BIG SHIFT
Open Content.
The Automotive field has undergone massive amounts of changes over the years. Therefore the new students must be able to located information and not to memorize information. They also must be able to decode what is good information from the bad or misinformation.
The technician of today must be able to write a story to justify the time spent on the job, it also is CYA (Cover Your Ass), may be hand written or on a dedicated pc, use a personal pc both online and off line, use dedicated scan tools (each with its own operating system), communicate with the customer and the rest of the shop, read a paper manual, read a electronic manual, interrupt what has been read, apply what has been read, along with owning about $10,000 to $60,000 dollars of personal tools.
In the past the mechanic was thought of as a “grease monkey” with very limited skills, knowledge and low level intelligence. That common stereotype has been upheld by the secondary school system for years and probably still is in some school system in that if you cause problems or are not smart enough you can work on cars. Now the technician cannot memorize information but must know where to find the best sources of information but how to apply that information and do this for very little money. The outstanding technician shares information with others, however this can reduce his or her pay. I have spent several years being a technical training instructor for major worldwide automotive manufactures. A large portion of each class was not on how to fix something but on where information was located and how access and use that information. I am now teaching at Kirkwood Community College and even more time must be spent helping the student to learn where and how to find information. This seems to be a talent that most of the students do not possess. They spent about 20 to 30 seconds looking for information and then state “I can’t find it”. I then must spent time showing them how to find what they are after. This looks to be something that must be covered during all years of a student’s life. Let’s get it done!
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After my third year of teaching, one of my high school IEP student graduates was making more money as an auto tech than I was as a teacher. I have a healthy respect for anyone who can master the "information world" in order to diagnose the ills of my vehicle. That's not easy with all the changes in the automotive world. It's a different form of reading than I work with; but it's still reading!
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
You write "This looks to be something that must be covered during all years of a student's life." Technical writing and reading is a very important skill as well as finding information. We are challenged to focus as our workforce is changing. Keep up the good work!
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