From Frame to Wall: A Hands-On Experience in Trades

December 2, 2021

Over the last few weeks, the BC Wall & Ceiling Association has been setting up displays in our middle schools. They first toured HD Stafford, before moving to Peter Ewart Middle school, where they are giving demonstrations to both middle and high school students.

Below is a Q&A with Geoff McSherry, District Teacher – Career Education, about the demonstrations.

Tell me what BC Wall & Ceiling Association (BCWCA), Electrical Joint Training Committee (EJTC) and United Association Piping Industry College (UAPIC) demos are about? What are they doing?

The goal of this event was to give students a hands-on experience with tools used in trades, and to get an idea of what the work is like. An Interior Systems Mechanic (aka Lather) is the trade involved with this event. They work with steel studs like carpenters work with wood, installing steel studs in residential condos/high-rises and commercial buildings. They also install the T-Bar ceilings seen in many commercial buildings and schools that hold ceiling tiles.

For this demonstration, the BC Wall & Ceiling Association provided tools, materials, and association members to help students build walls and get a feel for working in the trade.

Students helped put together wall segments, beginning with steel studs. Other trades such as electrical and plumbing held demonstrations as well to show how each contributes to the internal construction of that wall.

What are you hoping students will take away from these activities?

Students are getting a hands on experience they won’t forget. The hope is, they will consider work in the trades in the future, and the basic principles of the apprenticeship process as an option after high school.

Students will gain experience using real tools used for construction in a safe way, under the supervision of experienced tradesmen, and gain an understanding of what goes into the construction of buildings. We emphasize to students that work in the trades can be clean, well paid and requires intelligence. Apprentices and tradespeople can move up within an organization with their knowledge of the business. Presenters shared stories about how they and their colleagues have started as apprentices, became certified and then went on to become forepeople, superintendents and company owners!

Why do you think it is important to expose students to real work situations, such as trades demos like this?

We’re hoping that by our students getting hands-on experience while they are still young and before they’ve decided on career choices, they’ll see that trades are viable and beneficial occupations. There is also a push by the Industry Training Authority (ITA BC) in getting more people who identify as female and indigenous into the trades to increase representation of these groups.

How did this partnership come about?

The BC Wall & Ceiling Association contacted the ITA about running events with students, and that’s how we got connected. They were enthusiastic about having students learn about their trade through hands-on activities. On the School District end, we thought it would be great for students to see other aspects of construction since the walls would be set up and left up for students to see.

We invited other trades such as electricians, and piping & plumbing to participate and show where they fit into the construction of a wall. Each one brought tools, equipment and materials from their trade to show how the walls house things like pipes, wires, and ventilation.

We’d like to thank the BC Wall & Ceiling Association for initiating this event, but would also like to thank the Electrical Joint Training Committee (EJTC), United Association Piping Industry College (UAPIC), and Skills Ready for helping put this all together and offer hundreds of students an amazing experience working with tools to complete realistic activities like building walls, crimping pipes, and wiring a light switch.

Any other comments?

In the Career Education Department, we want to celebrate the trades and the opportunities they provide our students. We want students and families to see these occupations and training (apprenticeships) as a viable career path to long term, well paying, highly skilled, very rewarding jobs.

An apprenticeship is considered post-secondary education, making a certification in a trade “the other four-year degree”. We hope to help our students see apprenticeships in trades as an equal opportunity to a university degree.