Ever hopeful

This morning, I went to a special Year 10 assembly at the High School, where certificates were being handed out to those pupils who had received particularly good reports from their work experience placings. Two representatives from one firm that had taken several students were there to hand out some certificates and the rest, fifty or so, were read out and were to be given out at afternoon registration, as well as chocolates to each class. Each child had written a work experience diary and the best of these were given £15 gift vouchers. There were also chocolates and cards for the form tutors and extra presents for staff who had helped the Work Experience co-ordinator. Overall, it was a very jolly occasion with a good atmosphere.

The Deputy Head remarked that not everyone had enjoyed their placement, but that most of them had made the best of it and that some of the award-winners were people who had not found it the most interesting but had worked cheerfully and capably anyway.

You know, Year 10 is the only year in the High School where there are no public exams (unless anyone is taking a couple of GCSEs early). Maybe that was the reason the kids all looked so cheerful? I also couldn’t help noticing that no one was either too fat or too thin – that is, there was a wide variety of sizes and a couple of them were slightly on the chunky side, and lots were very slender as young teenagers often are, but they were all well within a healthy range.

Could it be that something is going rather right here?

8 comments on “Ever hopeful

  1. Wendz

    It does sound like something is going right.

    I wish we’d had work placement schemes when I was at school. I may not have made such a drastic mistake in what I chose to study at uni, based on my career gudiance teacher’s advice. He was way off.

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  2. Z

    The Deputy Head remarked that if you don’t enjoy it, at least you know what sort of career not to follow!

    Amy, one of Al’s new Saturday girls, has been working in the little local library and has been very bored as there wasn’t enough to do. Working in the library was my dream Saturday job when I was at school. I loved it – but it was a big town branch and there was always a job.

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  3. Dandelion

    I don’t want to be an eyore, but it does look a touch of the all-must-have-prizes, lovely though it sounds.

    I love that hymn though. Haven’t thought about it since school.

    Reply
  4. Z

    It was rather, you’re right. But I’m all for praise where it’s due.

    It’s quite a lot of effort for firms to accept work experience pupils nowadays and it costs them extra for insurance, so the school really wants it to go well and had given the children a lot of encouragement beforehand. They had responded to this and it’s been a successful fortnight, so the school decided not just to take it for granted, but to tell them so and give them a small reward.

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  5. Z

    It was informal and friendly and there was a lot of applause, including for two teachers who are leaving and another who is getting married during the holidays!

    Yes, Stitchwort, 4th Form, aged 14-15. There’s still a 3-tier system at present in Suffolk and they join the High School in Year 9, when they are rising 14, so we can’t start renumbering them at 11, as they’re halfway through Middle School then.

    Reply

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