This ground-breaking, one-day course helps learners understand they don’t always need to have all the answers all the time, by experiencing the benefits of working with others to reach a conclusion. We do this by introducing a way of working intended to build resilience and emotional intelligence and enrich and strengthen learning relationships in the classroom environment. Our dynamic approach and unique resources give learners freedom to think for themselves in a creative context.
During the course, learners work in teams to discover the where-abouts of a missing teenager. Information is provided in film story format, using witness statements, local maps, timetables, interviews, and a range of other clues. The teams then learn how to develop hypotheses, rationalise their decisions and to discard unproductive lines of enquiry. Once they’ve reached agreement, their conclusions are finalised, and their theories are presented for judgement.
We know that more able students have the necessary academic strengths to gain successful grades but often lack confidence and the soft skills required for everyday life and progression to top universities. ‘Missing: An Investigation Scenario’ is a course designed to enable learners to develop and exhibit skills outside the purely academic skill set. These include alternative traits and skills like taking initiative, demonstrating a positive and flexible attitude, decision-making, problem-solving, time management, working under time pressures and being pro-active.
- Logical thinking tasks / puzzles.
- Team-working to create theories and formulate hypotheses.
- Analysing and evaluating different information formats (visual, written, numerical, graphic).
- Responding to events in a real-time scenario.
- Producing, practising, and delivering presentations.
- Consolidating ideas in written reports.
“At Brunts Academy our gifted and more able students have the ability to achieve academic excellence, attaining the highest grades, and have high aspirations for their futures. However, in discussion with both the students and their parents we identified a need to further develop some of the students’ employability skills. The Missing programme delivered by PET-Xi provided the perfect platform for our students to work collaboratively, make informed decisions, rationalise their thinking, solve problems using new strategies, communicate effectively using a variety of mediums, practice time-management skills and work under pressure.
By challenging the students, removing their comfort zone and providing a context outside the realms of the academy’s curriculum, they’ve developed greater awareness of others and improved self-confidence. Students were highly complementary of the programme and the PET-Xi team, they were totally engaged from the start, competitively embracing every challenge and could identify how they had benefited from the day. I would highly recommend this programme.”
Helen Taylor, Brunts Academy
