Press Release
Date: Thursday 18 February 2010 (NR/02/10)
Teacher Insight Visits
Last week teachers visited the Northern Bank and the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) as part of the CCEA Teacher Insight Visits programme that supports the Learning for Life and Work (LLW) area of the curriculum.
The Insight Visits are to organisations specifically selected outside the education sector and these employers are very willing to engage with CCEA in these initiatives hosting events specifically tailored to the LLW and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) agendas.
This forward-thinking initiative from CCEA allows teachers from throughout NI to pass on their new-found insights of prominent local organisations to their pupils. For example, at PRONI teachers went behind the scenes to the storage vaults and had an interesting presentation from staff on conserving and storing documents. Also, an Economist and Web Manager from the Northern Bank gave teachers an interesting insight into their roles.
Vivienne Bannon, Learning for Life and Work at CCEA, commented:
These events, hosted by local employers expose teachers to areas that they would not normally come across and afford them a behind-the-scenes look at organisations. These visits have proved to be very popular – both with schools and organisations - and we look forward to organising more in the coming year.
Arlene Proctor, Head of Careers at Cambridge House Grammar School, Ballymena, commented:
I was at the PRONI insight day, which was an excellent event. It was very interesting to visit such a vibrant workplace with little-known and diverse functions. The contributors were very focused in their delivery…all in all a very informative and enjoyable day.
Rosamond Bennett, Head of Communications at Northern Bank, commented:
It was a pleasure hosting this event for teachers at the Northern Bank and providing them with an exclusive tour. We hope their experiences will enlighten their students and show them there is a lot more to local banking than they might otherwise have thought. I would encourage other organisations to take part in future teacher insight days.
Additional Information
Learning for Life and Work
Learning for Life and Work (LLW) became mandatory in schools in September 2007 as part of the revised curriculum and it focuses on preparing pupils for the world of work and adult life. For the past four years schools across NI have been leading the way and championing CCEA initiatives that help implement the programme fully.
LLW at key stage 3 incorporates four keys areas:
- Employability
- Citizenship
- Personal Development
- Home Economics
Media enquiries to Ruth Maguire on (028) 9026 1216, Mobile 07796947993. E mail rhmaguire@ccea.org.uk
ENDS
Note to Editors
CCEA is the Northern Ireland Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment.
CCEA places learners and those who have a concern for their educational and personal development at the forefront of its thinking. CCEA's mission is:
"To enable the full potential of all learners to be achieved and recognised"
What we do
CCEA is a unique educational body in the UK , bringing together the three areas of curriculum, examinations and assessment.
Advising Government – on what should be taught in Northern Ireland ’s schools and colleges.
Monitoring Standards – ensuring that the qualifications and examinations offered by awarding bodies in Northern Ireland are of an appropriate quality and standard.
Awarding Qualifications
– as Northern Ireland’s leading awarding body we offer a diverse range of qualifications, such as GCSEs, including the new GCSE Double Award specifications in vocational subjects, GCE A and AS levels, Entry Level Qualifications, and Graded Objectives in Modern Languages.
- CCEA also offers a range of Awards and Certificates in Education, Training and Skills (ACETS) targeted at learners who want to get
the knowledge, understanding and skills needed
to hit the ground running in the world of work.
