Skills for Work:
Rural Skills
Intermediate 1
Course Guidance and
Employability Skills
Support Material
July 2006
Scottish Further Education Unit
Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Acknowledgements
SFEU is grateful to the subject specialists in Scotland’s Colleges and other
agencies and industry bodies who have been involved in the writing of this and
other support materials in the Skills for Work series. SFEU is also grateful for the
contribution of the Scottish Qualifications Authority in the compilation of these
materials, specifically for its permission to reproduce extracts from Course and
Unit Specifications and the Skills for Work Rationale.
Clip art in this pack is reproduced by kind permission of Bayer Healthcare, Animal
Health Division, Bayer House, Strawberry Hill, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 1JA,
© Scottish Further Education Unit 2006
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Rural Skills (Intermediate 1)
C239 10
Introduction
These notes are provided to support teachers and lecturers presenting the
Scottish Qualifications Authority Course C239 10, Rural Skills (Intermediate 1).
Copyright for this pack is held by the Scottish Further Education Unit (SFEU).
However, teachers and lecturers have permission to use the pack and reproduce
items from the pack provided that this is to support teaching and learning
processes and that no profit is made from such use. If reproduced in part, the
source should be acknowledged.
Enquiries relating to this Support Pack or issues relating to copyright should be
addressed to:
Information and Publications Co-ordinator
The Scottish Further Education Unit
Argyll Court
Castle Business Park
Stirling
FK9 4TY
Website: www.sfeu.ac.uk
Further information regarding this Course, including the Course and Unit
Specifications, National Assessment Bank materials, Centre Approval and
certification, can be obtained from:
The Scottish Qualifications Authority
Optima Building
58 Robertson Street
Glasgow
G2 8DQ
Website: www.sqa.org.uk
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this Support Pack,
teachers and lecturers should satisfy themselves that the information passed to
candidates is accurate and in accordance with the current SQA arrangements
documents. SFEU will accept no responsibility for any consequences deriving
either directly or indirectly from the use of this Pack.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Contents
Reference Material
7
What are Skills for Work Courses all about?
8
The Course in Rural Skills (Intermediate 1)
11
Summary Information on the Employability Skills Unit
13
Employability profile for Rural Skills
15
Introduction
16
How to use the pack
17
General advice on health and safety
18
General advice on learning and teaching and assessment approaches
19
Adopting a common approach to employability skills
20
Approaches to the assessment of employability skills
21
Good Practice
25
Resources
26
Course Induction
27
Possible induction activities for Skills for Work Courses
28
Suggested programme for Rural Skills induction
32
Student induction notes and Activities
33
Employability Support Section – Student Notes and Activities
40
Timekeeping
47
Attendance
50
Understanding your roles and responsibilities in the workplace
50
Planning and preparing for work
51
Working co-operatively with others
53
Awareness of efficient resource use
55
Following instructions
58
Review and self-evaluation
65
A worked example of the employability review
68
Positive attitude to learning
74
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Self-assessment
75
Rural Skills Course Evaluation Questionnaire
77
Glossary of terms
79
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Reference Material
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
What are Skills for Work Courses all about?
Skills for Work Courses are designed to help candidates to develop:
• skills and knowledge in a broad vocational area
• Core Skills
• an understanding of the workplace
• positive attitudes to learning
• skills and attitudes for employability.
A key feature of these Courses is the emphasis on experiential learning. This
means learning through practical experience and learning by reflecting on
experience.
Learning through practical experience
Teaching/learning programmes should include some or all of the following:
• learning in real or simulated workplace settings
• learning through role play activities in vocational contexts
• carrying out case study work
• planning and carrying out practical tasks and assignments.
Learning through reflecting at all stages of the experience
Teaching/learning programmes should include some or all of the following:
• preparing and planning for the experience
• taking stock throughout the experience
• reviewing and adapting as necessary
• reflecting after the activity has been completed
• evaluating, self-assessing and identifying learning points.
The Skills for Work Courses are also designed to provide candidates with
opportunities for developing Core Skills and enhancing skills and attitudes for
employability.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Core Skills
The five Core Skills are:
• Communication
• Numeracy
• Information Technology
• Problem Solving
• Working with Others
Opportunities to develop aspects of Core Skills are highlighted in Guidance on
Teaching and Learning Approaches in the Unit Specifications.
Employability
The skills and attitudes for employability, including self-employment, are outlined
below:
• generic skills/attitudes valued by employers
• understanding of the workplace and the employee’s responsibilities, for
example time-keeping, appearance, customer care
• self-evaluation skills
• positive attitude to learning
• flexible approaches to solving problems
• adaptability and positive attitude to change
• confidence to set goals, reflect and learn from experience.
• specific vocational skills/knowledge
Course Specifications highlight the links to National Occupational Standards in
the vocational area and identify progression opportunities
Opportunities for developing these skills and attitudes are highlighted in each of
the Course and Unit Specifications. These opportunities include giving young
people direct access to workplace experiences or, through partnership
arrangements, providing different learning environments and experiences which
simulate aspects of the workplace. These experiences might include visits,
visiting speakers, role play and other practical activities.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
A Curriculum for Excellence (Scottish Executive 2004) identifies aspirations for
every young person. These are that they should become:
• successful learners
• confident individuals
• responsible citizens
• effective contributors.
The learning environments, the focus on experiential learning and the
opportunities to develop employability and Core Skills in these Courses contribute
to meeting these aspirations.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
The Course in Rural Skills (Intermediate 1)
Course Rationale
The land-based sector is very diverse and includes a wide number of disciplines
that share a common element of being active, practical and mainly based
outdoors. The major disciplines that are recognised as land-based by the sector
skills council for the area include the following:
• agricultural crops
• fencing industries
• land-based engineering industries
• production horticulture industries
• tree and timber related industries
• environmental conservation industries
• landscaping industries
• agricultural livestock
• animal care industries
• aquaculture
• equine industries
• farriery
• fisheries management
• game and wildlife management and
• veterinary industries.
There is a very wide range of land-based businesses in Scotland with a great
variety of job roles. Changes in rural land use, including the decline and change
of traditional agriculture, have created a knowledge gap. Research has indicated
that fewer people are likely to contribute to the rural economy and its development
unless more individuals are introduced to the possible opportunities in land-based
industries in the UK.
This Rural Skills Course has been designed to provide a broad basis for
progression into further education and training in the land-based sector. It allows
candidates to begin to develop some of the basic practical skills necessary to
work in most of these disciplines as well as an opportunity to explore the very
diverse employment prospects that exist.
The primary target group for the course is school candidates in S3 and S4. It is
anticipated that, for this group of candidates, the course will rely on and build on
existing partnerships between schools and further education colleges delivering
specialisms in land-based industries. It may also be delivered in conjunction with
training providers or employers specialising in the land-based industries. These
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
partnerships will enable the course to be delivered in a variety of appropriate
learning environments with access to relevant teaching expertise.
The course has been designed with a common core that allows candidates to
develop an insight into the numerous opportunities of the land-based industries
and to develop the basic common skills of the sector. It also allows candidates to
choose a route that is related to either animals or plants where they can develop
specific basic practical skills in that general category.
The general aims of the course are to:
• widen participation in vocationally-related learning for 14–16 year olds
• allow candidates to experience vocationally-related learning
• provide candidates with a broad introduction to the land-based sector
• encourage candidates to develop a good work ethic including reliability,
flexibility and a positive attitude to work
• provide opportunities to develop core skills in a realistic context
• encourage candidates to take charge of their own learning and development
• provide a range of teaching, learning and assessment styles to motivate
candidates to achieve their full potential
• facilitate progression to further education and/or training.
The specific aims of this course are to:
• introduce candidates to the various disciplines of the land-based sector
• allow candidates to develop a basic knowledge of a selection of land-based
industries and related job roles
• allow candidates to experience an outdoor working environment
• allow candidates to develop an understanding of the very flexible requirements
of the individual who works with plants and/or animals
• allow candidates to develop an awareness of health and safety issues that are
integral to a career in a land-based industry
• allow candidates to develop the technical knowledge, skills and understanding
of some of the commonly used practical skills associated with land based
industries at this level
• introduce candidates to the technical knowledge, skills and understanding of
some specific practical skills associated with a selection of land-based
industries at this level
• prepare candidates for more focused further learning opportunities, study and
training for employment in land-based industries.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Summary Information on the Employability Skills Unit
Unit Employability Skills for Land-based Industries (
Intermediate 1)
Acceptable performance in this Unit will be the satisfactory achievement of the
standards set out in this part of the Unit Specification. All sections of the
statement of standards are mandatory and cannot be altered without reference to
the Scottish Qualifications Authority.
Outcome 1
Demonstrate work practices which enhance employability in land-based
industries.
Performance Criteria
a) Maintain time-keeping and attendance to acceptable standards.
b) Undertake necessary planning and preparation prior to practical work.
c) Work co-operatively with others.
d) Demonstrate awareness of efficient use of resources.
e) Follow instructions from person responsible.
f) Demonstrate safety awareness during all tasks undertaken.
Outcome 2
Review and evaluate own skills developed in practical contexts.
Performance Criteria
a) Identify own strengths and weaknesses.
b) Identify areas for improvement.
c) Identify action points for improvement.
d) Respond positively to advice and feedback on performance.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Outcome 3
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the requirements for a safe working
environment in a land-based industry.
