Category Archives: Scotland Colleges

Funding, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools

Creative Enterprise Fund

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Creative Scotland and Young Scot see the Creative Enterprise Fund as providing a means for Scotland’s young people to develop their artistic talent and unlock opportunities within the creative industries. The Fund aims to promote the values of creative enterprise and leadership, creating positive pathways to employment and providing wider benefits to local communities.

The Fund can offer awards of up to £200 for individuals aged between 15 and 22 or £750 for groups of three or more young people, where two thirds of any group are aged between 15-22.

The next deadline for applications is 13 April 2014.

Contact: Young Scot, phone: 0808 801 0338 [ e-mail | website ]

Creative Learning, Creative practitioners, Education Scotland, Events, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools

CLD Creative Conversation – how can partnerships support Post 16 transitions

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Click on the image for more info

Education Scotland’s Community Learning and Development (CLD) Policy and Improvement team are working in partnership with the CLD sector and wider stakeholders to deliver a series of short ‘Creative Conversations’ on key areas of current policy reform which have an impact on CLD partners.

This conversation will focus on how partnerships support Post-16 transitions and Opportunities for All. It will also consider how 16+ reform impacts on this area of work. Participants will range from community learning and development, schools, colleges and third sector organisations. The format for the day will maximise opportunities for cross-sector discussion building on the work currently being developed to ensure successful transitions.

The format of the session will be ‘thought pieces’ of 10-15 minutes, followed by facilitated discussion considering:

•How can we collectively ensure we share and understand best practice locally
and nationally?
•What makes for best practice in ensuring successful transitions post 16?
•Ways forward from here?

The event is free to attend and takes place on Friday 21 March from 10.30am until 3pm at Kilwinning College campus.  To book your place please email Fraser MacKay.

Further details about the event can be found on the Education Scotland website.

Primary schools, resources, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools, Technologies

New help for entrepreneurs

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The Skills Development Scotland careers web service, My World of Work, has a range of new resources designed to help people interested in entrepreneurship.

The new area is full of tips and advice aimed at anyone from budding entrepreneurs with an idea they have been longing to turn into a business to job seekers simply wanting to develop their enterprise skills. It shows that traditional jobs are not the only career options available to people and encourages them to think about the opportunities in enterprise.

Highlights include:

  • A series of videos featuring a panel of entrepreneurs who share their experience and give their top tips for taking a business idea off the ground
  • Advice articles on topics such as financing a business idea through crowdfunding and coping when things go wrong
  • A calendar of key dates for opportunities, funding deadlines and competitions
  • Links to resources which will provide entrepreneurs with further advice and financial help to turn their ideas into reality.

Find out more at  www.myworldofwork.co.uk/enterprise.

CPD, Primary schools, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools, Technologies

Linking education and employment outcomes

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We are delighted to confirm that Andy Creamer, Deputy Head Teacher from Menzieshill High School, will be presenting at Learning through Technology 2014. Andy will speak about the LEEO project on Linking Education and Employment Outcomes; discussing the work students have undertaken with partner schools in Florida and ongoing collaboration with industry and employer mentors.

Learning Through Technology 2014 will be an unmissable event for all of Scotland’s lecturers. Now in its third year, LTT is a unique opportunity to explore the effective use of technology to enhance the learning experience and examine ongoing developments in policy, resource and practice.

Technology is a vital education resource with the potential to increase engagement, widen participation and inspire creativity in the classroom. You will explore how it can be used to best effect with examples of innovative practice from an impressive array of leading thinkers and practitioners. The event will also present am ideal forum for knowledge exchange and networking with educators from across Scotland.

