All routes led to teaching!
Developing the Young Workforce Day
Calderhead High School held their annual Developing the Young Workforce day on Tuesday January 23.
The event has been held for the last three years and gives an opportunity for all year groups to develop their knowledge about the world of work and gain insight into a variety of pathways available when leaving school.
S1 pupils were involved in an interactive ‘ teacher pathways’ quiz where they worked in small groups to identify a teacher based on clues about their journey through school to starting their teaching career.
The pupils were interested to find out that some (no names!) teachers did not achieve as well at high school as they might have expected.
The pupils also realised that the journey into education doesn’t always happen immediately after school and university and that many members of staff started their teaching careers after a number of other jobs.
S3 pupils took part in the ‘ Friends of Calderhead’ event before lunch. Former pupils Steven Lake and Tom Stewart ( Scottish Fire and Rescue), Glenn Paterson (Gas Sure), Alex Stewart (Scottish Canals), Carrie Fleming (NHS), Gillian Tannahill (Skills Development Scotland) and Fraser McPhee (Amey) were joined by Maths teacher Mrs Johnston’s brother, Ross Mitchell (Lloyds Banking Group) and community police officer PC Susan Rooney to provide workshops regarding the line of work they are involved in.
These sessions gave insight into the type of work that is involved in a variety of sectors and the skills and qualities required to be successful.
Many of the speakers also spoke of their own time at Calderhead High School and we heard about the impact that not only academic qualifications but also about the part other which experiences and skills learned have had on their life.
In the afternoon a traditional Careers Fayre took place with 24 providers setting up stalls with a vast array of information, prospectuses and freebies.
Pupils were able to spend time speaking to staff from a variety of local and national firms, training providers and Further and Higher Educational establishments to gain knowledge about the entry requirements and recruitment process.
Thanks go out to all the providers who attended and passed on valuable information to the pupils, many of whom are now engaging with the application process and actively seeking opportunities for post school destinations.
Calderhead Robotics
Calderhead High School’s Robotics clubs have gone from strength to strength.
The senior team recently participated in the VEX Robotics In the Zone competition at New College, Lanarkshire.
Ceinwyn and Jason in S6 built an excellent robot which was required to carry out tasks such as stacking cones, scoring goals, and parking. They were narrowly defeated in the final and won second place. Well done!
The school’s junior robot creators took part in the recent Tomorrow’s Engineers EEP Robotics Challenge at Forth Valley College, which was one of 25 regional heats.
One hundred and forty young people aged between 11 and 14, organised into teams from local high schools, took part in the Challenge.
Each team had learned how to build, program and control autonomous LEGO robots to complete a series of aviation themed missions.
The pupils built their robots during lunchtime Lego Robot club sessions and worked out how to complete the missions.
On the day of the competition, they also had to research, design and present their own solution to a contemporary engineering problem faced by STEM professionals in the aviation industry. Everyone had a great time and well done.