Abstract
D.Ed.
In the past number of years the practical training of apprentice aircraft technicians has
undergone a major change when it moved over to Modular Criterium Based Training. The
theoretical training at technical colleges did not change phenominally over the past number
of years. The aircraft industries thus requested that something should be done about the
overlapping of the training. This problem could be effectively attended to by the present
renewal that is busy occurring in the education and training in South Africa.
If the technical colleges' learning programs could be curriculated and presented as outcome
based programs, as suggested by the discussion document of the Department of Education
(Department of Education, 1997b), it could be to the advantage of apprentice aircraft
technicians and the whole aircraft industry in the future.
An outcomes based curriculum framework is suggested in this study for the design of a
curriculum framework for Aircraft Theory. Guidelines were discussed on how such a
curriculum framework could be designed for Aircraft Theory, but these guidelines could be
used with good results on the other trade theory subjects in the technical colleges in order
that these courses could also be re-curriculated to be presented as outcomes based.
The curriculum framework which was determined by the suggested outcomes based
framework, have a situation analysis and critical outcomes as a first step in order that specific
outcomes could be determined in the next step. The assessment is done according to
assessment criteria and range statements as a third step and after this the performance
indicators are left to the lecturer/facilitator to, in co-operation with the learners, determine
it. These different steps have a close relationship with each other and need not be determined
as rigid steps which have to follow each other. A point that should be kept in mind is that the changes in technical colleges could not only
be of a cosmetic nature, to present outcomes based courses the daily timetable will be
different and it will have many other administrative implications. The course will
concentrate much less on subjects like Mathematics, Engineering Science and Engineering
Drawing, although these subjects will still be there present in them, but not with such
intensity. The writer would prefer a system which is used in Germany (Bayerisches
Staatsministerium far Unterricht, Wissenschaft and Kunst, 1994: 4) where the "Fachtheorie"
is prominent and the "Fachrechnen" and "Fachzeichnen" are much less prominent.
The necessary implications at the National Qualification Framework will have to be
addressed in order that the course will enjoy recognition in this setup too.
The training of apprentice aircraft technicians could be improved further if the technical
colleges and the training centres of the aircraft industry would take the time to determine
which training will be done in which organisation and to spell it out clearly. Furthermore
they should be closely working together to the advantage of the aircraft technical apprentices
and eventually to the advantage of the aircraft industry as a whole.