Category Archives: Careers

Debate Chamber Summer Schools

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 15-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes.

Working in groups of 12 – 14 students over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

Highlights from our Summer Schools 2020 programme include: 

Law Summer School

The Law Summer School offers an exciting and challenging introduction to the legal profession, and is aimed at students who wish to take their first steps towards a legal career or Law degree. With options top specialise in particular areas of interest, this course includes mini-lectures on key areas of the law, seminar discussions on tricky and controversial legal questions, lively group negotiations and activities, and concludes with a full mock trial in which students take the role of barristers for the prosecution or defence.

‘The Summer Law School was an exhilarating and unforgettable five days. It gave me great insight into the theories of law and how they are implemented in real court cases; and also provided me with the opportunity to meet other young people with similar interests to me.’ 

Medicine Summer School 

The Medicine Summer School is split into five 2-day programmes, each covering a different area of medical practice. Students will be given the opportunity to work alongside practising medical students to develop the theoretical and applied skills necessary to become a doctor.

‘Debate Chamber’s Medicine Summer School was great! I learnt in great detail about medical topics such as oncology, paediatrics and epidemiology. Suturing bananas was a highlight for me and I would thoroughly recommend the course for anyone considering medicine as a career.’ 

Economics Summer School 

The Economics Summer School focuses on political economy and macro-economics, the five-day course will include seminars on a diverse range of topics, from financial and currency markets to an analysis of economic inequality and its potential remedies. We will also be looking at development strategies in emerging economies, and the emerging impact of Brexit on the UK and other economies. The focus throughout will be on debate and discussion, and on encouraging and supporting students to engage critically and actively with the material. Separate streams for students with and without previous experience of studying the subject. 

The Economics summer course is both highly informative and great fun, offering a great way to either start learning economics or to further your knowledge. It’s also a great way to meet other like-minded people who you get to know really well. Overall, the course is a great way to spend a week in summer and gives a taste of less formal learning. 

In addition to these highlighted courses, we also offer courses in English Literature, History, Philosophy, International Relations, Politics, Physics, Mathematics and Dentistry.

Bursaries 

Debate Chamber is committed to ensuring that financial circumstances do not prevent any student from attending our events. Students can apply for bursaries covering up to 95% of the course fee through our website. 

How can my students attend?

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2020. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

You can find full details of schedules, dates, costs, student reviews and tutors at https://debatechamber.com/summerschools/

To book a place please visit www.debatechamber.com/summerschools/, call us on 0800 810 1058, or email info@debatechamber.com. Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis. 

When offering careers guidance, are you listening to what your students want?

In 2018, over 16,000 students across the UK told us about their careers aspirations and how they access careers information. In our annual survey of school and college students, we found out that:

  • Over 80% of students feel as if they have little to no information about apprenticeships
  • 45% of students want more career workshops while at school/college
  • 71% of students want to go to university and 32% of them made this decision in primary school

We use our findings to help schools/colleges better understand the decision-making process of their students, and hence support them better with regards to careers. We provide a free bespoke report to our partners detailing:

  • How well-prepared your students are for the labour market
  • Regional and national benchmarks with other schools/colleges
  • Students’ assessment of the careers advice they receive
  • How your students would like to access careers information

In addition, it is something that can be used as a career’s guidance measuring tool in accordance with The Gatsby Benchmark.

We also work with employers to help them understand students’ views on their career options. Employers will use the insight to further improve and tailor their early careers programmes for different student groups and engage with schools/colleges in a more meaningful way.

We would really appreciate the chance to work with your school/college to make sure your pupils’ opinions and perceptions are accurately represented in the national context. All you need to do is encourage your students to take part by directing them to this link: https://bit.ly/2GPdrR9 (you can even try it out yourself!).

If you would like to receive more information about this study, please contact Bethany Appiah bethany.appiah@trendence.co.uk/ 02076547242

Career 101: Could a Graphic Design Role Work for You?

Is a career in graphic design your ultimate dream job? For many people it is as it invites those with an artistic flair to express themselves creatively every day in their workplace role. So, how do you determine the type of design role to go after and what’s the best route to secure a job in this sector?

Together with Where The Trade Buys, retailers of professionally printed correx signs, let’s explore the subject more in the guide below.

There are many design roles out there… choose one that best suit you
Designers are sought after in a range of industries, from marketing agencies to illustration companies. It’s true that you could find yourself in any sector, but what roles are out there?

A role in branding
Design is a big part of branding for many companies. It helps them project their message to a target market and create a memorable brand image. Some companies have design teams in-house and others outsource to marketing and design agencies. It’s down to you to decide which environment you think you’d enjoy most. In an agency role for example, you could be working with a variety of businesses and projects all at one. As part of an in-house team, you’d work solely with that brand.

How does a branding project work? Here, you’d work closely with the company to determine target markets and talk about how the brand can be best represented visually.

A role in typography
What is a typographer? These people are trained in the design of type and lettering, another important part of creating visuals. As you’re probably aware, a logo or the typography of a company can become widely recognisable by customers — take Coca Cola for example.

This type of role appeals to people who are interested in lettering styles and getting creative with words. This is quite a niche area, therefore many designers specialise in this alongside other areas of design.

A role in editorial design
Editorial design is the process of designing magazines books and newspapers — for both online and offline publications. This type of design requires an eye for composition, layout and aesthetically pleasing typography.To succeed as an editorial designer, you should have the following qualities:
• The ability to recognise attractive content
• Understand what the reader wants to see on the page
• Be skilled in the layout of images and content

A role in illustration
A common role for illustrators is a job in animation. Or, you might find yourself in a company role who require illustrations to spread their brand message or inform their audience.

As an illustrator you might find yourself:
• Designing posters
• Creating storyboards
• Producing images for books and book covers
• Designing merchandise products
• Getting involved with film and cartoon creation
• Video game and app design

Some illustrators become specialised too in subjects such as science, technology and medicine. Here, they create imagery for text books and material to help readers understand the subject.

These jobs are only a selection of what you could be exposed to as a designer. Conduct plenty of research to find the job that you’re most interested in.

Studying and work experience
Although a lot of design roles are about your creativity, there are some things you can do in terms of work experience and studying.
The first thing to consider is a university degree, perhaps in graphic design. Each course is different, depending on the university but most of them cover the following topics:
• The influences of graphic design
• Styles of typography
• How branding and design comes together

To get accepted onto an undergraduate course like this, you’re often asked to bring a portfolio of your work. Through an Art and Design related GCSE or A-level you can start to discover your own style and use the work to create a portfolio for the future.

Gaining some work experience can come in handy too. Why not get in touch with a local design agency or local business? If you don’t mind working unpaid, it’s likely that businesses will take you up on your offer. During university, take the opportunity to do a year in industry too. You’ll hopefully learn more about the industry you’re most interested in and can gain some extra experience to add to your CV!

How to break into fashion as a clothing designer

Working in fashion is a dream for many people — some have a creative flair when it comes to clothing and others aspire to learn the workings behind creating a garment. But how do you land a job in this field? Is there any preparation you can do to better your chances of landing this sort of role?

Retailers of men’s blazers and other menswear essentials, QUIZMAN and retailers of maxi dresses Quiz Clothing give us their top tips for breaking into the industry:

The UK fashion industry

Globally, the fashion industry is worth 2% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and between 2006 and 2016, it grew steadily at 5.5% annually, despite economic turmoil. With this growth, comes a range of employment opportunities. In the UK, around 555,000 people are employed in fashion, textiles and fashion retail. And, with the growth of online usage by consumers, more opportunities have become available for people to get involved in the industry remotely.

One key role in the industry is a clothing designer.

What does a clothing designer do?

As the title suggests, the main role of a clothing designer is to create designs for garments before they go to production. There are a range of industries that you could work in; high fashion, designer ready-to-wear fashion, high-street fashion, children’s wear or costume designer. The role of a costume designer is different as it’s the creation of looks for TV, film and theatre. This might involve designing pieces from scratch or pulling together outfits from a costume wardrobe. You may find a niche that you focus on too such as menswear, hats or accessories.

