The Beauty of Funding

Talk The Talk

Celebrating our new funding agreement with the Jack Petchey Foundation

Last week we worked with Year 11 students at South Chingford Foundation School, delivering our Talk About The Future oracy workshops. These workshops form part of a new funding agreement between Talk The Talk and the Jack Petchey Foundation across secondary schools in London and Essex.

We caught up with the school Drama Teacher and Achievement Award co-ordinator as well as one of our trainers for a quick Q&A session. Here’s what they had to say…

Why did you feel the need to book our Talk About The Future workshop?

[Teacher] A lot of our students, particularly since coming back post lockdown, have lost a lot of confidence. When applying for colleges and apprenticeships they have been asking ‘What do I put for this? What do I say for this?’ They need help with their CVs and coaching on how to engage employers with persuasive examples, stories and anecdotes.

How did you feel the content of the workshop helped the students?

[Teacher] The trainer made them feel really comfortable. Some of the students began the morning with yes/no answers but within half an hour were standing up and sharing their experiences!

[TTT Trainer] The group was in my view, a very low confidence group. At first there was a reluctance to engage with me, and also the tasks at hand. However, as the trust in the process grew the students slowly began to contribute.

[Teacher] It really helped that the trainer shared his own personal experiences. That’s important because the students can relate more. They know it’s real when someone else has lived and experienced it. It brings a different emotion to the workshop and the students feel easier about sharing.

I also really liked the workbooks, it gave them helpful statements that the students could relate to. When they have a prompt it enables them to expand their story in their own words.

[TTT Trainer] By the end of the day, the students were positive and enthusiastic about the mock interview activity. They committed to exploring what it means to be an interviewee and what the job of the interviewer involves.

What are the benefits of a teacher being actively involved in the workshop?

[Teacher] The benefit of a teacher attending the workshop is that they are able to prompt the trainer if there are any students in the class exploring a different path.

For example, one girl in the class was studying GCSE Drama, I was able to point that out to the trainer and consequently he was able to help her with audition techniques. It also added variety to the workshop.

[TTT Trainer] From my point of view the focus of both students and supervising teachers was impressive. Several teachers walked past the room and commented in private to me afterwards, that they were impressed at the level of attention and support that the students were giving to one another. This was exhilarating to be part of. 

We don’t have the expertise your trainers have and can only deliver as form tutors, so having Talk The Talk in was a huge help to the students and their confidence, they are all including the workshop experience in their personal statements

Drama Teacher, South Chingford School

How important is Jack Petchey Funding for your School?

[Teacher] We are a small school and we appreciate any funding we can get! 

If we didn’t have JPF funding we would not have been able to host these workshops. We don’t have the expertise that your trainers have and can only deliver as form tutors. So having Talk The Talk in was a huge help to the students and to their confidence. They are all now including the workshop experience in their personal statements.

Why is oracy important?

[Teacher] Oracy is a vital life skill which if you struggle to master whilst young can have a massive impact on the rest of your life.

[TTT Trainer] The students appreciated that the simplest elements could make a huge difference: eye-contact, an alert posture, a smile as you approach a room and a ‘thank you’ at the end of the interview.

By the end of the day, the participants were effectively coaching each other. 

We would like to thank South Chingford School for sharing their feedback with us. If you would like to book a Talk About The Future Workshop with us click the button below.

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Categories: Jack Petchey Foundation

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