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| STUDENTWORKS: Snapshot |
Link to Studentworks website
"Some
of us can't keep going in school. We have trouble, like reading or
maths or other things go wrong. Now I'm in the last stages of
Certificate 11 Engineering. I might do a boilermaker's apprenticeship."
- Rob, student
"I like how we swap around, I like the metalwork, I work with nice people and I make nice stuff. I get to do what grown ups do."
- Todd, student
"The kids here have problems, all of them. That's the nature of the place."
-
Jack Bennett, Treasurer and founding board member |
The Launceston Student Workshop (known as Studentworks) at Rocherlea,
Launceston looks like any other medium-sized factory selling directly
to the public. Today, as normal, customers pull into the carpark. A
young couple is looking for a cot and the manager of a Hobart furniture
wholesaler has come to discuss an order for metal outdoor furniture.
Inside they are greeted quickly and warmly by the receptionist, a
fourteen year old boy who asks the customers to wait while he gets the
manager.
The customers decide to wait in Caféworks adjacent to the reception
area, where students receive on-the-job training in hospitality. There
they join locals and regulars for excellent cappuccinos and fresh meals
that have been chosen, made and served by two 15 year old trainees.
It's dawning on the customers that Studentworks is unusual. Is it a
school or a factory? Who actually works here? How can these very young
people make furniture to the quality standard of the display items?
Any one of the management team (Coordinator Linda Farrington, Workshop
Manager Michael Brown and Treasurer Jack Bennett) would be happy to
explain. But this opportunity for their students is too good to miss.
What better way to teach communication with customers and test
understanding of the work processes than have students conduct the
workshop tours? Their 15 year old guide starts off hesitantly but she
is on safe ground; she knows the machines and processes well and she
has the unbeatable advantage of enthusiasm.
Let's take a step back and look at what is happening here. Students are
explaining detailed manufacturing processes to real customers who are
buying, at commercial prices, items the students have made. This would
be commendable for 14, 15 and 16 year old students anywhere, but
there's more. These young people have all been identified as seriously
'at risk' in the school system, in danger of dropping out or failing
then drifting into unemployment and underachievement. Now busy
students, they were until recently the kids everyone worries about but
no one knows how to help.
A snapshot of Studentworks
What happens here:
• Studentworks is a factory, making wood and metal products that it also commercially markets and sells.
• Studentworks is also a Registered Training Organisation (RTO)
producing work-ready employees with TCE and VET qualifications.
Workforce:
The workforce consists of grade 8, 9 and 10 students who are at risk of
school refusal, dropping out or failing. The students come voluntarily,
referred from schools, parents or the community.
Employment outcomes: Studentworks places 85% to 90% of its students in jobs or apprenticeships.
Attendance: Students come to Studentworks every second week, alternating with their normal school, for 2 years.
Work hours: 8am to 4pm.
Number of students: 15 students attend a week
Teacher/student ratio: 1:5
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