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As part of National Manufacturing Day on October 3, the West Virginia Manufacturing Extension Partnership will take K-12 students from area schools on visits to manufacturing sites in Monongalia County.

Gerald Biser, Director of WVMEP, said the visits offer an educational opportunity to increase knowledge, interest, and career awareness.

“Introducing our K-12 students to the opportunities that modern manufacturing presents is a critical factor when beginning the planning and discussion about career choice,” he said.

“By exposing students to career-centered learning outside the classroom, they’ll understand how math and science are used in holistic problem-solving in a real-world situation,” Biser added.

Collaborating with manufacturing companies will also better prepare educators to integrate student-centered environmental and “problem-based learning” (PBL) activities (social skills), including math/science competencies (core skills) with applicable real-world, hands-on demonstrations (psychomotor skills), producing career-centered results (technical skills).

The Manufacturing Site Tour (MST) Program showcases, through a series of focused industry demonstrations, how production, computer, and technical skills are used and implemented in professions via industry site and manufacturing shops.

The MST program was piloted during Manufacturing Day on October 4, 2013 with two participating schools and included organized visits to different manufacturing sites.

“It is very satisfying to see the wonder and excitement on the kids’ faces when they discover what today’s manufacturing sector has to offer them.  For the first time, they see that manufacturing presents opportunities well beyond what they ever realized,” Biser said.