Search results

This article appears in Chapter 3 - Boundaryless TET, which presents different approaches to aspects of technician education and training (TET) which might lend themselves to adaptation or adoption in other places or cultures. The author begins by examining some of the reasons why a great percentage of school students complete their education unprepared for jobs that require more than rote learning. He asserts that traditional education, with its emphasis on abstract learning and standardised examinations, suits only about 25 per cent of students and that the rest become alienated by the process. They are described in various detrimental ways simply because they do not learn well in the traditional abstract way. Educators are now begining to realise that this method often does not recognise different learning styles. Guidry makes reference to Tech Prep - a sequence of study that begins in high school and continues through at least two years, sometimes four, of post-secondary education. He maintains that different educational goals can be developed for different students within the same classroom by setting specific goals and maintaining high standards. All subjects are taught in a contextual manner that both abstract and concrete learners can grasp. The teacher is critical to the process and therefore teacher training has to be re-examined and teachers re-trained to prepare not only for students who are easily taught but to think how to contextualise the curriculum. Guidry explains the concept of contextual learning, connecting abstract ideas to real-world applications. He concludes by asserting that Tech Prep, as outcome-based and measured by competencies, is academically rigorous and yet tied to real-world experiences, thereby allowing both styles of learners to succeed.