Being a fashion designer is a fast-paced and demanding role. Many designers work against a set of design instructions called a brief — this might have been set by the creative director or the party that is going to sell the garments and it’s their requirements for the design.

Naturally, you need to be able to create fashion sketches and technical drawings. This could be by hand or through computer aided design. Not only is this useful for those who might be buying your goods, but it’s essential for the manufacturers who must have accurate measurements to work against.

A creative eye will help you produce concept and mood boards. These are arrangements of images, materials, patterns and pieces of text that create a collage that can be presented to others. Mood boards can represent the theme of a design collection or one garment and it represents your inspiration behind the piece. If you are pitching a collection to a potential seller, this will help them get an idea of the type of clothing that you produce and see if it’s in line with their own brand.

You’ll also be required to do some budgeting. This is to estimate costs for materials and manufacturers and you may have to negotiate with suppliers to try and gain a better price. Many fashion designers have budgets to work against and this can also be a constraint to their creativity.

A big part of a fashion designers’ role is to spot and forecast trends. This might be trends in styles, colours and prints. Designers then need to be able to replicate these popular styles in their own work.

Although it can be a stressful role, it can also be highly rewarding to see your designs come to life. Think you’re up to the challenge? What grades and experience do you need to succeed?

Relevant subjects to study and work experience

There are some things that you can do to further your chances of becoming a fashion designer.

Studying Design, Textiles and Fashion related subjects are all good ways of building up your knowledge in the field. These subjects will also build your experience of technical drawings and fashion sketches, whilst developing your understanding of style and design.

Higher education qualifications such as an undergraduate degree will be helpful too. Courses at different universities vary but you will find degrees related to fashion design at many universities. Related topics such as fashion marketing, buying, graphic design and textiles would be useful too.

There are apprenticeships available in fashion too. You may start out as a design assistant and learn the workings of the trade before progressing yourself. This is a great way to gain hands on experience without full-time education.

Build up a portfolio of your work. This could be mood boards that you’ve made, technical drawings, or photographs of pieces that you’ve created. Many colleges, universities and employees will ask for these as you go through your career so it’s a good idea to start creating one as soon as possible.

The sector is very competitive when it comes to jobs so make sure that you’re networking when you can and meeting people in the industry. Try and get work experience in studios or workshop where you can so that you can understand what goes on in these spaces and talk confidently about it to future employees.

 

Sources

https://fashionunited.com/global-fashion-industry-statistics

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/the-state-of-fashion

https://fashionunited.uk/uk-fashion-industry-statistics

There is one issue that is at the very heart of most job applications. 

 Unfortunately, most students don’t know what it is.

Many young people preparing to enter a workplace for the first time assume they know which skills and attributes employers are looking for.   Unfortunately, in making this assumption, those young people make a grave mistake.

As a result, the way in which the applicant presents him/herself is one which is likely to lead to a rejection.  As a result, applicants can come to see employers as out of touch with the modern world, while the employers see applicants as out of touch with the needs of business.

At the heart of the matter is what are often called “emotional and social competencies”; what are more commonly known as “people skills”.  For many employers have come to realise that generally only about one third of the difference between an excellent employee and an average employee relates to technical skills and cognitive ability.

The rest of the difference between a highly effective employee and an average employee comes in the form of these emotional and social competencies.

Which raises the question, how can we show students who are starting on the journey to employment, what employers are looking for?  In effect, how can they express their social and emotional competencies to those who might give them a job?

The first step must be for the student to understand his/her own social and emotional competencies. Which is why Belbin has produced GetSet – a way of helping students find out about themselves in relation to what employers tend to look for.

GetSet is a set of questionnaires that school students can complete on-line and which generate a detailed set of reports revealing the student’s strengths.  As a result, the students can best present themselves in applications to higher education and to employers.

To help you see how GetSet works, we are happy to offer you or one of your students the chance to take the GetSet questionnaire yourself at no cost or obligation. Then if you feel it would be helpful, you can arrange for the questionnaire to be made available to those students whom you nominate.

To find out more, and to arrange for one or more students to take the on line test and receive a full report, please do visit our website where you will find full details.

Or if you have any questions, please email getset@belbin.com or phone 01223 264975.

Making students more engaged

Research suggests that actively engaged students do best at school.  But how do we encourage students to become more engaged?

Engagement in terms of schooling is defined as the personal ingredient that actively helps individual students reach their full potential.  Put simply, without engagement it is harder for students to make the most of their talents and their opportunities.

In this regard the results of The Gallup® Student Poll make interesting reading.  For this survey has, for many years, been measuring the levels of student engagement, a measure which relates to involvement in and enthusiasm for school.

This survey includes amongst its findings the fact that engaged students are over four times as likely as their actively disengaged peers to be hopeful about the future.

Which raises an interesting point.  A realistically hopeful person is quite obviously more likely to succeed in any quest than a person who travels with no hope of success.

Thus, if engagement is a clear measure of hope for the future, how do we ensure that our students are “engaged” with school life rather than be found in Gallup’s alternative categories of “not engaged” and “actively disengaged.”

One possible solution is to take one’s students who appear from everyday observation to be “not engaged” or “actively disengaged” and help them to understand that, despite their current vision of school, they do have a number of positive attributes and opportunities.

This interesting journey towards a different view of life is made available by GetSet from Belbin; a questionnaire-based way of helping students find out about their own strengths and talents.  Something that can help them find a more positive expression of who and what they are – and indeed what they could become in the future.

To help you see the value that can be gained from this approach, we are very happy to offer you or one of your students the chance to take the GetSet questionnaire yourself at no cost or obligation.

To apply for a free questionnaire please click here – click “contact us” at the top of the page and write “a free one please” in the box.

To read more about GetSet please do look at our website: www.belbingetset.com .   Or if you have any questions please email getset@belbin.com or phone 01223 264975.

Lisa Ward

Information reproduced with kind permission of Gallup. More information on the 2016 Gallup student poll can be found at: http://news.gallup.com/reports/210995/6.aspx

There is one issue that is at the very heart of most job applications.

Unfortunately, most students don’t know what it is.

Many young people preparing to enter a workplace for the first time assume they know which skills and attributes employers are looking for.   Unfortunately, in making this assumption, those young people make a grave mistake.

As a result, the way in which the applicant presents him/herself is one which is likely to lead to a rejection.  As a result, applicants can come to see employers as out of touch with the modern world, while the employers see applicants as out of touch with the needs of business.

At the heart of the matter is what are often called “emotional and social competencies”; what are more commonly known as “people skills”.  For many employers have come to realise that generally only about one third of the difference between an excellent employee and an average employee relates to technical skills and cognitive ability.

The rest of the difference between a highly effective employee and an average employee comes in the form of these emotional and social competencies.

Which raises the question, how can we show students who are starting on the journey to employment, what employers are looking for?  In effect, how can they express their social and emotional competencies to those who might give them a job?

The first step must be for the student to understand his/her own social and emotional competencies. Which is why Belbin has produced GetSet – a way of helping students find out about themselves in relation to what employers tend to look for.

GetSet is a set of questionnaires that school students can complete on-line and which generate a detailed set of reports revealing the student’s strengths.  As a result, the students can best present themselves in applications to higher education and to employers.

To help you see how GetSet works, we are happy to offer you or one of your students the chance to take the GetSet questionnaire yourself at no cost or obligation. Then if you feel it would be helpful, you can arrange for the questionnaire to be made available to those students whom you nominate.

To apply for a free questionnaire for yourself or one of your students, please click here – click the contact us at the top of the page and write ‘a free one please’ in the box. To read more about GetSet, please do look at our website here www.belbingetset.com. Or if you have any questions, please email getset@belbin.com or phone 01223 264975.

Lisa Ward

“What is the single greatest asset that a teenager can have?” A free report.

There was a time when looking neat and tidy was considered to be of prime importance for any teenager when going to a job, college, or university interview.

Later there was a period when being able to offer coherent answers to standard interview questions such as, “Why do you want this job?” was thought to be particularly helpful.

