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Nanaimo-Ladysmith students get some hands-on, interactive career training

Jan 24, 2017 | 8:18 AM

NANAIMO – Grade six and seven students in the Nanaimo-Ladysmith School District will get some hands on work experience Tuesday.

WorkBC’s Find Your Fit Tour makes a stop in Nanaimo at Island ConnectED. Career Pathways and Learning Alternative principal Derek Beeston says the interactive student-based event is a unique way to introduce kids to different career options.

“Often the only exposure kids get are their close relatives or friends,” said Beeston. “By bringing a tour like this to our district it allows students and teachers and even parents to get a look at different kinds of career options out there, from trades to accounting to different areas in business.”

According to Beeston, students can jump right in and try the skills they’ll need for different careers in demand across the mid-island and across the province.

“If it’s something like electrical they get to play with some electrical circuitry,” he said. “If it’s computer based they get to actually log on to a computer and try some programming. They get to actually try it with somebody there that can answer questions about that career for them if it comes up.”

It will also give the students an idea of what courses they would need to take in the future.

Beeston notes the tour isn’t just for students. Parents and families are invited to a session from 3 to 7 p.m. Tuesday.

“This isn’t just for elementary school kids, this is for our high school kids too,” said Beeston. “And again it just lets parents get a look into different careers that they might have a perception about and this may change their perception.”

More information on the tour is available at the Find Your Fit website.