FUTURE WORKFORCE AND STEM
promoting the initiatives and events, and delivering the One Small Change events throughout Teesside and the North East.’
n Andrew Stogdale, Managing Director at Spark Tees Valley. He explained: “I value the role of research in education highly, and my MA thesis (completed last year) examines pupil perceptions of effective learning with a mobile device, in an attempt to relate this to the extant research on learning theory. Increasingly, my work now sits within two key areas: creating links with the ‘world of work’, and developing a local cultural offer to all schools in the Tees Valley. Working with over 10,000 pupils a year for the last couple of years, Spark Tees Valley now gives me the opportunity to reach every child without the barriers that have held that ambition back.”
School ‘connections’ involved Following the initial discussion between Monira Kaouech and Paula McMahon, the latter got her ‘connections’ in local schools involved, while Monira Kaouech contacted a number of members of IHEEM’s North-East branch, who in turn spoke to several NHS apprentices who are IHEEM Apprentice Affiliate members, asking if they would attend the workshops to give ‘role model’ presentations. Many of them, Monira Kaouech explained, are currently undergoing engineering apprenticeships with NHS Trusts in the north-east under the auspices of the Northern and Yorkshire NHS Assessment Centre, managed by Eileen Bayles. Monira Kaouech said: “I thus had a considerable input in organising the week, alongside Paula, while Jackie Dixon Daley, Jo Douglas-Harris, Julie Harrison, and Andrew Stogdale, made great use of their own school contacts to sign them up for a particular day.”
The workshops were held ‘back to back’ on Tuesday 28, Wednesday 29, and Thursday 30 of January.
Five local schools
The schools and colleges where they took place were: n St Michael’s Catholic Academy in Stockton on Tees (Year 10 and 11 pupils);
n High Tunstall College of Science in Hartlepool (Year 10);
n Longfield Academy in Darlington (Year 9);
n Trinity Catholic College in Middlesbrough (Year 10),
n Saltburn Learning Campus in Redcar (Year 9).
I asked Monira Kaouech about the format of the workshops/presentation in each school. She explained: “In each case, I delivered the ‘People like Me’ workshops,
All set up ready for three back-to-back workshops at High Tunstall College of Science.
Role model talks at St Michael’s Catholic Academy were given by (left to right) Britney Jarvis, Katherine Jones, Sam Criddle, Rory Cosgrove, Penny Metcalfe, Paula McMahon, Alan Spraggon, Carole Winter, Cameron Patterson, and Jack Forster.
which involved giving each pupil a personality trait questionnaire, which encourages them to think about their own personal traits and how they would like to work, looking at different working environments that might suit them. It takes about half an hour for each student to complete the questionnaire, after which we tot up their scores in different areas. By then taking the areas in which they have achieved the highest scores – with each area coded using a particular letter of the alphabet – they can then look at a separate sheet listing jobs in that category for which their responses suggest they might be well qualified / suited. For quite a number of the students you could see that the whole exercise really broadened their minds to different job roles, all of which require STEM skills, but which in a number of cases they might not have considered. My impression is that many young people are not that familiar or aware of the sheer breadth of different engineering disciplines that are out there, and many have quite a narrow view of the range of opportunities.
‘No right or wrong answers’ “As we told the students,” she continued, “there are no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answers; the questionnaire is designed to simply identify some of each individual’s traits, characteristics, and areas of interest. Some students, in fact, found it really difficult to describe themselves, perhaps because at that age you may not really feel that keen to do so. It was a useful and quite educational interactive process.” In each class where a workshop was held, up to 20 students participated, and in two schools, St Michael’s Catholic Academy, and High Tunstall College of Science, Monira Kaouech and the apprentice ‘role models’ gave two and three successive workshops respectively. She continued: “Following the completion and analysis of the questionnaires, and some very interactive discussion involving as many students as possible, the ‘role models’ went around the table to talk to all the students about what they were doing, the aim being to promote apprenticeships. Some of the students knew very little, if anything, about them.”
‘Back-to-back’ sessions
“On the Wednesday, when we did three ‘back-to-back’ sessions, I had up to 10 role models with me. I also had Alan Spraggon, Estates Manager, ChoICE Facilities Services, at City Hospital Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, and the IHEEM North-East branch member on Council, with me. Many of the role models began their contribution by giving a short presentation on their current job and the associated training. They also explained how their apprenticeships started, and a number filled in the questionnaire, and then related their answers to their role.” Monira Kaouech explained that early in 2019 she had herself undertaken STEM training from Roopa Master-Coles, the STEM Engagement Manager from the STEM Ambassador Hub – Central South England, to equip her to oversee and manage the workshops. Monira added:
May 2020 Health Estate Journal 41
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