Skills mismatch can be addressed
Mmegi Editor | Wednesday September 2, 2015 15:01
It was revealed at the meeting that whilst many graduates roam the streets, there are also many jobs that need skilled people. Some of the reasons raised were that the local employers were unable to pay market salaries for the few who may be available. Such jobs are in highly technical fields such as medicine, engineering and the ITC sector. These are jobs that were initially not included or recognised. The ‘traditional’ jobs of policing, nursing, teaching, military, and accounting are overfilled and saturated, hence graduates who desire to work in these fields struggle to enter the job market.
This is a mistake that we all hope HRDC will address. But it cannot achieve that without the input of other stakeholders, particularly government, which is responsible for formulating the curriculum for all institutions from pre-school to high school.
It is also responsible for construction of schools, setting their standards and paying teachers. With so many graduates roaming the streets, it would be wise to change mindset and introduce some IT-related subjects, and establish ITC department at primary schools. It would not be a bad idea either, to introduce automotive related subjects at secondary school.
These can be optional subjects for students who have demonstrated talent or interest in those areas. Of course we are saying this from a layman’s point of view. We know our relatives, friends, and neighbours who are skilled in automotive repairing yet they have never been to any formal school.
This move will give the students opportunities to train in highly technical fields when they reach tertiary education. In addition, more specialised universities will open up or partner with local institutions for provision of such training.
It is our hope that the HRDC will continue to monitor the quality of courses offered at all tertiary institutions; whether such institutions have the qualified lecturers, as well as for HRDC to ensure that students do not graduate with nothing to show to the sectors that should absorb them.
Across the border, the Gauteng provincial government in South Africa early this year introduced the use of tablets in schools.
The national government announced that the project would be rolled out to other provinces. Not a bad idea at all. If our neighbours who achieved independence 25 years after us, can be able to be so innovative, then we should also pull our socks and come up with new ideas to fully take advantage of new technological advances and create employment for our youth. We will in the process improve the quality of our education and compete favourably with first world citizens.
Today’s thought
“It’s supposed to be automatic, but actually you have to push this button.”
– John Brunner