Reframing school values

At this time of year, many High school teachers feel the rush to exam leave is over. They have less classes to teach, there is more time for development and they start planning for their new classes. There has been plenty of tweeting about #nowrongpath with list upon list about the jobs that people have experienced in their lives, showing that we are not merely preparing our pupils "for jobs that have not even been invented yet", but are probably educating them before they experience jobs, many of us do not know exist right now! So with all this uncertainty in terms of skills for work, it is the time of year that I focus on the more abstract skills for life.

The collection of all the Saltire hour timesheets from senior pupils, have been reassuring, as they indicate our pupils are not just narrowly focussing on their exams but have spent time over the past year helping others in a variety of different ways. However as research on youth volunteering has shown, encouraging people to volunteer when they are young, establishes the habit, which then becomes a natural part of their lives. So the end of the Broad General Education is where I organise our Youth Philanthropy Initiative and each year May is the busiest month of my year!

Tomorrow all our S3 will be given their new timetables, where the subjects they have chosen not to take into the Senior Phase, are replaced by short term electives and 3 periods a week of YPI. Of course we do not expect our best work to be achieved in so few periods; the whole point is to encourage our pupils to use their skills for life to develop those school values that are not so emphasised in traditional exam based subjects - compassion, tolerance, respect and inclusiveness, whilst continuing to demonstrate ambition, high expectations, continuous improvement and embracing change. We deliberately encourage team work amongst people who may have some things in common but have possibly never more than acknowledged the other's existence before. We give them the opportunity to be creative and to use all their skills of research and analysis as well as allowing them access to the ICT vacated by the senior pupils, who are all now on exam leave.

On Tuesday afternoon we expose them to a variety of third sector organisations in an afternoon speed date. All the charity representatives know that they may be the lucky ones to be represented by the winning team at our YPI Grand Final at the end of May. This may mean they gain ￡3000 for their charity, or if they make it to the final but do not win, establish them as one of our House charities for the following year. However there is a much larger learning experience underpinning the whole event. Many teenagers equate charity with big sponsored events where people push the limits of their endurance or everybody elses sense of good taste, in exchange for other people's donation of money. Beyond this they have little understanding of what is meant by the term.

YPI was established to provide a link between the understanding of the word philanthropy and the small grassroots charities that exist in their local community. For many of our S3 pupils the speed date is a glimpse into a parallel universe that exists in our community alongside us, but which largely goes ignored by anyone who is not involved or reliant on the services provided. Without the speed date may of our pupils would still be largely ignorant of the variety of charities that exist and the range of people they help. But more importantly they have face to face discussions with real people; adults that they have never met before and who have the information they need to make their choice of which charity their group should represent in a pitch to win the ￡3000. Unlike many of us who were young in the 20th century, before mobile phones became an individual's communication tool, most teenagers do not have to converse with people with whom they are not related or choose to interact with. Whereas we had to exchange pleasantries with a variety of our friends' adult relatives (who were the gatekeepers of telecommunication in each household), twenty first century social media makes direct access to friends the norm, and with this development the requirement of more formalised communication skills have become less necessary. We recognise that interviewing unfamiliar people is daunting for many young people so we structure the event so the pupils have questions for the important information to hand, they are placed in small groups and can rely on each other for support and the charity representatives have advanced warning of what they will be asked. Then each encounter is strictly timed so that there is no room for long silences or lengthy monologue. In some cases there is a real spark ignited between pupils and charity which continues on long after the gong is sounded.

Past evaluations of the event have demonstrated that many pupils learn a lot about other members of their local community during this afternoon. There are many who express admiration for the unpaid volunteers that support these charities and it makes them think about the social issues that face our fellow human beings in a more immediate way than reading text books or watching video.

Not all the pupil groups will select a charity from those they meet at the speed date. Sometimes a member of a group will have a personal connection with a local charity and can persuade their peers that this charity needs them to champion their cause. But for many S3, who have up until this point led comfortable sheltered lives; ypi gives them a chance to demonstrate their compassion in a personal way. They work hard as a team to encourage their audience to fully appreciate the needs of the group they represent and how an injection of cash will help them realise ambitions on behalf of their charity. For some, this philanthropic endeavour is transformative. It takes them out of their comfort zone and encourages them to concentrate on real life problems in the here and now, rather than worrying about future careers in fields that are yet to be invented. It gives them a sense of perspective and a feeling of empowerment, which for many is the start to a long lasting volunteering habit.

I'm really looking forward to see what this year's S3 will achieve. I am sure they will impress their teacher's families and the wider community. Giving our young people to opportunity to make a difference to others' lives today, whilst they are still preparing for their future is what really empowers them to believe they can do whatever they set their mind to, as long as they are willing to make an effort to see it happen.