|
|
|
|
|
|
|
St Peter’s Qualities Vision Statement
The aim of St Peter’s Qualities, through the PSHEE curriculum and wider opportunities, is to equip pupils with the knowledge, understanding, skills and strategies required to live healthy, safe, productive, capable, responsible and balanced lives. It encourages them to be enterprising and supports them in making effective transitions, positive learning and career choices and in achieving economic well being.
A critical component of St Peter’s Qualities is to provide opportunities for pupils to reflect on and clarify their own values and attitudes and explore the complex and sometimes conflicting range of values and attitudes they encounter now and in the future. Here at St Peter’s our PSHEE curriculum contributes to personal development by helping pupils to build their confidence, resilience and self-esteem, and to identify and manage risk, make informed choices and understand what influences their decisions. It enables them to recognise, accept and shape their identities, to understand and accommodate differences and change, to manage emotions and to communicate constructively in a variety of settings.
Developing an understanding of themselves, empathy and the ability to work with others will help our pupils to form and maintain good relationships, develop the essential skills for future employability and better enjoy and manage their lives. Everything we do takes account of pupils’ prior learning and experiences and reflects the universal needs of all children and young people as well as the specific needs of the pupils in the school.
The overarching vision is to:
- Provide pupils with accurate and relevant knowledge about the world around them
- Give opportunities to turn that knowledge into personal understanding
- Give opportunities to explore, clarify and challenge their own and others’ values, attitudes, beliefs, rights and responsibilities
- Nurture and develop skills and strategies needed in order to live healthy, safe, fulfilling, responsible and balanced lives
Our Head of SPQ’s Faculty is Mrs Deborah Evans – a committed and trusted member of staff – she works tirelessly finding and implementing ideas which can make children – feel safe, feel loved, feel listened to. She is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to curriculum ideas and design. She says:-
Having previously taught in a wide variety of settings including state primary schools, the Peninsular Medical School and a respite centre for 5-18 year olds with physical and learning disabilities, there is one thing I have discovered they all have in common: a growing understanding that life can be tough.
Whether it be a 5 year old with cerebral palsy, an 11 year old facing exams during a family break-up or a 40 year old medical student struggling with his bedside manner, we all face times in our lives where we have to draw on our own resilience and strength to simply get through the day. It is for this reason that I have developed a genuine interest in the PSHEE curriculum and its role within the education system for equipping young people with the knowledge, skills and understanding they need to become confident, well-rounded individuals who can make the right choices and live healthy, happy lives.
A growing body of research show that pupils who are emotionally healthy do better at school. PSHEE education helps pupils to achieve their potential by supporting their wellbeing and tackling issues that can affect their ability to learn, such as anxiety and unhealthy relationships. It also helps to develop skills and aptitudes – such as teamwork, communication, and resilience – that are crucial to navigating the challenges and opportunities of the modern world and that are increasingly valued by employers.
In 2015, the UK Youth Parliament made ‘A Curriculum which prepares us for Life’ a top priority, based on a consultation of almost a million young people. This was the third year in a row that PSHEE education has been voted a priority by young people. In 2017, the PSHEE Association brought out a new, up-to-date and wholly relevant Programme of Study for 5-16 year olds. We have followed suit, taking the most relevant learning objectives and outcomes from the programme and tailoring it to our own specific needs. The result is a brand new PSHEE Curriculum for our school which we are in the process of rolling out.
Here at St Peter’s, SPQ (St Peter’s Qualities) underpin all we set out to achieve – not simply through PSHEE lessons, but through our School Values, The St Peter’s School Baccalaureate® curriculum, the
wider curriculum, the extra-curricular activities and participation in the life of the local community.
Mrs Evans goes on to add:
‘Each and every day I witness our pupils demonstrating the qualities and attributes of confident, thoughtful, decent members of society in what is becoming an increasingly complex modern world. I have seen children who are inspired to take on personal challenges in order to raise money for a charity close to their hearts; those who are able to confront personal difficulties with dignity and maturity; those who simply notice a fellow pupil in need and ask, “Can I help?” The list is endless. Not only does it fill me with pride in the pupils but also a hope that they will leave St Peter’s with the skills and attributes they need to achieve their full potential throughout their lives.’
Please find below a link to an article based on a study which found links between PSHE
lessons and improved pupils’ grades.
https://www.tes.com/news/pshe-lessons-improve-pupils-grades-study-finds
L.Ball (Deputy Head of Teaching & Learning, St Peter’s)
