MEDIA RELEASE - 27 JULY 2009 The farm is the classroom for Agriculture ITO course There's no classroom learning for the Agriculture ITO Stockman's course. In fact the classroom could be anywhere from a high country station to the sheep yards closest to the house. It's all on job and trainees really learn as they earn. "This is a great qualification as it's all on job. The farmer trainer assesses the work their employee does so it's a real partnership for the farm business" says Claire Chapman, Pastoral Business Manger, Dannevirke. Training advisers nationwide manage enrolments and provide course material and course support to trainees. Trainees will study modules and learn industry best practise in eight areas of sheep and cattle management. They'll learn very practical skills like drenching or injecting cattle right through to managing their horses, livestock and dogs to increase their personal productivity plus the farm business bottom line. This course covers the key skills a stockperson needs to be successful in their job. Stockmanship is a key skill for the future of the sheep and cattle industry and "Employers I have spoken to are always looking for skilled and qualified employees to manage parts of their operation' says Claire. Since the qualification launched, over 30 shepherds and stock people have signed up and are working towards a National Certificate of Agriculture Level 3. Claire says existing sheep and cattle qualifications have been modified into a series of "modules" This allows farm staff to complete something at each step or specialise in one area, like stockmanship, rather than have to pass multiple courses before being rewarded with one qualification. Back to Press Releases