FOCUS ON: DEVELOPING ESSENTIAL LIFE SKILLS
How one Cheshire school is supporting its students to prepare for their future through essential life skills
people should learn before leaving school, to ensure they can succeed in adulthood. “Students need to show resilience by solving a problem and not stopping if they don’t know what something is,” he says. “We include problem solving in lessons and encourage creativity as much as possible, so when they enter the workforce, they can think for themselves and have their own ideas.”
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hen today’s students leave education, the world they are expected to succeed in is full of complexity and change. The cost-of-living crisis is affecting millions of people across the country, and research has revealed that over 80% of young people are worried about money before even leaving school. On top of this, the job market is evolving as society becomes more technologically driven, leading to a huge skills gap. As a result, almost half of school leavers don’t feel prepared for work when they leave school, and over 60% are nervous about picking the right career path.
Mike Pritchard, from Neston High School in Cheshire, is a secondary school maths teacher, who also leads on maths enrichment and the school’s career framework. Like thousands of teachers across the country, he is on the front line, helping young people pass their exams and do well at school and upskilling them so they can successfully navigate today’s job market and adult life.
“We work on a lot of problem-solving in lessons,” says Mike. “We want to encourage students to become independent learners and enhance their problem-solving abilities.” He tries to relate these problems to real-life situations, showing students how things they’re learning at school can be applied in reality. One of the things he has found that engages his students are the courses from EVERFI from Blackbaud, a digital education innovator. EVERFI’s courses cover essential, real-world issues to imbue young people with vital life skills, inspire social change, and engage the next generation. They are also
always completely free to schools!
“I’ve used EVERFI’s Endeavour [STEM careers] and Aspire [financial education] courses with my students. The courses are interactive and enjoyable for them because the content is really engaging; they particularly love the interactive bits. They can go through a whole lesson being fully engaged with what they are learning, and it makes them want to find out more, and it piques their interest, so they want to go off and learn more independently about the topics they’re interested in.”
With a 2019 report by YouGov and TeacherTapp finding that 84% of teachers think school prepares children for exams - but not for real life, resources like these can be the missing layer of education.
Mike believes the methods used to teach students can make all the difference, and relating things to real life can help. “Some students lack the motivation to work in maths lessons as they don’t see the value of it,” he says. “It’s important to show students why they are learning maths and how it can help them when they’re older, without overloading them with information.” He gives the example of setting students’ maths problems based on real-life scenarios rather than ones that are purely theoretical, with the result that students will end up with both the skills necessary to answer a potential exam question and an understanding of how to apply their knowledge to real-life scenarios in the future. He adds: “EVERFI has managed to do this through the interactive activities available and showing the information in an engaging way.” Mike thinks that independence and resilience are some of the most important things young
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www.education-today.co.uk
Problem-solving is a fundamental part of Endeavour, a first-of-its-kind interactive career exploration programme for students aged 11- 15. The course uses flexible, real-life, interactive and animated scenarios and role play to engage, teach and stretch pupils’ critical thinking and problem-solving. Students can undertake fun tasks such as exploring manufacturing techniques by designing and prototyping their own custom trainers, and discover exciting opportunities in STEM they are yet to be aware of. Mike’s students loved the fact that Endeavour revealed which STEM careers might suit them based on what they had input. It has got them thinking about their futures, and how maths relates to everyday life and so many different careers. Given the current economic crisis, there is a need for young people to better understand how to manage money. EVERFI’s Aspire course helps students develop a broad understanding of financial matters, giving them the vital life skills they need for the future. Aspire, designed for students aged 14-16, equips them with the confidence and knowledge to make smart decisions about how they earn, save and invest money, as well as develop their understanding of the economy and how it affects their lives. Mike’s students particularly liked that the course helped them understand how businesses work, and how they could start and run their own businesses successfully.
Today’s young people are facing a multitude of challenges in their futures, with an evolving job market and a challenging financial backdrop, making it more critical than ever that they learn the skills they need to thrive before leaving education. For Mike’s students, courses like EVERFI’s have not only given them a solid foundation but inspired them to continue to learn about the topics they’re interested in - or begin to consider an exciting career in STEM. If you’d like to do the same, EVERFI’s interactive, game-based lessons are easy to access, always free, and ready for you and your students to begin using today. The courses are a great way to help young people learn critical life skills, while keeping them engaged. Each course fits perfectly into existing lessons, ranging from maths to PSHE, having been designed to follow the national curriculum guidelines. Set your students up for success and sign up for EVERFI’s free platform today. As well as Endeavour and Aspire, you can find many other courses on topics such as compassion, mental wellbeing, and sustainability.
Find out more at
ueverfiteachers.co.uk/register
January 2023
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