And yes, there is still something to be said for both points of view.  But it is also true that in recent years many of those who are interviewing candidates for jobs, and those looking to offer places in further and higher education, have changed their stance.

Now there is a much greater tendency than ever before for interviewers to consider applicants in terms of much deeper and more fundamental personality traits.

It is true that many application forms and interviews invite the applicant to say something about him/herself.  Others give this more depth by providing a touch of context as in, “How do you think you’d get on working in a team?”

But in a very real sense that is a trick question.  A trick because it invites the answer, “I think I am very much a team player; I listen to others and I’m able to contribute when appropriate.”

Such an answer sounds absolutely right – which is why applicants give it – yet increasingly it is exactly the answer that causes employers and admissions tutors to reject an applicant.

For increasingly they are NOT looking for a generalised belief that one is a team player, but rather for people who already know what they would bring to a team situation.

This transition in requirement is catching many applicants out, and for this reason Belbin has produced a new, free, report for tutors of school leavers, which deals with the issue of Team Roles – the topic that has become of prime importance to many who consider applications from school leavers.

If you would like a free copy of this report please email lisa@belbin.com and write “A teenager’s greatest asset report” in the subject line and we will send it back to you at once.  There is no charge, and absolutely no obligation, and I’ll be happy to hear from you with any questions you may have.

You can also read more about Belbin and our work at www.belbingetset.com.

I look forward to hearing from you

Lisa Ward

How can an individual student most readily reach his/her full potential?

There is a conundrum here: how does any of us know what our full potential is?  How do we know which subject will be the one that will allow us to shine?  How do we know which job we would enjoy the most; which profession we would be the most successful in?

Furthermore, the world of work is increasingly focussed on teams of people working together.  As a result employers are not looking for hard-working all-rounders, but for people who can bring something particular to the team.

They want the brilliantly creative (but annoyingly forgetful) person, working alongside one who methodically evaluates all the options and then makes rapid judgements.  The specialist inevitably overloading everyone with too much information working alongside the implementer who picks the key points, plans the strategy, and makes it happen.

Thus employers do indeed need perfectionists who will painstakingly work through the matter at hand to weed out the errors.  But they also need the free thinkers who can suddenly come up with previously unimagined solutions to problems within the company.

As a result the people who get the exciting jobs are the ones who can identify themselves correctly within the multiplicity of roles that organisations now have.  The old days of being able to write a catch all CV which focuses on exam results and says, “I’m hard working, a team player, reliable and practical, but also creative…”  are long gone

GetSet from Belbin is a questionnaire-based approach to helping students find out about their own strengths and talents.

To help you see the value that can be gained from completing the survey, we are very happy to offer you the chance to take the GetSet questionnaire yourself at no cost or obligation.

Then, if you feel it would be helpful to your students you can arrange for the questionnaire to be made available to those students whom you nominate.

To apply for a free questionnaire for yourself or one of your students please click here – click  the contact us at the top of the page and write ‘a free one please’ in the box. To read more about GetSet please do look at our website here www.belbingetset.com .   Or if you have any questions please email getset@belbin.com or phone 01223 264975.

Lisa Ward

What are extra effective ways of helping your students achieve their university ambitions?

Now that the A Level and GCSE results are known, many of your students will be seeking your help with the new term’s subject choices or changes to their university ambitions. Education Advisers Ltd can offer services to supplement your help to such students and their parents. For example :

  1. We have produced an online library of university advice sources , which is available free of charge to schools to paste onto their own school extranets or intranets – simply ask us for details
  2. We have detailed free eguides on applying to medical school or art school
  3. For those students whose GCSE grades fell below expectations, we have alternative solutions with schools or colleges offering BTECs
  4. There has been an upsurge in interest in Foundation Programmes, which are shorter than A Levels. Although primarily aimed at International students we can sometimes place UK nationals onto such courses
  5. We can advise on alternative university courses for those whose grades necessitate a direction change
  6. We can arrange specialist private tuition at home to facilitate retakes for those needing to improve GCSE grades, while still continuing with A Levels at school.

For more information on how we can help specific individual students, go to http://www.educationadvisers.co.uk/services-for-schools-school-referrals or better still phone Mary, Duncan or Ryan on 01622 813870 or 01603 812852

Whatever the situation, remember there is always a solution and always an alternative. We are happy to help you explore the best available options. Education Advisers Ltd are independent and impartial school choice consultants and our 12 websites advise more than 1 million parents/students per annum

What is the one thing that more than any other helps students make the right choice upon leaving school?

It is curious to think that there might be one action a student can take which, on its own, can dramatically raise a student’s chances of getting on the course that is exactly right for that student.

Such an action, if it could be found, could not only enhance the student’s prospect of success both now and in later life, but also reduce the likelihood of the student taking the wrong turn and then dropping out of a course or resigning from a job.

But what could that one action be?

The key to answering this question comes from the observation that the course will always go to the candidate who is most aware of his/her strengths and can express that awareness in a meaningful and potent way.

In short, if the students you work with really don’t know where their own strengths lie, they could take a wrong turning at this moment in their lives, simply because they have not realised who they are and where their real strengths lie.

And this is a major problem for many students today.  For, because of the speed of change and the pressure of social media it is far easier for students to misunderstand their own strengths and weaknesses.

It thus becomes very easy for them to take a decision based on a completely false belief in who and what they are.

GetSet from Belbin is a way of helping students find out about their own strengths and talents.  It helps students learn about their own aptitudes so they can gain access to the right course and right employment both now and in the future.

In this way GetSet builds confidence in the students and helps them decide where they should be taking their lives.

GetSet is a set of questionnaires that school students can complete on-line and which generate a detailed set of reports as to where the student’s strengths lie and what work and study might be appropriate.

To help you see the value that can be gained from completing the survey, we are very happy to offer you the chance to take the GetSet questionnaire yourself at no cost or obligation. Then if you feel it would be helpful to your students you can arrange for the questionnaire to be made available to those students whom you nominate.

To apply for a free questionnaire for yourself or one of your students please click here – click  the contact us at the top of the page and write ‘a free one please’ in the box. To read more about GetSet please do look at our website here www.belbingetset.com.  Or if you have any questions please email getset@belbin.com or phone 01223 264975.

What is the most effective way of helping your students who don’t get the exam grades they expected?

There are, of course, many possible solutions for underperforming students, but what has made some solutions more interesting is the rapid growth in the number of choices that the private school / college sector have recently introduced, including those with substantial discounts. For example:

We are placing an increasing number of students into schools which offer vocational  BTECS if it is considered their GCSE grades are too low to justify progression to A Levels. Alternatively there are similar opportunities Foundation Programmes. Although most are aimed at International students we can also get UK nationals onto some of these programmes

We can arrange specialist private tuition at home to facilitate retakes for those needing to improve GCSE grades, while still continuing with A Levels at school.

For students with medical degree ambitions but whose GCSE grades were B or less, there are specialist medic, dental and veterinary courses for sixth formers  (ask for our free eguide)

We can advise on alternative university courses for those whose grades necessitate a direction change.

For more information on how we can help specific individual students, go to http://www.educationadvisers.co.uk/services-for-schools-school-referrals or better still phone Mary, Duncan or Ryan on 01622 813870 or 01603 812852

Whatever the situation, remember there is always a solution and always an alternative. We are happy to help you explore the best available options. Education Advisers Ltd are independent and impartial school choice consultants and our 12 websites advise more than 1 million parents/students per annum

P.S We are offering to schools free of charge our online library of university advice sources, which you can then make available to your students, their parents and of course your own staff – just ask.

Summer Schools 2017 – Last Places Available

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 11-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes. It is an environment conducive to getting to grips with new ideas.

Working in small groups (usually around 14 students per group) over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

Highlights of Summer 2017:

The International Relations Summer School will introduce the central theories involved in the academic study of IR – realism, liberalism, constructivism and Marxism – and will then look at a range of detailed case studies in order to apply, test and explore these theories. Topics covered will include military intervention, international law, development aid, feminism and foreign policy, regional sessions looking at China and the Middle East, and the European response to the migration crisis.

