INSIDE DOUGLAS COLLEGE / MAY 16, 1989

 

 

 

 

Electronic Assembly Program Continued

Practical Skills Lead to Employment for
Learning Disabled Students

young fellows here, both with
varying degrees of handicaps,
and they did quite well.

“And the support we received
from Douglas College was

great.”

For many of the students
involved in the Basic Occupa-
tional Education program, the
course practicum — time spent
working on a real assembly line
— is the first opportunity to find
real employment.

During their in-class studies
they learn practical skills such
as using hand tools and
machines and social skills such
as Cooperating in a work en-
vironment, says faculty member
Patti Gray.

And one of the most impor-
tant parts of the course is the
way it adapts to constantly
changing needs in the
electronics assembly industry,
she says.

“The program is always
changing,” says Gray, who
started teaching the Electronics
Assembly in 1987, one year
after its inauguration. “One of
the most important aspects of
the program is ensuring our stu-
dents have relevant skills,
practical for the industry.”

And, as people in the
electronics industry know, the
greatest area for change in the in-
dustry has been in technology.

 

Assembly line workers are no
longer working solely with hand
tools, screwdrivers or pliers.

Change is also apparent in the
way students receive their train-
ing, she says.

While the course is normally
completed in ten months, stu-
dents enter and finish at their
own pace. But most importantly,
no students will leave until they
are entirely ready for work on
an actual assembly line, Gray
says.

“Students learn everything
from their basic work skills to
the more advanced require-
ments,” she says. “For example,
instead of just teaching them to
strip and prepare one wire, they
learn to follow instructions for
ten different wires all needing
different ends on a cable.”

 

 

“And nobody leaves the pro-
gram until they have
demonstrated they have the
skills and are job ready,” Gray
says. “Our students are com-
petent and well suited to entry
level positions in the industry.”

The Electronics Assembly
program is looking for com-
panies with used equipment,
such as a cut-bend, crimping
and drill press machine, to
donate for students’ in-class use.
Donations through the Douglas
College Foundation are tax de-
ductible.

Information on the program
can be obtained from Gray or
program coordinator Jean
Campbell at the New
Westminster campus of Douglas
College, 520-5400.

Thank You and Goodbye For Now

Thank you to everyone who organized my retirement party and to
those who came to say goodbye and to wish me and my husband
well. I was truly overwhelmed. My gift is lovely and will always be
treasured, since it will call up special memories.

I will miss working here; | will miss the people in this institution
who really care. I have always been very proud to say, “I work at
Douglas College!”, because I have known that the people who make
this institution are those people who have one adjective for education

and that is quality. Good Luck!
Pat Disher

 

2

 

e