BCITO Best Performing Tertiary Educator

BCITO Best Performing Tertiary Educator

The Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO) has claimed the top spot for educational performance in 2010, as scored by the Tertiary Education Commission's (TEC) recently-released report on tertiary educators.

This is the second year running that the BCITO has outperformed other tertiary providers, with an impeccable score of 100 per cent for the completion of programmes offered. This compares to the national average completion score of 55 per cent for ITOs, and 52 per cent for level 3 and 4 polytechnic qualifications.

Universities struggled to effectively deliver level 3 and 4 graduates in 2010, with a score of only 41 per cent.

Chief Executive of the BCITO, Mr Ruma Karaitiana, said; "The BCITO team is absolutely delighted with this news. Our consistently high performance really highlights our dedication to hands-on training and mentoring within the building industry. We actively encourage our construction apprentices to strive to be the best, so it is great to practice what we preach".

The BCITO currently has around 5,500 students enrolled in construction-related courses including carpentry, concrete, tiling and plastering to name a few. Carpentry accounts for over 90 per cent of all BCITO apprentices, thereby delivering more qualified builders into the industry than any other avenue. The BCITO is the largest construction-related ITO.

"The secret to our success is pretty simple; training occurs onsite, on the tools, where trainees can be directly shown the principles of construction in the real world. This sort of engagement empowers the learner and motivates them to learn more. Additional support comes from the BCITO case management process, including individual learning plans, risk profiling and coaching of both the learner and their workplace trainer.

"Plus they have professional builders mentoring them along the way, so they get a really good grasp of what where they are heading and the sort of career they can look forward to. Once they get a taste of success, they are hooked, so completing their qualification is just a matter of course" Mr Karaitiana said.

"But we can't take full credit for our performance. This success is largely due to the building industry itself, and the dedicated employers who are willing to share their knowledge and pass on their skills to the next generation. Industry training is a team effort, and we are incredibly lucky to be working with such a skilled and professional industry. It makes our job much easier".

ENDS

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