Practicum - or working on the farm

AS part of the trade school course we are following from the Ukrainian government the students have hours of practicum- practical experience.

the boys forking wheelbarrows full of corn silage

Every school day we have two students come in the mornings and two in the afternoon, they feed the cows with Andrei's help and supervision- Andrei is above facing the camera. Andrei was a little unsure of the girls ability to push wheelbarrows around before they started, Garry told him I used to do it all the time. Garry says it takes the girls a little longer as they can't fill the wheelbarrows as full, but they will get faster (and stronger) with practice.

Garry tells me the other students are wondering why Andrei is taking the classes at school when he already knows what to do! I said it is because he wants to be a boss not a worker!

That is the aim of Garry's courses to teach them not just to be qualified to work on a farm, like the diploma they are working toward, but manage one. They will learn to balance feed rations, breed cows artificially, select better animals (dairy judging) and treat illnesses, not just better milking procedures and cow care, but the reasons why things are done the way the are, so they can make good decisions as managers, or even owners of dairy farms.