Who are we?
The pupil development team includes 4 Guidance Staff, 1 Vocational Coordinator, 1 Home School Inclusion Worker (Catherine MacKenzie), 1 Pupil Welfare Officer (Mary Wilson), 1 School Nurse, 1 Campus Police Officer (PC Joyce Robertson), 2 support teachers, 1.6 teachers from Pupil Support Service, 5 classroom assistants and 1 Curriculum Coordinator.
Why Guidance?
Every pupil has a guidance teacher. This is someone that gets to know the pupil, carers, home and personal circumstances very well. As there are 4 guidance teachers, each has a quarter of the school role. They teach PSE to each of their House Groups once a week as well as teaching within their subject areas.
Christine Howie- Arran
Gary Bryden- Bute
Derek Owen- Cumbrae
Katie Ankers-Eglinton
What has been going on this term?
Personal And Social Education in S1 has included Relationships, Bullying, Personal Safety, Finance, Puberty, Citizenship, mental Health, Smoking/Drugs along with Careers S2 covers the same issues but in more detail. S3 and 4 also include Citizenship and the Law, Discrimination, Gambling, Abortion, Work Experience along with study skills.
Restorative Meetings
One way of dealing with incidents between pupils is through restorative meetings. All parties have to agree to take part and PC Robertson and Jill MacDougall facilitate the meeting. Each person is able to speak uninterrupted about the issue and the effect it is having on them and others connected to them.The pupils then decide on a solution and a contract is written. This contract is then reviewed a week later.
Irvine Royal Academy 