great personalities and are well mannered and presented. This has led to a large number of new employers contacting the College seeking employees. I am constantly impressed with the levels of motivation and enthusiasm shown by the students completing VET courses. Whenever I walk into these classes I am greeted with smiling faces, knowledgeable trainers and start to feel a sense of maturity. Each student is focussed and engulfed in their learning, behaviour isn’t an issue and the students are aware of how much of a difference completing their chosen study could be on their journey to start work. Being the VET Coordinator at St Joseph’s College is extremely rewarding. Providing students with the opportunity to succeed, learn and helping students begin their life journey brings me great joy. 2018 is set to be one of the biggest yet. With numbers on the increase I am bound to have another busy and rewarding year.
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- Jarrod Gore, VET Coordinator VITA
“This is a great small program for us to work hard with the help of our teachers. Here, I can get help to understand. It’s at my pace and the aides make it make sense.” This, from a graduating student, sums up the aim of the VITA program at St Joseph’s. In its second year at the school, 13 students are supported to complete senior school graduating with Certificate I in Transition Education, Work Education and General Education, the life-skills based certificate course. This helps students transition into life after school. Along with the 13 enrolled students, other disengaged students also benefit from having a time out from mainstream classes and extra support to help them through their schooling. Our Edmund Rice philosophy centres around inclusiveness and respect for all students. From the youngest to the most senior, each student contributes to make the VITA program a richer, more accepting place. The VITA support team aims to foster a safe, supportive and respectful environment where each student can develop his potential and learn skills to take beyond school. Some of the many highlights for the VITA students were the Bike Ed Project, Healthy Lifestyles Personal Training unit, Hosting the EREA Deputy Principals Conference morning tea and The Carbon Neutral Movie Project. Congratulations to Year 12 students Michael Antonello, Jazzariah Marrkula, Jacob Sesar and Aiden McGivern who this year graduate from the program.
- Peter Adams, VITA
In our VITA class we visited many different workplaces. Wathaurong Glass welcomed us to their workshop and showed us around. It was very interesting how they made shapes in the glass and how colourful the glass pieces were. - Michael Antonello In Term 2 of this year our VITA class went to Westcourt to trial recipes we were using in a cookbook we were publishing. I was helping Michael and Aiden cook some food so they could finish their work in time. I like going over to Westcourt to cook in their new kitchen. - Jazz Marrkula This is a place where the VITA boys work on improving their numeracy and literacy skills. It is a great small place for everyone to work hard with the help of our teachers Miss Smith, Mr Adams and Helpers Ange and Raelene
- Jacob Sesar
As part of our health unit in VITA, we did a bike ride around the Barwon River. We were lucky with the weather as most days we went were lovely and sunny. Everyone participated which made it a fun activity – Aiden McGivern
VITA making morning tea VITA making morning tea for EREA