Performance Criteria
a) Describe the common risks and hazards for a work task in a land-based
industry.
b) Identify measures that should be taken to minimise risk in relation to the task.
c) Identify any personal protective clothing and equipment that is necessary when
carrying out this task.
Evidence requirements for this Unit
Performance evidence supported by candidate review sheets and tutor
observation checklists, together with written and/or recorded oral evidence is
required to show that all Outcomes and Performance Criteria have been achieved.
Candidates will demonstrate the appropriate working practices and attitudes in
practical contexts. They will then review and evaluate their own performance on
candidate review sheets and, following a discussion with the assessor after each
review, will produce a plan for improvement. The evidence required will be:
• a minimum of three candidate review sheets, supported by an assessor
observation checklist
• a minimum of three progressive action plans, each relating to the associated
review sheet
In relation to Outcome 3 written and/or recorded oral evidence should include:
• a description of three common hazards associated with a particular work task
• a description of the likely level of risk for each of the identified hazards
• a description of measures that can be taken to minimise the risk of the
identified hazards
• a list of protective clothing and equipment that would be needed for somebody
carrying out that task
The NAB item for this Unit contains candidate review sheets, an assessor
observation checklist and a proforma in relation to Outcome 2. The NAB
illustrates the national standard required for this Unit. Centres who wish to devise
their own assessments should refer to the NAB to ensure a comparable standard.
NB Centres must refer to the full Unit Specification for detailed information
related to this Unit.
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Land-based Industries: An Introduction
Estate Maintenance: An Introduction
Employability Skills for Land-based Industries
Animal Husbandry: An Introduction
Animal Handling: An Introduction
Crop Production: An Introduction
Soft Landscaping: An Introduction
=A
=B
=C
=D
=E
=F
=G
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A, C
Self review and evaluation
•
F = Assessor checklists and candidate log sheets of practical tasks undertaken
G = Assessor checklists and candidate log sheets of practical tasks undertaken
A = Portfolio containing candidate planning and review sheets and assessor checklists
B = Assessor checklists for practical tasks undertaken
C = Candidate/assessor review sheets, risk examination log
D = Assessor checklists and candidate log sheets of practical tasks undertaken
E = Assessor checklists and candidate log sheets of practical tasks undertaken
C
B, C, D, E, F, G
• Positive attitude and learning
Assessment evidence:
A, B, C, D, E, F, G
C
Awareness of efficient resource use
•
Following instructions
A, C, D, E, F, G
Working cooperatively with others
•
Health and safety awareness
A, C
Planning and preparing for work
•
•
A
Understanding roles and responsibilities in the workplace
•
•
C
Acceptable time keeping and attendance
Evidence
•
Employability skill/attitude
In addition to the specific, vocational skills developed and assessed in this Course, employability skills are addressed as detailed
below:
Employability Skills Profile: Rural Skills (Intermediate 1)
Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Employability profile for Rural Skills
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Introduction
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
How to use the pack
This pack is designed to help tutors to deliver the Rural Skills intermediate 1
course. It contains advice on learning, teaching and assessment approaches for
lecturers/teachers, together with student support materials including interactive
activities. The pack is made up of five main sections:
• This introductory section gives general advice for course teams on important
health and safety issues as well as how to identify, embed and assess
employability skills throughout the delivery of this Rural Skills Course.
• The second section is a good practice section designed for centre use: it
contains some subject-specific hints and tips from centres that have had
previous success in running rural skills courses through school-college or other
types of partnership agreements.
• The third section gives advice on both essential and recommended resources
for centre use, depending on the delivery context of the course
• The fourth section is designed to assist with the development of an induction
programme. It contains introductory activities which can help to introduce
learners to Skills for Work courses in general, followed by suggestions for
induction into the Rural Skills Course. There is a suggested approach to the
introduction of the course and the concept of employability skills (using
material from this section and section 5). It also has a candidate induction
evaluation sheet which centres may wish to use or adapt.
• The fifth section is designed for use with students. It contains material that can
be used or adapted to introduce students to the specific employability skills
that will be assessed through the activities of this course. It also has
exemplars of the self-review and evaluation process, as well as the risk
examination process that they will be expected to complete as part of the
assessment of the Employability Skills Unit. There is a self-assessment
activity regarding employability skills and a glossary of terms for student use.
Finally there is a Course evaluation sheet which centres may wish to use or
adapt.
Please note that the materials and activities contained in this pack are not
intended to be a mandatory set of teaching notes. They provide centres
with a flexible set of materials and activities which can be selected, adapted
and used in whatever way suits the individual centres and their particular
situations.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
General advice on health and safety
The majority of this Course requires the deployment of a real or realistic work
setting that may be provided by a land-based College, an employer or a training
provider. Risk assessment and compliance with health and safety legislation is of
paramount importance in these environments. Centres will need to adhere to all
current, relevant health and safety legislation and carry out appropriate risk
assessments before learning and teaching begins. A person (or persons) who
has had both appropriate risk assessment training and a current experiential
knowledge of the particular working environment into which the students are
entering, should carry out risk assessment well in advance of the learning
activities. Generic risk assessments for given activities are insufficient because of
some circumstantial differences between working environments.
The format of risk assessment is at the discretion of the Centre. Specific
guidance for carrying out risk assessments can be obtained from visiting the
Health and Safety Executive website at the following link:
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg163.pdf
Each of the support packs for the Units of this course will have more specific
guidance on health and safety for particular aspects of this course. It is important
that they are referred to.
• Appropriate PPE must be provided which is suitable for the context of
delivery.
• Particular attention should be given to group sizes and supervisor numbers,
considering the likely age and inexperience of students.
• Particular consideration should be given to the specific health risks that may
exist working with either plants or animals.
• Students should not enter any of the working environments before receiving a
full health and safety induction including the correct fitting of any PPE and
appropriate safety rules for the given workplace.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
General advice on learning and teaching and assessment
approaches
It is very important that the teaching team involved in delivery of this course have
a common understanding of the approach. Delivery should be based on a handson, experiential model with an emphasis on embedding the employability skills
throughout. More extensive advice on teaching and learning is given in the
support notes for each individual unit. As there is considerable choice in the
contexts for delivery of some of the Units, please note that the following support
packs are available to download from the Skills for Work pages of the SFEU
website www.sfeu.ac.uk . Centres should select the packs that are relevant to
their chosen contexts:
Core Unit Support Packs
• Course Guidance and Employability Skills [this document]
• Estate Maintenance: an Introduction
• Land-based Industries: an Introduction
Optional Unit Support Packs
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (horses)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (cattle)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (sheep)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (pigs)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (game birds)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (domestic dogs)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (domestic cats)
• Animal Handling: An Introduction (small companion animals)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (horses)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (cattle)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (sheep)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (pigs)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (game birds)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (domestic dogs)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (domestic cats)
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction (small companion animals)
• Crop Production: An Introduction (horticulture)
• Crop Production: An Introduction (agriculture)
• Crop production: An Introduction (forestry)
• Soft Landscaping: An Introduction
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Adopting a common approach to employability skills
One of the distinguishing features of Skills for Work Courses is the importance
given to the development of employability skills. The main employability skills felt
to be relevant for this Rural Skills Course are in the employability skills profile
which is given in the Reference Materials section of this pack.
The Unit ‘Employability Skills for Land-based Industries’ focuses on the
assessment of these employability skills but it is not intended that this Unit should
be delivered as a separate, discrete Unit. The ethos of employability should be
embedded throughout all aspects of this course. Opportunities will occur
throughout the delivery of the other Units to identify, develop, practice and assess
the employability skills. The profile highlights where these opportunities arise for
the assessment of each of the employability skills.
It is quite possible that different tutors will be involved in delivering various aspects
of this course and it is therefore very important that all have an agreed
interpretation of the employability skills. Some centres may wish to consider the
approach of identifying one tutor, who delivers one of the Units over an extended
time period, to carry out the assessments to ensure consistency. However, as
indicated above, this should not be interpreted as a way of delivering the
Employability Unit or the generic employability aspects as a separate entity.
The handouts and activities in this pack each have a ‘flag’, like the
one shown here, to identify the particular employability skill which
3
they address, numbered as shown below. The Unit support packs for
the other Units have similar ‘flags’ showing the places where there
are opportunities for these same skills to be developed or assessed.
It is vital that all those who are involved in delivery of the course
familiarise themselves with such development opportunities. They may also wish
to consider any other opportunities for developing the employability skills where
they arise from their own delivery model.
1
Time-keeping and
attendance
4
Working cooperatively with
others
7
Health and safety
awareness
2
Understanding roles
and responsibilities
in the workplace
5
Awareness of
efficient resource
use
8
Review and self
evaluation
3
Planning and
preparing for work
6
Following
instructions
9
Positive attitude to
learning
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Approaches to the assessment of employability skills
This section give guidance on possible approaches to the assessment of the
employability skills identified in the Employability skills for Land-based Industries
Unit.
Review and Self-Evaluation Tasks
Candidates are expected to review and evaluate their own employability skills.
This relates to Outcome 1 and 2 of the Employability Skills for Land-based
Industries Unit.
The specific skills referred to in this Unit, which the students have to review
themselves on are:
• acceptable time keeping and attendance
• planning and preparing for work
• working co-operatively with others
• awareness of efficient resource use
• following instructions
• health and safety awareness.
The NAB for this Unit contains an ‘employability profile guidance’ page, which
is intended to help the students make judgements when reviewing their own
employability skills. The students then have to complete a review sheet which is
also part of the NAB (copies of these two pages are provided below).
