Case studies / Education · Schools pilot
A business simulation competition for six Scottish schools
A pilot with South of Scotland Enterprise and Developing the Young Workforce, played online with TeamWork.Inc.
- Partners
- South of Scotland Enterprise, DYW Borders, DYW Dumfries & Galloway
- Schools
- Six, three from each region
- Teams
- 5 to 6 senior pupils per school
- Simulation
- TeamWork.Inc, online
- Format
- Heats, then a final
- Winner
- Jedburgh Grammar Campus
At a glance
Bring business studies to life, build teamworking and raise pupils’ confidence, in a safe space where they learn by doing.
Each school ran its own business online in a heat of 12 months’ trading, facilitated individually. Heat winners met in a final, judged on closing bank balance.
Staff described pupils leaving with more confidence, self-belief and broader ambition. Jedburgh Grammar Campus won the final.
As a result of the opportunity that you have given to our Senior Students they will have increased confidence, self-belief and broader ambition about the lives they will forge for themselves.
Background
How the pilot came about
South of Scotland Enterprise asked DYW Borders and DYW Dumfries & Galloway to put the idea of a pilot to their schools networks. An online drop-in session followed for staff, with an overview of business simulations and live Q&A, so each school could judge whether it suited them.
Six schools signed up to an online simulation competition, each entering a team of five or six senior pupils. The pilot ran in February 2024, when Immersive Edge was still trading as GingrTech.
Agreed objectives
- Support innovative, creative approaches to engaging students in a safe space: learning by doing.
- Foster a collaborative learning culture among pupils through immersive online learning.
- Give pupils exposure to running a company, and to the decisions made between departments.
- Increase confidence, ambition, self-belief, communication, teamworking and problem-solving.
How it ran
Heats, then a final
Pupils first joined an online introduction: what experiential learning is, the science behind the simulations, how business functions work together, and an overview of TeamWork.Inc.
Each school then ran its own business online for 12 months of trading, two levels of play, facilitated individually by our team with support from DYW and school staff. Schools were judged on their closing bank balance, and the heat winners met online for a final round of a further six months’ trading.
Results
Jedburgh Grammar Campus won; Dumfries Academy were runners-up
A massive thank you from all of the staff and young people at Jedburgh Grammar Campus to the GingrTech team. At Jedburgh we are always encouraging our staff to be ambitious for our young people so that they may achieve beyond their own perceived limitations. As a result of the opportunity that you have given to our Senior Students they will have increased confidence, self-belief and broader ambition about the lives they will forge for themselves.
I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved. My pupils had a great time and I have rarely had such positive feedback regarding an event.
When teachers say the students were “buzzing after it”, students asking for “just another round” and even colleagues saying it was “possibly the best thing they have been involved with”, I would say that is a successful day. 26 weeks trading in 26 minutes would put sweat on the forehead of many a Director!
We were delighted to have young people take part in this unique opportunity. It not only raised awareness of industry sector, there was an increase in senior students confidence and self-belief to what they can achieve and broader ambitions.
Reflections
Facilitator reflections
There are many start ups run by young adults, and the students from the South of Scotland will definitely be successful in setting up their own businesses. From the results of the simulation it is clear that they know how to work together and communicate effectively about the tasks and challenges at hand. I was most impressed by one of the students who managed not only to maintain focus on current tasks, but was also able to simultaneously solve numerous codes required for her simulation role. Many business teams who have played the simulation struggle with this task. The teams stayed calm under pressure and did what they needed to do to successfully run the business.
It has been truly impressive to witness the outstanding performance of the students in this business simulations pilot. Their problem-solving, communication, and decision-making skills were a match for many professionals, demonstrating a high level of sophistication. They collaborated with exceptional clarity, navigating the simulation’s complexities with strategic insight and adeptness. This format not only highlighted their individual talents but also the collective strength and innovative spirit of young learners.
Conclusions
What the pilot showed
- Experiential learning drives engagement and reinforces classroom principles through practical application, with the focus on the team rather than the individual.
- Pupils can take part in new learning experiences online, wherever they are.
- Confidence is key, and building it as pupils move towards the world of work is fundamental to their success.
- Every school and every pupil gained from the experience, using the reflection between rounds to evolve their strategy.
Recognised in the Scottish Parliament
In April 2024 a local Member of the Scottish Parliament picked up our press release and commended the inter-school pilot competition in Parliament. Read the motion.
Schools and colleges
If you would like to bring business simulations to your school, college or university, we can show you how a competition like this runs.