Hi everyone,
my name is Nick Moss and i am the programme manager /lecturer for engineering trades and our youth guarantee programme involving auto mechanical.The trades programme is called Bmets and involves the first year of an apprenticeship involving welding,fabrication and machining.The Automech course is one that involves the students doing various skills,projects and building grass karts and mini pit bikes for racing (fun).
This means we do some theory work but we do a lot of practical work in the workshop.
Making sure this works
ReplyDeleteFlexible learning.
ReplyDeleteWith the 16-17 year old guys i find they like to see things blow up or go bang.When we deliver the oxy/acetylne class we weld up a metal cube and then get them to add air pressure into the cube under water and see if they fracture or burst.(THEY ENJOY THIS PART FUNNY THAT)Then i ask them to find me a pressure vessel, firstly they all hit the net, then i say go home and think of one or two and then apply them on the board in the morning.This is in their own time and they come back with Scuba diving gear,fire breathing apparatus and even their own barby bottle.This is flexible learning as it is at the students own pace, the delivery and variety are there and the learning comes from this.
Lord...this all sounds very dangerous...remind me to be off campus next time you're doing this sort of stuff LOL
ReplyDeleteI love these examples of flexible learning. What other aspects of flexibility do you want to explore,Nick?
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteanother example of the flexible learning that goes into the building of the go karts is choices.The students have choices on what designs and styles they want in conjunction with race rules.
They do sketch design sketch work and also use the net for other designs.For easy reference they use older karts from previous years for tips about handling and steering geometry and footage from previous grass kart challenges. The learning here comes from the choices.