Vol. 467 No. 7
203 Mr. E. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Education the reason approval has not been give to phase 4/6 of a motor apprenticeship education facility in respect of a proposed new vocational education committee school (details supplied) to be built in County Cork. [14078/96]
Under Programme for Economic and Social Progress and the Programme for a Partnership (PPG) Government 1993-97, it was agreed that the statutory apprenticeship scheme would be improved by developing a “standard-based” rather than a “time-served” approach. A new apprenticeship training model, comprising of four-on-the-job training modules and three off-the-job training modules, was developed.
An interdepartmental working group representative of the Department of Enterprise and Employment, FÁS, the regional technical colleges-DIT and the Department of Education agreed on the basic operational principles underlying the arrangements between FÁS and the colleges for the delivery of the off-the-job training of apprentices.
In general the first off-the-job training module will take place in FÁS training centres and the second and final off-the-job training modules will take place in regional technical college-DIT institutions. The new apprenticeship system is being implemented on a phased basis and will result in the rationalisation of craft apprenticeship programmes.
