(By Rosillo, AJ Stephen P.,Reboya, Alexander Lemuel P., and De Luna, Gian Antonio V.) The work immersion program is a part of the final high school journey. As students prepare themselves for the real world, they embark on a path where learning meets real-world experiences. This provides many opportunities for students to grow and develop.
The Grade 12 Technical High School students were astounded to have their work immersion at the Electro Manufacturing Services group’s (EMS) Creotec Inc., a highly rated company that is fully Filipino-owned. Creotec Philippines Inc. serves as the training arm of the EMS Group of Companies, imparting its best practices to both the industry and academia. Simultaneously, the Technical High School students had the privilege of honing their knowledge and skills in this professional work environment, preparing themselves for the chapters that have yet to come.
Students were placed in conditions that contrasted with what they were accustomed to. Thrust into a brand-new environment, it took time for students to grow familiar. They were experiencing a perspective they had yet to see – a corporate perspective. Many students were confused and overwhelmed by the drastic change. However, to everyone’s surprise, all the individually assigned tasks were accomplished. By the end of the first day, the students were separated and grouped to experience a team-oriented setting in the corporate world.
The students, now referred to as employees, were divided into Information Technology (IT) and Production groups, with each group responsible for ensuring a productive workplace setting. The IT group worked with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) App Inventor. Led by an employee in the group, they designated individual tasks and worked together to create various applications such as Body Mass Index (BMI), calculators, Employee Monitoring Boards, and Payroll calculators.
Furthermore, on the production side of the work immersion, students were assigned to various departments based on their specialties, such as assembly, repair, or testing. The task was for them to recreate one of Creotec’s sample products, a working burglar alarm. A burglar alarm, powered by a printed circuit board (PCB), uses a light sensor (LDR) to trigger LEDs and a loud buzzer, notifying its user/owner upon detection. As the team was formed, a course leader was also assigned alongside an assistant leader, Isha Lagman and Rafael Del Agua. The team’s goal was to reach the specific quota assigned by the manager. A quota is the number of finished products made by the team.
On the first day of the immersion, the students were assigned to produce 100 burglar alarm units. Making this their first time ever experiencing being on a job, the students had a hard time finding the right chemistry and being efficient, resulting in only 50 produced units with only 10 units working and the rest were scrapped. On the following days, the production team finally discovered their strengths and weaknesses, especially when it came to the working stations. Some employees were not able to work as much since they lacked the skills in their assigned fields from arranging, assembling, testing, and repairing. Because of that, a rearrangement occurred. After rearranging employees based on their strengths from the given departments, the team was able to produce more products in a consistent manner. The team’s efficiency and cooperation exceeded all expectations. Their highest quota reached was a perfect 500/500 produced units with only 3 scrapped. A huge milestone for the production team was accomplished as they learned chemistry, collaboration, and peer-to-peer bonding as a team.
In conclusion, the students’ involvement with CREOTEC Philippines throughout their work immersion has been a priceless learning opportunity, deepening their comprehension of professional settings. Along with learning useful skills, they have also become well-versed in the nuances of effective cooperation, teamwork, and group settings. They now have a deep understanding of the amount of work that a company is expected to achieve. They are better prepared to handle and succeed in real-world situations. Thank you, SBCA Technical High School, for this practical experiential learning.
