When kids do the William Pike Challenge incredible things happen. As part of the programme they’re challenged to try new things in the outdoors, in their community and at home. And what happens to kids when they’re challenged to try something new and difficult? Their bucket of universal life skills grows and strengthens. Skills like resilience, confidence, and perseverance just to name a few. Who wouldn’t want their students and children to develop these skills?
What are universal life skills?
You may have heard the terms generic, soft, or 21st-century skills. Whatever you call them, the meaning is clear: a set of skills and characteristics that enable young people to face the challenges of change and go on to achieve their absolute best. In fact, universal life skills are not only crucial for young people but for everyone at any age.
How do we know that the William Pike Challenge develops kids’ universal skills? Well, we have the research to back it up. In 2019, we conducted an in-house survey reaching nearly 900 people. We asked for student feedback and parent feedback about their William Pike Challenge experience and the results speak for themselves.
Here’s some of our 2019 parent and student feedback.
Universal Life Skill: Confidence
Confidence can mean different things to many people. Put plainly, it’s believing in yourself. Believing that you have the ability to meet life’s challenges, and the willingness to do so. Confidence is the key to achieving what you really desire.
The William Pike Challenge helps students to develop their confidence by giving them opportunities to challenge themselves in different situations, achieve extraordinary things, and realise their own potential.
Here is our student feedback about their confidence development since doing the William Pike Challenge.
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- 82% of students say that the WPC helped them to become more confident within themselves.
- 84% of students agree that since doing the WPC, they feel less afraid in attempting things outside of their comfort zone.
- 87% of parents agree that the WPC helped their child to become more confident in working with people of different personalities and skills.
Universal Life Skill: Problem Solving
Problem-solving skills are valuable to have at any age. For our youth, having well developed problem-solving skills are crucial when working through a difficult situation. Difficult situations can pop up anywhere at any time. Whether it’s in the classroom, the playground, on the sports field or at home, it’s essential that our youth have the ability to work through a difficult situation.
Here is our student feedback about the development of their problem-solving skills since doing the William Pike Challenge.
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- 85% of students agree that the WPC helped them to face and solve problems better.
- 83% of students agree that since doing the WPC, they’re better at adjusting their way of thinking and planning when faced with a difficulty.
Universal Life Skill: Connectedness
Connectedness means having a feeling of belonging or affinity to a person, group, or place. It’s crucial for our young people to feel a sense of belonging as they navigate the challenges of adolescence and teenage years.
Here is our student feedback about how their connectedness is developed with the William Pike Challenge.
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- 74% of students agree that since doing the WPC, they feel more connected or closer to people (family and friends) that they interact with most often.
- 88% of students agree that since doing the WPC, they’re keener to help out their local community without being paid (e.g. to coach a sports team, tutor, clean up, plant trees)
- 90% of students agree that since doing the WPC, they’re more keen/eager to help or support people when they see them struggling.
Universal Life Skill: Perseverance
If we gave up on something when it got too hard, nothing great would ever be achieved! Having the ability to persevere when the going gets tough is a skill that we believe all youth need to develop to live a fulfilling life.
Here is our parent and student feedback about their perseverance skill development since doing the William Pike Challenge.
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- 78% of students agree that since doing the WPC, they make more of an effort to do better in school and other activities
- 80% of parents agree that since doing the WPC, their child is better at persevering through a challenge and not giving up even when it is tough.
Our student and parent survey results certainly show what impact the William Pike Challenge has on our youth. We know that universal life skills are important for our youth to develop and we also know that the William Pike Challenge develops these skills. To find out how you can start offering the William Pike Challenge at your school and start growing your students’ bucket of universal life skills, sign up here to learn more about how the William Pike Challenge works.