Welcome to the DHS School of Agriculture

Transcription

1 Welcome to the DHS School of Agriculture New Zealand is acknowledged throughout the world as a leading dairy and livestock producer, with respected New Zealand companies such as Fonterra leading global dairy production and practice. The DHS School of Agriculture educational program achieves New Zealand government approved standards and includes a highly qualified team of teachers and industry specialists from New Zealand. Our farming specialists provide advice to government and agricultural bodies throughout New Zealand and work with international agricultural research programmes. The DHS School of Agriculture Certificate in Practical Farming provides hands on, practical training on working farms (dairy, dry stock, horticulture). All our teachers have substantial experience in agriculture, and are often still working farmers. The farms used in our programme are specialised training farms, allowing young farmers to practice key skills fencing, milking, shearing, use and maintenance of machinery, animal husbandry, health and safety techniques and farm management.

2 DHS School of Agriculture Certificate in Practical Farming Modern farming techniques combine practical hands on skills with current technologies and management strategies. This practical skills course is designed to build high levels of competencies with contemporary farming practices though regular on site training together with theory. The course meets New Zealand government qualification standards ensuring a high level of quality in the teaching and outcomes. What topics are covered? During the 12 week course, the young farmers will cover: Fencing Livestock Management Dairy Farming Dry Stock Farming Farm Vehicle Management Shearing Livestock Health Pasture Management

3 How is the course structured? Each week of the course includes: 2 days of agricultural theory in the classroom 3 days in the field for practical hands on learning Some practical units will require a full week s on site learning What kind of farms are used? Farms used for the practical aspects of the course vary from small horticultural holdings, to large scale farming including dairy, beef, sheep and goats. These farms are all owned and run by experienced and in some cases award winning farmers who have been selected for their exemplary farming practices. What qualifications do the students achieve? The DHS School of Agriculture Certificate certifies that the young farmer: Successfully passed all course units Successfully passed all practical farming tests Successfully learned how to increase farm productivity Successfully learned how to work competently on dairy and dry stock farms Abided by the Code of Conduct for International Students

4 Where do the young farmers stay and how are they transported? The students are housed in our purpose built and recently refurbished student hostel. Transport to and from farming sites is arranged by the school What about English language tuition? English is taught for eight hours a week spread across the week in four two hour blocks. The course is tailored to each young farmer s individual learning needs with an emphasis on the learning and literacy needed for the agriculture course. To assist with language difficulties a Russian/English translator is on hand. For more information the DHS office office@darghigh.schoolzone.net.nz

5 Student Life Young farmers at DHS School of Agriculture enjoy an in depth experience of living and studying in a rural New Zealand town. Dargaville is a busy agricultural centre servicing a wide range of farm types. Accommodation Accommodation is at the recently upgraded student hostel in which each resident has his or her own room. Catering is provided by the on site hostel management team and consists of typical New Zealand food (meat, fish, potatoes and vegetables). Broadband internet connection is available to residents in the hostel and weekend and evening activities are organized to ensure every student can make the most of their time with us. The young farmers are transported to and from the farms in a comfortable mini bus. This can also be used for social trips to the nearby centre of Whangarei which has a cinema, theatre and substantial shopping facilities. Sporting facilities There is a public swimming pool in Dargaville as well as an indoor pool at Dargaville High School. Surfing and fishing are popular activities at our west coast beaches. Other water sports such as canoeing and waterskiing are available at the Kai Iwi lakes. The school has a weight room and rugby is also a popular sport to take part in or watch.

6 Orientation On arrival the young farmers are introduced to the local area over the first week. A tour of Dargaville including shops, museum and sporting facilities is followed by a tour of Dargaville High School. A traditional Maori welcome begins the introduction to basic New Zealand culture. Our guests are taken on a tour of local environmental attractions including our impressive surf beaches, ancient Kauri forests and beautiful lakes.

7 About Dargaville Dargaville is a town of approximately 5000 people, 200km north of Auckland, on the west coast of the North Island. The town lies on the Northern Wiaroa River and is surrounded by lush farmland. Nearby Bayly s Beach and the Kai Iwi Lades are popular for swimming and boating. The ancient Waipoua forest has New Zealand s largest tree, a Kauri tree known as Tane Mahuta, and is popular for hiking and tramping. The almost sub tropical climate and beautiful scenery make this one of the most attractive areas of New Zealand. Safety Our young farmer s safety is paramount and we have staff on duty24 hours a day, seven days a week to support them. All emergency procedures are carefully explained as part of orientation.

8 A Week at DHS School of Agriculture Sarah s Week Hi, my name is Sarah and I am studying practical Agriculture and Farming Technology. My time at DHS School of Agriculture has been fantastic so far. It s amazing how much I have learnt as well as having lots of fun and making great friends. I live on the school grounds at the DHS hostel which is like youth hostel-style accommodation and has great New Zealand home cooked food. Honestly, there s no week at DHS School of Agriculture that is exactly the same but I guess they tend to go like this... Monday Monday always starts with lectures at 9 am. It s always hard getting up after a good weekend! We usually have lectures and tutorials for most of the day. These sessions are varied - it could be a presentation by a expert guest speaker on farm accounting practise or a lecture on stud cattle management. Sometimes we have to do a presentation of our observations on our mentored farms. This is to make sure our work books are relevant and worth keeping. And, of course, we have English lessons. This week we will be learning about sheep; farming and management and shearing. After 4pm we do sports training; Netball, Rugby, Swimming, Tennis are all played here even surfing is possible! I play netball myself. After training everyone goes to dinner in the dining room. Then we get ready for the first night out of the week. The Dargaville Club is usually open any night of the week and we can go there and socialise and play billiards. Tuesday On Tuesdays I have more lectures. We are able to see our Russian speaking councillors at anytime but Tuesday is a good time to speak to lecturers about course work. Because there are only 16 of us, it feels sometimes as if we get personal tutoring. In the afternoon its lectures, English lessons and 2 hours of practical instruction as fire fighters, St John Ambulance first aid and practical mechanics for farm vehicles. Every one in NZ seems to do volunteer work in the local community so if you have a particular interest in the museum say or the Hospice, then this can be arranged. I study mostly in the evenings but on Tuesdays I sometimes use the internet and there is always a video to watch. Wednesday Wednesday starts our practical tuition. This week it s a sheep shearing course for 3 days. We go to one of our host farms so it s up early to be at the farm by 8am. Our tutors start with sheep management in the shed, shed routines, shearing machinery use and care and then we will learn to shear a sheep. We work until 5pm then head back to the hostel. Dinner, study, early night because I will shear my first sheep tomorrow. Thursday I sheared my first sheep today. It s a lot harder than it looks when the tutor does it, the fleece was a bit messy and I nicked the sheep once. I baled and learnt to sort the wool. I worked the sheep in the yards with the help of the brilliant dog called Spot. I am tired. I could go to see a band at the Town Hall but I have 4 more sheep to shear tomorrow. So it s updating my work book and bed for me. Friday 4 sheep shorn, course completed and signed off by the tutor. I feel great satisfaction but to shear a 100 sheep a day you would have to be super fit. Watching the shearing, the sweeping, sorting and baling in the shed you see team work at its best and there are lots of laughs when we take our turns. Tonight I think that I will go to the Dargaville Club to celebrate a good week s work. Saturday & Sunday There s always an organised sports game or social trip on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday night there s a trip to Whangarei to go clubbing and shopping and occasionally we go to Auckland or the Bay of Islands for the weekend.