A toggle switch, a dovetail connection, office etiquette or a themed menu about a specific country. This was one of the tasks the students at the Polytechnic School in Pregarten had to deal with in the practical part of their final project. Great importance was attached to the exactness of the execution as well as to the organization of the workplace and the economical use of materials.
“A little nervousness was already noticeable this morning. Then all that was required was full concentration on the workpieces,” says Dominik Ziegler, teacher in the wood department, about the young people’s eagerness to work. “The task itself was nothing new, but today it’s also about working particularly precisely,” says Alexander Buchberger. The young man from Schönau started in the electronics department and will start an apprenticeship in an industrial company in Linz this summer.
Starting this year, eight Polytechnic Schools (PTS) in the Mühlviertel want to prepare their students with even more practical relevance for starting an apprenticeship with the pilot project for a technical qualification project. “Normally, by Christmas, our students already have an offer for an apprenticeship in their pocket and their motivation for school drops. This year it’s different because the technical qualification is still a major learning goal in the second semester,” says Monika Pirkelbauer, director of the PTS Pregarten, about the first experiences with the final project.
After a written knowledge test, the practical parts were on the program last week. The degree is rounded off with a technical discussion before an audience with experts from the local economy. “With the technical qualification, the young people have the opportunity to present themselves and their skills to their future employers. This also strengthens the contact between the schools and the regional economy,” explains Andreas Reisinger, school quality manager of the Mühlviertel educational region. Due to the good experiences in the Mühlviertel model region, the technical qualification project could also be extended to other parts of the state.
The entrepreneur Karl Hessl from Tragwein was impressed by the work of the Pregartner Poly students: “I not only liked the manual tasks, but also that things like good appearance are very important. This is school for life.”
Source: Nachrichten