Students’ Summer Work Orientation Scheme at Malta Drydocks

The Minister of Education and National Culture, Evarist Bartolo, this morning presented certificates to 23 Secondary School students who participated successfully in a Summer-Work Orientation Scheme at the Malta Drydocks.  The scheme follows an agreement signed last November between Lorenzo Gafà Boys’ Secondary School and Malta Drydocks.  Starting this summer and for the next four years, the Malta Drydocks will be running a four-week course for a small group of students. This course, apart from practical sessions, includes also lessons on work-related topics such as Safety at Work and Work Ethics.  The first group of students participated in this scheme from the 6th to 31st July 1998.

During his speech Minister Bartolo called for more partnership schemes between commercial companies and secondary schools to make education more relevant to our adolescents.  In his speech Minister Bartolo praised Lorenzo Gafà Boys’ Secondary School which is participating in the European Union programme, ‘Quality in Education’, together with a hundred other European schools.

The rest of the Minister’s speech  follows:

“Our students come from working-class families and consequently, for them, work is value-laden from an early age.  During the summer holidays they try their hands at odd jobs to earn some money.  However, unfortunately, this culture often alienates the students from academic motivation thereby seriously hindering their educational development and the realization of their potential.

“This scheme aims to exploit this early urge of our students for work in order to motivate their interest in the school curriculum.  In fact, one of the basic criteria for the schools’ Forms Four and Five students to participate in this Summer Work Orientation Scheme is a constant academic effort throughout the scholastic year.  In this way, besides its invaluable social and personal service, the school aims to raise its academic standards.

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“Moreover, there is another important aspect to be considered:  the beneficial effects of short educationally-orientated work experience on their development.  These students, due to their educational record and other social and personal factors, suffer deeply from lack of self-confidence and self-esteem.  This affects very negatively their motivation for school, their behaviour and their growing-up in general.  So, more than other students, they need experiences which restore self-confidence and positive self-image.  For example, innovative drama projects organised in this school by the Drama Unit have worked wonders and led participating students to gain an unprecedented sense of responsibility, enthusiasm, and pride which changed completely their behaviour and their outlook to school.

“Similarly, this work-orientation scheme aims to have a therapeutic effect on these students by giving them the opportunity to make them feel useful, capable and independent.  Moreover, by observing and working with others, they may acquire knowledge and skills that will be useful to them throughout their lives.  Work in this sense become a door to the real world and is considered to be a rite of passage to adulthood.  In other words, contrary to the abuse of child-labour, work in these circumstances makes a positive contribution to growing up.

This sponsorship project is of immense satisfaction to the school administration and staff because it props and supports their considerable efforts to motivate students for learning.  The much-desired and auspicated social and economic development in the Cottonera Area can never be attained without first enhancing the quality of the local state and primary school.”