Practical+Options

= ** Practical Options at Lake G! ** =

** An important issue raised in our Shetland research was that schools may not offer enough support to students whose interests lie in a more practical direction, nor enough opportunities of experience for future work. **

// “Schools need to be able to cater better for preparing pupils for work, and work that they will value” [Teacher, AHS] // // “Practical experience at college and in the workplace is essential to help develop skills required for the world of work.” // // [Teacher AHS] // // “ALL students, even the most gifted academically should have vocational subjects on their timetables and it should be a // // reasonable percentage of their timetable.” //// [Teacher AHS] // // “It’s far too much emphasis on academia, too many students staying on for S6 with no hope of Higher.” //// [Teacher AHS] //

When we asked students in Shetland what they thought would be the most important skills for preparing young people for their future, one of the top three answers was work related skills. Although many students said they were happy with the practical options available to them, most felt that there should be more options available in the future.

// “By treating everyone fairly we’ve given them an academic opportunity, but that’s not treating each individual where their talent // // lies. And we’ve under treated some skills.” //// [Teacher AHS] //

** At Lake G, there seems to be a lot of support and options for students whose interests lie in more practical-direction. ** In general, the students we have spoken to are pleased with the practical options available at lake G, as well as the academic options. Every time we have asked ‘do you think there is a good balance of academic and practical options?’ the answer has been a resounding:

‘//Yes, definite﻿ly!//’ // “It’s well known for the sport and outdoor activities, but also got some pretty good academic options, like media studies, // // psychology and stuff.” //

The two main branches of practical options at Lake G are Vocation Education and Training courses (VET) and Australian School Based Apprenticeships (ASBA). These are discussed in more detail - just follow the links!

VET  ASB ﻿ A

**First hand we have seen the positive affect that practical options and choice in learning has on students at Lake G.** There seems to be less of a drive towards academia than in Shetland. We asked a focus group of students if they felt any pressure to follow a particular pathway – such as to work, university, college etc. We were told that the school supports all three of these areas. One of the students felt he is being pushed towards University, with the school always telling him to look into University options and applications, when he does not think he wants to go in this direction. However, when another student pointed out “They’re just getting you to go to these things so you do realise you have other options. They are actually looking out for you.” He agreed.