Business Brains for a Material World

Interdisciplinary Learning and Employer Partnership in Practice

Business Brains for a Material World offers Enterprise in Education activities within the Art and Design and Business Education departments of St Ninian’s High School. A Glasgow based design company has worked with staff and pupils for the last 3 years to explain how they set up and run their design company while teaching Computer Aided Design skills in Art and Design.

Business Brains for a Material World is a sustainable project which demonstrates creativity and true cross-curricular working. The project adds value for every pupil, encouraging them to be innovative and inventive. It gives pupils enriched methods of learning and an enhanced awareness of enterprise and entrepreneurship. The project has been filmed by LTS as an example of school employer partnership and the film is showcased on the Determined to Succeed website.

The projects success is demonstrated by the outstanding results in the 2008 SQA Standard Grade Examinations for the courses directly linked to the initiative. In Art and Design Credit passes increased from 41% to 53% and in Business Management 35% of pupils achieved a grade 1 compared with 11% in 2007 and 12% in 2006. The project also received outstanding results in Glasgow Museums Annual Art Competition for Young People in 2007 and 2008 and the design company received the 2008 SCDI Determined to Succeed Award for Outstanding Partnership Working with a School.