In section 5 of this pack, there are examples of completed review sheets. The
‘employability profile guidance’ (see next page), could be used during the
induction programme, along with the exemplar review sheets from Section 5, to
introduce students to the whole idea of review and self-evaluation. This would
mean that, at the end of the induction process, the students will have an
understanding of what we mean by employability skills and will also be aware that
they will have to review their own employability skills at several points during the
Course.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Employability Profile Guidance
1
2
3
My attendance in
the workplace
was inconsistent
and I often
arrived late and
not prepared to
start work at the
allocated time
My attendance
in the workplace
was generally
good but I was
often not
prepared to start
work at the
allocated time
My attendance in
the workplace
was usually good
but I was
occasionally not
prepared to start
work at the
allocated time
My attendance
was good and I
was always
ready to start
work at the
allocated time.
I usually did not
plan out or
prepare for tasks
before starting
which meant that
I gave no thought
to how long tasks
took.
I made an effort
to plan and
prepare for tasks
but often I did
not fully plan out
and prepare for
tasks which
meant that a lot
of time was lost
I made a
systematic effort
at planning and
preparing for
tasks but I
occasionally did
not fully plan and
prepare which
meant that a little
time was lost
I very carefully
planned out and
prepared
thoughtfully
before embarking
on tasks which
meant that I lost
no time.
I did not work with
the others when it
would have
helped tasks
I tried to work
with others but
often it did not
go well.
I worked well with
others and
contributed to the
team effort
regularly
I worked well with
others and
inspired team
performance
regularly
I did not consider
the importance of
using resources
and materials
efficiently
I was aware that
it was important
for some things
but forgot in
other areas
I was aware that
it was important
but found it
difficult to use
things efficiently
I was aware and
used the
resources as
efficiently as
possible
I ignored
instructions
completely
I sometimes
followed
instructions but
often diverged
from them
I followed
instructions with
occasional
lapses.
I always followed
instructions and
made an effort to
clarify them when
unsure
I was usually not
aware of any risk
for the work
carried out
I was aware of
safety issues but
did not give it
any thought
whilst carrying
out tasks
I was aware of
safety issues but
sometimes forgot
about it when
concentrating on
tasks.
I worked safely
and exercised
caution when
dealing with
unknown factors
all the time
4
Profile
Attendance
and timekeeping
Planning and
preparation
for work
Working with
Others
Awareness of
Efficient Use
of resources
and materials
Following
instruction
from
supervisor
Safety
Awareness
Smilies © Microsoft Corporation
Source: http://office.microsoft.com/clipart
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Employability Skills Review Sheet
Profile
My Rating
Tutor Rating
Action Required
(Y/N)
Attendance and
time-keeping
Planning and
preparation for
work
Working with
Others
Awareness of
Efficient Use of
resources
Following
instruction
from
supervisor
Safety
Awareness
Tutor Comments/feedback
Tutor Signature: ___________________________
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Centres should have their students carry out the self-review and evaluation tasks
at points in the Course after students have had a reasonable opportunity to
develop and demonstrate the relevant skills. This is likely to be after the
students have taken part in some of the practical activities of the following Units:
• Estate Maintenance: An Introduction
• Soft landscaping: An Introduction
• Crop Production: An Introduction
• Animal Husbandry: An Introduction
This may mean that different tutors are involved in the review process, and so an
agreed interpretation of the employability skills becomes very important.
Risk Assessment
Candidates are expected to carry out a small risk assessment of a task relating to
any land-based industry. Almost all of the practical activities give the student the
opportunity to complete the assessment of Outcome 3 of the Employability for
Land-based Industries Unit.
Carrying out simple risk assessment prior to undertaking activities is an excellent
way to raise student awareness of tasks that they are about to be involved in, and
could become a regular feature of the delivery of all practical activity in any of the
Units of the course. This would make the formal assessment activity familiar to
the student.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Good Practice
Centres embarking on delivery of this course should consider the following issues:
• Partnership working
Centres should establish partners for delivery well in advance and agreement
should be made on all roles and responsibilities of each partner. Particular
attention should be given to the carrying out of risk assessment, the payment
for any necessary PPE and any necessary transport arrangements.
• Seasonality
Centres delivering the animal Units in the context of some species such as
cattle, sheep and horses, need to consider the seasonal changes of husbandry
patterns in these species: it is wise for the husbandry and handling units to be
delivered during the winter months when these species are more likely to be
housed, fed and handled more frequently. Game birds are also affected by
seasonal variations that need to be considered. Centres should plan when
these Units are to be delivered: it will help to inform choices about whether
assessment evidence will be gathered in only one category or more than one
category of animal.
Seasonal issues also exist for the delivery of the plant units and this will be
dependent on the context of delivery. Centres should give consideration to this
issue when planning: in some cases, the order of delivery of the Outcomes
may be affected: it’s therefore important that underpinning theory appropriate
to whatever practical delivery is to follow, is carefully planned to match. In
some cases, it may be very difficult for students to be involved with the
harvesting of crops because of the timing of the school year and the timing of
many harvests: for this reason, it is not mandatory that students are involved
with harvest but it is to be encouraged wherever possible.
• Timetable Issues
Many centres will deliver this Course over a two-year period. Where Centres
plan to deliver the course over a shorter time period, they should be
particularly careful to consider the effect this may have in terms of issues such
as seasonality.
Centres should never under-estimate the time that it takes for young people to
be correctly fitted in PPE and prepared for the work environment: a three hour
session can easily become a reality of two hours where practical activity is to
be incorporated and planners should consider this carefully when preparing
timetables. Centres should also consider the time that it takes to transport
young people to and from the workplace.
Centres should avoid trying to front-load the course with all of the theoretical
input as this is contrary to the ethos of Skills for Work Courses.
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Resources
Detailed specific advice is given in each of the Unit support packs. This identifies
both physical and learning resource recommendations for the unit in the given
context. There are several ‘live’ hyperlinks to websites where appropriate learning
material and guidance documents can be downloaded.
Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) will be essential for all students
and will vary according to the route and context chosen.
The Unit Estate Maintenance: An Introduction (Intermediate 1) will require a
selection of basic hand tools, fences, simple plumbing and drainage equipment,
basic painting equipment, spades, shovels and basic horticultural equipment.
The Unit Land-based Industries: An Introduction (Intermediate 1) will require a
range of resources. These are likely to include Internet access, classroom
resources and facilities and any PPE deemed necessary for visits undertaken.
The Lantra web-site has a wide range of useful information:
www.lantra.co.uk
The animal Units will require access to a group of at least one category of animal
kept in a work setting or simulated work setting from the following categories:
Horses, sheep, cattle, pigs, game birds, small ‘cage’ companion mammals, dogs
and cats. There must be suitable handling and housing facilities for these
animals.
The plant units will require access to an area where plants are produced in a
realistic work setting. This could mean a horticultural, forestry or agricultural crops
environment. There should be sufficient resources for the students to be able to
practise planting, fertilising and pruning as well as observing commercial weed
and pest control. Where mechanised production occurs, the students may
observe demonstrations of such practice but will not be expected to participate in
the use of machinery at this level.
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Course Induction
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Course induction
This Section contains suggested introductory activities for induction programmes
in general, followed by advice/suggestions on induction into the Rural Skills
Intermediate 1 Course.
Possible induction activities for Skills for Work Courses
Most of the young people arriving in colleges or school workshops to take part in
Skills for Work know about the programme, have made an informed choice to be
there and are looking forward enthusiastically to trying something new. Some
young learners may not be off to such a positive start but as school/college
partnerships develop and improve there will be fewer in this category.
However, despite their interest and excitement, many of the students will also be
anxious, unclear about what is going to happen and concerned about their ability
to carry out the tasks that they will be set. Inevitably some will come with
unrealistic expectations of what they will be able to do right away – cut someone’s
hair, build a wall, bath a baby etc. In order to manage their expectations, the
induction process has to address their concerns, make clear to them what is about
to happen and build very quickly on their interest and enthusiasm to engage them
and develop their appetite for learning. The learning environment of a college will
be very different from school but the young learner’s need for a feeling of security,
a sense of purpose and clear instructions about what is and is not appropriate has
to be acknowledged right from the outset to ensure they can make the transition
safely.
All of this is a tall order, especially in the relatively short periods of time they will
spend in college so the first impressions that we create have to be strong, build
communications quickly and relieve any sense of stress by involving fun and
stimulating ‘things to do’. The following activities are ones that have been tried
and tested – and though they may not work with every individual or every group
they should quickly engage, help to ‘break the ice’ and encourage participation
and communication. For clarification the term ‘ice-breaker’ is used here for
activities which help to introduce people who do not know each other, develop
communication and create a relaxed environment. ‘Warm-ups’ are activities to
introduce learners to the topic they are about to learn in a fun, stimulating and
engaging way.
Ice-breakers
• Any game which involves people saying their name and other people’s names,
eg. ask the class to arrange themselves in a line alphabetically by their first
name and find out the names of the person on either side of them. They then,
in order left to right, have to call out the name of the person to their left; the last
person has to remember the first person’s name. Then do it again calling out
the name of the person to their right.
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• Paper Aeroplanes – each student has a piece of paper on which they write
their favourite colour/food/band, something they are good at and what they
would like to be able to do by the end of the course. They then make the
paper into an aeroplane and come and stand in a circle, throw the aeroplanes
into the centre. Each person has to pick one out (not their own) and either
they, or the teacher reads it out and the owner has to identify themselves. This
is a quick way to find out quite a lot about the group.
