How enterprising are you?

How enterprising are you? 

There's now an online test available.
You need to add your details and the code AA33 when prompted.

Take 5 minutes to find out here. 

Schools are churning out the unemployable

I realised that, for all the talk of encouraging entrepreneurial attitudes in schools and giving more choice to students, too many schools still hadn't understood what's actually required to do this successfully, in a way that benefits society later. I thought that the best way to help schools understand how lessons, curricula or resources could be planned to this end would be to always spend a good part of the week in the sharpest end of that societal and business world. Ewan McIntosh challenging conventional orthodoxies

Help at hand

'In order for business and enterprise to work in schools particularly it must be woven throughout the fabric of the organisation. It is that simple – it’s black and white'  
Pat Moores

Based in  Northamptonshire, Pat Moores is a marketing consultant with a background in business and the experience of working with schools, developing and leading business and enterprise at the heart of education. Pat has already worked with The Mighty Creatives and Northamptonshire schools and has some useful insights to offer. You can read about her involvement with TMC here.

The Four Stages of Freelance Success

Lateral Action describes itself as 
a web publication that aims to help you succeed (however you define success) by getting you to realize that busy does not equal productive or more importantly,innovative.
Author Mark McGuinness (and others): 
provide tips and techniques that help you focus on doing remarkable things, rather than getting trivial things done or never moving beyond “creative thinking.”


A new post considers the journey from Amateur to Freelancer to Professional to Soloist. You can read more about it here.


There's a link to Lateral Action on the right

Changing Education Paradigms - Sir Ken Robinson

Sir Ken Robinson has been a consistent advocate for the importance of Creativity in Schools.

This animated presentation gives some idea of his insights into the subject.

Entrepreneurs in the world of film and art.

An entrepreneur is a person who has possession of a new enterprise, venture or idea and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome. The term is originally a loanword from French.

Entrepreneurs in the world of film and art.

Sly Stallone?

Damien Hurst?

Sir Laurence Olivier?

Francis Ford Coppola?

Paul Gauguin?

The Great Egg Race

For readers of a certain age (and inclination) this picture will bring back happy memories of a time when creativity and enterprise were given a regular slot on prime time TV. Ingenuity and skill were celebrated and led to some wonderful inventions. I guess the nearest thing now would be Scrapheap Challenge.

You can read more about it and find a link to one of the programmes here.

Learning: creative approaches that raise standards

Ofsted produced a report on creative approaches to learning that can be downloaded here

Enterprise

Enterprise is about initiative and the drive to make things happen. Enterprising people create and implement new ideas and ways of doing things, handle uncertainty and respond positively to change. They have a positive 'can-do' attitude.


This is how Enterprise is defined by the Qualifications & Curriculum Development Agency here.


Enterprise education encourages young people to be innovative, to take and manage risks, and to develop determination and drive. Enterprise education is not about a body of knowledge - it is about developing young people's ability to embrace change positively, show initiative, take responsibility and manage themselves. Developing enterprising and entrepreneurial qualities will benefit young people in their personal and working lives, and the communities in which they live.


In this blog we aim to explore the potential of creative approaches to learning to develop enterprise in young people