AGRICULTURAL high school teachers play a vital role in the Schools Merino Wether Challenge.
They oversee and train students multitasking in all things agriculture, and for the past eight years, Merino wether production.
Twenty agricultural teachers from high schools throughout the state spent a week of highly intensive immersion training at Dubbo, Yeoval and Wellington in June.
Their studies were part of the NSW Department of Education training which has run for five days in Dubbo and Sydney each year since 2017.
Sharyn Conneally, vocational education teacher VET training officer for secondary schools programs, NSW Department of Education, said the program was established for permanent and temporary secondary school teachers accredited to deliver Higher School Certificate and VET Primary Industries courses.
"The department has developed a partnership with the well-established and industry recognised training organisations, TAFE NSW and Bralca to provide a five-day industry immersion training experience for teachers who can also self-nominate to participate in the program," Ms Conneally said.
"This program supports a teacher's industry engagement and further develops their expert skills and knowledge in the industry which enhances the delivery of the course to students in our schools."
The June study program was based from Dubbo TAFE Western's and started with fencing techniques and technology followed by a visit to Fletchers International Abattoir, then an introduction to the Schools Merino Wether Challenge program sponsored by the NSW Stud Merino Breeders Association and Australian Wool Innovation.
The early stage progressed into wool characteristics and fleece judging.
During the second day teachers visited Roseville Park Merino stud, Dubbo, where with assistance from studmaster Matthew Coddington, teachers were taken through fleeces and a practical session on sheep selection, then a practical session on low stress stock handling.
It was the Merino challenge held at the Rabobank Dubbo Merino National Show and Sale each August which interested most of the teachers as their classes are or have been participating in the process since its inception some eight years ago.
For the past few years wethers have been sourced from the one flock, Egelabra commercial Merino flock, Warren, to enable even production traits from a single source and an even benchmark for each school to prepare their teams of three head.
Several schools prepare up to three teams or more, depending on the number of students studying agriculture at that institution.
Upwards of 50 schools located from the Victorian border to the Queensland border participate in the challenge.
An initial training day and wether lamb pick up was conducted in the Riverina at The Yanko shearing shed and at the Dubbo Rural Skills Centre in late February and the competition days have been split - one during the Riverina Merino Field Days at Deniliquin in early August for 10 southern schools, and the remainder at the Rabobank Dubbo Merino National on August 27 and 28. Both competitions are mirrored so all teams have equal opportunity.
Lamb teams are judged in the production class for their structure, wool and carcase characteristics as if they were to be kept and run commercially as woolgrowers for five years.
Following shearing, all fleeces are weighed and tested and then valued according to current market prices on a nominated day. Meat value is then judged on shearing, weighting, ultrasound scanning and carcase traits.
The champion team is determined from the combined meat value (weight, muscle fat and detention) based on current market prices and combined with wool values. There is also an award for the best presented school, judged on presentation of wethers, pen display area cleanliness and student presentation of the highest standards.
Wethers arrive at Dubbo showground on Monday, August 26 and split into two groups for production class judging on Tuesday morning with each wether haltered and lined-up in school teams.
Group one wethers are then shorn. Fleece is weighed and each lamb is scanned and weighed then returned to pens. The same then repeated with group two.
Schools may enter up to two teams of three wethers with each wether halter trained by the show. Another stipulation is that wethers must be run commercially and therefore unhoused and uncoated.