Speakers will include:

  • Dr James Fanning, Head of Emerging Technologies, Education Scotland
  • Prof. Lizbeth Goodman, Chair of Creative Technology Innovation/Professor of Inclusive Design for Education, University College Dublin.  Founder and Directpr of the SMARTlab
  • Prof. Bill Buchanan, Professor of Computing and the Institute for Informatics and Digital Innovation, Edinburgh Napier University
  • Charlie Love, Education Support Officer, Aberdeen City Council
  • Jane Houston, Head Teacher, Struthers Primary School
  • Christine Lamont, Primary Teacher, Struthers Primary
  • Lynn Brand, Principal Teacher, Tollcross Primary
  • David Cameron, Head of Career Management Skills, Skills Development Scotland

View the Tuesday 29th April Agenda here (pre-16) or Wednesday 30th April Agenda here (post-16)

Learning Through Technology 2014 also benefits from up to 10.5hrs of verified CPD from the CPD Certification Service, so BOOK NOW to hear from the experts, take part in thought provoking discussion, share your knowledge with like minded peers and boost your CPD hours.

What? Learning Through Technology 2014
When? 29th and 30th April 2014
Where? Our Dynamic Earth, Edinburgh

CPD, Creative practitioners, Scotland Colleges

Free Webinar Series: Making Assessment Meaningful

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Webinar 1: Diverse Assessment Approaches

Wednesday 12 March 2014 (15:30 – 16:30)

In this webinar we will be looking at how assessment can be an integral part of the learning and teaching process on NC, National, Higher and HN programmes.  Cherry Hopton from Dundee and Angus College will be demonstrating how diverse assessment approaches provide opportunities for her students to focus less on recall and more on application.
Webinar 2: Marked Improvement

Wednesday 26 March 2014 (15:30 – 16:30)

The Higher Education Academy (HEA) has recognised that assessment practices have not kept pace with the changes in education and that current assessments do not always meet the learners’ needs in relation to the world of work.  A representative from HEA will share a review tool which is designed to demonstrate whether assessment is fit for purpose, professional judgements are reliable and learners have a shared understanding of standards.
Webinar 3: PeerWise

Friday 9 May 2014 (13:30 – 14:30)

Edinburgh University has been using the free online tool ‘PeerWise’ to support learners in the creation, sharing, evaluation and discussion of assessment questions.  A representative from Edinburgh University will demonstrate PeerWise in a hands-on session.  She will present their findings on how PeerWise supports collaborative learning and contributes to the development of analytical skills in an engaging way for learners.
Webinar 4: Assessing Creativity

Wednesday 28 May 2014 (15:30 – 16:30)

In this webinar we will be looking at creativity as a 21st Century skill that can be taught and assessed.  Fiona McGarry from Dundee University will share effective and innovative models of assessing creativity.
CPD, Scotland Colleges

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in Colleges

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Friday 23 May 2014 (10:00 – 15:00)

Battelby Centre, Scottish Natural Heritage, Redgorton, Perth

View Programme and Book Online

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE) in Scotland works with over 37,000 young people each year.  The young people are supported in developing skills for work and life and fulfilling their potential to have brighter futures. The DofE is committed to supporting colleges in Scotland to develop the DofE.

At this introductory session find out how the DofE programme complements existing activities and helps learners develop essential employability skills whilst recognising wider achievement.

You will hear about current practice within colleges and get an opportunity to participate in practical activities.

Art, Art and Design, Community Learning and Development, Creative practitioners, Dance, Drama, Funding, Health and Wellbeing, Literacy and English, Music, Primary schools, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools, Social Studies, Technologies

Refugee Week Scotland 2014

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Community Celebrations Grant Application
Deadline: 3rd March – 5pm

At the Scottish Refugee Council we have been busy organising a very exciting programme for Refugee Week Scotland 2014! It will run from 16th – 22nd June in venues across the country, and we’d love for as many organisations as possible to get involved this year. The 2014 theme is ‘Welcome’, so we want you to have a think about how ‘welcome’ is shown in your community.

The SRC are awarding grants of £100 – £450 to help small community organisations to organise your own events as part of Refugee Week Scotland 2014. We strongly encourage you to apply and to spread the word to any other organisations or community groups that you think may be interested!

