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Count Us In: We're still here: Successful Transitions from Secondary School

Learning and teaching

Dimension 1: Engages young people in the highest quality learning experiences
Dimension 2: Focuses on outcomes and maximises success for all learners

Many of the challenges for schools relate to the importance of preventative work before young people reach the transitions stages. Secondary schools have a strong focus on attainment in the form of examination results, but this can sometimes be at the expense of the achievements emphasised in the Count us in report and can work against those learners who prefer more overt relevance and practical and applied approaches to learning. Many schools have developed a very good focus on vocational learning, including experiences in work-based environments, and have developed excellent relationships with employers. Employers are often more likely to look for attitudinal or social, rather than just academic skills, for example, the willingness to work hard, good time-keeping and attendance, and positive attitudes. These provide a very good basis for subsequent training. Learning activities leading to accreditation through, for example, the Duke of Edinburgh Award or Youth Achievement Award, can develop such skills at least as effectively as Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) courses.

In many circumstances, the work of teachers in preparing young people for transition will be supported by other partners. This may involve school staff in:

• arranging for delivery of particular aspects of the curriculum by other professionals;
• organisation and support for shared placements, for example, with support services, special schools, further education colleges, community organisations, or employers;
• enabling young people to engage with youth workers who develop their confidence and motivation; and
• taking account of the views of employers in developing the curriculum.

The most effective schools are proactive in developing such partnerships.

Curriculum for Excellence places young people at the centre, with schools planning the curriculum around their needs. This approach requires schools and colleges to be flexible and prepared to adopt innovative and creative approaches to curriculum planning and teaching approaches which enable all young people to achieve successful outcomes. School pupils with learning needs or at risk of missing out may attend college part time for a block or for one or two half days per week for their last year of school. The key priority is meeting individual needs. The following examples suggest some promising approaches to providing young people with worthwhile and motivating learning and curricular experiences.

Preparing for transition through the school curriculum

Cardinal Newman High School in North Lanarkshire prepared young people for employment or training by providing a focus on vocational experiences in S3 and S4 through a dedicated vocational options choice column. In addition, other option choice columns included a range of vocational inserts such as digital photography and institutional banking. Pupils were very positive about their learning experiences in these simulated professional environments. The school had a strong partnership with Motherwell College but one in which all the activities were wholly sustainable by the school. Staff jointly delivered a range of vocational courses in the school with staff from the college. These courses focused on employability and developing a work ethic. The school set up a professional kitchen and restaurant, financed by North Lanarkshire Council’s Regeneration budget which enabled pupils to take Intermediate 2 Professional Cooking.

A college lecturer and a professional chef also helped to deliver other hospitality courses run by the school through the home economics department. Teaching styles and methodologies used by college staff were shared with teaching staff. The school consulted parents fully about their plans to enhance vocational experiences through parent information evenings and sampling sessions. The lessons delivered by the chef provided highly motivating experiences which helped young people to develop their knowledge and skills relevant to catering and enterprise. Learners were highly motivated and engaged enthusiastically in the activities. Their achievements were enhanced through participation in a range of enterprising activities and, in S5, through gaining nationally recognised certificates in basic food hygiene. Pupils said that they had learned to work as a team and that their social skills had improved.

Preparing young people for transition by developing the curriculum to include vocational options may require significant adjustments to timetables. The Skills for Work report² includes an example where timetabling a course on early education and childcare in two columns was used to allow learners sufficient time to engage with a private training provider outwith school time. They could then complete the programme within one year. On one afternoon each week, learners visited a nursery. On one morning, a trainer delivered the theoretical part of the course in the school, working collaboratively with the class teacher. Similarly, another school offered a Skills for Work construction crafts course on its own premises as a part of the normal curriculum for S3 and S4 pupils. The school reshaped the timetable to provide one single and one double period per week for Skills for Work courses, rather than single periods, to facilitate the delivery of practical activities.

