The school curriculum is changing, not just to meet the needs of pupils, but also to respond to the demands of ‘The World of Work'. Increasingly employers are looking for people who are well qualified, experienced and can demonstrate other skills and capabilities which they value in the workplace.

The main Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities prospective employers expect pupils to have are outlined below.

• Self-Management - helps pupils become more self-directed, so that they can manage their learning in new situations. To do this they need to be more aware of their personal strengths and weaknesses, and able to identify their interests and limitations.
• Being Creative - helps pupils generate questions, interrogate and define problems as well as imagining different possibilities and solutions. Curiosity, exploration, experimentation, invention and learning from mistakes are all important elements.
• Think, Problem-Solve & Decisions-Making - helps pupils engage in active learning so that a deeper understanding of topics is achieved. It helps pupils develop a critical mind so that reasoned judgements and decisions are made rather than jumping to immediate conclusions.
• Work with Others - helps pupils to collaborate with others which can create opportunities to develop negotiation skills and a sense of fairness and respect for others. It helps pupils appreciate group dynamics and roles that can be assumed in groups.
• Managing Information - helps pupils access, select and integrate information from a range of sources to communicate their ideas. It involves asking questions to clarify the purpose and what needs to be done; it helps pupils select and evaluate information and develop methods for recording information.

Teachers are constantly looking for opportunities to highlight and promote these skills and capabilities for their pupils.  All subjects provide tasks and activities that help develop thinking skills and learning capabilities.

Outlined below are just a few examples:

• Self-Management in English - organise and plan a visit to the local Library to help prepare a presentation on the work of a given author.
• Being Creative in Art and Design - experiment with a style and method of painting to help with a piece of coursework.
• Think, Problem-Solve & Decision-Making in History - examine historical evidence relating to a particular event, and distinguish between fact and fiction.
• Working with Others in Technology and Design - listen actively when sharing ideas and opinions with others about design solutions.
• Managing Information in Science - collate and record the results of a specific scientific experiment. Present these results to the rest of the class.