NB: Note however that any game which involves reading or writing may
embarrass people who do not have good literacy skills so drawing pictures
may sometimes be more appropriate.
• Word Games/Quizzes/Jigsaws/ Mind Mapping activities which can be done
as a group. Each person in the group should have a role to ensure all
participate, eg. time keeper, resource manager, quality manager, leader,
scribe.
• Problem Solving – team games which require the group to solve a problem
collectively, eg. in groups of 4/5 they are given 1 sheet of flipchart paper and
have to work out how to cross an area of the room (one side to the other)
without anyone’s shoes touching the floor.
Introduction to the vocational area
Activities which allow the learners to ‘have a go’ at a task related to the vocational
area and also encourage communication and participation include:
• Celebrity Stuff – eg:
• a selection of celebrities’ hairstyles which have to be matched to faces;
• look through the keyhole – pictures of houses and pictures of celebrities –
who do you think would live in each house and why?
• selection of pictures of cars – who do you think would drive this car and
what do you think might be in the boot?
• celebrity dogs – whose pooch is this?
• Design/create a hairstyle/house/car/garden/game that you think you could sell
to your favourite celebrity.
• Give students a selection of appropriate magazines and get them to make up a
quick poster to show what they think working in the vocational area is all about.
• Using photos/pictures/PowerPoint images of the resources, environment and
tools that are used in your vocational area to create observation games, eg:
• ‘spot the difference’ between two similar pictures
• find six objects that begin with ‘….letter of the alphabet’
• arrange pictures in sequence to explain a task.
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Putting a time limit on the task – eg. do this in the time it takes to play 3 of their
favourite music tracks – keeps the focus on the task.
• A team game to get students thinking about employability skills. Make up a
selection of cards showing a variety of employability skills. The students’ task
is to decide which are the most important – line them up in order with the most
important at the top and the least important at the bottom. (The answer
doesn’t matter –thinking, discussion and awareness is the goal)
Warm-ups to learning
• Show photos/pictures/videos of people doing the tasks common in your
vocational area, eg. driving a tractor, opening a bank account, shampooing a
client, refereeing a game and ask groups to describe/explain what they see
happening, eg. what do you think is in the cab of the tractor – they may not
know it can have a CD player with complete stereophonic sound. Some of the
commercials made by banks on opening accounts have rich material in them
for discussion.
• You can use the same resources to ease the way into tackling any unrealistic
expectations the students might have about the course. Show pictures/video
clips of people in the occupational area and have them make suggestions
about what other tasks the person would have to do in their job. Give an
example, eg. working in a restaurant isn’t all about cooking wonderful food –
the kitchen staff have to wash dishes, keep things tidy, pay attention to
hygiene etc. and in the same way, working in a salon isn’t all about cutting hair,
working in a leisure centre isn’t all about coaching basketball and working with
animals isn’t all about walking dogs etc.
• Encourage the students to think about the other jobs that need to be done to
keep the workplace a happy and productive one and introduce the idea that
these will be part of the course too, eg:
• tidying away tools/equipment,
• keeping the workplace clean and tidy,
• helping out workmates etc.
Have them put their ideas on ‘stickies’ and put on a flipchart.
• Word puzzles of the key words they are learning in the vocational area, eg.
word finds, anagrams, crosswords all act as warm-ups as well as re-enforcing
learning.
• Team building exercises which involve some aspect of vocational resources or
skills, eg:
• build a tower which can stand unsupported for 1 minute and support a
tennis ball on top using 9 sheets of newspaper, some sellotape and 6 pipecleaners – time limit 15 minutes;
• create a game for 5 – 7 year olds using resources from the workshop;
create an advert to sell a new shampoo complete with jingle.
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All of the above activities encourage aspects of communication, teamwork and
problem solving which are key employability skills. They also help to ascertain
prior knowledge, skills and attitudes and provide opportunities for observational
assessment and, in addition, will hopefully give you lots of ideas on how you can
adapt your Skills for Work curriculum to involve and interest learners.
To take these ideas forward and add to them, you can attend one of SFEU’s
‘ Get Skilled Up’ half day workshops for lecturers delivering Skills for Work
Courses, when we explore further the learning process and look at a range
of specific teaching and learning techniques to use with the under 16 age
group. To find out when the next event is visit our website www.sfeu.ac.uk
or contact the Learning Process team at SFEU on 01786 892000.
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Suggested programme for Rural Skills induction
Chunks of learning activity are suggested in this section for Induction to the
Course. The order, grouping and timing of these sessions are at the discretion of
individual centres and will depend on factors such as timetabling, class size etc. It
is recommended that significant time is spent on health and safety awareness and
the rules and regulations of the learning environments.
A number of activities are contained in both this section and the following section
(Employability Support Section). Some centres may choose to use all of the
suggested activities in their induction programme. Others may choose to use
some of the material during induction, and use other parts at suitable points during
the Course. If centres only use some of the material during the actual induction
programme, it is recommended that those marked with an asterisk should be
considered first:
• what are rural skills*
• what is different about a Skills for Work course*
• the units of the course (offer options if centre giving options to candidates)*
• how the course will be delivered including any domestic arrangements*
• group activity on what employability skills are*
• tutor feedback and summary of what employability skills are*
• self review and evaluation processes*
• timekeeping
• attendance
• roles and responsibilities in the workplace
• planning and preparing for work (include interactive activity)
• working co-operatively with others
• awareness of efficient resource use (include interactive activity)
• following instructions
• health and safety awareness and practice
• risk evaluation (interactive activity x 2)
• rules and regulations of the learning environment(s)
Please note that this material is designed for use by the student, including the
activities, but is not suitable for the student to tackle without tutor guidance
and discussion. You might feel that, in some cases, you would want to talk
through the instructions with the students and then give the materials out as
reminders. Tutors are encouraged to use the materials creatively in ways which
will engage the younger student, perhaps adapting them to the type of activity
suggested in the previous section.
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A PowerPoint presentation designed to complement the material in sections 4 and
5 can be found on the Skills for Work pages of the SFEU website:
http://www.sfeu.ac.uk/
Student induction notes and Activities
The notes that you’ll be given are intended to help you to get to grips with what
you will learn and do whilst on this course. You will find that there are several
activities and self-assessment tasks, often followed by some answers. In some
parts of this pack, you will be asked to think about things that you maybe don’t
know very much about yet but don’t worry! They’re not tests, so don’t worry if
your answers aren’t as complete as those provided for you. The questions have
been designed to get you thinking about everything you do rather than just rushing
in there!
Some words or phrases in the notes are in blue. This is because they are words
or phrases which are explained in the ‘glossary’ (a list of words and their
meanings) which your tutor will give you.
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What are ‘Rural Skills’?
Activity
Discuss what you think is meant by the term ‘rural skills’ and write down your
ideas here:
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Answer
• there’s no absolute right or wrong to this question and it’s very likely that what
you have written down is a very relevant answer.
• rural means different things to different people but to most people it means
something that relates to the outdoors or the countryside in some way or other.
The skills bit just means the practical abilities you’ll develop so that you can
carry out tasks.
• rural skills often involve outdoor activities, working with plants, animals or both.
In fact, the term rural is rarely used in this course! We use the words land-based
instead.
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What’s different about this course compared to other subjects at
school?
Have a Go!
Many of the subjects that you’ve been studying at school may have
been quite theoretical: this means that they are very paper-based and
don’t sometimes appear to relate to ‘real life’ as you see it. This can
be quite difficult and depending on the subject, it’s not always an
exciting way to learn. If you want to learn to play football or cook, for
example, you would probably find it much easier to actually do it and
learn through first-hand experience. David Beckham didn’t get where
he is today by reading books about football!
This course should be different from many of your school subjects because you’ll
be given the opportunity to develop some of the rural skills through actually doing
them or helping to do them. Where this is not possible because of practical or
safety reasons, you may have the opportunity to visit and see real people using
these skills in their daily jobs.
You may find that land-based industry is not for you after all or you may find that
you are actually more interested in a different part of the land-based sector than
you originally thought. The course should help you to make choices about your
future in the workplace.
Preparing for Work
• this course is relevant to the real workplace
• it has been designed so that your tutors will not only be helping
you to develop specific skills that are important to land-based
employers but also the skills that make you more employable.
• you’ll be introduced to these employability skills in a lot more
detail later on. These are very important and are skills that you’ll
be able to take from job to job as you move through life.
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What you’ll be studying
Here’s a summary of the Units that you will have to study as part of this course.
Land-based Industries: An Introduction
• you’ll find out what some of the very different industries within the land-based
sector are all about and also find out about some of the job opportunities in the
sector.
• you’re likely to visit some of these industries.
• you’ll put together a portfolio (folder) of all the things that you find out
• you’ll be involved in the presentation of these findings as part of a group.
Estate Maintenance: An Introduction
• you’ll become familiar with a range of hand tools
• you’ll participate in a range of “handyman tasks” which are common to many of
the land-based industries from plumbing repairs to fence repairs.
• you’ll be assessed practically- somebody will watch you help to carry out some
of these tasks.
Employability Skills for Land-based Industries
• you’ll develop some of the employability skills considered important in the landbased sector such as good time-keeping, attendance, good team working and
safety awareness.
