New era: CAGS career advisor Jade Drew, Year 10 student Tyler Cole and principal Keith Willett are looking forward to starting the new vocational major course in 2024.
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Gabriel Garcia
Cobram Anglican Grammar School will be offering an exciting new educational opportunity, with the new VCE vocational major set to be introduced at the school next year.
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The VM will first be open to Year 11 students before being introduced to other year levels, and the school’s student career advisor, Jade Drew, said it’s ideally suited to students who preferred a more practical style of learning.
“It’s an applied learning pathway designed for students that work better with hands-on and real-life practical experience,” Ms Drew said.
CAGS opened the VM to broaden the school’s learning opportunities and to equip students not wanting to go to university with the skills they need to pursue their passions.
“We did have quite a lot of students that were looking at pursuing alternative pathways other than university. So looking at going either straight into employment or into trades, traineeships and apprenticeships,” Ms Drew said.
“We wanted to make sure that as a school we were actually catering for all of our students.”
According to Ms Drew, the VM is designed to allow participating students to get real exposure in different industries.
“The projects and learning activities that they’ll be doing, it will actually apply to their real-life situation and the pathway of choice that they’re looking to pursue,” she said.
To help accomplish this, the VM will be more student-led than other traditional subjects, and will be done in partnership with local businesses to allow the students to get vocational certificates in their chosen course.
Ms Drew said the course would allow participating students to begin their career early while staying at school.
“A lot of students tend to think about leaving school early, to go and start their trade, where this gives them the opportunity to actually remain at school, get their VCE and then go out into the workforce with a lot more skills,” Ms Drew said.
Year 10 student Tyler Cole is one student keen to take up the new learning opportunity.
Career move: CAGS Year 10 student Tyler Cole on his first day at The Sign Society.
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Already working one day a week under a school-based apprenticeship model at the Sign Society in Cobram, where he designed the new logo for the soon-to-open Triple Bean Cafe in Katamatite, Tyler is hoping the VM will build on his existing experience.
“I'm just hoping that the course helps me with my career path and it helps make doing my apprenticeship easier,” he said.
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