Page 4154 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 18 November 2015
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Early access training has enabled year 9 and 10 students from all feeder high schools to attend programs at the Lake Tuggeranong College trade training centre to undertake an accelerated pathway to the automotive industry. The training enables students to gain the preparation and competencies needed to prepare for an apprenticeship in the automotive industry. Approximately 80 students have completed the early access training since 2013.
Among the significant benefits on offer to automotive trades students at Lake Tuggeranong College are the significant partnerships that have been created with the automotive sector and CIT as a registered training organisation. These partnerships have succeeded in enabling students to access pathways to certificate III qualifications and apprenticeships in the industry.
This point is illustrated by the apprentice training agreement between Toyota and CIT, signed in 2009. The agreement established a Toyota national training facility at CIT’s Fyshwick trade skills centre, where Toyota apprentices from Canberra and surrounding regions undertake Toyota-specific training under the supervision of CIT’s highly qualified automotive teachers. In that regard, I will give a big shout-out to Colin Prest for the work that he has done there. This training provides students with fast-track apprenticeships with a flexible approach to allow advanced students to complete qualifications quickly. In 2010 numbers tripled, with several new dealerships joining the program.
CIT Fyshwick have also played host to Nissan master automotive technicians from all over Australia as the company upgrades their employee skill sets to include the latest in automotive technologies related to the maintenance of electric and hybrid vehicles. CIT offers the certificate IV in automotive technology, with competencies in hybrid and electrical technology, and has access to a range of hybrid and electric vehicles, so that students are given real-world, hands-on experience with the technologies. This has included learning how to depower and test high voltage battery units and service high voltage components.
I am pleased to note that in February next year the Belconnen trades skills centre will commence providing vocational training opportunities in the automotive trades to students from seven schools in the Belconnen cluster area.
I also give a shout-out to those automotive workshops in Tuggeranong that have been working with Lake Tuggeranong College, and also to the CIT in providing job opportunities for those students. That work continues. We get to see an opportunity for students in Tuggeranong to take different routes through their educational careers. They might get a bit bored in school sometimes. It gives them the opportunity to learn some other skills that they are particularly interested in.
CIT and Lake Tuggeranong College have also worked with Auto Skills Australia, which is the group that sets the competencies for those skill levels and certificate levels throughout Australia. It is great to see that work recognised, giving the opportunity for those students to obtain parts of that certificate-level competency before they go into those apprenticeships.
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