We are very proud when we remember the British apprenticeship system in the Royal Naval dockyards for the teaching of trades and crafts to our youths in years gone by; and we are not less gratified by what the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology is achieving nowadays in technical education.

We cannot expect to have found the perfect solution for picking out the best teachers for the various courses on the curriculum. When it comes to the passing of knowledge and expertise to our youths on local crafts (which are dying out), it is much more difficult to find qualified persons with both the City & Guilds certificates and experience in the trade.

Some of our present day choices are unfortunate and have to be reconsidered. We have to find a system of conserving the talents and wisdom of some of the traditional masters of the crafts and trades, found scattered in all the villages of our islands, and tap into their talents and resources to enrich the education of the young. Maybe it’s time to return and embrace the system of apprenticeship as taught to us by the British.