Back in December, we published an interview with April
Wilkerson, our USA Triton Brand Champion. It was one of our most popular posts
to date, bringing lots of new people to the Triton pages so welcome to those of
you who are new to our blog. While we
were in Texas with April, we filmed a new project build exclusively for Triton.
April usually builds, films, edits and publishes her own projects
single-handedly, so we thought it might be fun to help out for a day. If you want
to find out how to build robust and mobile paint storage cupboard for your
workshop, check out this short film:
Lots of
people contact Triton looking for support for their organisations. Usually it
is for sponsorship or donations to help a worthy cause, and like most
responsible organisations we do our best to help out where we can. Just
occasionally, a request comes with a unique story that is worth both
supporting, and in particular, sharing.
In many industrialised countries there is a
growing understanding that the long-term educational goal to put all kids through an advanced
academic programme is missing an important point. Both students and even
advanced economies need to have a base of practical skills – or in other words,
people who can actually make things.
Vocational qualifications and aspirations have long
been looked on as something for those who were not smart enough to achieve
academically. In many places, even access to practical or craft subjects such
as woodwork, metalwork, automotive etc, has become a rare opportunity at high
school level. So without the active encouragement of a parent or grandparent or
another suitable role model, very few young people are getting the chance to
experience the joy that making or growing something with your own hands can
bring.
Peyton, Colorado is a small town not far from
Colorado Springs. With the prairie stretching out on one side and the Rocky
Mountains in the background, it's pretty typical mid-America, though in one
respect it's doing something really ground-breaking. By making great use of a
previously abandoned building, they are reintroducing practical education -
specifically woodworking - to the games console generation in spectacular
style.
This is not the old woodworking programme of
previous generations; this syllabus aims to teach advanced, professional, lean
manufacturing techniques as well as hands-on design and construction to
students with an equal weighting to more traditional academic subjects. It's a
unique education and industry collaboration that is being seen as a model for
similar programmes, not only in America but across the globe.
This short film provides a background to the programme, how it came about and where it's heading for the future. We love the way the students are supported by retired volunteers, bridging the generation gap and sharing not just practical skills but genuine life lessons. Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below.