'We want to interest them enough to graduate:' education minister
Sep 02, 2008 - 03:03 PM
By Keith Gilligan
DURHAM -- Two new skills-based programs will give high school students the chance to learn job-ready training.
Premier Dalton McGuinty came to St. Mary Catholic Secondary School in Pickering on Tuesday to announce the programs.
The new programs are "an opportunity for our young people. They need to be motivated to take on challenges. Our economy is being challenged," Mr. McGuinty said while speaking in the garage of the transportation technology program.
Joining him were Education Minister Kathleen Wynne, Pickering-Scarborough East MPP Wayne Arthurs and Ajax-Pickering MPP Joe Dickson. About 20 students, along with school board officials, were also present.
One of the new programs is Community Safety and Emergency Services program, which Mr. McGuinty said would appeal to students thinking of careers in law enforcement, as a paramedic or a firefighter.
The other, Information and Communications Technology, is a computer-based program.
There are about 14,000 students in 12 different Specialist High Skills Majors (SHSM) programs, Ms. Wynne said.
"We want to interest them enough so they can graduate," she said, adding the government is spending $13.9 million on the programs this year.
The course offers a double credit for students in Grades 11 and 12, said Vince Sorbilli, a teacher in the transportation technology program.
The students spend two classes in a row in the program, giving them a chance to do more in-depth work, he said.
"They're entering the workforce with job-like skills," Mr. Sorbilli said.
As a teacher, it's "very rewarding we have a direct impact on them succeeding," Mr. Sorbilli said.
He joked the students are succeeding "although we're not sure they're absorbing anything while they're here."
While he spoke, a student fainted, hitting his head on the concrete floor. An ambulance had to be called and the student taken to hospital.
Having the transportation technology program "gives us a second opportunity outside of school," said Connor Trepanier, a Grade 12 student. "Say you're in sports and you don't get to where you want to get to, you have something to back into."
The program is "a different learning experience" and not based on books, said Martin Dobosz, also in Grade 12.
When asked if other students would take either of the new programs, Mr. Trepanier said, "Friends and buddies are interested in something outside of transportation, so yeah, they'd be interested."
Vana Nahhas said students in the course cut two mini-vans in half last year and connected the front of each. In the middle, they put two barbecue pits.
She's interested in pursuing a career in aviation.
Noel Smyth, the communications technology teacher, said SHSM programs are looking for "kids at risk," such as those who might not get the 30 credits needed to graduate.
In the communications field, including computers, most employers are looking for those who have graduated from college or university, he said.
It's unlikely a program could be offered this year, Mr. Smyth said, noting it took a full year to set up the transportation technology program.
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