Training the Modern Workforce: How We Develop Our Innovative CTE Labs & STEM Projects

With the skilled workforce gap growing rapidly, the need for innovative Career and Technical Education (CTE) and STEM training continues to climb.  Schools need the right tools to prepare students for a range of sophisticated technical careers.  The right program consistently engages students, is technically sound, and is easy for schools to manage.  Instructors require proper training to teach with confidence and need a repeatable program they will use every year.

Switch Vehicles developed a classroom-ready, project-based learning system that provides everything schools need for students to obtain hands-on training in workforce-ready skills: building a functional vehicle, completing circuits and wiring, reading schematics, performing diagnostics and troubleshooting, and, most importantly, repeatedly reinforcing safety procedures.

The Switch pathway is designed to meet the needs of teachers, administrators, and students to create an engaging, in-depth learning structure that teaches advanced electrical skills.

 

Instructor Challenges:  Introducing Electrical Systems Training

Automotive, STEM, and vocational instructors have strong mechanical skills but may lack experience teaching advanced electrical concepts:  high-voltage safety, battery systems, software configuration, diagnostics, and systems-level troubleshooting.  There are also legitimate safety concerns to address when you’re teaching with electrical systems.

This can undermine confidence for both educators and students if you don’t have the right program in place.

Project-based learning programs often require more time than standard class periods allow or require heavy investment in components, tools, and storage space.  Programs need to be inclusive of students with significantly different levels of experience.  Keeping advanced students engaged while preventing novices from feeling overwhelmed requires an experienced teacher and thoughtfully designed tools and labs.

Taking that abstract theory and applying it to real-world workforce skills requires the right curriculum in the hands of a skilled educator.

 

Designing Training Systems Around Teacher Implementation

Switch Vehicles directly addresses these challenges by working hand in hand with each stakeholder involved in workforce development.  Our projects address the concerns that make teaching electrical systems difficult for schools.  With years of experience working directly with educators, we intentionally design all of our labs, tools, curriculum, training, and support to specifically resolve each of these pain points.

Built on a long foundation of interaction with and feedback from teachers, students, and administrators, Switch Vehicles’ curriculum includes everything schools need to successfully implement our program.  Our projects take students on a learning journey, starting with the Relay Lab and Battery Lab to build confidence, before moving on to more complex systems.

Moving from Individual Components to Functional Systems

As students learn core competencies, the program introduces the Switch Electric Systems Lab and Switch EV Trainer to teach component relationships and interactions, system configuration, diagnostics & troubleshooting, low- and high-voltage systems, and safety workflows.

Applying Skills Through a Capstone Experience

The Switch Lab EV becomes the capstone project that brings everything together.  Students apply the previous lessons and see their progress as they build a fully functional, road-worthy electric vehicle. At every step, instructors get training, tools, documentation, and components they need to keep students engaged.

 

Proven in the Workshop: Validating the Tools

To ensure these tools remain “classroom-ready,” Switch Vehicles provides training for every piece of equipment and the curriculum through its dedicated Switch Lab EV Workshop.

In these workshops, teachers get hands-on training to better understand how the program works.  The “train the trainer” workshop offers instructors direct experience with building, testing, wiring, programming, and troubleshooting the program equipment.  Attendees build confidence and gain comprehensive scientific and electrical instruction.  They also learn how to teach and reinforce safe-handling skills with their students.

During workshops, Switch gains valuable feedback from educators to ensure that the program remains on target, is sequenced clearly, and delivers the real-world skills and results students need.  Educators taking part in the workshop also help validate Switch systems and ensure that our programs meet the needs of real teachers in real classrooms.

This rigorous, workshop-tested loop is another reason why so many institutions successfully scaled Switch projects into their technical pathways.

 

Designed for In-Person Classrooms & Hands-On Training

The technical landscape continues to evolve, and teaching workforce-ready technical skills is best achieved through active, project-based learning tools.  The success of these programs depends on the support given to the educators who lead these classrooms.

Switch offers a scalable, reusable pathway of projects that help students move logically from theory to practice to advanced concepts.  Teachers get everything they need – including hands-on training – to implement the Switch Vehicle program.  Students get an engaging classroom experience and gain real-world skills, including study guides for ASE xEV certification.

With CTE and STEM careers growing at a rate more than twice that of other fields, encouraging students to embrace STEM careers is an increasingly important goal for schools.  Preparing students with the real-world skills they need for success is crucial.  Switch Vehicles projects are designed with everything you need to meet these goals.

Ready to build a hands-on technical pathway that helps students master wiring systems, diagnostics, safety, and applied problem-solving?  Contact Switch Vehicles to explore classroom-ready labs, curriculum, instructor training, and capstone projects designed around your school’s goals.