During the autumn term students studying on the Life Skills, Move On course learnt about the growing need for food banks, and how more people than ever are being forced to use them to help support themselves and their families. The Trussell Trust, which runs two-thirds of the UK's food banks, reported that it had distributed a record 823,145 food parcels between April and September, including 301,653 that went to children. This was a 23% increase on the same period last year, representing the steepest rise the charity has witnessed since its network of food banks was fully established. Today in the City of Wolverhampton there are families and single people struggling to buy food and other essentials. For people on low incomes, a sudden crisis can mean going hungry. In response to this students decided to set up food collection boxed at Adult Education's main site and the Maltings. They collected a wide range of items that they then delivered to the local Charity 'Well'.  During th...

I struggle with maths at the best of times so when England came to a standstill I wondered how I would progress. I am currently studying Functional Skills Maths Level 1 at Adult Education Wolverhampton.Our first session during the Coronavirus lockdown left me a little out in the cold, I struggled without the face-to-face direction from our fantastic teacher particularly when tackling a new topic. I can honestly say, "Week one was very challenging. But by Week two, I knew I'd had a breakthrough!"It takes time to organise resources and get used to a new way of teaching and learning but week 2 was great! Learning online in the virtual world of video conferencing is the way forward. I was in my own living room but this week the usual fun and lively dynamic of the class was back. Learning, interacting and laughing with others in my opinion is the very best way forward!This message goes out to all my fellow students. Be patient, give your teacher the credit they deserve they are doing a fant...

At Adult Education our Access team continue to prepare students for university, by supporting them remotely. What is the pre-access course? Our pre access course prepares students who are not yet ready for university and need to improve their English and maths qualifications to at least Level 1. We deliver Pre-Access courses in Health combined Social Work, Business, Administration & Law and Music Technology.Following this course, students are then able to progress on to our Access to Higher Education Diplomas. Subjects include Art & Design, Business and Law, Health Professionals, Music Technology and Social Science. From here our students apply and progress to university.  A new way of learning... Marvel Smith one of our Access Health Study teachers said,"In the years prior to working at AEW, I had worked as a mentor to young people in my community. I have always enjoyed getting young people to a place where they believed they could do the thing they once thought impossibl...

While working at home during lockdown Life Skills students started a new project to explore the use of renewable energy sources and materials.Students have been asked to design a home of the future. They investigated the reducing, recycling and reusing of materials and objects. The effects of what we produce on the environment and what we could do to limit any damaging effects. They considered what the needs of a house in the future could be taking into consideration a changing climate and use of different materials.I am very proud to say that students have been working hard on this project and have been using imaginative ways to approach their vision for a house of the future. Students have been using Lego, Knex, cardboard boxes and even Mind Craft to illustrate what they think a house of the future may look like.  Student ideas 

Business Administration students have continued to learn throughout the lockdown albeit from their dining room, kitchen, living room or bedroom.At the start of their course in September their teacher Niki Tomlinson introduced them to working with Microsoft Office 365 one of the most used software packages in the workplace.Since lockdown started students have been able to continue working towards their qualification and learning the skills needed to work in an office.The students have been collaboratively learning through the 'Teams' app.Here they can chat to each other and discuss their thoughts and opinions. For example, discussing the advantages of using electronic diary systems.Following their discussions, they have produced reports which have been uploaded into their classroom notebook.   The main change for the majority of the group is the time they access their work. Some have children who require the family laptop during the day for their learning, so the students have had ...

Over the last 10 months it has been clear that the digital divide has been getting bigger with more people disadvantaged because they are without access to the Internet and other information and communication technologies. As further basic activities are moved online some people are unable or less able to obtain digital information, shop online, participate democratically, or learn skills and offer skills. In response to this AEW has organised a laptop loan scheme and help for students to access the internet in their own homes making it possible for more people to access what could be seen as a basic right.  Students benefit from loans scheme One group of students who have benefitted from the loan scheme is the 3 day Move On Life Skills class, all of whom now have access to laptops to enable them to engage with learning online. This is their story: Week one It's only our first week of live streaming for the Life Skills Move On Group, but it has already made a huge difference to ho...

25/01/2021 Microsoft teams was running slow first thing this morning but the group showed great determination. It did however require some technical support from class mates and a very smooth rescue mission from one individual to recover those lost in another virtual room. The team met and congratulated each other on a job well done. Despite the minor delay to the start of class they were all smiles and pleased to see each other. The group are adapting well to this new way of life and learning. It may not be a classroom as we know it but it is offering them some structure to their week. They enjoy seeing each other and the staff that support them. The first few minutes of the day are taken up with general chit chat, each asking how the others are and enquiring on theirs and their family's health. There have been a few oops moments when students forget they are participating in a class and the language seems to switch from good mannered English to …………….well I best not say. After a gent...

On Tuesday 2nd April, two groups of students from our Life Skills Move On and Like Skills Keep on Learning programmes went on a trip to the Black Country Museum together with their tutors Michelle Bishton, Bethune Matthews and a number of support workers. The day started with most of the students catching the bus which was a great way to build our students confidence in using public transport. Everyone enjoyed the bus trip and when we arrived at the Black Country Museum the students split into various groups to enable them to do some of the activities that they most wanted to do. One group went down the mine, whilst another group visited the Vintage Cars which everyone agreed were in great condition. Some of the students went on the Trolley bus and were very interested in what the conductor had to say. At lunchtime we all met up in the Workers Institute to have a drink and then the students who had not taken their own lunch all went to Hobbs Fish & Chips to get their lunch. We visi...

This term Life Skills students will be taking part in activities designed to make them more mental health aware. Students have been looking at emotions and how to identify emotions in others and themselves. They identified activities that they take part in and those that make them feel good.This week students took part in a walking for health day at Wolverhampton's West Park. Students planned the route that they walked to and from.Before the trip students discussed healthy eating and how this can affect how they feel. They then planned and prepared their own lunch for the day which they sat and enjoyed in the shade of the trees at lunch time.During the day students played ball and card games, activities they had chosen prior to the visit. Games that included the use of number skills. They also discussed the outdoor exercise equipment and had a go at some gentle exercise.While exploring the park the group discovered a sensory garden. There were a variety of smells and textures to experi...