The Law Summer School, in three distinct five-day Parts to allow time for more cases, more analysis and more debate on some of the most intriguing legal questions. Students can choose to focus on Criminal & Family Law, Civil Law or International and Human Rights Law. Each course builds towards a Mock Trial in which students play the role of barristers, build their case from the evidence, question witnesses and make speeches to the jury.

The Philosophy and Critical & Cultural Theory Summer Schools will look at some of the biggest questions in metaphysics, ethics and political theory, giving an opportunity to engage with the work of some fascinating thinkers, and also to develop students’ own skills of reasoning and argumentation.

For students interested in the Social Sciences or Humanities, we also have Summer Schools in Economics, Politics and History, while Arts enthusiasts should take a look at the English Literature, Classical Civilisations or Art History Summer Schools.

For aspiring scientists and mathematicians we also have the Physics, Mathematics and Medicine Summer Schools.

Practical Details:

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2017. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

You can find full details of schedules, dates, costs, student reviews and tutors at http://www.debatechamber.com/summerschools/.

To book a place on any course please visit www.debatechamber.com/summerschools/, call us on 0845 519 4827, or email info@debatechamber.com. Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

 

£300 worth of complimentary books and career resources for your school

We are contacting you regarding our free books for schools offer: http://www.BooksForEducation.co.uk.

How2Become Ltd, an award-winning careers and educational specialist, is currently working in partnership with over 100 schools, colleges and universities across the UK, including the University of Central Lancashire and the University of Kent, to provide free books and online testing of your choice for students and pupils looking to get a career.

To help your students get a job when they leave education, we are offering to send you £300 worth of FREE career resource books and free access to our online testing suites from the website How2Become.com.

Claim my free books >

There is no catch – over 100 schools have already taken up our offer – simply select £300 worth of books and we will send them to you (we even cover the postage costs); we are simply trying to grow the awareness of our books amongst students and teachers.

To take up this free offer, or to find out more, simply contact our education coordinator, Gemma Butler, at: g.butler.how2become@gmail.com

Full details of all our resources can be found at http://www.BooksForEducation.co.uk.

Kind regards,

Joshua Brown     Joshua Brown 
Operations Director
How2Become Ltd

www.how2become.com

Study Options

Australian and New Zealand University Open Days

On Friday 17 March and Saturday 18 March, Study Options will be holding Australian and New Zealand University Open Days. These are free information events aimed at students (and schools) who would like to find out more about university options in Australia and New Zealand.

Representatives from Australian and New Zealand universities will be present at the events to speak with prospective students in person. Study Options’ Open Days are held twice a year, in March and November, and are a great opportunity for students to get more information and talk to representatives from the universities face-to-face. For the majority of the universities, these are the only in-person events they undertake in the UK.

Which universities will be there?

New South Wales, Australia

Queensland, Australia

Victoria, Australia

Western Australia, Australia

North Island, New Zealand

  • Victoria University of Wellington (Wellington)

About the events

The Open Days are open to students, parents and schools. Please register for a place at www.studyoptionsopendays.com

Friday 17 March, 1.00pm-4.30pm

Council House, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B1 1BB

Saturday 18 March, 1.30-6.00pm

Australia House, Strand, London, WC2B 4LA

There is a lot more information available at www.studyoptionsopendays.com regarding venues, opening times and how to register. Please do let us know if you have any questions or if there is any further information we can provide.

Please note this is an information event designed for international students (students who do not hold citizenship or permanent residency for Australia or New Zealand and who will therefore require student visas in order to study in either country).

Contact Study Options with any questions about the events or for free information and advice about studying in Australia and New Zealand.

Contact Study Options

Website: www.studyoptions.com

Telephone: 0207 353 7200

Email: mail@studyoptions.com

FREE online platform aiming to reinvent careers education

Help your pupils develop the knowledge, skills, and experience needed to thrive in life after school 

It’s now widely recognised that young people are not being adequately prepared for the world of work as too many fail to see the purpose of education, become disengaged with their learning and do not develop the skills needed in the modern workplace. That’s why we set out on a journey to makes careers education more fun, engaging and meaningful for young people – and to show young people how their learning will be applied in exciting ways in life after school.

So we’re delighted to launch a new and improved version of Panjango – our virtual world of work which gamifies learning, links the curriculum to the real world and equips young people with the skills they need to fulfil their potential.

Panjango, which is free to use, now features 120 occupations and more than 1500 contextualised challenges covering the Key Stage 3 Maths, English and Science curriculum. Our new filtering system allows you to tailor your lessons and present the challenges most relevant to your class.

The resource has already received praise from some prominent people in the careers world. For example, Dr. Deirdre Hughes, former Chair of the National Careers Council England said, “Panjango is pushing the boundaries of career learning. The resource is fun and lively with a strong theoretical base supporting an innovative approach to lifelong career development.”

What makes Panjango different from others careers resources is that it directly links the school curriculum to work-related challenges, helping to give learning context and purpose. The challenges also help to develop the key competences young people will need in the modern world of work – all while enabling them to learn more about possible career paths.

Students who have been inspired to explore careers possibilities at an early stage in their secondary education are typically more motivated and focused in their lessons. Panjango aims inspire and excite students about careers from an earlier age, making them eager to engage in further careers activities as they progress through school.

To check out Panjango, register now for free at panjango.online. Thank you for joining us on our journey to reinvent careers education!

Jon & Joseph
Founders of Panjango

Newman University Update to to Contact Database

Newman University’s Education Liaison Team would like to keep you informed of the opportunities available to your students and staff and developments at the University. To ensure that your details on our database are correct, and in line with the Data Protection Act, we would be very grateful if you could take just a couple of minutes to complete the on-line consent form on the following link.

https://goo.gl/forms/E2mVjKC5fV3ikgOQ2

Newman’s philosophy focuses on producing graduates who are well prepared for developing successful careers. Newman has one of the best graduate employment rates of UK universities with over 95% of graduates in employment or further study within the first six months of graduating. This national recognition demonstrates Newman’s commitment to providing students with key skills and a deeper understanding of their discipline, so they can adjust to the challenges of the future and stand out from the crowd.

As part of our bespoke services, Newman University offers a range of talks, workshops and taster days that allow students to gain a full understanding of their options after Further Education. All of these provide quality advice and guidance regarding routes and pathways to Higher Education, coupled with opportunities to build upon life skills such as interview techniques and personal statement writing.

In addition to this, we also offer Open Days and CPD opportunities for staff such as Higher Education Advisors’ conferences.

If you would like to speak to me about how we can support your students, or would like more information about Newman University please do not hesitate to contact me on 0121 476 1181 ext 2207.

We look forward to working with you in the near future.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Amy Prentice
Senior Student Recruitment Officer

Summer Schools 2017 – Booking Now Open

The Debate Chamber Summer Schools offer students age 11-18 the opportunity to find out more about some fascinating subjects, prepare for university applications, meet like-minded peers and get to grips with some tough intellectual challenges.

The material will be challenging (for the older age-group, about the level of difficulty one might expect in the first year at university), but the atmosphere will be relaxed, with plenty of discussion, debate, and opportunities for students to shape the direction of classes. It is an environment conducive to getting to grips with new ideas.

Working in small groups (usually around 14 students per group) over several days offers participants a real chance to get to know tutors and fellow students and to explore the topics or questions that particularly interest them.

Highlights of Summer 2017:

The Medicine Summer School for students aged 15-18 comprises a series of two-day events with specialist sessions on cardiology, paediatrics, oncology, emergency medicine and many other topics – enabling students to attend a wide-ranging introduction or select the sessions most relevant to their interests.

The Summer Law School for 15-18s, in three distinct five-day Parts to allow time for more cases, more analysis and more debate on some of the most intriguing legal questions. Students can choose to focus on Criminal Law, Civil Law or International Law, or to attend all three Parts for a comprehensive introduction to legal study.

Our Physics Summer School is now in two separate five-day events, with Part One being relatively maths-light and open to all students from 15 upwards, and Part Two more mathematically focused, and reserved for students who will have completed AS Level (or equivalent) Maths by Summer 2017.

