Petroc’s Supported Learning Students Go to Sweden
We recently held a Celebration Event to recognise a very successful Petroc Go trip to Sweden with 10 of our supported learning students.
This trip was funded by the UK Turing Scheme. Braunton Rotary Club provided some additional funding which enabled the students to visit a museum where they learnt about Sweden’s past, we also received a contribution from Petroc’s Student Union. Our Host Partner in Sweden, Duveholms Gymnasiesarskola, is a college in Katrineholm that provides a similar provision for students as we do in Supported Learning at Petroc.
The week’s itinerary included time spent in the college with the Swedish students, a visit to Skansen in Stockholm, a day sightseeing in Stockholm, exploring Katrineholm (shopping, walking around the lake/woodlands, swimming), and the last night was spent in Jumbo Stay.
It was a brilliant trip that our students thoroughly enjoyed. Supported Learning lecturer Pete Jolly said: “As a staff team we are incredibly proud of the resilience that the students have shown in completing this international visit. For half of the group it was their first time going on a flight! Coping with cancelled flights, sleeping in new places, trying new foods, meeting with the Swedish students, shopping using a different currency, being away from home, all made for sometimes challenging but powerful learning experiences. I am confident that all that went will have positive memories that will last a long time into their futures.”
A Level student Amelia Harrop Davies said, “By visiting Sweden I had the opportunity to learn about and experience another culture first-hand. Through exploring the towns and cities, as well as meeting Swedish students and participating in their lessons we gained a valuable insight into the differences and similarities between our countries. This also gave us the opportunity to learn from each other and think about improvements we could make for our own learning here at college. We also gained valuable experience in travel and organisational skills, which helped us improve to our independence and resilience. Overall, the trip to Sweden was an enjoyable and educational experience which will continue to benefit us now and in the future.”
The Celebration Event was a great way to round the trip off, the students got to share their experience with family and friends and were presented with a certificate of achievement and a photo book of memories.
