Case study 4:  Industry Training Organisations step up focus on schools

Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation chief executive Ruma Kairaitiana

ATTTO schools liaison officer Roger Brittain (ATTTO is the ITO for the aviation, tourism, travel and museum industries).

Hospitality Standards Institute national operations manager Mike Hull

Changes within the education sector are prompting Industry Training Organisations to rethink the way they work with and support secondary schools.

Chief executive Ruma Karaitiana, from the ITO for building and construction, says new initiatives such as the Youth Apprenticeships Scheme, existing programmes like Gateway and the Schools Plus policy have all created a context for more and better contact between ITOs and schools – something his organisation is relishing.

“I think ITOs are natural players in supporting schools to make these initiatives and policies a success, but we’ve got to get smarter about how we work with schools,” says the former teacher and Industry Training Federation deputy chair.

Ruma says the BCITO has spent the past year coming up with new ideas and new ways to work with schools.  He says the ideas draw from research evidence and build on existing services and resources offered by the ITO, such as their popular Gateway programme and BConstructive, the ITO’s workshop package implemented in the classroom by technology teachers.

One of the BCITO’s new ideas includes helping schools engage younger students in industry-based learning and experience to give them a window into the industry sooner.

“But we need to do it in a way that introduces students to our industry in broad terms.  That’s because we need a broad range of people with a broad range of skills – we need quantity surveyors, construction managers, as much as we need carpenters, plumbers and so on,” says Ruma.

Getting younger students involved in industry-based learning and experience, while they’re still at school, may help the ITO recruit the trainees it needs to mitigate a projected skills shortage, he says.

“Our latest data shows that in 2011-2012 there will be a very large spike in demand for skilled, qualified employees.”

“One of the big problems is that the people we need are in the training system right now.  On average, a carpenter takes four years to complete an apprenticeship, so the carpenter who starts today will still be in training when we hit the spike,” says Ruma.

Meanwhile, the BCITO is also looking at employing new staff called Skills Brokers who will engage with school careers advisors and senior managers, freeing up BCITO training advisors to focus on students and other school staff such as Youth Apprenticeships Scheme coordinators and technology teachers.

“We’ve learned a lot from our BConstructive qualification.  We’re in our third year and realising it can complement the teaching and learning work of a range of teachers – mathematics, English, technology and so on.

“Working with teachers hasn’t been our strength, but we’re looking at changing that.  We recognise we need to put a lot more focus on the schooling sector,” Ruma says.

The operation manager for the hospitality ITO (HSI), Mike Hull, says his organisation is also committed to supporting the school market.

“We get a lot out of seeing students coming into our industry and responding to the support that we provide, realising their talents and ultimately becoming part of society as useful, productive citizens.

“That is why we are placing considerable emphasis on that school market.  There are many students at the moment falling through the cracks.  They have the potential to really add genuine economic capability into our society.  We need people to acknowledge our role and our ability to be able to work with those students,” says Mike.

Like the BCITO, the ITO for hospitality is also planning to build on its existing school services and programmes, taking them a step further.

Mike says the HSI enjoys a strong Gateway programme and offers a vast array of training material to suit the school environment.

His organisation would like to see more hospitality professionals employed within the teaching profession.  In the meantime, his organisation is busy developing new, school-based qualifications in time for a 2009 roll out.

“We think industry-specific skills are the way to go.  We’d like to work with students, at the point they’ve been identified for the Youth Apprenticeships Scheme, for example, to put a specific programme in place to give them the skills and experience relevant to a real-life, real-world apprenticeship.”

Meanwhile, the ITO for the aviation, tourism, travel and museum industries (ATTTO) has two school liaison officers – Roger Brittain and Willie Toelau – responsible for extending its support for schools.

Roger Brittain says their tourism and travel qualifications are widely available in about 90 percent of schools, whereas the ITO’s aviation and museum work is in its early development phase.

He says the ITO is keen to get younger students, those in year 10, for example, involved in thinking about the subjects and work-based learning and experience they may need for a particular career.

“We want to help influence both the quality and number of young people interested in careers in the sectors we represent.  A key function of our role is to educate the next generation of New Zealand’s workforce on their career options and support them in creating a suitable study pathway to get where they want to be.

“Currently, the ATTTO offers schools a range of unit standards that can be credited to national certificates.  Accredited workplace assessors assess students in the workplace, and an online resource centre features workbooks, trainee evidence guides and a range of subscription-only resources.

“We’re revamping a lot of our delivery and support – very shortly we’ll offer new resources in aviation, tourism and travel relevant to both the Youth Apprenticeships Scheme and Gateway,” Roger says.

Another new plan includes providing students with the opportunity to do all their learning online, as e-learners.

“We now have two schools liaison officers – myself and Willie Toelau.  We’re out there talking to young people about their careers.  Our drive is to provide much better materials for programmes such as Gateway and the Youth Apprenticeships Scheme.  We’re gearing up to really make a difference.  It’s a very exciting area to be working in.”

More about the ITOs

The BCITO is the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation.  It’s the organisation appointed by the government to develop and implement industry qualifications for the building and construction sector.  The BCITO is the standard-setting body for the carpentry, cement and concrete, floor and wall tiling, frame and truss manufacturing, interior systems, proprietary plaster and cladding systems, and solid plastering.

Advice for schools:

• Contact Simon Bailey or Graham Flanagan with any queries about what the BCITO can offer schools.
• Check out the BCITO website for information about the school resources and programmes available.  Go to:  www.bcito.org.nz

The Hospitality Standards Institute (HSI) develops and monitors NZQA unit standards and qualifications for the hospitality industry.  It oversees, supervises, assists and reviews all nationally-recognised training for chefs, waiters, porters, hotel receptionists, house-keepers, duty managers and bar persons.  It also encourages employers to implement systems of in-house training that lead to nationally-recognised qualifications for their staff.  The HSI also provides support and guidance to schools, polytechnics and providers that are teaching and assessing unit standards in the form of hospitality courses.

Advice for schools:

• Contact your nearest HSI training adviser with any queries about what the ITO can offer schools.
• Check out the HSI website for information about the Gateway package available.  Go to the Hospitality Standards Institute website.

ATTTO is the industry training organisation for the aviation, tourism, travel and museum industries.  It develops and manages high-quality training linked to nationally-recognised qualifications for its industries.

Advice for schools:

• Contact an ATTTO schools liaison officer with any queries about the resourcing and support that the ATTTO can offer schools.
• Check out the ATTTO website for information about the Gateway package available.  Go to:  www.attto.org.nz