• this will be assessed through practical activities carried out in the rest of the
course: it’s not going to be taught as a separate class.
Options
Here is a summary of the Units that you will study, if you follow the animal route
of the Course.
Animal Husbandry: An Introduction
• you’ll learn the skills for some of the basic tasks of animal husbandry
maintaining the health and well being of animals.
• you’ll be assessed practically- somebody will watch you help to carry out some
of these tasks.
Animal Handling: An Introduction
• you’ll learn the basic skills of handling and restraining animals
• this is assessed practically.
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Here is a summary of the Units that you will study, if you follow the plant route of
the Course.
Crop Production: An Introduction
• you’ll learn the basic skills required for crop production from the preparation of
the soil, through planting or sowing to the maintenance of plants.
• you’ll either do this unit in the context of horticulture (fruit, vegetables and
flower growing), agriculture (farming), or tree nurseries for forestry.
• it’s assessed practically- somebody will watch you help to carry out some of
these tasks.
Soft Landscaping: An Introduction
• you’ll be involved in soft landscaping projects.
• you’ll learn the basic skills of plant selection for particular projects, caring for
plants including weed control, pest control, fertilising and pruning.
• you’ll either do this unit in the context of countryside or estate management, or
landscape horticulture
• it’s assessed practically.
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Rural Skills Induction Questionnaire
To help us to make the first steps of this course easier for new students, we’d be
grateful if you would take a few minutes to complete and return this survey.
Please show how far you agree with the following statements by circling the
appropriate number. Circle N/A (not applicable) if you feel unable to comment.
Many thanks
Agree mostly
Disagree mostly
Disagree completely
Not applicable
Date: ___________
Agree completely
Course: ______________________________________
1
I received good advice before starting the course
4
3
2
1
N/A
2
Staff involved in the induction process were
approachable, friendly and helpful
4
3
2
1
N/A
3
I feel ready to begin my course of study.
4
3
2
1
N/A
4
During induction my course tutor clearly outlined the
contents of the course.
4
3
2
1
N/A
5
Rules and Health and Safety regulations were
clearly explained.
4
3
2
1
N/A
6
Things seemed well organised
4
3
2
1
N/A
7
I was given advice on where to go if I need help
4
3
2
1
N/A
8
I now have a good understanding about what this
course is all about
4
3
2
1
N/A
9
I now understand the importance of employability
skills
4
3
2
1
N/A
Please provide suggestions that could have made things easier for you when you
started this course.
_____________________________________________________________
Many thanks for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.
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Employability Support Section – Student Notes
and Activities
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Tutor notes
Centres may choose to use all of the suggested activities in this section in their
induction programme or to use some of the material during induction and use
other parts of the material at suitable points during the Course.
Please note that the material in this section is designed for use by the learner,
including the activities, but is not suitable for the learners to tackle without
tutor guidance and discussion, particularly the activities related to selfevaluation. You might feel that, in some cases, you would want to talk through
the instructions with the learners and then give them out as reminders. The
activities could be used for individual, pair or small group work.
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Group Activity
2&4
Decide roles in your group. You will need to:
• decide who will take notes on your group’s answers to the
following questions (use the spaces on this sheet to take rough notes)
• decide how your group is going to feedback
• decide who will write your notes up on the flipchart or whiteboard
• decide who is going to read them out to the rest of the group
Try and think about the following questions. Don’t be afraid to give your opinions:
all sensible answers are relevant and important.
1. What do you think ‘employable’ means?
2. Why do you think that being employable is important?
3. What sort of things do you think are likely to impress the people that you work
with in any kind of job? (If any of you have part-time jobs, think about what
impresses your co-workers/boss or what do they do that impresses you!)
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4. What sort of things do you think are likely to annoy the people that you work
with in any kind of job? (If any of you have part-time job, think about what
annoys your co-workers/boss)
5. What type of ‘employability skills’ do you think are probably most important for
a job in a ’land-based’ (rural) industry? A couple of examples are given to
start you off:
• Arriving in good time every day.
• Being able to follow instructions.
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How did it go?
Did everybody come up with similar sorts of ideas?
Here are some examples of the things that perhaps you thought about. You might
have thought of some more, or some different ones.
1. ‘Employable’ literally means able to be employed in the workplace. It means
that you have skills that will be appreciated by your co-workers and that you
can contribute towards ‘getting the job done’.
2. A lot of you probably said that it’s important to be able to get yourself a job that
will help you to pay your way in life. It’s not just important for you alone.
Remember, that when you’re older, you may have a family to support and you
will want to contribute to the society that you live in.
3. There are lots of different things that you may have said but here are a few of
the main ones:
• hard-working
• reliable (always turn up)
• good timekeeper (always turn up when supposed to)
• prepared to start work, wearing the correct gear on time
• think or plan ahead for work activities
• tidy (correctly dressed)
• pleasant and polite towards co-workers and any customers
• do as told (follow instructions)
• keen to learn
• learn from mistakes
• get on with everyone (work well with others)
• good team player
• work safely
• aware of the dangers (hazards) in the workplace
• don’t waste anything
• know when to ask for help (aware of own responsibilities in the workplace)
• willing to come in at various times and at short notice (flexibility)
• willing to try and do something that you were not originally employed to do
(flexibility).
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4. You may have thought of some specific examples, perhaps from personal
experience! Here are some of the possibilities:
• lazy
• don’t come to work when had arranged to
• always late
• on time but take ages to get changed into work clothes
• start things and then give up
• not prepared for work activities
• scruffy
• rude and/ or unwilling to talk to co-workers or any customers
• ignore instructions
• not interested on what is going on
• keep making the same mistakes
• fall-out with people
• won’t work with certain other people
• sloppy and dangerous work
• don’t notice the dangers of the workplace
• don’t care if use lots of expensive stuff- “you’re not paying for it!”
• don’t bother asking when you are not sure- just disappear or carry on
regardless
• not ever willing to do any different hours
• not willing to help out in an emergency
• not willing to do anything except what you thought you were initially
employed to do.
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5. Any of the things mentioned in question 3 above would have been quite right.
However, in land-based industries, it was thought that the following skills are
probably the most important in making you ‘employable’. These are the skills
that your tutors will be trying to help you develop, and assessing you on, when
you carry out all of the practical tasks associated with this course:
• acceptable time keeping and attendance
• understanding roles and responsibilities in the workplace
• planning and preparing for work
• working co-operatively with others
• awareness of efficient resource use
• following Instructions
• health and safety awareness
• review and self evaluation (learning from experience)
• positive attitude to learning.
It’s important that we try and understand each of these by looking at them in more
detail.
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Timekeeping
Activity
1
Have you ever arranged to meet someone and they are late and you
have had to wait for them? This can be annoying ! Perhaps you’re
going out somewhere special and looking forward to the event with that person.
How did you feel about them being late?
Let’s say you’re working on a farm. If you’re late for work,
what effect would your lateness have on:
Your boss, the farmer
Your workmates
The animals you’re supposed to be
looking after
Your job
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Timekeeping
Being late for the cinema annoys your friends. This is how
your co-workers feel if you are often late to work: they are
annoyed if they have to carry out your share of the work and
your boss is annoyed because it costs him/her money!
In the land-based industries, it can be especially important to be on time because
animals have to be fed, exercised and cleaned out at a certain time and they can
become unwell if they’re not cared for in the correct way.
We are all late on an odd occasion because of traffic or weather or something else
that’s beyond our control. However, if you keep on turning up late repeatedly,
excuses will wear very thin and people will start to resent you, making it more
difficult for everybody to get on and get the job done. The other thing that will lead
to upset in the workplace is if you come back late from tea or lunch breaks on a
regular basis. You may not do it on purpose but it’s very annoying for everyone
else. These things tend to become horrible vicious circles:
Late
again
leads to
leads to
OFFIC E
Not enjoying
work
Annoyed
co-workers
leads to
leads to
Bad atmosphere
at work
Another aspect of good timekeeping relates to the efficient use of time, getting
the job done within a decent timeframe and not taking too long to complete a task.
“Time is money” for many employers and making efficient use of time is a vital
part of being employable.
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Hot tips for good timekeeping
• set the alarm clock at least 10 minutes before you know is ‘just the right
amount of time to catch the bus’
• get up when it goes off – forget the snooze button!
• wear your watch and check it regularly for returning after breaks etc
• don’t mess about when carrying out a job task: concentrate on getting the job
done quickly and efficiently.
If you are going to be late in to work:
• call ahead and let people know what the problem is
• when you arrive apologise to everyone who it may have an effect on.
Many of the tasks that you will carry out on this course will be new and we don’t
expect you to be able to complete them at the speed that you might have to do in
the workplace. However, once you’ve had the opportunity to practise some tasks
a few times, your tutor may decide to set a time limit for a given task to see how
things go. The other employability skills play an important part in ensuring that
you use time well such as being prepared and following instructions carefully.
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Attendance
We’re all off work on an odd occasion because of illness or family problems and
some of us are unfortunate enough to be poorly for a long time and need a
doctor’s attention. However, it becomes very obvious when you don’t turn up on a
regular basis with weak excuses.
Just because your co-workers can’t ‘prove’ that you’re throwing ‘sickies’, it won’t
be long before they start to resent you - and we know what that leads to - the
vicious cycle!
If you’re working with animals or plants in the land-based industries, failure
to turn up can actually mean that their health is affected by your behaviour:
Land-based industries tend to be small and often there are not that many
people who can be called upon at short notice to take on your role.
