This resource pack is designed for use by teachers and trained trade union school tutors in Scottish schools. Some of the activities within the pack were written and evaluated for use in Scottish schools during 2007-2008 when STUC school visit tutors visited secondary schools in Scotland. Other activities are adapted from materials first included in the TUC A Better Way to Work resource aimed at school and college students in England and Wales.
Through consultation with teachers, it is clear that different schools adopt different approaches to the teaching of rights and responsibilities within the workplace. This resource is therefore designed flexibly to allow its use within various aspects of the curriculum, including citizenship, work experience and as part of the Determined to Succeed initiative. It includes activities which can be used as part of a basic introduction to rights and responsibilities at work as well as more challenging activities suited to older pupils considering the world of work in more detail.
As a dual resource, to be used by trade union school tutors as well as teachers, the pack includes some activities which may be more suited for delivery by trade unionists or those with a background in employment rights. However, all activities come with a tutor note including helpful web references.
- Additional teacher support notes will be published here as they become available.
The STUC and TUC Education intend to hold a number of events for teachers wishing to become more familiar with using the resource. IF you would liek further details please Details of such events will be made available in the Unions Work Events section of the website. A number of the activities in the pack will require to be updated in the case that employment law changes or, as with the Minimum Wage, annual up-rating occurs.
The ring binder format of the pack allows for updates to be downloaded and incorporated at the aforementioned website. Both teachers and tutors may wish to refer to the site before undertaking an activity to ensure that information is up to date. Where possible the activity notes indicate whether and when a change is likely to occur. Equally, a number of the activities require the copying of worksheets and resource sheets from the pack and these can be accessed online for ease of reproduction.
A Better Way to Work in Scotland is split into 4 units, each of which has a number of activities. In broad terms, Units 1 and 2 are suited to those requiring an introduction to rights and responsibilities at work, and Units 3 and 4 require that some level of understanding has been established. Teachers will know the level of understanding within a given class. Trade union tutors will establish this through consulting with a teacher prior to their visit.
