Month: May 2015

Communications

Invite other parents to like the Facebook page

by Breadalbane Parent Council • 31/05/2015 • 0 Comments

We’ve set ourselves the goal of doubling the number of parents who’ve ‘liked’ the parent council Facebook page, from 135 to 270, by the end of the year.

Will you help us hit this target? It will only take a minute or two. Here’s how you can do it.

1. Open the parent council Facebook page.
Go to www.facebook.com. On the left-hand side, under the heading PAGES, click on the words ‘Breadalbane Academy Parent Council’ — outlined in red in the screenshot below.

2. Click on ‘Invite friends to like this page’.
Now you’re on the parent council Facebook page, look for ‘Invite friends to like this page’ (left-hand side; near the top — see screenshot). When you find these words, click on them.

3. Choose who to invite.
A pop-up window will open, showing all your Facebook friends. Scroll through the list and invite any parents of Breadalbane pupils to like the parent council Facebook page.

And that’s all you need to do. It will take 2 minutes, and will really help us make sure more parents are informed, and have a chance to participate. Thank you for your help!

Parent council

Parent Council 2015/16 targets

by Breadalbane Parent Council • 26/05/2015 • 0 Comments

One of the things we’d like to propose at the AGM this Thursday, 28 May, is that the parent council set itself goals for the coming year. Once the goals have been agreed, wherever appropriate we’d like to make them measurable targets.

To get discussion going, we’ve drawn up a list of seven possible goals.

Build expertise within the parent council, so that we have a detailed understanding of how the school and Scottish education generally works.
Work with parents and the school management to understand where and how the parent council can make the biggest positive impact.
Get more parents involved in the parent council and make sure that parents feel properly represented by the parent council.
Create stronger links with the parent councils at Pitlochry High School and at the associate primary schools.
Work through the ASN Parents’ Group to create a support and knowledge-sharing network for parents of children with additional support needs.
Work through the Fundraising and Opportunities Group to raise and distribute funds for school and school-related projects in a transparent way that clearly meets needs that could not be met through other avenues.
Improve parent-teacher communication, and increase parental involvement and volunteering, by having a parent representative for each class in the primary.

You can download a fuller version of these draft goals here. What goals do you think the parent council should set itself? Let us know, either by emailing us or at the AGM on Thursday 28 May, 6:30pm, at Breadalbane Community Campus.

Thanks to Eran Sandler for making the above photo available under a Creative Commons licence.

Meetings, Parent council

2015 AGM agenda

by Breadalbane Parent Council • 25/05/2015 • 0 Comments

What: Parent Council AGM
When: 6:30pm Thursday 28th May
Where: Breadalbane Community Campus
Who: All welcome!

1. Introductions & apologies.
2. Matters arising.
3. Presentation by Comann nam Pàrant on Gaelic Medium Education.
4. Approve the minutes of the last AGM.
5. Chair’s report & treasurer’s report.
6. Update from parent council groups & projects (FOG, ASN, parent reps etc.).
7. Election of office holders & agree dates for next year’s meetings.
8. July 1 Family Fun Day at the Ailean Chraggan. Alison Steele to present.
9. Proposed goals & projects for 2015/16.
10. Planned 2015/16 communications survey.
11. University admissions evening — feedback & evaluation.
12. Change to PC constitution (to make it easier to be a member).
13. AOCB.
14. Date and time of next meeting.

You still have a chance to add items to the agenda. Just email us at contact@breadalbaneparents.com.

Download this agenda as a PDF.

ASN Support Group, Child Welfare

First ASN support meeting for parents

by Breadalbane Parent Council • 20/05/2015 • 0 Comments

What: First meeting of the ASN Parents’ Group
When: 7:30pm, Tuesday 26 May, 2015
Where: Breadalbane Community Campus
Who: All welcome!

On Tuesday 26th May at 7.30pm we’ll hold the first meeting of the Breadalbane Parent Council ASN Parents’ Group. The meeting will take place in the lecture theatre and is open to anyone who wishes to join us. The aim of the group is to be supportive and share knowledge and information regarding additional support needs.

