BBC School Report
Our Theme: Putting Our Faith into Action
Global Change Day
On the 27th of November, the pupils of S3 in Our Lady’s High School gathered together to raise awareness of global issues affecting the modern world, naming it ‘Global Change Day’. Each class was given a global issue to research over a four week period in RE and they then presented their findings to the rest of their year group.
Arranged by Miss Ruddy, the classes were asked to create an organisation and campaign which attempted to deal with their issue. This campaign had to include several different products and advertisements such as leaflets, posters, t-shirts, a Power Point Presentation and a billboard. The issues that the classes had to deal with were very serious matters and encouraged all classes to really think about how these problems could be solved. The issues were poverty, sectarianism, racism, refugees and sexism.
The classes were immersed in their issue and became ‘experts’ on them. We also saw a competitive side of S3 during the four week lead up to the event. Everyone became determined to win 1st prize (including the teachers!) The winners were to receive a pizza lunch for their hard work, which only encouraged the pupils to try even harder!
During the four weeks dedicated to ‘research and create’, the students watched a documentary on their subject and were also lucky enough to receive a talk from a representative of an organisation that specialised in their issue so they could get the best information from a first-hand source. Miss Ruddy said to us, “I organised this to make the young people of Our Lady’s more aware of these issues and the role they have in society.” Miss Ruddy was the busiest person in school the week before the big event and the whole day was a great success thanks to her.
The day arrived and the pupils received the day off timetable to present and share their ideas. Miss Ruddy and Miss Stewart, Faculty Head of Social Subjects, had organised an eventful day for S3 playing games like survival challenges, a human maze and participating in team building exercises.
The day was wrapped up with a visit from SCIAF and our sponsors for the day; Nil by Mouth. Mrs Ogilvie, Principal Teacher of RE, then led us in a prayer service with prayers that the classes had written themselves that were specific to their cause. The winners of the day were the class who had a fabulous presentation on sectarianism. Different prizes were also handed out during the day for participation.
Overall, the day was a huge success, and the aim of bringing awareness to the youth of society was accomplished. Well done to everyone involved!
‘Nil by Mouth’
This year S4 pupils of Modern Studies have had the eye opening experience of being involved in various talks presented by representatives of the Scottish anti-sectarianism charity ‘Nil by mouth’. These talks proved a thought-provoking experience for both pupils and staff as they aimed to teach the pupils of S4 about sectarianism and tackle the issues surrounding it. Whilst visiting the school and delivering the talks we had the chance to talk to David, campaign manager, Louise, charity worker and Cara the charity founder to find out more about the organisation and its activities.
We came to understand how the organisation started more as a campaign, which aimed to stop bigotry but later took the formation of a charity as it gained charitable status. Along with donations the charity receives government funding, which helps fund its various projects such as ‘champions for change’. This involves work in both primary and secondary schools, giving them the opportunity to carry out anti-sectarianism work with the young people who are the campaigners of the future. The organisation tackles football supporters in their ‘Kiss Bigotry Goodbye’ campaign asking them what they love about football, supporting the team, or hating their rivals. Also, the charity had recently launched a new campaign the morning before our meeting called ‘think before you post’, hoping to make the virtual world free from bigotry by making people aware of the damage that online sectarianism causes, and the consequences for those who choose technology as their form of attack.
We asked them what they felt the organisation had achieved to date. Davie replied by saying that when the organisation started, sectarianism was widely accepted in the West of Scotland and that people rarely talked about it. However, nowadays people openly discuss sectarianism and the problems that are created, with the majority of people wanting to put a stop to it realising that the divisions present in society are no longer acceptable. Scotland has come so far in terms of sectarianism that Cara believes that there is light at the end of the tunnel, with sectarianism becoming eventually obsolete.
We’d like to thank Cara, Davie and Louise for taking time out of their busy schedules to talk to us whilst also carrying out the anti-sectarian work in our school.
We asked Miss Ruddy, the teacher who led this project, about the experience.
What motivated Cara, the charity founder, to set up the charity Nil by Mouth?
“Her friend was a victim of sectarianism. She couldn’t understand why sectarian behaviour seemed so common after this sad event.”
Do you think the experience had an impact on the pupils?
