Orange Tech’s Building Construction program is teaching by doing

For most people, attending a postsecondary educational institution is about preparing oneself for the life and career that comes after concluding your studies. Often, the best way to prepare for that next phase is to simply mimic the processes, skills and challenges you’ll face on the job with the supervision and instruction of an experienced teacher.

Orange Technical College’s Building Construction Technologies program — at the college’s new West Campus facility — is taking the concept of learning while doing quite literally to prepare its students for their careers in the real world by constructing the program’s curriculum around building life-sized structures, such as homes. 

“One of the overarching goals of all Orange Technical College career training programs is to give our students real-world experiences that help them to quickly acclimate to the rigors of the industry they are entering,” said Scott Weidl, OTC — West Campus senior director. “(Because) our BCT students learn carpentry, electrical, plumbing and masonry skills, building small-scale houses helps them to achieve that goal. Our students get to apply their knowledge and hands-on skills by placing them in real-world scenarios, such as building a house that exposes students to working collaboratively in a job-site atmosphere.”

Because the BCT program — which is often referred to as the ‘buffet of trades’ program — aims to teach the various trades of construction, having its curriculum centered around building a home allows students the perfect training ground for their careers because homes require all of those elements.

“(On) any given day, (BCT) students learn and use tape measures, circular saws, basic hand tools, squares and other hand and power tools,” BCT Teacher Robert Harman said. “They learn how to lay out a project, including floor, wall and roof. From A to Z, students learn and apply construction layout. Additionally, students learn how to install electrical, plumbing and masonry. … Students can take the skills they learn from building a home and easily apply them to other disciplines, including commercial and industrial construction. Soft skills, such as the importance of a strong work ethic, good communication and teamwork, are reinforced through the entire project.”

The ability to help students develop their soft skills is another big reason why the BCT program’s curriculum is helping prepare its students for the reality of their field. Moreover students are learning these skills in state-of-the-art facilities at the West Campus location. 

“(The) Building Construction (program) is housed in a 10,000-square-foot facility and also utilizes an expansive outdoor construction yard that is adjacent to our welding, HVAC/R, electricity and plumbing programs,” Weidl said. “This layout gives our students even more opportunities to collaborate with their peers as they would on a job site. We are also able to accommodate many more students due to the vast size of our facilities.”

This is proving to be a great experience for students.

“Our curriculum includes multiple trades, from carpentry to electrical to plumbing — with the initial part of the home-building project (starting) with carpentry (then) electrical, plumbing and HVAC,” student Neftali Cruz Ruiz said. “This project has provided for opportunities to collaborate program-to-program, which allows us to work with and learn from each other.”

For more information, visit orangetechcollege.net.