For keen Mathematicians we also have the Maths Summer School, which is a five-day course open to students who will have completed Maths AS level or equivalent by Summer 2017.

For those interested in the Humanities, we have Summer Schools in Economics, International Relations, History, and Politics, while Arts enthusiasts should check out the English Literature, Classical Civilisations, Art History, Critical and Cultural Theory, or Philosophy Summer Schools (all for students aged 15-18).

Last but not least, we also have a smaller number of courses available for younger students (ages 11-14) in Law, Medicine, Creative Writing and Science subjects.

Practical Details:

All the Summer School events will be held at University of London venues in Bloomsbury, Central London, and will take place in July and August 2017. Please note that these courses are not residential, and accommodation must be arranged independently if required.

You can find full details of schedules, dates, costs, student reviews and tutors at http://www.debatechamber.com/summerschools/.

There is a limited amount of bursary funding available for students who would otherwise have financial difficulty in attending – please see our website for details.

To book a place please visit www.debatechamber.com/summerschools/, call us on 0845 519 4827, or email info@debatechamber.com. Places will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

As a Careers Advisor how can you ensure that you are offering your autistic students the additional resources and support that they require?

According to the Office of National Statistics there is a year-on-year increase of the number of disabled people in work, not least due to a heightened awareness of the resources and support that young people with a disability require to help them into employment.

Indeed, just one way in which you can help your autistic students to prepare for employment is with the Work Experience Activity Pack by SEN Press.

The Work Experience Activity Pack contains a wealth of information, support and resources about what to expect when undertaking work experience and how to demonstrate good work etiquette in an array of situations they are likely to find themselves in.

Not only has the Activity Pack’s content been specifically designed to respond to the way in which students with autism typically view the world, but it will also respond to their learning needs – it has been designed for older students (16+) with a reading age of around seven.

The Work Experience Activity Pack approaches the subject through a series of six student reading books, each focussed on a particular work setting, ranging from an animal charity to a fast-food restaurant, from a garage to a supermarket.

The six reading books, each of which builds upon the themes of the series (time keeping, showing respect, and so on) are accompanied by a set of copiable worksheets and teachers’ resources, supplied in spiral-bound format for easy use.

The teachers’ resources also include around 100 A4 pages of additional resources including keyword flashcards, word searches, and spot the difference pictures.

Finally the pack also includes a CD rom which has a set of eBooks and whiteboard resources. These include real voice audio tracks of the eBook versions of the readers and a wide range of interactive activities so that the students can practise the life skills introduced.

The complete set of resources containing two copies of each of the six readers, the complete teacher book, and the CD Rom is available for £139 plus VAT.  Individual elements from the pack are also available separately.

For further information, please click here.

Alternatively, please email info@senpress.co.uk or call 01582 833205.

Janie Nicholas

Exceptional Resources for Careers Advisors

Exceptional Banner - Bigger

First and Best in Education

What Employers Want and Expect – looks at the attitude of employers to young employees and the new demands that employers are placing on staff.

101 Ways to be Successful at Job and College Interviews – enables your students to prepare thoroughly for first job or college interviews and will help them to manage any nerves.

A Student’s Guide to Auditioning for Drama School – help your students work towards achieving that desired place at Drama School.

Making the Next Transition – a guide to post 16 options – a copiable volume (available both on CD and in printed format) that can be used by both students and parents to help them make the right decisions for now, and understand the long term implications of those decisions.

The Work Experience Manual – includes information on finding placements, liaising with the company, student notes which allow those going on placements to be properly prepared, a record book showing the placement’s activities, and a wide range of actions and activities that should be considered after the work experience is over.

Email: sales@firstandbest.co.uk
Telephone:
01536 399007
Postal address:
Hamilton House Mailings Ltd, Earlstrees Ct, Earlstrees Rd, Corby, Northants, NN17 4HH

……………………………………………………………………………

UniTasterDays

Search Taster Day Events – helps careers advisors to discover an array of events to book students on to, such as university and college taster days, workshops, residentials, open days, outreach events and widening participation opportunities.

Email: info@unitasterdays.com
Telephone:
+44(0)208 798 0982

……………………………………………………………………………

ZigZag Education

Careers Teaching Resources – publishers of photocopiable and digital teaching resources for schools.

Email: sales@ZigZagEducation.com
Telephone:
0117 950 3199
Postal address:
ZigZag Education, Unit 3, Greenway Business Centre, Doncaster Road, Bristol, BS10 5PY

……………………………………………………………………………

You can find more Exceptional Teaching resources at exceptionalteaching.org.uk.

How can you help students, who find writing a CV an intimidating task, to write a CV?

HR Review has reported on the results of a survey created by Barclays LifeSkills which has revealed that 60% of young people in the UK find compiling a CV  an intimidating task.

So intimidating, in fact, that 39% avoid writing one altogether.

One reason for this is that a high proportion of students do not yet know which career path to pursue and thus find it difficult to create something for an end goal that doesn’t yet exist.

Nonetheless, by issuing your students with a Record of Achievement file in which they can record all that they have achieved thus far, your students will have something to base their CV on, making the task of writing their CV much less daunting.

School Smart regularly supply schools with customised Record of Achievement files.  Please see below product description:

Classic Record of Achievement (from £2.25) – A4 polypropylene files containing quality A4 plastic wallets with your school name and logo and the wording ‘Record of Achievement’ on the front in either gold or silver print. Choice of 10 or 20-pockets. Available colours – Black, Blue, Red, Green.  Further details can be viewed on our website

Click here to request a sample Record of Achievement file

If you have any questions or would like to place an order

I look forward to hearing from you.

Jonathan Layton

Grofar gets even better!

!cid_c14a3b9b0e0e6aeb9e2954faf37d4f79The summer holidays may be just around the corner, but we’re still working hard to make Grofar even better for your school.  As well as many other exciting improvements, Grofar can now create Student Entitlement Statements using the same wizard driven templates that are used in the Grofar Career Plan creator. Read more in our latest blog post.

Schools using Grofar have been impressed by how much time they are saving and how routine tasks are now so much easier to manage.

  • The leading MIS system designed just for Careers Leaders, Managers and Administrators
  • Everything in one place
  • Saves time on administration
  • Put yourself in control – use as many of the tools as you like
  • Engage your students and monitor progress
  • Evidence for Leadership Team & OFSTED
  • Achieve Gatsby “Good Careers Guidance” report benchmarks
  • Easily generate a career plan for your school
  • Affordable – starting from £495 p.a.

If you would like to start benefiting from the Grofar Careers Management solution, then please contact us before the summer term ends. Visit www.grofar.com or email info@grofar.com to start your FREE no obligation trial.

We hope to hear from you soon, but in case we don’t, have a great summer.

Yours sincerely,

James Robertson

Managing Director – Grofar

Download your free ‘Getting into Medical School’ student guide

Applying for a degree program can be a challenging experience, particularly for aspiring medical students. Although there are over 170 medical schools in the US, competition is fierce for every single one of them. Make sure your students are the ones that stand-out on their applications by passing on this email so they can download their free copy of our Getting into Medical School guide today.

Click here to download your free copy of ‘Getting into Medical School’ student guide.

I also wanted to let you know that Gap Medics now offer six new program types to inspire your future healthcare professionals.

Alongside our popular medicine, nursing, midwifery and dentistry internships, we now offer:

•          EMT / Paramedic
•          Radiography
•          Physical Therapy
•          Laboratory Science 
•          Physician Assistant
•          Community Healthcare

There are only a few spaces left on our hospital shadowing programs this summer! Any students who would like to join us for a short-term hospital shadowing internship in 2016 is encouraged to get in touch as soon as possible so they don’t miss out.

We offer group bookings as well as individual placements so if you would like to find out more about how Gap Medics can help your future healthcare professionals to achieve their dreams, give us a call on our toll free number below or email info@gapmedics.com

Have a great day,

Lauren
Marketing Manager

Gap Medics – Launching medical careers
Baltic Place
South Shore Road
Gateshead
Tyne and Wear
NE8 3AE
United Kingdom

US toll-free: 1844-340-4576
www.gapmedics.co.uk | .com | .com.au

Exceptional Resources for Careers Advisors

Exceptional Banner - Bigger

First and Best in Education

What Employers Want and Expect – looks at the attitude of employers to young employees and the new demands that employers are placing on staff.