There are two files attached below – an Application Form and Grant Application Guidance Notes. Please read them both before applying! Receiving the grant from the SRC is unfortunately not guaranteed, so to make sure you are in the best position for acceptance, we urge you to read through these Guidance Notes thoroughly.  We are looking for ideas that explore the theme – ‘Welcome’ – and discuss all the different things that this word can mean. For example, your activity could:

–          Explore how welcome is shown in your community

–          Encourage people to share their experiences of how welcome they have been made to feel here

–          Encourage people to share experiences of how they have welcomed life in Scotland

Most importantly, you must demonstrate how your event will appeal to other communities and general public, and how you plan to involve them! The Community Celebration Events are the first step towards wide-scale understanding and integration among asylum seeker, refugee and local communities across the whole of Scotland. We want to know how your event will help this become a reality!

The deadline for submission is Monday 3rd March, 5pm. Please send all completed applications to arts@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk

If you need help – we are happy to discuss any ideas and give advice where necessary – just email arts@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk.You can also browse last year’s programme for inspiration.
Good luck!

Community Celebration Grant Application Form 2014

Community Celebration Grant Application Guidance Notes 2014 Final

Creative Partners, Creative practitioners, Events, Scotland Colleges

How creative am I?

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Monday 28 April 2014 (10:00 – 15:30)

College Development Network, Argyll Court, Stirling

View Programme and Book Online

The interest in creativity as an essential component of modern life, including education has gone well beyond the creative and expressive arts with wide recognition of its relevance to many areas of life and work including science, technology, leadership and teaching.

A range of research reviewed by Spencer et al (2012) indicates that creativity is regarded as the most important competence required by many employers, and highlight research by Allen et al (2011) on education that declares creativity to be “an attribute that graduates require to successfully engage in contemporary and future professional life”.

Within the context of regionalisation and the Post-16 Education Reform, colleges have been charged with a key role in developing enterprising and creative learners who will benefit from a more flexible, challenging curriculum delivered by motivated and creative staff working in partnership with a range of organisations.

So, how creative are you? This event will focus on the current research on creativity, the policy framework and a range of tools for benchmarking creativity and strategies for developing the habits of a creative mind.

Creative practitioners, Primary schools, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools, Technologies

Gaming project opens up new worlds of creativity – TES article

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“Part of it is embracing uncertainty, being open to whatever comes up,” said Dangerous Ideas curator Karen Lawson. “It’s about a belief that everybody is creative, and helping them to realise that.”

http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6400535

TES article exploring the Festival of Dangerous Ideas and how two primary, secondary and colleges from Scotland and Norway collaborated on an innovative online gaming project that developed new ways of learning.

Funding, Opportunities, Scotland Colleges, Secondary schools

Starbucks Youth Action – Funding of up to £2,000 for young people

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Do you know some 16-24 years old who could use up to £2,000 to run a community change project in their local area?

We are delighted to announce that Starbucks Youth Action funding is available for young people to deliver a project making a positive difference to people in their community.

The Starbucks Youth Action programme inspires and empowers young people from across the UK and Ireland to make a difference in their communities by applying for funding to bring your ideas to life. As well as supporting the young people to bring to life the projects that mean the most to them, young people benefit from training run by UK Youth and Youth Scotland on managing a budget, working with volunteers and project management.

Want to apply?

The deadline for applications is 9am on 17 March 2014.

Funding Surgeries
A series of funding surgeries are being held across Scotland to support young people in making their applications, as well as answering questions and providing advice:

  • Tue 25 February, Glasgow, 6pm – 9pm
  • Wed 26 February, Edinburgh, 5pm – 8pm
  • Thursday 27th February, Inverness, 4pm – 7pm

It’s advisable to book a 30 minute slot, but you can also drop in for advice and assistance on the night.

If you’d like to attend a surgery, find out more about the programme or need help with your application, please contact Paul McIlvenny, Senior Development Worker at Youth Scotland:paul.mcilvenny@youthscotland.org.uk or call 0131 554 2561.