Ministry official talks trades

A ministry of education official visited Powell River to talk about the future of hands-on education in the province earlier this month.

Superintendent of Trades and Transitions Larry Espe spoke about trades education and what needs to change in the ministry to support trades and apprentices.

The ministry of jobs, tourism and skills training estimates that over the next decade there will be more than a million job openings in the province and 43 per cent of those will be in the skilled trades.

Before taking on his current position at the ministry in April, Espe served, for the past seven years, as superintendent for School District 60 in Fort St. John. Part of Espe’s current job is to facilitate the sharing of ideas between districts to develop trades opportunities for students.

Espe said the ministry of education recognizes Powell River for its innovative approaches to personalized learning, particularly in the dual credits partnership program with Vancouver Island University (VIU).

“They’ve redefined success for some kids,” said Espe. “They’re coming up with paths for kids that gives purpose and these kids are coming out of school with a job. I think that’s to be commended.”

The level of partnerships between the school district, VIU, industry and the local business community makes Powell River “leaders in the province,” he said.

“We had a pretty good program too,” added Espe, about School District 60’s trades education streams, “but Powell River was always the one we looked to for advice and ideas because they have been front and centre.”

There are a lot of school districts doing unique things with hands-on learning, he said. While many school districts throughout the province offer Industry Training Authority (ITA) sponsored dual credit youth apprenticeship programs that allow high school students the opportunity to learn about and begin a career, not all programs look the same.

In some communities college campuses are easily accessible for high school students to participate in trades training. In others, trades education is offered at the high school with red seal instructors brought in to teach classes, he said.

“Then there are the hybrid models where you’ve got adults and kids going to programs either on-site of the high school or at the college,” he added. “It’s really varied.”

The ministry of education is currently working with the ministry of jobs, tourism and skills training and the ministry of advanced education to develop a 10-year integrated skills and training plan for youth that will help accelerate students’ transition to the workforce and give students more opportunities to begin their apprenticeship programs before they graduate from high school, said a spokesperson from the ministry of education.

It is estimated that about 134,000 students in grades eight to 12 will be taking applied skills courses in public schools this year and each year approximately 4,200 students are enrolled in dual credit programs in the province.

“We believe that students are ready for level one trades training in high school and that’s where the funding jurisdiction of level one should be,” said Jay Yule, superintendent of schools for School District 47.

Espe said that through his current role he can promote hands-on learning and help to de-stigmatize the work of tradespeople.

“We have to turn off the bells between math and metalwork,” he added. “We’ve separated the head and the hands when it comes to learning and I think there’s a lot to be said for learning with your head and your hands; working smart and hard.”

One of the biggest challenges he sees is that of changing the traditional model for education which stresses having students sit at their desks and listen to teachers instruct.

“We’ve got an old system based on a factory model that has been efficient enough for its time, but now it’s time for a change,” said Espe. “We’re looking for the creativity and innovation that we see in Powell River and other places to help us prove that there are other ways to learn.”