St Luke’s pupils have designs on successful careers
Pupils at a Barrhead school have been getting results by ditching traditional maths-based learning in favour of more hands-on classroom work.
A pilot group of S2 pupils at St Luke’s High achieved impressive scores in a new Design, Engineer and Construct (DEC) course – the first ones to do so in East Renfrewshire. The DEC is a new qualification that offers teachers and learners the opportunity to develop a range of skills and knowledge fundamental to technical and professional aspects of the construction and built environment industry.
With support from local industry experts, each pupil had the responsibility of creating a proposal for a new eco-classroom to be situated on the grounds of St Luke’s High. Although it was all conceptual, pupils worked with various industry partners to create detailed proposals that would later be presented to the local community for consultation. Karen Hunter, depute headteacher at St Luke’s High, is full of praise for the young students, some of whom received a merit for their hard work.
“Approaching the curriculum creatively is a massive part of the St Luke’s culture,” she told the Barrhead News. “The group of pupils successfully passed the course, with a number of them receiving a merit for their hard work and dedication. “Well done from everyone at St Luke’s High.”
Kevin Ormond, principal teacher of STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths) at St Luke’s High, started the alternative curriculum two years ago in the hope of inspiring youngsters to pursue a career in the construction industry once they leave school. Among the companies to have supported the process as partners are BAM Construction, Gardiner & Theobald and Threesixty Architecture. St Luke’s High is the first school in East Renfrewshire to run the DEC qualification, which is comparable to that of a National 4 and National 6 certificate.
It is not a SQA-awarded national qualification but candidates are awarded credit points for potential credit transfer onto further study if required.