101 Ways to be Successful at Job and College Interviews – enables your students to prepare thoroughly for first job or college interviews and will help them to manage any nerves.

A Student’s Guide to Auditioning for Drama School – help your students work towards achieving that desired place at Drama School.

Making the Next Transition – a guide to post 16 options – a copiable volume (available both on CD and in printed format) that can be used by both students and parents to help them make the right decisions for now, and understand the long term implications of those decisions.

The Work Experience Manual – includes information on finding placements, liaising with the company, student notes which allow those going on placements to be properly prepared, a record book showing the placement’s activities, and a wide range of actions and activities that should be considered after the work experience is over.

Email: sales@firstandbest.co.uk
Telephone:
01536 399007
Postal address:
Hamilton House Mailings Ltd, Earlstrees Ct, Earlstrees Rd, Corby, Northants, NN17 4HH

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

UniTasterDays

Search Taster Day Events – helps careers advisors to discover an array of events to book students on to, such as university and college taster days, workshops, residentials, open days, outreach events and widening participation opportunities.

Email: info@unitasterdays.com
Telephone:
+44(0)208 798 0982

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

ZigZag Education

Careers Teaching Resources – publishers of photocopiable and digital teaching resources for schools.

Email: sales@ZigZagEducation.com
Telephone:
0117 950 3199
Postal address:
ZigZag Education, Unit 3, Greenway Business Centre, Doncaster Road, Bristol, BS10 5PY

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

You can find more Exceptional Teaching resources at exceptionalteaching.org.uk

‘University Entrance: a parent’s guide to UCAS and more’

by Jonathan Watts & Cora Saint, Price: £19.99

15% discount code – ucas15

Whilst your sixth formers are grappling with summer exams, many of their parents are already looking ahead to the next hurdle – the university application.

Clued up parents realise the summer will be an essential time for their teenager to polish up their CV, start drafting personal statements, and make final decisions about which universities to apply to, and for what courses.

University Entrance: A parent’s guide to UCAS and more’ is a new guide for parents explaining every step of the university application process together with how, and when, parents can offer useful and supportive advice. 

John McParland, Principal, The John Wallis Church of England Academy, says,

“This book will guide parents to help their children make the correct choice of career path, and to be successful in their UCAS application.  I would recommend all schools and colleges with a sixth form to place multiple copies of this book in their libraries.”

With step by step advice about every aspect of applying to university the guide is packed with practical advice for parents and students, including:

  • What is UCAS?  Key dates in the application year
  • What makes an applicant look good on paper?
  • 10 Do’s & Don’ts for a great personal statement
  • Ways to boost your CV
  • How important is choosing the right subject?
  • What to expect in an interview?
  • Preparing to apply for Oxbridge
  • Preparing to apply for Medicine

The guide also doesn’t hesitate to tell parents when to ‘stand down’, and not to try write their teenager’s personal statement!

To order copies using the discount code please click here.

Please pass the discount code and web link – ucas15 – onto your parents.

To see the full range of The Parent Brief books visit www.theparentbrief.com

For more information please email: info@theparentbrief.com or call 01983301144

“Came by Ship” Photographic and Essay Competitions:

Encourage your pupils to enter for their chance to win an Apple iPad,
Kindle, camera or
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom software

Two fun, exciting and free easy-to-enter competitions which aim to expand pupil’s knowledge of shipping and inspire them to think about career opportunities within the maritime sector.

The Photographic and Essay competitions provide a great opportunity for pupils to use a combination of their creativity and STEM skills, as well as their knowledge of Geography, History and English to create a unique story or photograph that encapsulates what ‘Came by SHIP’ means to them.

For the Essay Competition pupils are required to write about anything with a connection to ships or ports, perhaps relating to the movement of ‘goods’ or the story of something that has been shipped.

Essays from pupils aged 11 and under should be 250 words in length, and essays from pupils aged between 12 and 18 should be 500 words in length.

The Photographic Competition requires pupils to take a photo with a smartphone or camera to capture something that encapsulates ‘Came by Ship’. Again, there are two entry groups for this competition – pupils aged 11 and under and pupils aged between 12 and 18.

Both competitions are now officially open for entries and will close on 30 June 2016, with a formal award of prizes later on in the year.

You can find teacher notes and more information about the competitions for pupils aged 11 and under by clicking here. And for teacher notes and information about the competitions for pupils aged between 12 and 18, click here.

Seavision has also compiled a number of facts about shipping and other teaching material which can provide a great introduction to the topic, such as “Did you know a container ship travels the equivalent of three-quarters of the way to the moon and back in one year during its regular travel across the oceans.” and “Around 20 million containers are on the move at any one time.” Seavision also offers free educational short courses where pupils can sign up to learn about seafarers, amazing containers and naval dispatches. See here – http://www.seavision.org.uk/voyages/engineering

Please do pass this email onto your colleagues if you think they might be interested and you can find more information about how to enter your pupils into the “Came by Ship” photographic and essay competitions at http://www.seavision.org.uk/competitions/

What is the most effective advice you can give to a student on how to succeed at a university application?

You can correct in class and give hints and tips, such as:

  • Be prepared
  • Don’t waffle  
  • Be positive
  • Develop rapport
  • Remember your manners

But, unfortunately, you cannot be there to correct at the time.

We all know that when put on the spot and in nerve-racking circumstances all the advice we had stored in our heads of the ‘do’s’ and ‘don’ts’ can quite easily vanish out of our minds, and we start doing all those forbidden ‘must nots’ like biting nails, tapping out drum beats, and generally making a fool of ourselves.

This is one instance where the old-fashioned way is best. IPads and interviews: the two don’t mix.  If you’re busily scrolling through an iPad, you are unable to make meaningful eye contact. A personal connection will never be made.

So, why not help students to build a file of their achievements (hard-copy evidence) which they can present professionally and which can be an extremely helpful back-up at the time of their application?

How can we strengthen a CV to help students with university placements and employment opportunities?

It is becoming more and more competitive in the real world and after years of study how can we give students an advantage to help with the next chapter of their lives?

Flooglebinder offer structured placements that give students the opportunity to build a range of wider key skills which employers look for, such as: planning, preparation, communication skills, critical thinking, leaderships, adaptability and cultural awareness.

These programmes are also integrated into the curriculum and can incorporate a range of subjects including Science, Maths, Geography, History and Art, as well as higher more specialist subjects such as, Marine Biology, Anthropology, Zoology, Animal Behaviour, Animal Management and Ecology.

Whether students know what they would like to study or would like experience in these subject areas we can customise these trips to meet their objectives from basic field experience to data collection and research. Our study tour programmes are written to cater for the needs of the student outcomes and learning module objectives. We also offer x1 free teachers place for every 10 participating students.

We offer programmes in Borneo, Greece, India, Nepal, Thailand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, all of which have been tried and tested by us to offer students a secure and safe way to travel, develop and explore, whilst promoting the importance of sustainable travel.

The Flooglebinder team is made up of travel specialists, Marine Biologists, Animal Behaviour and Conservation Lecturers, Field Guides and Dive Masters. We would like to meet with you, and your students, to present Flooglebinder and discuss our amazing projects.

We looking forward to hearing from you.

Brad and Ian

Ian Taylor
Founder and Lecturer
Flooglebinder
2
Telephone: 0203 633 0163
Email info@flooglebinder.co.uk 

 

 

“Learning outside the classroom is a great way of helping pupils with SEN to reach their potential, and Ofsted are rather keen on it too”

Elaine Skates, Deputy Chief Executive of the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom

SEN Magazine reports on the results of a survey, conducted by TeacherVoice on behalf of the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom, revealing that 70% of teachers value LOtC over classroom teaching in terms of how effective it is at engaging different learning styles.

