Students compete in World skills VEREENIGING – Sedibeng College (Sedcol) TVET College students have once again proven their courage at the prestigious WorldSkills competition.

The event, which took place over the past week, saw participants from across colleges in the province showcasing their exceptional skills and competing for top honours in various categories.

Sedcol’s contingent of competitors not only demonstrated their dedication and prowess but also bagged several medals, solidifying their reputation as a centre of excellence in vocational education.

Ster South visited the institution’s campus in Vereeniging which housed the hair and beauty competitors. Sebokeng campus saw brick-layers battling their skills in their fair share of the competition.

Speaking to the paper, Assistant Director Curriculum Development and Implementation in Occupational Programmes, Lebohang Ledimo explained about the competitions.

“We are hosting two provincial competitions which started at the local level. The winners of the local, are the ones who are competing now with the intention to go and compete in the national competitions which will be held next year in September,” she said.

“We have quite a number of skills in our competitions but we are hosting the bricklaying in Sebokeng and Hairdressing. About nine colleges are selected to host different skills competitions,” she added.

Ledimo said they are delighted to be the hosts of this year’s World Skills competition in the province.

“We are overwhelmed to be the hosts. Being a college that hosts provincial competitions proves that we are doing something right,” she said.

Sweetness Radebe, a local expert for haircare at the college said: “Our learners form part of this World Skills competition to show their skills. These are our first-year students.

We are hoping to see them achieve and excel in this competition. Whether win or lose they would have gained the experience of working under pressure and learnt different styles which we haven’t taught as yet.”

Chairperson of the Provincial Artisan Development Steering Committee Gardner Dewu said: “Ours is to oversee the implementation and development of Artisans in all provinces and the World Skills South Africa serves our mandate as it advances skills development in the occupational space.”

Giving his reaction to the competition, Dewu said: “After visiting different TVETs on these competitions, we are hopeful that our students will do well in the international segment. Last year we went to Germany and this year we saw a similar competitiveness from our students. This means they are learning. The standard is not far from what we have been seeing on the continental scale.”