In Smithycroft Secondary School, Glasgow, the timetable was designed to incorporate a vocational option for S3 and S4 pupils, in addition to a wide range of vocational programmes, placements and in-school courses for pupils in S3-S6. Pupils experienced a range of challenges including developing enterprise activities. At recognised points in the school year external agencies such as Careers Scotland, were involved in delivering courses. The focus was on helping young people to develop essential skills for employment, training or continuing education.

The First Steps programme in Dumfries and Galloway was designed for pupils in S3 who were not coping well within their secondary school. It offered a variety of work-related activities, including practical first aid, health and safety workshops, team-building exercises and a range of vocational options. Young people were awarded certificates for successful completion of these options. Pupils’ attendance, completion of courses and behaviour had all improved. Other initiatives which involved young people at the transition from school to college included the Next Steps programme which, followed on from the First Steps programme, and the Prince’s Trust scheme for young people aged 16-24.

In North Lanarkshire the Expanded Learning Opportunities programme managed by Careers Scotland, is for pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD). Such young people are likely to experience difficulties in making successful transitions to positive post-school options. Pupils undertake this programme towards the end of their statutory period of education in an SEBD school. Following assessment, a customised and individual programme of action is created for participants to include a mixture of training placements, college placements, work tasters, specialist interventions such as counselling support, anger management and psychological support, structured outdoor activities and other general life-skills support. Studies showed that seventy per cent of pupils moved into positive destinations when they left school, significantly above expectations, and what was previously experienced by the schools involved.

Willowbank School, North Lanarkshire, provided education for secondary pupils with social emotional and behavioural needs and with a history of non-attendance in mainstream schools. The Expanded Learning Opportunities programme enabled them to engage in community-based projects to facilitate their transition to post-school education, employment or training. The school’s client development worker engaged local employers and training providers with the work experience programme. They had access to a wide range of SQA courses and NQ units, including early presentation. Learners had long and short-term targets for every subject, and were involved in setting and reviewing these. They developed important generic skills, for example, working in groups for drama improvisations, enterprise and citizenship through art and design, and practical use of the internet for planning a school trip. Residential visits, sporting musical and cultural events increased their well-being, and developed their confidence, teamwork and creative talents. Pupils who attended college achieved certification at Intermediate 1 and 2 and were also presented for Access and NQ?courses. Some achieved certificates in landscape gardening through the Scottish Training Foundation and in car mechanics through Lanarkshire Automobile Group Training Association. All pupils achieved through Scotia awards and the North Lanarkshire Challenge. Almost all leavers went on to education, employment or training.

In Portland High School, North Lanarkshire, also for pupils with social emotional and behavioural needs, the school’s partnership with Careers Scotland enabled pupils to receive individual advice and guidance about preparing for the world of work and to develop the necessary skills. From S3 to S5, all pupils benefited from placements in training agencies and further education colleges. The client development worker visited homes and discussed young people’s progress with their parents.

Preparing for transition outwith the school context

For some pupils, following courses and accessing vocational experiences away from the school context increased motivation and provided an incentive to continue learning and to achieve. Staff in Berwickshire High School reported that college courses had raised pupils’ self-esteem and confidence. One pupil said he would not be at school if it were not for the college experience he enjoyed. Overall, young people felt that their tutors had time for them, gave good advice and that they were treated like adults.

The Three Towns Motor Project in North Ayrshire offered young people who had become disaffected with school a curriculum option focusing on motor vehicles. The initiative was managed by community learning and development and worked effectively to provide accredited and non-accredited learning through partnerships among schools, colleges and youth organisations. Programmes successfully combined practical skills and theory-based learning much of which was transferred back into mainstream school and then into post-school training. As a result, young people grew in confidence and self-esteem, and increased their skills as responsible citizens.

