To think sending (academic Yr 10 pupils out on a weeks work experience is a waste of time).

[smokepole]

I can understand the point of work experience, for some pupils but surely the more academic pupils would be better off having the week in the classroom. My DDs 2 grammar form teacher agreed with me, along with all the difficulty in finding work placements and insurance implications. It surely can be of limited benefit for students who will mostly go in to higher education. I believe schools should be able to decide which students, would benefit from work experience . The schools should also be able to decide to opt out of the scheme, if they think there 15 year old pupils would benefit more in a classroom environment.

On the other hand for non academic pupils, it can be a pleasant change.
This was the case for pupils from DDs 1 secondary school, who in many cases actually enjoyed their week in industry. It is also more relevant to those students as most will not go in to higher education and therefore, helps them gain relevant experience early.

[Hulababy]

But won't the academic children also need some experiences of a workplace: you know, for after they have been through HE for Saturday jobs, for holiday jobs during university years, etc.

Also WE teaches children an awful lot more than just how to do a job. It teaches them about the world of work, which is very different to sitting in a classroom each day.

[grumblepuss]

My dad has a theory that work experience is devised to make you want to stay at school/college for as long possible to avoid the drudgery of the real world and life.

[Delphiniumsblue]

I think the academic ones need it the most.

[Purplepoodle]

I was very academic my work experiences at GCSE and a level helped me focus on what I wanted. I worked a week on a hospital ward when I was 18, it really opened my eyes.

[HPparent]

My very academic daughter in her very academic school arranged her own work experience at our local vet and decided to be a vet as a result. I am very glad that she did tbh. They do work experience in year 11.

DD2's comp have given up work experience altogether, though she volunteers in a library for her DofE.

I think work experience makes you more employable and an advantage to those looking for vacation work or work while at university.

[tobysmum77]

there is a high unemployment rate amongst graduates and one of the biggest factors for young people getting their first jobs is work experience.

[smokepole]

Hp Parent. I thought Work Experience was compulsory .?

I did not know that schools could opt out, if they so wished. It is obvious them that other teachers including the Head like it and use it as a 'weeks extra holiday' then...

[HPparent]

tobysmum77 makes a very good point. I was interviewing graduates for jobs at my workplace last week and the ones who had worked during their university years were able to give much better examples and scored higher than the ones who had never worked in any capacity.

[Noodledoodledoo]

If you don't end up doing a job you are aiming for - ie want to be a doctor but end up working in a shop etc, it gives you the chance to have an understanding of how those jobs work.

I am always shocked at how rude some people are to for example people who work on the checkouts in supermarkets. I did that job from 16 - 21 whilst at school and uni and the way in which I was spoken down to was horrible. I definitely make sure I make sure I never treat shop staff the way I was treated. So there is a huge learning experience to be had whatever they end up doing.

[HPparent]

It's up to the school I believe. I think DD2's school stopped it because it is such a hassle for them to organise.

We have work experience kids at my employer and lots more apply than we can take. We try to give them a really good experience though, for example they work on a little project and do a presentation at the end to senior manager. That might come in useful for finding a job later on.

[settingsitting]

smokepole. No, I dont believe that it is done to give the teachers a week's holiday!

Believe it or not, it can be very beneficial for young people. It doesnt seem to have been for yours, but it is for huge numbers, even when they are young.

[TheOriginalSteamingNit]

How would it be a week's extra holiday, when years 7-9 and year 12 are still there, and each child on WE needs visiting at least once? Yes, there'll be fewer children in school for those last few weeks, but it's not as though staff could just go home!

[noblegiraffe]

Week's extra holiday? Eh? It's only Y10 out, we still have to teach the other kids. And when I would be teaching Y10 I'm out visiting Y10 at their work experience placements.

[smokepole]

Setting. DD2 came home at 16.30 from her first day today. I asked her what it was like . DD said it was OK as they let her go at 4 and praised her for her appearance, attitude and being prompt by arriving at 8.30 am this morning. DD1 benefited from her year 12 work experience by getting employment and has also let the university applied for know this.

