Tec0, what you said is relevant to Competence. You take a person who is not academic, give him the basics and gradually bring him up to speed. He's paid a trainee salary until he qualifies. It's a system that worked for years
even in Rhodesia - the government-run institutions all had apprenticeships in place so that young non-academic people could enter training without 'O' levels.
If you were interested in computers, but weren't so hot in maths, you could study with the Rhodesia Railways to become a computer engineer. It was a long course because you studied at the technical college for 6 months then worked in the Railway's computer rooms, then back to college. Your college was sponsored by the RR and when you qualified, you worked for the RR for two or three years.
The method produced qualified men and women with solid practical experience who could competently operate in their environments.
Still on competence, have you read "A Message To Garcia" by Elbert Hubbard 1899? Google it and read it. When have to instill this message in all our staff and pay attention to it ourselves.
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