In the Borders School Plus initiative, core skills were contextualised within coursework and young people received ample opportunities to take responsibility for their learning through use of ICT support packages, researching information and planning practical work. They enjoyed the high practical component of courses and learned better where practical activities led gradually to theoretical aspects, and where the contexts were relevant to prospective areas of employment. They felt they were treated as young adults and were consulted on setting workshop rules. All programmes for secondary school pupils included promotion of positive behaviours and the college’s core values. This resulted in most school leavers being familiar with college expectations prior to starting full-time programmes and helped them adapt to the college environment. Staff at Hawick High school reported that participation in School Plus courses had re-engaged many young people in learning and heightened their aspirations for post-school education. Young people’s successes were celebrated through a high-profile awards ceremony attended by young people, parents, and college and school staff.

Reid Kerr College provided a flexible approach to delivering a wide range of programmes to support transitions. The STEP programme aimed to develop young people’s self-confidence, personal, social and vocational skills within a practical and supportive learning environment. Students negotiated part of their own timetables through a menu of options which could be adapted to suit individual needs. Students enjoyed the out-of-college activities and the practical work as they could see the end product. Students said they were treated like adults and learned more effectively as their courses were delivered in shorter timetabled periods, with more breaks. They developed work-related skills through ‘taster’ options and work experience for one day per week for six weeks. The core curriculum included numeracy, communication, computing, a residential experience, world of work and guidance support with vocationally-based and personal development options. In the second year of the course vocational aspects increased. Most STEP students attended a Steplink course one day per week for six weeks to ease transition and to ensure that the course would be appropriate. The Steplink programme enabled pupils with additional support needs to attend college part time in their last year of school, providing them with a supported transition to college.

The New Directions programme for young people in their final school year, a Renfrewshire Council resource run within the college, offered supported learning opportunities to students who at school had displayed challenging behaviour and showed signs of disengagement. The small group setting worked well in providing meaningful courses, strong pastoral support and recognition of students’ achievements through Access, Intermediate and Awards Scheme Development and Accreditation Network (ASDAN) certification, merit awards and an award ceremony. Elective elements included vocational options in hospitality, hairdressing, construction, engineering, computing, design and make, creative arts, care and health. Eighty per cent of those completing the programme had positive destinations. Eleven secondary schools were involved, with significant improvements in attendance and achievement reported for most individuals.

Signposts for excellence

• Programmes are designed to help young people develop essential skills, including personal skills, vocational skills and other skills for employability. They raise awareness of expectations regarding standards, practices and behaviours in different settings, for example, the workplace, within social contexts or in further learning situations. Programmes take good account of individual needs, build confidence, encourage teamwork and promote independence in learning.
• Personal support and careers staff undertake substantial preparatory work to ensure all staff and young people involved have clear expectations of the content and aims of programmes, including those provided in out-of-school settings. They regularly consult with young people about programme content. Young people are aware of the pathways for progression and what they will learn and achieve, so that they can make clear choices.
• Induction processes are relevant and appropriate to the needs of young people, and prepare them well for the programmes they have chosen.
• Learning activities are integrated and contextualised and enable young people to achieve success. They help them gain awareness of the wider community and their own impact on other people. The sequencing is well planned and teaching approaches and contexts are varied.
• School staff know what young people are doing when they engage in vocational learning in or out of school. They share relevant information about the young people they are responsible for with their partners. They monitor young people’s attendance and progress towards their goals, and evaluate individual and group success. The school is aware of the current status, placement, achievement and progress of every learner on its roll.
• Staff establish positive and productive relationships with young people, based on mutual respect. Learning activities promote a positive ethos and encourage open interaction between staff and young people.
• Schools make good use of schemes and initiatives which provide formal recognition of young people’s skills and achievements to facilitate and ease their entry into work or training programmes.
• Schools, colleges and employers ensure that pupils who need it receive additional support to ensure success, for example, through careful tracking and monitoring, mentoring, and identifying named individuals to support young people.

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