Leerders se persepsies oor tegniese vakke : riglyne vir die toekoms

M.Ed.There is a great need for technical artisans in South Africa. Unfortunately the previous educational dispensation did not do much to remedy the situation, and now education, especially in the technological field, suffers a crisis as far as credibility, provision and relevance are concerned. Technology is changing every day, and to keep up to date, one must realise that learners do not choose technical subjects at school, or for that matter, do not pursue a career in technology. A qualitative approach was followed, interviews conducted at selected schools, and the result analysed to find out what the perceptions of learners are for not choosing technical subjects. The data yielded four categories, namely experience, ambition, status and technology. It seems that past experiences of parents cause learners not to go into technical careers for the perception exists that it entails is called "dirty work"; these jobs also have no status and learners would prefer to pursue university careers. Some recommendations are made, one being that the government of the day should take up the responsibility to get involved to make the technological field more attractive to prospective job seekers. Better salaries, especially for teachers, upgrading of schools and technical centres, better job opportunities and fighting perceptions of prejudice might solve this problem