Aiming high (proactivity)

Global societal and technological trends are shaping the future workplace, such as changes brought about by AI, automation and as the world looks to reduce the impacts of climate change. Core transferable skills such as aiming high (or being proactive) are becoming increasingly valuable to employers along with these shifts and can transfer across different roles and industries. 

Teach students that aiming high, or being proactive, is about setting ambitious goals, taking initiative and prioritising tasks to achieve them, and maintaining the drive to overcome challenges. It’s a self-management mindset that empowers students to take ownership of their learning and strive for success in everything they do.  And in an AI-enhanced world, proactive thinking and adaptability are more valuable than ever.

The activities on this page help students understand that aiming high means being self-motivated, anticipating needs, staying focused, and pushing through setbacks. 

Teaching Resources:

• Aiming High (proactivity): Lesson plan and presentation slides – for use with a group of students in the classroom
• Aiming high (proactivity): Student worksheet – a worksheet that allows students to reflect on the aiming high (proactivity) skills they’ve learned in this lesson
• Secondary school: Skills tracker – an optional resource to support students keep track of the skills they have developed and plan how they can practise them
•  Aiming high icon: available to download and incorporate in your wider teaching materials to help students recognise other contexts where they are learning and utilising aiming high skills. 

Lesson learning outcomes:

By the end of the lesson students will be able to:

• Identify opportunities to aim high in their everyday lives
• Understand the difference between being proactive and reactive
• Recognise how being proactive can help them aim high and achieve their goals
• Understand how to set clear goals and prioritise plans to achieve them.

This lesson is part of a broader set of core transferable skills resources designed to help students develop core transferable skills essential for success in school, further education, and the workplace. 

Continue developing your students’ skills

Go beyond our core transferable skills lessons with the schemes of learning and progression maps. They provide a ready-made sequence of curriculum linked resources to help you build progression in your learners' knowledge over time. Visit the Scheme of learning homepage to support with your planning.