Highschool shop class, did you have one?

[Shran]

I graduated from HS in 2005 from a small school, town population about 5000. We had wood shop from middle school up and welding shop in 11th and 12th grade. I am about 98% sure they still do that... I took it every chance I could, I think I learned a lot from it and I especially liked how metal fab was taught. Basically we started with oxy/acetylene welding/brazing and once we mastered that, moved on to stick and then MIG. No TIG unfortunately. My school had some sort of vocational training deal with the state or something like that for welding shop though and other area schools did not so there were not as many shop options there.

Thinking back, while I learned a lot it was really almost like a Dazed and Confused type shop class environment. A bunch of the other kids were making discreet bongs, doing snuff in the paint room, making acetylene balloons, seeing how many hardened tools we could snap in half with the ironworker...etc... good times

 

[Snoranger]

I graduated in the mid 90’s...

Middle school was 6-8th grade. We cycled through a bunch of different classes each marking period through those years. Wood shop, printing shop, photography (we had a dark room and developed our own pics), design (sort of art, working with metal, wood, plastic, etc.), sewing, cooking.
High school was 9-12th. We had a pretty good selection for a regular high school (we also had the option of going to a vocational/technical high school). We had our choice of electives including: auto shop, wood shop, electronics, photography, cosmetology, drafting, and some other stuff.
My high school actually had one of the highest rated non-votec auto programs in the state. Ford, Cadillac, and Chrysler donated wrecked in shipping cars to us to learn on.

 

[sgtsandman]

Thats an awesome way to teach. Wish i had that opportunity. Of course, i still dont truly know what i want to do for a living, even at 59. Ive heard that some colleges and universities will waive fees for senior citizens, which i will be in a couple months. Maybe it's time for some more schooling...!

Never stop learning. It keeps the mind active and sharp.

 

[bobbywalter]

All of bobs team mates are going to trade schools....

Zoomers are based.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

We had an awesome auto shop, 3 levels too. I got to compete in NHRA student auto skills challenge, and a Ford competition as well (placed mid pack in both). We had two dedicated buildings. There was beginner auto, which was some theory lectures and we basically did a tune up on a donor car. Then there was Auto 2/ engines. We had a bunch of donor engines, and with a partner, would tear it down, plastigage everything, then reassemble. At the end of the semester, teacher would walk around with a starting cart, if it fired up, you get an A. After that was Vocational auto, where we would just wrench on faculty and local elderly folks cars for 2 periods in the morning from 7 to 9am.
By my junior year I was in Voc auto in the morning and T/A for the beginner auto class after lunch. Oh and more than once I got sent to the principals office, but rather than send me to detention, he would send me to auto shop to work on his or the photography teachers landcruiser (they were toyota guys). So I spent most of my high school in auto shop. A few years after I graduated, they tore down the school in sections to rebuild a modern one. No more auto shop.

 

[2drxploder]

We had a.t.c. (applied technology center) next door to our high school. They offered everything: small engine repair, welding, cosmetology, sports medicine, automotive refinishing, auto repair, masonry, electrical,and many others. All free, and counted as electives. This was early 2000s and is still there today.

 

[Chapap]

Man you guys is old. I graduated ‘09. Never got the chance to try it, but my last HS had a shop class. I transferred to the school in 11th grade and had to catch up on a few BS life management, condom classes in order to graduate.

 

[Curious Hound]

Man you guys is old.

Gee, thanks. And you probably think that because my shop classes taught "stick sharpening" and "chipping flint for arrowheads". Art class centered on cave wall painting. In home ec, the girls learned "1001 ways to use every part of the wooly mammoth".

Well, at least we learned to be self-sufficient.

 

[vigness]

OH god, don't remind me. I had three semesters of metal shop / wood shop... and one semester of home ec the first year. The other two we could take just shop. Small country consolidated school district, so metal and wood shop were all one big room.

 

[Roert42]

Man you guys is old. I graduated ‘09. Never got the chance to try it, but my last HS had a shop class. I transferred to the school in 11th grade and had to catch up on a few BS life management, condom classes in order to graduate.

Seems that you are in the 30+ club. You shouldn’t be calling anyone old.

 

[sgtsandman]

Man you guys is old. I graduated ‘09. Never got the chance to try it, but my last HS had a shop class. I transferred to the school in 11th grade and had to catch up on a few BS life management, condom classes in order to graduate.

It is what it is. 2009, I had 22 years in the military and was hating life while doing a deployment in the Middle East. Again...

 

[racsan]

OH god, don't remind me. I had three semesters of metal shop / wood shop... and one semester of home ec the first year. The other two we could take just shop. Small country consolidated school district, so metal and wood shop were all one big room.

sounds like a fire hazard. welding/torch cutting in same room as wood cutting/refinishing.

 

[vigness]

It was a large room. Auto bay in one end, then some metal working, but not welding / cutting. It was lathe, milling machine, drill press. Then the wood lathe and sanding machines. An no, before you get your panties in a twist, I can't remember any metal and wood going on at the some time. But since it was a rural area, the shop teacher also had some nice forms for making Styrofoam duck decoys. A couple of cups of beads in a hot water tank and you had a pretty nice decoy. It was hilarious when one of the girls painted her pink.

 

[Jim Oaks]

I took wood shop and metal shop in middle school. Still have all of my fingers.

 

[Bill]

Yes. There were several I took way back in the early 80s when SE motor oil came in cans and people rebuilt alternators, starters, and brake cylinders. There was a general class that covered a wide variety of maintenance topics and an engine class. I've heard a lot about high schools discontinuing these classes around the country, so took a look at their web page to see if they still have auto shop classes. They have expanded the course availability: https://cwhs.cusd.com/IndustrialTechnologyPathway.aspx