Spontaneous and unprompted
In the midst of this latest heatwave, so at Grit our delivery is hotting up. Much of the work that’s coming this month is unusual and bespoke which is really exciting – whether that’s developing work about cultural inclusivity within a local authority, work on leading challenging conversations for virtual school staff or work for young men and those that support them as they navigate education.
We really love being ‘part of the conversation’ - working alongside a partner to help design ways for them to meet challenges they are facing - using our unique Grit ingredient to support schools, colleges, universities and local authorities to tackle the things that matter to them, and to the young people and families they serve. It’s what makes this current wave of delivery a time of learning and growth, something we are all about in Grit.
So if you are a client or potential client and you want to talk to us about something a bit different, we’d welcome the conversation. We bring the high-challenge/high-support training model, we bring the attitude-shifting approach, we bring the coaching ethos – you bring the challenge and let’s see if there is an overlap somewhere.
If you are one of the clients that has come to us in this way – thank you. And if you’re about to be – we look forward to it!
Ellie
Boys Impact
The “masculinity crisis,” the influence of the “manosphere”, and the continued rise of misogynistic attitudes and behaviours of boys in schools has been the subject of much debate recently - in education and in society more generally. And these issues lie at the heart of the increasingly influential Boys Impact agenda led by Dr Alex Blower at the Arts University Bournemouth.
It’s a debate that centres on the persistent disparities in the educational outcomes of boys and girls: how girls continue to outperform boys at GCSE; more girls go on to study A-levels; and young women leaving school and college are over one-third as likely as their male peers to secure a place in higher education.
So it’s great to read this University of Sheffield evaluation of Grit’s work with white working-class boys, published this month, demonstrating the difference Grit can make. We’ve been working with year 10s on belonging, on making the prospect of going into higher education become a meaningful possibility.
As the evaluation documents, the young men developed self-efficacy and confidence, were more likely to think about going to university, more likely to believe they will fit in well academically and socially.
And we’re excited that, this June, we’ll be delivering a third round of workshops with working class boys in Sheffield and working in schools on the Boys Impact agenda as part of our partnership with the University of Portsmouth.
Read the report here.
Spontaneous and Unprompted
If you follow Grit on LinkedIn you’ll probably have spotted some of the posts students make about their Grit experience. It might be Nina from Leeds Beckett University thanking Grit trainers for “an incredible and inspiring experience.” Or Ameer from the University of Sussex reflecting on the “opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals, share experiences, and gain insights from students from diverse backgrounds.”
It’s always special to hear what students, unprompted, have to say.
Partner institutions and organisations can be a little more guarded but when Nottingham Trent University send “massive thanks to Grit staff and trainers for their support these last few months,” the Deputy Head of Student Success at the University of Hertfordshire wishes she could “bottle Grit and give it to all our students”, or Construction Youth Trust enthuse about “the energy in the room was incredible and it was a transformative two days” it’s immensely rewarding.
Come and join us on LinkedIn for more spontaneous and unfiltered takes on Grit.
Grit in Virtual Schools
Our work with Virtual Schools - teams in local authorities that oversee the educational journeys of children in care – has been gradually building momentum. After a programme with colleagues in Kent last summer, this month we were with the Virtual School team in Nottinghamshire.
Having challenging conversations, coaching resilient teams… It was, as one participant said, “an intriguing, inspiring two days.”
Read about what a previous participant from a Virtual School has to say here.
Being a Grit Trainer
We’re often asked what it’s like to be a Grit Trainer. Here, Enrolment Lead and trainer on our programmes for Students of Colour, Kim Karenga, explains how it feels to be ‘at the front of the room.’
“People often assume that standing at the front of the room means you’re the one generating the safety, the energy, the connection that the impact comes from you. The reality is more nuanced. You create the conditions, but the impact is generated by the people in the room.
It’s not about delivering perfectly, but about being present listening to what is said, and what is not. It’s about being human with other humans, willing to reflect and make sense of things together.
Your role is to guide an experience that supports others to think and question. When it works, the most powerful moments don’t belong to you they belong to the people in the room, and what they come to understand for themselves.”