“Very much so. After our initial visit from Nil by Mouth our pupils engaged in a week long project where they participated in the charity’s ‘Kiss Bigotry Goodbye’ campaign. The pupils were so moved by the founder Cara’s story that they even created their own pledge to tackle sectarianism. Cara was overwhelmed by the response from our pupils and it was clear for everyone to see how much they gained from the event.”
Do you think it’s important that pupils are made aware of sectarianism?
“Yes, as we want everyone to be aware of their own responsibility to respect and be tolerant of others and their beliefs.”
Do you have any personal experience with the charity Nil by Mouth?
“I have worked with Nil by Mouth since I started teaching. They have continuously visited classes in Our Lady’s and our pupils have enjoyed each of these visits hugely. I know the employees of Nil by Mouth very well and know how much hard work and commitment they display each and everyday.”
Life-changing Volunteers
Every year, two or three pupils from sixth year get the opportunity to go to Lourdes with the HCPT Pilgrimage Trust. HCPT is a charity offering pilgrimage holidays for disabled and disadvantaged people from around the UK. Mr Maxwell has been working as part of the charity since he was eighteen and has managed to create links between the HCPT and Our Lady’s High School. The school fundraise annually to help pay the cost of the travel for the senior pupils who volunteer, as well as to give donations to help the trust pay the fares of pilgrims, to go on the visit.
This year three of our pupils are going on this life-changing experience to help out many of the children which will also benefit them and inspire them to do more. To raise money for the trip, pupils have been selling raffle tickets and are planning to organise a charity night of their own to raise even more money. They are very excited to be spending time with the children and seeing them develop throughout the week and they are hoping to make people more aware of this fantastic charity. Even when these pupils leave school, they are continuing to inspire other pupils to follow in their footsteps.
What were your preparations for going to Lourdes?
“To prepare for Lourdes we held regular meetings in which we would plan fundraising events such as a ‘Quizeoke’, camel derby and a ceilidh. We also attended a regional preparation day which is a day where we finalise preparations for the pilgrimage. As a way of fundraising we completed a fire walk and arrow breaking event in new Lanark. This was a fantastic team building opportunity and a great chance to get to know other volunteers from all over Scotland.”
Who or what inspired you to go?
“I was inspired through previous pupils who have spoken so highly of the experience. I noticed a great positive change in each of the individuals involved. I was also inspired by the work of HCPT and their job in giving young disabled and disadvantaged children such an enjoyable and life-changing experience.”
Have you experienced anything like the Lourdes pilgrimage before?
“I went to Rome with the school on a pilgrimage where we celebrated mass with the pope at the Vatican. It was overwhelming to see so many people with shared beliefs and morals. I believe I will experience something similar when I travel to Lourdes. My friend who has travelled before called it ‘a spiritual Disneyland!’”
Medic MacLennan
S6 pupil Eilidh MacLennan recently undertook a medical placement in Tanzania with the organisation GAP Medic. Eilidh, who aspires to be a midwife after finishing her education, went to Tanzania to help the people of Africa as well as to gain valuable work experience. Eilidh had to fundraise and get a part time job in order to pay her way there and would like to thank everyone who contributed towards her efforts.
Eilidh said that the experience was amazing and it was an emotional rollercoaster. She commented that you could be having a great time with the kids and later that same day holding back tears.
She spent a lot of time in an orphanage looking after patients and changing bandages. She had a particularly close bond with one girl called Mirium who had sustained severe injuries whilst playing near firewood. Sadly she passed away whilst Eilidh was there.
We were lucky enough to talk to Eilidh more about her experience.
Would you do it again?
“I would definitely do it again. I didn’t want to leave and it was an amazing experience.”
What advice would you give for any aspiring midwives?
“Go out and get as much work experience as you can. Work experience is just as important as getting good grades when applying to a career like nursing and midwifery due to the competitiveness of applying to the course. Not only does some related experiences make you stand out, it gives you a better insight into what the career involves.”
Why did you want to become a midwife?
“I like working with the public, meeting new people and being on my feet. I could never go into a 9 to 5 job that’s the same every day. I like the variety nursing/midwifery offers. I know how much a career like this helps and supports so many people, I feel that this is my vocation.”
Well that is all we have time for this year!
We hope that you enjoyed reading about the fantastic achievements of our pupils!
Thank you,
OLHS Pinc