TEACHING METHODS
What clever new ways of teaching are being employed by our schools to keep education relevant and engaging in a fast- paced world? Charlotte Phillips finds out Innovate to educate
T hroughout history, educators have always innovated – often being greeted with suspicion. Was adding maths and dangerously faddy sciences to the 19th- century curriculum essential when Latin and Greek were surely all a well-educated child needed to know? In the mid 1800s, did girls honestly have to get their own schools, rushing around playing team sports like their brothers and even – crikey – enjoying themselves at the same time? With the answer to those questions being a resounding ‘yes’, the educational offerings of schools have continued to evolve in response to societal and, increasingly, technological change. While predicting the future may not be an exact science, teachers in our area’s schools are impressively clued up about what lies behind the changes they’re making – and why they’re important. Harnessing technology Some of the schools’ innovations sound excitingly futuristic. At Kimbolton, for
example, technology is transforming the way pupils work and learn – and they absolutely love it. Well, who wouldn’t, when you’re asked to design your own creature and your written description can be instantly visualised by an online image creator – giving you the chance to see just how well your described creature matches the picture in your mind’s eye? As Andrew Bull, teaching, learning and innovation lead at the prep school, explains, it’s a way to show children how an idea that seems completely real in their imagination could need further work before it becomes just as vivid to others. “As a teacher, I’m always saying to children that they need to explain their ideas further,” he says. “They always have that creativity – it’s more about getting it out of them.” When they see that the image of their creation is, say, missing the odd eye, ear or limb, they want to improve it and get it right. “They want to edit their work and add more to it – not because I’ve told them to, but because they have more ownership.” Once they’re happy with the description, the final stage is physically creating their character using a 3D printer. “They get to hold their character in their hands, and the potential for that is mind- blowing,” continues Andrew, who admits to being just as excited as his pupils are about the whole process. As he points out, the process is built on AI and the impact is entirely positive. “We see AI enhancing our teaching and improving the learning of our students. It enables that whole journey of creation: from writing on paper to seeing it visually, and then holding it in real life.” Removing barriers Using these clever new ways of teaching to enhance more traditional approaches is well understood at Gresham’s, whose Dyson Building builds connections and collaboration between STEAM subjects – science, technology, engineering, arts
BETTER TOGETHER St Mary’s School (left) and The Perse (below) both cultivate collaboration
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