Educating the Educators About Careers in Welding
It’s no secret that the nation must encourage high school students to consider careers in the skilled trades if we are to address the projected welder shortage in the years to come.
High school educators and guidance counselors stand as one of the most influential people in a student’s career path decisions. Companies and institutions involved in promoting the skilled trades need to reach these groups if they are to reach the students they counsel.
Miller, along with three other companies — Airgas, AZCO Inc. and Miron Construction — recently sponsored a symposium, called Career Horizons: Welding, to educate high school principals, counselors and teachers about the career possibilities in the welding industry.
Over and over again the educators said how surprised they were to learn about the variety of careers available and the amount of money that can be made in welding. Moreover, they said a major reason they have not counseled their students into a welding education is because they were simply unaware of it as a rewarding career path.
An obvious reason that high school educators are unaware of the opportunities available through the skilled trades is that almost every high school educator, counselor and administrator received a traditional four-year college education. Without any exposure to the skilled trades, they simply have no idea about their potential.
What do you think can be done to better acquaint these key influencers with welding and the skilled trades? Do you have any examples of similar initiatives taking place in your area? Share your thoughts on this subject by posting a comment below.
Average (Not Rated)
November 9th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
I fill that the welding trade is going out ,, I have been going this jod sent high school . and it is getting harder an harder to fine work ,with out going thru a lot of b-s
November 11th, 2008 at 10:49 am
Educating the Educators…
Teachers can be good motivators. If you have a teachers, as we do in our local high school, who are truly enthusiastic and get excited about teaching welding skills. Then their enthusism in turn becomes contageous to their students. The students are then more likely to research and seek out available additional training and enter the field of welding as a career.
November 11th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
Our public high schools have a lot more problems than just failing to educate our kids about potential careers in welding. The last credible metric that I saw put our public schools at 23rd in the free world. “No Child Left Behind” has dumbed our schools down to little more than baby sitting institutions.
Privatize our shcool systems and make the schools compete for students (like the rest of the free world does) and you will see America begin to axcel accademically again and be able to compete with foriegn students. Hold teachers, parents, and students accountable for performance levels. NO more A for effort!
November 11th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Corrected for spelling!
Our public high schools have a lot more problems than just failing to educate our kids about potential careers in welding. The last credible metric that I saw put our public schools at 23rd in the free world. “No Child Left Behind” has dumbed our schools down to little more than baby sitting institutions.
Privatize our school systems and make the schools compete for students (like the rest of the free world does) and you will see America begin to excel academically again and be able to compete with foreign students. Hold teachers, parents, and students accountable for performance levels. NO more A for effort!
November 13th, 2008 at 8:04 am
In the Portland Oregon area there is a program called Women in Trades that I think you might be interested in. This is a one day event that highlights many different types of construction trades through a series of hands on workshops. Our small high school is about 3 hours from Portland, but every year we take a bus load of young women to this event. The responses from the young people tht go to this event are always very positive. They say that it was fun because they had a chance to make projects and listen to women who were actually in the trades.
I think more programs like this would help inform young people that there are many great career options in the welding trade as well. I have often thought that trailer set up as a mobile classroom would be a great way to show students the potential in welding careers and have a hands on exposure to welding.
November 19th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
I liked what Dave had to say. What I know what works at our college is to show a twenty minute movie to students starting out. The movie is put out by Miller (I think) and is current, and targeted for “twenty-something” and “millenium” students. Seems like AWS, Lincoln,Miller, need to make a movie targeted for high school students and can make it available at their websites. Many classrooms have large screens with video capability and computer feed. If something like this was available on-line our educators at all levels and students could access this at any time for free. All disciplines have involvment with welding. Sales, research, engineering design, archetects, doctors, etc.
TO SLC : If you look for what is not working, you will find that. If you look for what IS working, you will find that.
December 12th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
i think welding is an important part of school as well as all shop classes. they help you prepare for the real world as much as any other class