Of course, if you continually fail to turn up in the real work place, this will lead to
your boss starting disciplinary action against you and you are likely to lose your
job!
Understanding your roles and responsibilities in
the workplace
2
It’s no fun being unsure about what you are responsible for and what
you have to do: it’s very stressful and can in fact be very dangerous.
On this course, your tutor will give you full instructions about what you are
expected to do and how, but you should think about the following:
• You have a responsibility for the safety of both yourself and others
around you: this is the most important responsibility in the land-based
workplace because of the dangers involved. If you muck around and
put yourself or others in any danger, you will not be allowed to continue
with this course.
• If you are working with animals, you have a responsibility to report (to
your tutor or other responsible person) anything that you think may be
harmful to the animals’ health and well being in any way.
• If you are unsure of any of your roles and responsibilities in any way,
you must ask before carrying on.
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Planning and preparing for work
3
Activity
Think about a time that you started something without really planning it out
properly. For example, did you ever start making a cake without making sure that
you had all the ingredients, or start building a model without checking to see if you
had the right glue? You were probably a bit annoyed and unhappy with the job
that you did because you knew it could have been better.
In land-based industries, it’s very important that you plan ahead before you start to
do something; for example sometimes you are going off-site and will need the
correct tools and equipment. There could also be an increased risk of danger to
yourself and others if you fail to plan ahead.
Think of the following situations. What sort of things do you think could go wrong
if you didn’t make some sort of plans and preparations before going off to carry
out these tasks?
1. Moving a group of sheep or cattle between a field and the farmyard, going
along a main road.
2. Painting the walls of a shed.
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Answer
1. Lots of things could go wrong, but here are some of the main things that come
to mind:
• if you forgot to put on your protective clothing you could become very
muddy, wet and cold!
• the animals could all head off in the wrong direction because not enough
people were helping due to lack of planning. This could lead to a serious
accident either involving one of the workers or somebody else (eg. a car
driver) and the animals could become very stressed because of the
confusion
• the task could end up taking a lot longer than it should have done, meaning
that the rest of the day’s work is held up.
2. Lots of things come to mind, but here are a few of the main ones:
• you could fail to put your overalls on properly and end up getting covered in
paint
• you could end up splashing paint all over the place because you hadn’t
covered things that should have been protected
• you could end up running out of paint because you hadn’t planned for the
amount of paint required
• you could do a really poor job because you hadn’t properly cleaned the
walls of the shed before applying the paint
We’re often keen just to get on with things because we want to get finished
quickly, but it’s important to take time and prepare for a job otherwise it can
end up taking even longer than you imagined!
Hot tips for good planning and preparation
• think about what you need to wear for the job, including any extra protective
equipment such as disposable gloves or a facemask
• think about what tools, equipment or other things need to be brought together
before starting
• if it’s a job that involves more than one of you, think about who is doing what
and make sure that everybody is clear about what they are doing
• if you are ever unsure you must ask before carrying on.
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Working co-operatively with others
There are many jobs in the land-based industries that involve working cooperatively with other people and it‘s a very important skill for any workplace. We
have already mentioned the vicious cycles that we can get into if we upset our coworkers by letting them down. However, we also need to be able to carry out
tasks together such as:
• lifting something heavy
• moving animals between fields
• planting out a hedge
• building and repairing a fence
• mixing concrete or plaster.
In the workplace, we can’t choose the people that we want to work with and we
may not have a great deal in common with them. However, it’s better for you and
the other people, if you work together as a team in order to get the tasks done.
Activity
4
Sit back and think about a time you wouldn’t join an activity because
you didn’t want to work with the people that you were asked to for
some reason (we all have these times!)
1. How did you feel in the end?
2. Did your behaviour make other people respect you any more?
3. Was it (honestly) really worth it in the end?
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• We often get frustrated because we feel that we are not
getting to do things our way or we are not being helped
properly.
• When you’re working with other people and you begin
to feel a little unhappy about something, say what is
bothering you politely instead of bottling it up.
• You’ll often find that things can get sorted out much
quicker and you can all get on with the job.
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Awareness of efficient resource use
5
Resources are things that are required to do the job. They may
become part of the finished job – such as plants that are put in a bed
or straw that is put down as animal bedding – or they may be tools
and equipment that we use to do the job (such as spades or disposable gloves).
Energy or fuel for energy in all of its forms is also an important resource in all
industries, eg. electricity, gas, coal, oil.
How often have you been in a situation when a friend or a family member said to
you, “Switch that light off”, “Don’t leave that fire switched on”, “Don’t use so much
of that cream: money doesn’t grow on trees, you know!”
In the real workplace, everything costs money and somebody has to pay for it.
Also, we have to be aware of the damage that we can do to the environment by
wasting energy and resources. Nothing will annoy the boss more than if you use
more of things than you actually need or chucking things out that could still be
used.
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Activity
5
In the estate maintenance unit or the soft landscaping unit, you may
be asked to plant some bedding plants in a container and to ‘water
them in’.
Figure 1
1. List everything that you can think of that you might you need to carry out this
job?
2. In what ways do you think that you could possibly be wasteful of any of these
things?
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Answer
1. You would probably need the following (you may have thought of others):
• water
• plants
• fertilizer
• potting compost
• pots
• dibber
• planting fork
• disposable gloves
2. You could be wasteful or use them inefficiently in the following ways:
• water –
leaving the tap or hose running when it was not
required
• plants –
handling them roughly and damage some of them so
that they can’t be used
• fertilizer –
throwing it about carelessly and lose some of it
• potting compost –
as with the fertilizer
• pots –
handling them roughly and end up breaking them
• dibber –
damaging it by handling it roughly or lose it
• planting fork –
as with dibber
• disposable gloves – putting on more pairs than you need through trying to
put on gloves that are too small and damaging them or
messing around with them.
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Following instructions
6
We’re all learning new skills and developing new knowledge. Part of
this is about learning from people who have experience and know
what they are doing. On this course, it is your tutors who are the
experts and they know when something can go right or wrong, where there are
dangers and how to avoid them. They will therefore also be the people that will
give you instructions about how to carry out a task.
Listening is a vital part of following instructions and is not
always that easy.
How often have you switched off when someone’s been telling you
something?
How often have you thought you had listened but were then not
very sure if you understood something and so just decided to
bumble on hoping that it would all be OK in the end? This can be
very dangerous.
The sequence of following an instruction is:
Listen
Think
about it and
decide if you
understand
what it means
Ask
if you don'
understand
Act
upon it
Sometimes we don’t completely understand what we’re being told. It’s very
important that you ask in order to be clear in your own mind what was meant.
Your tutor will be patient with you: they know that this is all new and different to
you.
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Instructions are sometimes for everyone in a group or you may be given
instructions as an individual; often there are different tasks to be done in the
workplace that contribute to getting the job done, so the instructions given to your
friend might be different from the ones you get – you both need to listen!
It’s vital that you do understand what you are doing before acting – you could be a
danger to both yourself and others if you don’t.
Health and safety awareness
This is probably the most important employability skill in the landbased workplace and it’s contributed to by all of the other skills
described above which will help you to work safely.
7
Almost everything in life can be a safety risk but we can minimise that risk if we
are aware of what the hazards are and take steps to minimise them.
What is a hazard?
A hazard is anything within the workplace that could be a
danger to the health and safety of the people in that workplace.
What is a risk?
The risk is the chance (high or low) that somebody is likely to be
harmed by that hazard.
If the risk is high, it’s vital that steps are taken to minimise that
hazard
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Activity
7
The picture below shows a farrier making a horseshoe from molten
steel.
Figure 2:
A farrier hot forging a horseshoe
1. Just from looking at this picture, can you list three potential hazards for the
farrier?
2. Next to each of your hazards say whether you think the farrier has a high,
medium or low chance of being harmed by that hazard
3. Where you decided that there was a high chance of harm: write down 1 thing
that the farrier could wear or do to try and reduce his/her chances of being
harmed
Hazard
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Risk: high or low?
How to reduce the risk
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Answer
In the picture, possible hazards for the farrier include:
Hazard
(the danger)
The hot metal of
the shoe (notice
that it is glowing)
Risk: high or low?
How to reduce the risk
This could burn him
so the risk appears to
be quite high.
The farrier could take steps to
reduce this risk by concentrating
fully on his hammering at all times
(taking care). He holds his tools
correctly, away from the molten
metal. He wears some protective
clothing to help prevent burning of
the body (it’s difficult to see, but
this farrier is wearing thick leather
over-trousers-known as a ‘shoeing
apron’).
The farrier is using He could smack
a hammer to
himself with the
shape the metal
hammer quite easily
so the risk appears to
be quite high.
The anvil (the
metal stand) that
he is working on
has a very sharp
tip which he could
injure himself
upon
The farrier could take steps to
reduce this risk by concentrating
on his hammering at all times
(taking care).
The risk appears to be The farrier could take steps to
quite high.
reduce this risk by concentrating
at all times(taking care).
These are the most obvious things but perhaps you thought of some more, eg.
when the hammer hits the molten shoe, small pieces of metal can break off and
go in the farrier’s eye (well done if you thought of this!) Also, the floor could get
quite slippery, the farrier could slip and injure himself.
For every workplace activity, somebody that is properly trained has carried out an
official risk assessment and they will have thought of things that will affect your
activity in the workplace. For example, you may be expected to wear protective
waterproof clothing when working with cattle or sheep or to wear gloves when you
are working with plant cuttings of certain types.
