EMPLOYABILITY
It provides a common language
for teachers and students, allowing
teachers to praise students explicitly
when they apply the skills, positively
reinforcing their learning.
As a result, students are now able
to talk in detail about the strategies
they have used, identifying their own
strengths and weaknesses as well
as the skill step they are currently
building. Principal Michelle Strong
attests: “We have pupils in Year 9
who are now able to talk about
essential skills and transfer them to
different subject areas.”
Other teachers note students’
enhanced confidence in activities
such as presenting to their class.
Collaborative challenges
As with literacy and numeracy skills,
it’s crucial to start young and to keep
going when it comes to instilling
essential skills in students, so that
they can build on their learning as
they move up through the school.
One way Caister Academy
achieves this is through Challenge
Days, where students focus tightly
on skills development by taking part
in a collaborative challenge.
The tasks are engaging, hands-
on and centred around a particular
theme that relates to the world
beyond the school gates. This serves
to bring it to life, helping students to
make the link between skills built in
class and their future careers.
The essential skills identified by The Skills Builder Partnership
Listening
Presenting
Problem
solving
Creativity
C h a l l e n g e D a y s a re f u l l y
resourced and run in school,
delivered by teachers with the Skills
Builder team’s support on the day.
The team launches it with an
assembly, after which the students
work in teams through a series
of related challenges linked to a
central question.
These run best when teaching
and learning is classroom-based, as
there is an opportunity to reflect on
the skills being applied and the skills
students are using.
For schools, they are simple to
prepare, cross-curricular and run at
cost value by the Skills Builder
Partnership in line with its role as
a not-for-profit social enterprise
organisation.
At Caister, students experience
multiple Challenge Days. The
consistent use of a common
language for teaching skills helps to
keep it simple: students and
teachers are always on the same
We have pupils in Year 9 who are now able to
talk about essential skills and transfer them
to different subject areas
Staying
positive
Aiming
high
Leadership
Teamwork
page about what is being taught,
making explicit teaching much
more effective.
Similarly, when employability is a
regular part of the school curriculum,
staff are much more confident
teaching essential skills explicitly.
This familiarity makes it easier to
measure progress over a longer
period, allowing for more targeted
practice and long-term planning.
Examples of Challenge
Days for secondary schools
YEAR 7 — GREETINGS CARDS
Students explored the world of
enterprise by running their own
start-up greetings-cards company.
They built teamwork and problem-
solving skills, managing a production
line, ensuring everyone in the team
contributed to the final design while
producing quality cards as swiftly
as possible.
YEAR 8 — A DAY IN POLITICS
Leadership and presenting skills
were honed through students
launching their own political parties.
Diving headfirst into the political
arena, they researched policies of
existing parties before sharing ideas
in a passionate debate. They created
their own manifestos and presented
to the class before a final vote.
YEAR 9 — OPERATION MOONBASE
ABOUT THE SKILLS BUILDER
PARTNERSHIP
The Skills Builder Partnership brings together
more than 700 organisations towards a
common mission, joined by a shared language,
principles and outcomes. skillsbuilder.org
Students worked to establish a new
society on a distant moon. They
developed ‘creativity and aiming
high’ skills by developing ambitious
infrastructure ideas in their groups.
Teams selected suitable crew
members to bring their vision to life
within tight budgets and even tighter
deadlines. Finally, they pitched their
plans to ‘UN representatives’.
FUTURE TALENTED // 17