The article, entitled ‘Outside intervention’, reports that children with SEN typically learn best through doing, also known as kinaesthetic learning. However, this preferred learning style can sometimes be difficult to undertake effectively in the classroom.

It also highlights that in the school grounds and beyond there are more opportunities for pupils to undertake sensory learning which enables them to see, hear, smell, touch, and ultimately explore the world – encouraging pupils with SEN to “expand their horizons and become more alert and aware of the world around them.”

However learning outside the classroom doesn’t just support pupils in reaching their academic potential, but also support pupils with their personal development, particularly in terms of their confidence levels and communication skills.

Further to this, SEN Magazine states that LOtC is “relevant to demonstrating good/outstanding practice across all four areas of the Ofsted inspection framework”. However, evidence must be collected of such learning to achieve this, such as:

Attainment and achievement – examples of where LOtC can be directly linked to improved attainment.

Quality of teaching – proof that LOtC is well-planned and integrated into the curriculum with the aim of extending the knowledge, skills and understanding of pupils with different learning needs and abilities.

Behaviour and motivation – examples of how different learning environments increase your pupils’ motivation and encourage positive behaviours. It could be argued that LOtC promotes learning that improves pupils’ safety as they’re encouraged to manage risks themselves.

Leadership and management – clear documentation, including: LOtC in the school policy, LOtC evaluation (how has LOtC improved the quality of teaching and learning at the school?), and a development plan (how can LOtC be improve for the future?).

To get notifications of learning-outside-the-classroom activity and location ideas and more on information on how LOtC can be used to benefit your pupils’ learning and development, follow us on Twitter @MinibusLeasing or like our Facebook page – Benchmark Minibus.

For more information about Benchmark Leasing you can go to our website, call us on 01753 859944, or email minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk.

Link to article: https://senmagazine.co.uk/articles/articles/senarticles/outside-intervention-heling-pupils-wuth-sen-reach-their-potential-by-learning-outside-the-classroom 

What are we to make of the student who, at a job interview, checks her mobile for messages?

Most young people who enter the workplace for their first job, are, on day one, utterly bemused. 

Of course, to some degree they will be prepared, for they will have heard stories from parents, older siblings, friends who left school a year before…

Unfortunately, 95% of these stories will be at best irrelevant to the workplace they are entering or at worst utterly wrong in every regard.

For entering work is not just about the skills a young person brings to the job in hand.  It is also about the young person’s attitude. 

If the employer and the staff already in place treat the new employee as a responsible adult who is going to work hard for the company, and the young employee doesn’t realise that when a job is complete he/she should find out what to do next, there is already a significant misunderstanding of how to behave.

Indeed, knowing how to behave in the work place can be the most important issue on day one.  The issue reported in the headline above might look bizarre in the extreme, but it has been reported and is just one very graphic example of students simply not knowing how they are supposed to behave.

The problem is, however, that many employers have themselves not properly thought through how they are going to treat the newcomer.  Which is why it is vital for students to understand exactly what sort of situations they might encounter and what they can do about them.

What Employers Want and Expect deals with these issues, as well as with the new demands that employers, in this post-recession environment, are now placing on staff.

The book recognises that under current legislation, employers have an almost total right to dismiss employees who started work after April 2012 during the first two years of employment for any reason, and notes that the average time people now spend in a job is only two years and four months.

Which means, in fact, that around half of the working population have virtually no protection against dismissal without reason.

The book takes the view that in order to stay in work the vast majority of young employees must help themselves by being aware of the current needs and attitudes of employers.

The volume, which is fully copiable and so can be put on the school’s learning platform, copied to disk or photocopied, covers such issues as reliability, accuracy, punctuality, honesty, smoking, communication, written work, swearing, etc.

There is also a commentary concerning what one can write on social media.  As the book points out, many employers will check Facebook and other sites used by their employees to ensure that no one is saying anything amiss about the company that pays the wages. 

It is, in fact, essential reading for everyone going into a job for the first time.

The volume can be bought as a photocopiable book or on CD Rom.

You can see some sample pages at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/careers/T1798.pdf

Publisher’s reference: T1799EMN ISBN: 978 1 86083 895 8

Prices

  • Photocopiable report in a book, £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
  • CD with school-wide rights: £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
  • Both the book and the CD £26.94 plus £3.95 delivery

Prices include VAT.

You can purchase the report… please quote the order ref: T1798EMN

You can now follow us on Twitter and Facebook

£300 worth of complimentary books and career resources for your school

How2Become Ltd, an Award-Winning careers specialist, is currently working in partnership with a number of universities and schools, including the University of Central Lancashire and the University of Kent, to provide free books and online testing for students and pupils looking to get a career.

To help your students get a job when they leave education, we are offering to send you £300 worth of free career resource books and free access to our online testing suites from the website How2Become.com.

There is no catch – we are simply trying to grow the awareness of our books amongst students and teachers.

To take up this free offer, or to find out more, simply contact our education coordinator, Gemma Butler, at: g.butler.how2become@gmail.com 

Full details of all our resources can be found at http://www.BooksForEducation.co.uk

Richard McMunn
Managing Director
How2Become Ltd

How2become Ltd, Suite 2, 50 Churchill Square Business Centre,
Kings Hill, West Malling. ME19 4YU

Inspire your future doctors with a Gap Medics adventure this February Half Term.

You can help your gifted and talented students get ahead of the game and gain valuable experience, that is sure to help them stand out from the crowd, by talking to them about a Gap Medics experience.

Competition to get into medical school and university is fierce. Your aspiring doctors, dentists, nurses and midwives are invited to join us in Poland, Croatia, Tanzania or Thailand this February Half Term to find out what working in medicine is really like. But they will have to move fast as bookings close soon!

Our students receive 23 hours of shadowing by an expert mentor in their chosen field, alongside global health tutorials and experiential learning in small student groups. They will go on ward rounds, talk through cases and see treatment first hand in the operating theatre, delivery room or clinic.

Not only that, we run our own Gap Medics houses which means we are able to ensure that every student has a safe, secure and comfortable stay with us, while making friends to last a lifetime.

“Extremely valuable for so many reasons – the privilege of seeing and learning a lot, medically and culturally.” Student, 2014

To find out more, visit our website, give us a call on 0191 603 1111 or email us at info@gapmedics.com. We would love to hear from you.

Deciding what to do after 16 is the first big decision most 16 year olds will make, and both they and their parents need information

If the decision as to what a 16 year old does after year 11 is to be successful it must not only involve the student and his/her wishes, but also the student’s parents and the organisation/s that the student will use in the coming year.

Unfortunately there have already been many suggestions to the effect that a considerable number of parents are not particularly well informed on the options available.

Worse, many students seem to be ready to make only short-term decisions which do little to take into account what the student wishes to do in the longer term.

As for the notion of having a back-up plan if the first choice options don’t come to fruition – the number of students and parents who don’t even consider this seems to be frighteningly high.

Of course, in many ways this is all very understandable. For the past 11 years all the student’s educational needs, and most of the decisions that have been made, have been in the hands of the school. Both parents and students have become used to this, but suddenly there are questions to be answered and plans to be made.

Which is why “Making the Next Transition” exists. It is a copiable volume (available both on CD and in printed format) that can be used by both students and parents to help them to make the right decisions for now and to understand the long term implications of those decisions.

It is a publication that is ideal for placing on the school’s learning platform so that parents can access it and take an ever greater role in helping their sons and daughters make a successful transition to the next phase of their lives.

“Making the Next Transition” shows both parent and student what the options are and gives advice and support to the student who is preparing for the next stage in life.

Most importantly it is an activity based volume so that the student actually has to engage with the materials, answer questions, and consider where the issues raised by the book lead, rather than just reading through more text on the topic of “what next?”

In short it helps with decision-making, application forms and interview techniques, all directly in relation to the requirements that the law lays down for what students may do after the end of year 11.

ISBN: 978 1 86083 876 7;  Order code: T1825emn – please quote with order.

Sample pages can be viewed at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/careers/T1825.pdf

  • Photocopiable book, £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
  • CD with school-wide rights: £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
  • Both the bookr and the CD £26.94 plus £3.95 delivery
  • Prices include VAT.

