I have just spend some time this morning having a conversation with the equine and animal studies lecturers from a college local to me. We discussed the discrepancy between practical skills held by their students, and the academic training they offer. Now myself coming from a generation where the YTS (youth training scheme) was still up and running and I learned on the job for the grand total of £14.75 a week, if you had said to me a few years ago would I have done anything differently I would have bitten your hand off and declared YES! Send me to an equine college where I can submerge myself amongst capable horse people and fill my brain with the delicious knowledge I seek! But upon reflection I am now grateful for the path I took and here is why... health and safety.
Now the college I spoke to today is a further education college, so kids aged 16 plus who have done their GCSE's and are in academic limbo before going to University or out into the adult world. When I think back to myself as a 16 year old, coming from a non horsey family I had spent weekends working at yards and riding anything I could. So, in retrospect I was pretty handy from the point of view that sure, I didn't have any refinement and probably didn't know a leg yield by its name, but I could sit a horse and get some things done, and I could have told you what a leg yield felt like even if I didn't understand what I was feeling. I could drive a tractor, clean tack, muck out 3485 stables before lunch, get horses on and off a walker, tack up, boil linseed, wash bandages and numnahs, strap and groom and assist in lessons. Yes, I was permanently grubby and used to eat in the haybarn covered in muck and although I may have grumbled at the wage, what I was learning was actually priceless. In comparison now we live in a world where targets and pre requisites are needed to be met, and students turn up at college having possibly ridden all their life and do not know how to tack up a horse. There are so many restrictions now with child labour laws prohibiting kids being able to help out at stables, a coddled society not permitting children just to 'be' around horses and therefore learn from them. As I said before a lot of these students are technically good riders but when I asked the lecturers if the students have any savvy around the horses they work with, well I got a few blank faces and then a very quiet no..
I'm not saying that only those who possess an inherent gift with horses should be allowed to study at college, but how are students going to develop themselves as horse people and gain confidence if they don't experience the un-prescribed, because I am pretty sure horses don't run by any rule book I've read. Also, it is sad to think if I was a teenager now I would probably be exactly the same, desperate to learn about horses but lacking practical skills due to lack of opportunity to gain them.
I do believe education is vitally important, (this is a frequent conversation with my kids) the more we understand about horses the better for them, and us.. it allows us to develop ourselves and knowledge is indeed power, however there needs to be a balance, otherwise a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.
Educators of any subject do not wish to trundle out graduates who can't reach their potential due to lack of relevant experience and I did get the impression that staff feel tied and would like to offer more. More opportunities for work experience would certainly help. The one skill that we all agreed was vital is common sense.. again this is developed through exposure to the world and sadly I don't think some children are given the chance to flex this muscle nearly enough.
All that want to learn should be offered the opportunity to do so, and that a sound academic grounding with plenty of practical experience is the best of both worlds, and with horses you NEVER stop learning.
I did give the college the link to the MSU colt starting class headed by Reata Brannaman (link below) to show them how things could look, or at least to offer something different for the students to be exposed to in a lecture, and it looks like Archie and I possibly may be going along to do a bit of a demo too which might be fun. Either way I hope I gave them something to think about, because nothing inspires you more than a great teacher, Buck certainly inspires me everyday and I never stop learning.
https://www.facebook.com/msucoltstarting/
See you on the flip side
xx
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