However, it’s important that you think about risk for yourself in every work activity
that you carry out (you probably do in your day to day life but don’t really think
about it, eg. you may cross the street if you see a big vicious looking dog coming
along; you take a good look before you cross the road – hopefully!).
On this course, you’ll be expected to complete a form to assess your ability in
safety awareness.
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Activity
7
Using the picture below and the form provided on the following page,
try and carry out the same tasks that you completed in the last
exercise:
• identify three hazards
• identify whether they present a high, medium or low risk
• identify steps that you would take to reduce this risk
• identify whether you would need to wear protective clothing or use protective
equipment in order to carry out the task.
This picture shows a veterinary surgeon and a farmer working with a cow. The
vet is injecting the cow in the neck with a sharp needle. The farmer is holding the
cow’s head around to allow the vet to work. The cow has her neck held by the
bars of the cattle ‘crush’ (a large device that is used for handling cattle).
Figure 3:
A cow being placed on an intravenous drip
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Hazard
(the danger)
Risk
(high,
medium,
low)
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Steps to reduce risk
(eg. care, helpers,
signs)
Protective clothing
or equipment to be
worn
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Sample answers
Hazard
(the danger)
Risk
(high,
medium,
low)
Steps to reduce risk
(eg. care, helpers,
signs)
Protective
clothing or
equipment to be
worn
The vet could inject
himself or the farmer
with the needle
High
Take extra care and
concentrate on task
The cow could throw
her head around and
injure the vet or the
farmer
High
Take extra care and
pay attention
Waterproof overclothing
Get help
Sturdy,
waterproof boots
The farmer or the vet
could trap their
fingers between the
bars of the ‘crush’
and the cow’s neck
High
Both could catch a
Medium
disease from the cow
Both could injure
High
themselves by
straining a muscle or
hurting their back
trying to hold the cow
in position
Take extra care and
pay attention
Wash hands after
working with cattle.
Waterproof overclothing
Wear washable
protective clothing
Sturdy,
waterproof boots
Take extra care and
pay attention
Know the right way to
restrain cattle
Don’t worry if you’ve picked up on different areas or you decided that the level of
risk is different (you may have noticed some that we didn’t!). This is something
that you’ll get lots of practice at whilst carrying out the practical activities of this
course. It’s also sometimes more obvious what the risks are when you actually
get out there and experience the environment for yourself.
The land based industries are one of the most dangerous places
to work and it’s vitally important that we start to develop an
awareness of the hazards around us so that we can take steps
to ensure that everything that we do is cutting back the risk.
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Review and self-evaluation
8
A very important part of developing practical skills and becoming
better at a job is to review your own progress and to reflect on how
things went. Learning from mistakes and experiences is something
that we do in everyday life: for example, if you cut yourself with the
bread knife, you would reflect on what it was that caused you do
that and try to make sure that you didn’t do it the next time you
were cutting bread! If you chose a cake that had marzipan on it
and decided it wasn’t for you, you’d probably learn not to choose
that cake again!
We can also benefit from the opinions of others who were watching or helping us
to do a task. Sometimes this can be difficult; we’re all very happy to be told that
we have done something very well but it’s much more difficult to accept any sort of
constructive criticism. However, the most successful athletes in the world are still
accepting feedback and reflecting on their skills from their coaches because
everybody, no matter how good they are, has room for improvement.
Throughout this course, you’ll be carrying out practical activities and you’ll be
expected to evaluate your own progress in relation to the employability skills
mentioned above. Your tutor will also be assessing your progress and offering
constructive criticism. You’ll also have to reflect on this evaluation and think about
your strengths and weaknesses and consider how you are going to try and
improve on your weak areas.
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Here’s an example of how it works:
Review and Self Evaluation
Stage 1
After a period of carrying out several practical activities on the
skills course, your tutor asks you to complete your first review s
Stage 2
You then take out your
Employability Review Sheet ,1along with
theE
Employability Profile Guidance (this is a grid that helps you t
evaluate yourself.
Stage 3
You completeSection 1ofR
Review Sheet 1
, using thisE
Employability
Profile Guidance.
Stage 4
You give it to your tutor who completes their rating of you alon
your rating. The tutor may also write some comments or feedb
the sheet.
Stage 5
You then decide, along with your tutor whether you need to thin
about any actions to improve any of the identified areas.
Stage 6
You then complete
Section 2ofR
Review Sheet 1where you have to
state your strengths, weaknesses, areas of improvements and a
action plan regarding your employability. You need to be thinkin
about these actions from that point on because you need to sho
your tutors that you are trying to improve.
Your tutors will ask you to repeat this exercise on at least two more occasions.
Confused? Perhaps the easiest thing is to look at the completed example on the
following pages, this relates to somebody who is doing this unit in the context of
animals and farm animals in particular.
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Employability Profile Guidance
1
2
3
My attendance in
the workplace
was inconsistent
and I often
arrived late and
not prepared to
start work at the
allocated time
My attendance
in the workplace
was generally
good but I was
often not
prepared to start
work at the
allocated time
My attendance in
the workplace
was usually good
but I was
occasionally not
prepared to start
work at the
allocated time
My attendance
was good and I
was always
ready to start
work at the
allocated time.
I usually did not
plan out or
prepare for tasks
before starting
which meant that
I gave no thought
to how long tasks
took.
I made an effort
to plan and
prepare for tasks
but often I did
not fully plan out
and prepare for
tasks which
meant that a lot
of time was lost
I made a
systematic effort
at planning and
preparing for
tasks but I
occasionally did
not fully plan and
prepare which
meant that a little
time was lost
I very carefully
planned out and
prepared
thoughtfully
before embarking
on tasks, which
meant that I lost
no time.
I did not work with
the others when it
would have
helped tasks
I tried to work
with others but
often it did not
go well.
I worked well with
others and
contributed to the
team effort
regularly
I worked well with
others and
inspired team
performance
regularly
I did not consider
the importance of
using resources
and materials
efficiently
I was aware that
it was important
for some things
but forgot in
other areas
I was aware that
it was important
but found it
difficult to use
things efficiently
I was aware and
used the
resources as
efficiently as
possible
I ignored
instructions
completely
I sometimes
followed
instructions but
often diverged
from them
I followed
instructions with
occasional
lapses.
I always followed
instructions and
made an effort to
clarify them when
unsure
I was usually not
aware of any risk
for the work
carried out
I was aware of
safety issues but
did not give it
any thought
whilst carrying
out tasks
I was aware of
safety issues but
often forgot about
it when
concentrating on
tasks.
I worked safely
and exercised
caution when
dealing with
unknown factors
all the time
4
Profile
Attendance
and timekeeping
Planning and
preparation
for work
Working with
Others
Awareness of
Efficient Use
of resources
and materials
Following
instruction
from
supervisor
Safety
Awareness
Smilies © Microsoft Corporation
Source: http://office.microsoft.com/clipart/results.aspx?lc=enus&Scope=MC&Query=smilies
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A worked example of the employability review
Review 1 Part 1
Name: Joe Bloggs
Date:
27.02.06
Profile
My Rating
Tutor Rating
Action Required
(Y/N)
Attendance and
time-keeping
3
2
Y
Planning and
preparation for
work
3
3
N
Working with
Others
2
2
Y
Awareness of
Efficient Use of
resources
3
3
N
Following
instruction
from
supervisor
4
3
Y
Safety
Awareness
3
2
Y
Tutor Comments/Feedback
Attendance has been fine. However, you tend to be late back from tea breaks
and are not always ready to start work at the right time
You plan for stuff well, eg. get all the tools etc. However, you don’t seem to
want to work with the others and sometimes when you do, you all start falling
out about who is doing what.
Doing quite well at checking on resources, eg. picked up all the spare nails
from the fencing job last week and put them back in the tin.
You are following instructions mainly, but I would like to see you working better
with the others when we have a group instruction.
The main problem seems to be that you need to think more about safety when
working, eg. last week you nearly hit poor John with the fencing hammer
because you were so enthusiastic about the job.
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Review 1 Part 2
Name: Joe Bloggs
Date:
27.2.06
My strengths, in terms of employability skills identified in review 1 were:
Attendance is good, I am quite good at planning for work and am thoughtful
about resources.
Not too bad at following instructions
My weaknesses in terms of employability skills identified in review 1 were:
Definitely working with others- I am not getting on with the group although I am
trying
The areas that I need to improve are:
Getting along with others and being more aware of safety issues: I get very
carried away and don’t always think about what is going on around me.
I need to get back from breaks on time
Action plan
The action that I am going to take to try and improve this is (you must identify at
least one point for improvement):
• Make a big effort to work as part of a team when the tutor gives us group
tasks
• Make a big effort to think about the hazards of the job especially if we are
fencing again
• Check my watch to make sure I am back from tea breaks on time
Tutor Signature: ________________________
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Review 2 Part 1
Name: Joe Bloggs
Date: 27.8.06
Profile
My Rating
Tutor Rating
Action Required
(Y/N)
Attendance and
time-keeping
3
4
N
Planning and
preparation for
work
3
3
N
Working with
Others
3
2/3
Y
Awareness of
Efficient Use of
resources
3
3
N
Following
instruction
from
supervisor
3
4
N
Safety
Awareness
3
2
Y
Tutor Comments/Feedback
Huge improvement on the timekeeping front – don’t think you’ve been late to a
class or after a break once – well done! Attendance still 100%
Definitely improved on the working with others area but still having the occasional
fall out with the group – but a much better attitude towards group work – well done!
