The Wee Beasties Project is aimed at widening participation for P7 - S2 pupils in Scottish primary and secondary schools. Funding from the School of Education at University of Glasgow made this project possible.
Pupils will get the chance to invent their own Wee Beastie, and learn about climate change and how it can affect our environment. Pupils will then come to the University of Glasgow on a mission to discover how university study and research can help to combat climate change.
Many Scottish young people, particularly those from areas of deprivation, do not consider university, no matter how able they are or what their potential might be. Many young people are unclear about what actually goes on at universities or how they might be involved. Helping young people to imagine their beastie – and themselves – at university could support them in considering university for the future.
The 2016 Blueprint for Fairness (Scottish Government, 2016:43) noted that there is "no such thing as an intervention that is too early". The Wee Beasties Project offers one engaging, creative intervention for younger pupils.
If you would like to know more about this project or to get your pupils involved, please email: catherine.reid@glasgow.ac.uk for more information and to arrange a trip.
3 beasties have been added to the map. Can you find them?.
The University of Glasgow hosted a first visit for Wee Beasties from Coatbridge High School in October 2022. Volunteers from the Student Representative Council at the University of Glasgow were on hand to meet the beasties, and help them to understand just what people study at the Colleges of Social Science, MVLS, Science and Engineering, and how this can help solve urgent global problems such as climate change. Our beasties had a wonderful time and got enthusiastic about social science, engineering and zoology!
To view a presentation on the trip, please click here:here. Alternatively, the presentation can be downloaded as PDF.
These resources might be helpful to understand how the Scottish government and universities in Scotland are thinking about and working towards Widening Access.