Additional support needs in children can be so varied, be either long or short term, and can affect a child and their family at any time during their school years. Having a child with additional support needs can mean parents and families have to deal with complex issues and a wide variety of systems policies and legislation, which can be overwhelming.

The group would aim to offer a place where people could voice their anxieties or concerns or even just enjoy meeting other parents in similar situations. There is currently no agenda for our first meeting and we hope through parents attending that we can further see what parents might be looking for from such a group. So please come along and let us know how we could be helpful.

Best wishes
Jane Carmichael
ASN Support Group
Breadalbane Academy Parent Council

Vocational training

Gina Wallace investigates PKC plans to boost kids’ employability

by Breadalbane Parent Council • 19/05/2015 • 0 Comments

At the end of March, Breadalbane parent Gina Wallace represented the parent council at a conference entitled ‘Developing Perth & Kinross’s Young Workforce’. Shortly afterwards, Gina wrote this article for the website. That it’s so late in appearing is our fault and not hers.

On Friday 27^th March, on behalf of the Parent Council, I attended a PKC Education and Children Services conference on Developing Perth and Kinross’s Young Workforce. The aims of the Conference were to:

Understand the national perspective and local policy related to developing Scotland’s young workforce
Increase knowledge and understanding of the education system and the world of work in the 21^st century
Have a clear understanding of how all stakeholders can collaborate to improve the outcomes of Scotland’s young workforce in a local context.

The day was a mix of presentations, group discussions and networking opportunities, with representatives from secondary schools across the authority, including teachers, pupils and parents, and also national and local businesses, council services, further education facilities and some third sector organisations. It was well-organised, interesting, and chaired effectively by Breadalbane Academy’s next headteacher, John Devine.

The key themes that came out strongly were:

The importance of links between schools and local employers and businesses, particularly when developing the curriculum
Making explicit the connections between jobs and skills, right from primary stages
The need for higher status of ‘vocational’, as opposed to traditionally ‘academic’ qualifications, subject choices and experience
The important role schools can play in producing young people with the right attitude, which is often more crucial in terms of getting jobs than academic qualifications.

The day closed with pupils summarising discussions from their groups, which included the following comments:

Schools need to better engage with parents align them with current curriculum and learning
There is currently a tension between academic studies and wider achievement – school is about more than just qualifications
Pupils should have contact with businesses from younger ages
STEM subjects are vital

Suggested action points:

School could host business breakfasts
Organise business linkages events locally
Set up a working group with school, pupils, and businesses with an action plan and scheduled events
Increase teachers’ knowledge of businesses and what they do
Create a ‘What do we do?’ board highlighting local businesses
Highlight role models that pupils can learn about, and share their career stories, demonstrating different paths to success
Create a core group focused on establishing new partnerships with businesses and communicating opportunities

Uncategorized

Final reminder: university admissions open evening next Tuesday

by Breadalbane Parent Council • 02/05/2015 • 0 Comments

What: University admissions open evening
When: 6:30pm, Tuesday 5 May, 2015
Where: Breadalbane Community Campus
Who: Open to parents and pupils

Don’t miss the university admissions open evening at Breadalbane Academy. Come along at 6:30pm, next Tuesday (5 May). It’s your chance to talk to school guidance teachers, university admissions officers, SQA representatives, PKC education department, and other experts.

The evening will start with a panel discussion, move on to an open Q & A and then finish with a chance to meet the speakers over a tea or coffee. Parents have been great about submitting questions in advance, but we still want to hear from you.

What do you want to know about how to prepare and apply for university? Questions so far include:

If ‘five Highers in one sitting’ is no longer going to be the norm, what’s the new “gold standard” for courses such as law and medicine?
Do children whose schools offer 6 or more Nat 5 subjects have an advantage over kids from schools that only offer 5?
What makes a good personal statement? With competition for some courses so fierce, what do pupils have to do in order to stand out from the crowd?

What questions would you add?

The event isn’t just for S5 and S6 pupils and their parents. It’s open to any parents and older pupils who are interested in finding out how the university admissions system works, and is changing. Pitlochry pupils and parents are also welcome.