I think work experience as a part to play, I just think 14/15 is to young and 17/18, maybe 16 is more relevant. I also think the student/pupil should get something meaning and interesting out of it, not just "boredom".

[smokepole]

Joke... Noble, Steaming... I don't really think that.

[ljny]

Most of the kids in my daughter's Y10 class did their work experience in primary schools. There was almost no choice, the school just encouraged them to contact their old schools. A rather one-dimensional experience.

It's a great idea, but I don't know if schools have the bandwidth to organise a proper range of choices.

[SlowlorisIncognito]

I was an academic pupil at 15 and had lots of fun on work experience. I also had lots of fun when I did it in year 12, too. I do agree it can sometimes be hard to find things to do at 15, though. I've also worked in variety of jobs since I was 13, but I know people who graduated having never had a paid job, and then wondered why they struggled to fine employment. Some schools probably organise it better than others, too.

I think there are lots of skills that 15 year olds can learn/practice on WE, which are very important- time keeping, reliability, organisation, following instructions, using their initiative, working independently, talking to adults they don't know, how to present yourself and act in the work place...

Most of these things are useful in higher education, too.

I can see why organisations aren't keen to have work experience students, and I know the insurance can be an issue for under 16s. However, I think if you go in with the right attitude, then you are more likely to be given more interesting things to do as the week goes on, and get more out of the experience. I also think it's not harmful to learn some aspects of work are a bit boring- there are very few jobs where people enjoy every minute of every day. Learning how to cope with boring tasks like filing is important- when you have a real job, it's important to do these tasks without complaining, and not act like it's beneath you.

[BackforGood]

ljny - Surely it's up to the dc to organise their placements - I know it certainly was when ds (now Yr13) did it, and - at a different school - dd1 arranged hers (to start next week).... that is a big part of the whole experience, making those calls or writing those letters.

[RiverTam]

have you looked into UCAS applications at all, OP?

[smokepole]

River Tam. DD1 let her preferred university know about her yr 12 work experience but not her yr 10 experience.

I had to call in a favour for DD2 to get her a placement this week , it seems most pupils are doing their placements through family connections. One thing I found when DD1 did her work placements that when she mentioned her school name, a lot of employees just put the phone down or threw the application letter in the bin ( or did not respond). It seems that companies look more favourably on schools that have Grammar in their name, rather than (Community College E.T.C.) This caused DD1s school problems as many of its pupils do not have family connections.

[Hakluyt]

Unlikely that work experience would have much impact on university entrance unless it was in a field related to the course applied for.

[Rainbunny]

I did it and frankly for me it was waste of time. It was very hard to find placements since I lived in a small town and lots of companies didn't favor having a 15 year to keep busy. I ended up doing mine at my local hair salon because I knew the employees, so I washed people's hair and made appointments. I had been working Saturday and holiday jobs since I was 13 years old, I didn't need the "extra" experience of working. I also knew I wouldn't be a hair stylist, it was the only place that I could arrange that was within transportation means for me.

I agree it should be optional. My school was crap about it as well. There was no checking done by the teachers, no effort made to help find placements and no follow up. I just had to turn in a signed paper saying I had completed it. The school obviously didn't care about the program, just gave the teachers time off from teaching year 10 classes for a while. The salon owner who was nice enough to take me told me that she was shocked that no-one from my school ever contacted her to check on things.

[pourmeanotherglass]

We had a couple of quite academic boys visit us for a week of work experience (scientific field).

One of them enjoyed it so much, he was considering changing his A level choices.

They both seemed to find the visit interesting and asked relevant questions. It is something they will be able to out on their university application. Why not?

[thebestnameshavegone]

I have a yr10 girl working in my small shop this week, she started today. Yes it's a bit of pain and because my shop is very quiet I have been struggling to find things for her to do. But she approached me and asked if she could work here and I felt it was important to help if I could.

She is clearly academic and will no doubt go on to higher education but as I said to her today, probably the most useful thing I can teach her at this stage is how to work a till and some basic customer service skills. When she applies for part time jobs when she turns 16, it will help her.