‘Celebrity Chefs' Make An Appearance At Local College

On Friday 14 November 2008, over 100 teachers from local high schools attended In-service day (INSET) events at Carnegie College, as part of a Fife Partnership approach to provide good curriculum choices for school pupils from S3 upwards with emphasis on the Scottish Qualifications Authority’s ‘Skills for Work’ curriculum. Skills for Work Courses help provide young people with good opportunities to develop their self-confidence. They also aim to provide a very positive learning experience. For many young people, an early chance to work on practical skills that relate directly to the world of work will provide real benefits to their overall educational programme. The objective of the day was to update teachers on partnership developments between the college and partner (feeder) High Schools, while supporting Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for teachers. Upon arrival teachers were briefed by representatives from Fife Council, Careers Scotland and Carnegie College staff. This was followed by discussions, demonstrations and tours of several college areas including construction and hospitality.   This was of particular interest to the guidance teachers from the schools, giving them a better understanding of the courses available at college. This would then help when they advise young people and their parents on the full range of options including the Skills for Work curriculum.   Assistant Principal Janet McCauslin said ‘I am absolutely delighted that so many staff from our partner schools were able to join us for the INSET event and learn more about the Skills for Work curriculum. Carnegie College staff found the meetings and workshops really useful and the exchange of information and ideas will benefit many school pupils – High School staff will now feel much more confident about giving advice on the Skills for Work curriculum having visited Carnegie and experienced it for themselves – what better way to learn!’  Craig Munro, Fife Council Education senior manager, said: “We are delighted with the active participation of so many teachers in schools and colleges, who have come together to improve the employability skills of young people in Fife. “The size of this event is exceptional and highlights the strength of the school-college partnership. Thanks must be extended to Careers Scotland for their practical support in ensuring that staff have this unique opportunity. All the partners hope that these conferences will set a precedent for future joint working across Fife.”     One workshop that took place was a cookery demonstration with a difference. Tutor Jamie Faulds provided teachers with facemasks featuring celebrity chefs – ie Gordon Ramsay, Jamie Oliver – and they were asked to give a cookery demo to their colleagues in the style of their mask. One of the dishes on the menu was baked white fish topped with a spicy crust served on roasted root vegetables.   SKILLS FOR WORK It has been recognised for some time that there is a need for vocational courses for young people in the 14-16 age group, which will give them the opportunity to develop knowledge and skills which will help to prepare them for the world of work. In November 2004, the Scottish Executive Report A Curriculum for Excellence called for 'more skills-for-work options for young people, robustly assessed, to help them to progress into further qualifications and work'.Following a successful 2 year pilot from 2005-7 SQA has made a range of Skills for Work Courses available for centres. These Courses are for pupils in third and fourth year of secondary school and above and they focus on the world of work.Skills for Work Courses are different from other vocational provision because they focus on generic employability skills needed for success in the workplace. The courses offer opportunities for learners to acquire these critical generic employability skills through a variety of practical experiences that are linked to a particular vocational area such as construction, hairdressing, hospitality etc. Carnegie College has offered this to pupils since 2005.