25-08-2017, 09:32 PM
THE STUDENTS INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE SCHEME
THE STUDENTS INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE SCHEME.docx (Size: 830.47 KB / Downloads: 41)
OVERVIEW OF SIWES
The Student Industrial Work-Experience Scheme (SIWES) is a planned and supervised training intervention based on stated and specific learning and career objectives, and geared towards developing the occupational competencies of the participants. It is a programme required to be undertaken by all students of tertiary institutions in Nigeria pursuing courses in “specialized engineering, technical, business, applied sciences and applied arts”.
Therefore, SIWES is generic, cutting across over 60 programmes in the universities, over 40
programmes in the polytechnics and about 10 programmes in the colleges of education.
Thus, SIWES is not specific to any one course of study or discipline.
Consequently, the effectiveness of SIWES cannot be looked at in isolation with respect to a single discipline; it is better explored in a holistic manner since many of the attributes, positive outcomes and challenges associated with SIWES are common to all disciplines participating in the scheme.
Hence, the approach of this paper is to look at SIWES as a general study programme cutting across several disciplines. Nevertheless, the paper also pays attention to the peculiarities and problems associated with effective implementation of SIWES for science, engineering and technology (SET) and its effectiveness in contributing to the professional development of the SET student.
OBJECTIVES OF SIWES
The Industrial Training Fund’s Policy Document No. 1 of 1973 (ITF, 1973) which established SIWES outlined the objectives of the scheme. The objectives are to
1. Provide an avenue for students in institutions of higher learning to acquire industrial skills and experience during their courses of study;
2. Prepare students for industrial work situations that they are likely to meet after graduation;
3. Expose students to work methods and techniques in handling equipment and machinery that may not be available in their institutions;
4. Make the transition from school to the world of work easier and enhance students’contacts for later job placements;
5. Provide students with the opportunities to apply their educational knowledge in real work situations, thereby bridging the gap between theory and practice;
6. Enlist and strengthen employers’ involvement in the entire educational process through SIWES.
ORGANISATION AND OPERATION OF SIWES
The organisation of the Students’ Industrial Work-Experience Scheme (SIWES) involves many stakeholders as follows:
Federal Government (Federal Ministry of Commerce & Industry)
Industrial Training Fund (SIWES Division)
Supervising/Regulatory Agencies (NUC, NBTE, NCCE)
Industry/Employers (NECA, NACCIMA, Government Establishments)
Tertiary Institutions (Universities, Polytechnics, Colleges of Education) and
SIWES is operated as a joint venture through the contributory activities of the stakeholders identified above.
THE NEED FOR INDUSTRIAL TRAINING
Theoretical knowledge alone would not usually prepare an educated person for the world of work. The worker or productive individual must not only be knowledgeable but must also be versatile in the application of skills to perform defined jobs or work.
The reality of the foregoing fact can be illustrated by using a simple analogy. While it is possible for someone to learn and imbibe all the available information on driving a car in the classroom, it is unlikely that the individual would, based on this knowledge alone, be able to drive a car at the first opportunity. On the other hand, someone else without the theoretical information on how to drive a car, on being told and shown what to do, followed by hands-on practice and supervision by an instructor, would at the end of the day be able to drive a car successfully. Of course, someone who has been exposed to both the theoretical underpinnings of driving a car and the hands-on experience of doing so would and should be a better driver!