| Summary: | Apprenticeship is an old and venerable method of teaching skills and knowledge
stretching back to antiquity. Most of the traditional aspects of this teaching and learning
method, the practice of apprenticeship, takes place in the workplace where few
educational researchers venture. In addition, because apprenticeship bridges issues
related to education, training, labour market, social policy, and anthropology, research
reports cover a broad spectrum but do not offer a synthetic view of apprenticeship.
This research, focuses on a single trade, in a single company, in order to document the
practice of formal apprenticeship. To set the stage, a preliminary classification of the
disparate literature on apprenticeship as well as a brief history of apprenticeship in
Canada and in British Columbia is offered.
The registered cook apprenticeship in British Columbia studied shows that four major
themes undergird the 'program': context, progression, knowledge, and vocational
training. Context directly affects what can and is practiced on the job, hence affects the
outcomes of the apprenticeship. In addition, it can be assumed that micro contextual
differences play a role as important as macro contextual differences in apprenticeship.
Progression represents the journey from neophyte to master and impacts
apprenticeship as it charts one's career progression; a clear view of progression also
seems to affect apprenticeship outcomes. Knowledge and vocational education seem
to be linked and represent, for the apprentices and the masters, external yardsticks of
achievement which are used to confirm stages of the journey.
The research shows that present day apprenticeships have retained much of their rich
tradition. Historical elements can be recognized in the models which summarize
writings about apprenticeship presented in this paper. The models help contrast the
practice with the intent of apprenticeship; and allow for the creation of a composite
model which best fits fit a real-life case.
Suggestions about the current practice of apprenticeship can be made from the
models. But future research will have to further clarify some of the issues raised here,
as well as chart a coherent course for the study of apprenticeship.
|
|---|
