Award in Traditional Wooden Maltese Boat Building

Course Description 

Traditional Maltese Boats Building is an old craft which risks being lost with time since presently there are very few professionals in the field to keep this craft alive. Typical Traditional Maltese Boats range from the luzzu (double-ended fishing boat), dghajsa (smaller boat) and kajjik (similar to the luzzu but has a square transom). Normally the Maltese harbour is adorned with these type of boats, however if there isn’t anyone who has the skill to build such boats in the future these will die out. Hence this course is designed to give, to learners attending this course, the skills and knowledge to build these boats. This would hopefully help in ensuring that the future generation will keep this craft alive.

Learners attending this course must already have a sound knowledge of carpentry to be able to gain the skill to build a Traditional Wooden Maltese Boat from start to finish. For a learner to be able to build a Traditional Maltese Boat, s/he first needs to grasp the skill of building a basic simple boat. This is, because if one can build a simple wooden boat it is then possible to build other kinds of boats.

In this course learners will become familiar with both hand and electrical tools required to build a typical Maltese boat, as well as the material and hardware required. Learners will learn how to interpret and/or design sketches of plans to build a boat. Learners will also gain skills in creating boat models to scale and use such models to build a basic wooden boat. Eventually that knowledge will also be used to build a traditional Maltese wooden boat themselves.

Programme Learning Outcomes

At the end of the programme the learner will be able to:

1. Follow health and safety regulations when working within a woodwork workshop

2. Use hand and electric tools safely and store them in an appropriate manner

3. Interpret the sketches of the plans to build a model of a boat

4. Design a boat and build a model to scale

5. Build a basic wooden boat

6. Use knowledge gained from building a basic wooden boat to build a traditional    Maltese wooden boat

 Entry Requirements

· Mature students who have proof of sound knowledge of carpentry and/or who work in this profession.

· MCAST Diploma in Joinery and Furniture Making or other Level 3 equivalent qualification in a related area.