You can purchase the report…

You can now follow us on Twitter and Facebook

What is the best way to teach students about culture, community and conservation?

I would like to introduce Flooglebinder, an educational travel specialist who offer students community and conservation programmes in Borneo, India, Nepal, Malaysia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. 

Our aim is to offer students a secure and safe way to travel, develop and explore, whilst promoting the importance of sustainable travel.

The Flooglebinder team is made up of travel specialists, marine biologists, animal behaviour and conservation lecturers, field guides and dive masters. 

We accommodate for individuals and school groups and only work with partners which we have personally visited ourselves – keeping in line with our Tried, Tested, Trusted ethos.  

We are linked to a number of conservation groups around the world and can assist if students chose to explore a potential career path that requires specific field experience with leaders in the industry. 

Our study tour programmes are written to cater for the needs of the student outcomes and learning module objectives. We also offer x1 free teachers place for every 10 participating students. 

I would like to meet with you, and your students, to present Flooglebinder and discuss our amazing projects. Please feel free to provide a number of convenient dates and times, and we will do our best to accommodate.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

Ian Taylor
Founder and Lecturer
Flooglebinder
Travel I Develop I Explore                                             
Mobile: +44 (0) 7772689811                         
Email ian@flooglebinder.co.uk
Web: www.flooglebinder.co.uk

 

FAO the Head of Sixth Form

Exams, relationships, driving tests, independence, money … It’s just the Tip of the Iceberg.

Are our 16-18 year olds being left out when it comes to supporting
their mental health and well being in school?
The national curriculum does not cover key stage 5 and there are no suggested PSHE guidelines, so this could mean that finding a budget or a gap in the timetable for such provision is near on impossible.  Also this situation means that there are few organisations out there offering projects for the complex needs of 16–18 year olds.

The PSHE Association’s Subject Advisor Nick Boddington says:

“I guess the bottom line is that PSHE education in Key stage 5 is your last chance to provide that learning that everyone needs but lies outside of the academic curriculum.  Not a bad way of planning is to look back on all the PSHE work you have done in years 7-11 and ask yourself by the time they walk out of our school gates for the last time what more do we need to provided or reinforce to ensure that they have the knowledge understanding, feelings about themselves and others, are able to say and do, and understand their responsibilities to lead productive, independent, fulfilling and safe lives?”

The topics that are relevant and important to key stage 5 pupils can also be difficult to address within school and especially in the classroom. There are endless projects on career opportunities, university and finance, but it’s much harder to find sessions exploring more personal topics like sexuality, pornography and relationships, or effective delivery at that age on risky behaviours and health – yet according to research done with older students, this is what they are asking for.  According to Ofsted research, when asked what would make PSHE education lessons more useful, pupils said;

 ‘Rape culture. What to look for in a healthy relationship.’ Female student

“The influence of the media such as porn on people’s views of sex and the human body.” Male student

It is the combination of need and lack of provision that inspired Tip of the Iceberg Theatre Company to develop two projects specifically aimed at the 16+ age group that tackle difficult topics in an involving, entertaining and informing way.

Having worked directly with over 100,000 young people Tip of the Iceberg Theatre Company strongly believe, from their experience working with sensitive and hard hitting issues, that the way to approach PSHE education should include a much broader look at our world – the internet, technology, the whole sex industry, and attitudes to risk – you cannot separate topics into small boxes or educate on these complex subjects in a 20 minute PowerPoint presentation. It is now more important than ever to create relationship, sex, internet and safety education projects that can be as compelling, as exciting and as influential as the media campaigns and products it is battling against.

“If you’re too ashamed to speak to children about sex, exploitative free porn will fill the gaps” Grace Dent, The Independent, Sept 8th 2015

From september 2015 Tip of the Iceberg Theatre Company will be touring the following projects for years 12 & 13.

“Sexposed Britain” A 30 minute performance followed by an interactive workshop.

Based on our imaginary fly-on-the wall documentary “Beyond the Surface” the play is made up of clips from the programme, the reactions of different people watching it, as well as parodies of other T.V shows and adverts.  The format allows students to consider many aspects of a topic in a quick, recognisable and engaging format.  The play shows a vast range of people in varying situations, from university students to grandparents, the pub to the school playground, the ideas of the young to doctors and psychologists.

The “Sexposed Britain” episode takes a mature approach to the many attitudes, ideas and pressures experienced by all ages in regards to sex and relationships in Britain today.  The storylines include scenes around teenage pregnancy, sexual pressure, sexting, pornography, communicating feelings, self-esteem and self respect, marriage and sexuality.

In our workshops we use our performances as a springboard for pupils to examine their own attitudes, ideas and behaviours in relation to difficult, contentious and sensitive topics. We strive for students to learn something about themselves that will make a positive difference to the rest of their lives.

“What’s driving you?”An interactive project with performed scenes that explore personality types and road safety.   

The format and content of the workshop utilise corporate training techniques and aspects of personality assessment used in the world of management and staff development, which are then combined with live performances, videos and debates.

This experience has been designed to empower students to be successful, healthy achievers and as they are asked to examine their ideas, attitudes and concepts of self, the project can influence many areas of their life – and not just the journey in a car.  The workshop explores:

–          Confidence
–          Communication styles
–          Attitudes to risk
–          Decision making.

There are different delivery formats available from assemblies to full day projects.
Prices start at £550 + VAT

Please contact us for further information and an exact quote.

Hazel Ward
Schools and Performances

Email: admin@tipoftheiceberg.biz
Tel: 07519593711

How can we best prepare students for the workplace?

What are we to make of the student who, at a job interview, checks her mobile for messages?

Most young people who enter the workplace for their first job, are, on day one, utterly bemused. 

Of course, to some degree they will be prepared, for they will have heard stories from parents, older siblings, friends who left school a year before…

Unfortunately, 95% of these stories will be at best irrelevant to the workplace they are entering or at worst utterly wrong in every regard.

For entering work is not just about the skills a young person brings to the job in hand.  It is also about the young person’s attitude. 

If the employer and the staff already in place treat the new employee as a responsible adult who is going to work hard for the company, and the young employee doesn’t realise that when a job is complete he/she should find out what to do next, there is already a significant misunderstanding of how to behave.

Indeed, knowing how to behave in the work place can be the most important issue on day one.  The issue reported in the headline above might look bizarre in the extreme, but it has been reported and is just one very graphic example of students simply not knowing how they are supposed to behave.

The problem is, however, that many employers have themselves not properly thought through how they are going to treat the newcomer.  Which is why it is vital for students to understand exactly what sort of situations they might encounter and what they can do about them.

What Employers Want and Expect deals with these issues, as well as with the new demands that employers, in this post-recession environment, are now placing on staff.

The book recognises that under current legislation, employers have an almost total right to dismiss employees who started work after April 2012 during the first two years of employment for any reason, and notes that the average time people now spend in a job is only two years and four months.

Which means, in fact, that around half of the working population have virtually no protection against dismissal without reason.

The book takes the view that in order to stay in work the vast majority of young employees must help themselves by being aware of the current needs and attitudes of employers.

The volume, which is fully copiable and so can be put on the school’s learning platform, copied to disk or photocopied, covers such issues as reliability, accuracy, punctuality, honesty, smoking, communication, written work, swearing, etc.

There is also a commentary concerning what one can write on social media.  As the book points out, many employers will check Facebook and other sites used by their employees to ensure that no one is saying anything amiss about the company that pays the wages. 

It is, in fact, essential reading for everyone going into a job for the first time.

The volume can be bought as a photocopiable book or on CD Rom.

You can see some sample pages at http://www.pdf.firstandbest.co.uk/careers/T1798.pdf

Publisher’s reference: T1799EMN ISBN: 978 1 86083 895 8

Prices

  • Photocopiable report in a book, £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
  • CD with school-wide rights: £19.95 plus £3.95 delivery
  • Both the book and the CD £26.94 plus £3.95 delivery

Prices include VAT.

You can purchase the report… please quote the order ref: T1798EMN