Always seem to make an effort to ask now when you are unsure what you are
doing
Still getting carried away when you go to do a job and not thinking enough about
what is going on around you, eg. you nearly had poor John’s eye out with that pitch
fork last week when you were cleaning out the calf pens!
Keep trying – I am really impressed with your progress!
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Review 2 Part 2
Name: Joe Bloggs
Date:
27.8.06
My strengths, in terms of employability skills identified in review 2:
My attendance and timekeeping is good. I am really good at following the
tutor’s instructions and getting a lot better at working with the rest of the group
(although I am not sure it is a strength yet)
My weaknesses in terms of employability skills identified in review 2:
Still the safety awareness: I still get carried away with myself when I start
working and forget about what is going on around me
Have I improved on all the action points identified in review 1?
No – the safety awareness thing is still the same
The areas that I need to improve are:
Safety awareness and keep trying hard with the team working
Action plan
The action that I am going to take to try and improve this is (you must identify at
least one point for improvement):
I am going to sit back before I start a task from now on and actually think about
what could go wrong. I will keep on thinking about these things all the way
through in all the stuff we do on the farm etc
Tutor Signature: ________________________
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Review 3 Part 1
Name: Joe Bloggs
Date:
27.1.07
Profile
My Rating
Tutor Rating
Action Required
(Y/N)
Attendance and
time-keeping
3
4
N
Planning and
preparation for
work
3
3
N
Working with
Others
3
3
N
Awareness of
Efficient Use of
resources
3
3
N
Following
instruction
from
supervisor
4
4
N
Safety
Awareness
3
2/3
Y
Tutor Comments/Feedback
Well done Joe. Your attendance and timekeeping has been excellent and you
have done really well on most aspects of the employability review and
evaluations. However, you do still need to keep thinking about the safety
awareness of all the tasks that you carry out. Although things have improved a
lot, you still need to think very hard about safety issues in everything that you do
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Review 3 Part 2
Name: Joe Bloggs
Date:
27.1.07
My strengths, in terms of employability skills identified from review 3 were:
My timekeeping, attendance and following of instructions
My weaknesses in terms of employability skills identified from review 3 were:
I still have problems with safety awareness although I have definitely got a lot
better
Have I improved on all the action points identified in review 2?
Yes
The areas that I still need to improve on are:
Safety awareness
Action plan
The actions that I still need to work on are:
To keep on thinking about the hazards associated with each and every work
task before and whilst I am carrying them out
Tutor Signature: ________________________
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Positive attitude to learning
9
Something that upsets an employer or co-workers is people that have
no interest at all in learning new things. Nowadays, it’s not possible
to leave school and think that you’ll never need to learn another thing
if you want to keep yourself in a job! But remember, learning doesn’t have to be
all books and boffins; in the workplace, you can learn from the people around you
and from your own experiences.
On this course, we think that by carrying out all the activities of
the review and self evaluation relating to all of your
employability skills, and having shown some improvement in
your employability profile from the first to the last (no matter
how small), you’ll have demonstrated a positive attitude to
learning. The trick is to keep this enthusiasm going throughout
your life. Don’t be put off by those who are faster at learning
than you are – sometimes, those of us who learn more steadily
actually learn more thoroughly!
Try your best!
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Self-assessment
Activity
2&4
Read through this paragraph and fill in the missing words (sometimes
letters have been provided to help you). Once you have filled in the
words, find them in the word search on the following page.
Rural _ _ _ _ _ are abilities you learn that are used for carrying out jobs in the
countryside. We more often call them _a_ _ - b_ _ _ _ skills and they can be
concerned with over 17 different industries, some of which we’re going to
investigate as part of this course.
This course is different from many other school subjects because we’re going to
actually take part and have a go at many of the activities. It is also different
because it includes e_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ y skills, those which make us more
attractive to prospective employers. In the land-based sector, the main
employability skills include timekeeping and _tt_ _ _ _ _ _ _ – if I don’t turn up
ready to start work on time, it will affect how well I do and if I am working with
animals, lateness could actually affect the health of the animals. I also have to
plan and prepare for work: this means getting all my, eq _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and tools
ready before I start work. I also need to think about the efficient use of
re _ _ _ _ _ _ _ , the things that are required to get the job done, because if I
don’t, the boss could get annoyed with me. When I am not sure about what an
instruction is all about I must ask and then _ _st_ _ very carefully to the answer – I
could be putting myself and others at _ _ _ k, if I don’t follow instructions very
carefully.
This course is all about learning by doing and reflecting on how well things went;
this is called self _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. I also have to be able to take some feedback
and c_n _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ criticism from the tutor; this will lead to me becoming a
more em _ _ _ _ able person in the end of the day!
Scottish Further Education Unit
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Now find the words in the Wordsearch below:
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P
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J
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L
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D
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Y
A
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A
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Scottish Further Education Unit
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Rural Skills Course Evaluation Questionnaire
To help us to make the first steps of this course easier for new students, we’d be
grateful if you would take a few minutes to complete and return this survey.
Please show how far you agree with the following statements by circling the
appropriate number. Circle N/A (not applicable) if you feel unable to comment.
Many thanks
Agree mostly
Disagree mostly
Disagree completely
Not applicable
Date: ___________
Agree completely
Course: ______________________________________
1
The course lived up to my expectations
4
3
2
1
N/A
2
Staff involved in delivery of the course were
approachable, helpful and supportive in their
teaching
4
3
2
1
N/A
3
Things seemed well organised
4
3
2
1
N/A
4
I spent more time outside, learning new skills than in
the classroom
4
3
2
1
N/A
5
I now have a better understanding of what
employability skills are
4
3
2
1
N/A
6
I now know the importance of self-evaluation and
review in all aspects of my life
4
3
2
1
N/A
7
I now have a better understanding of health and
safety awareness and practice in the workplace
4
3
2
1
N/A
8
I enjoyed my time on this Course and feel that it is a
good way to learn
4
3
2
1
N/A
9
I believe that I am now more “employable” in the
land-based (or other) sectors as a result of studying
this course
4
3
2
1
N/A
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Now, please answer the following questions about the rural skills course:
1. The thing(s) I liked best about the course was:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
2. The thing(s) I liked least about the course was:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
3. What I think could improve the course is:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Many thanks for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Glossary of terms
Agriculture
Agriculture is the industry that relates to working the
land to grow plants and feed animals. It is the correct
term for farming.
Cattle crush
The cattle crush is a large crate device that traps the
beast by the neck and allows it to be examined in
relative safety for those working with it.
Constructive
criticism
Constructive criticism is when somebody notes the
things that perhaps you could have done better. It is
done so that you can develop an awareness of what you
have done wrong. The intention is that you will
remember and try hard to get it right next time.
Co-workers
These are the people that work alongside you
Crop
A crop is a plant that is being produced on a large scale
for business purposes
Disciplinary
Disciplinary procedures are formal actions carried out to
record unacceptable behaviour. They happen in the
workplace as well as in schools. Many workplaces will
have a policy about the number of times an employee
can be disciplined before they are sacked.
Employability/
employable
Employability literally means the ability to be employed.
If you are employable, you have many useful qualities
that can be used in the workplace.
Estate
Here, an estate does not mean a grand big house nor
does it mean the housing scheme down the road. It is
any amount of land and buildings that need to be kept in
good order by carrying out maintenance procedures
such as painting, fence fixing, tidying up etc., etc.
Farrier
A farrier is somebody that makes horseshoes and fits
them to a horse’s feet. (A blacksmith, on the other
hand, is someone who works with metal and shapes it
for various purposes. Some farriers are also
blacksmiths)
Flexibility
A flexible person in this sense does not mean they can
do backbends! It means that they are willing to adapt
and work in different shift patterns and hours to meet
the needs of a business. Nowadays, many employers
think that flexibility is very important.
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Rural Skills: Course Guidance and Employability Skills – Intermediate 1
Hazard
A hazard is a danger that could cause harm to those
involved (and those around) when carrying out a task
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry relating to growing garden
plants on a large scale. They may be edible like fruits
and vegetables or they may be decorative
Husbandry
Care to ensure health and well-being
Land-based
An industry that requires land or takes place outdoors in
the countryside
Molten
Metal that has been heated to a very high temperature
that makes it glow red (or even white at extreme
temperatures). The metal is starting to turn to liquid at
this point.
Reflect
To reflect in this sense means to think back and
consider how things went, therefore learning from any
mistakes that we made.
Resources
Resources are things that are necessary to carry out a
task. They may be the tools, the clothing, the feeding,
the soil etc. They can even be the people (human
resources).
Risk
Risk is the level of danger that a hazard presents to us
(see hazard above). If the risk is high, then it is vital that
we take as many precautions as possible to reduce the
risk and make us (and others) less likely to be harmed.
Rural
Rural means “of the countryside”.
Self-evaluation
Self-evaluation is about judging yourself against given
standards: it is a useful way to reflect on your
performance and to improve.
Skill
A skill is an ability that you have gained through
practice. This course is all about developing skills
Soft-landscaping
This is about developing land by placing plants on it in
order to improve its appearance, protect something
against the weather or hide something. Soft landscaped
areas are all around you, eg. roundabouts, council
flowerbeds etc.
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