TEACHING METHODS
a specific role in finding the answer – which promotes collaboration. This has “enabled more confident learning and less reliance on the teacher, developing independent learning and academic rigour.” And while it’s easy to assume that most transformative aspects of education are classroom-based, that’s far from the case. Ben Parker, director of outdoor education at The Perse, is an impressive advocate for all the skills that the school’s ambitious programmes can deliver. Of course, that’s not the only reason around 800 pupils sign up for the Perse Exploration Society (PES), given the amazing true-life adventures they get to experience, starting with local trips in year 7 and potentially culminating in a three- week trip to the Himalayas for year 12. Along the way, the programme also zeros in on transferrable skills that are like catnip for prospective employers. “We’re putting them in situations where they’re working without mobile phones, encouraged to work with and look after one another and socialise for long periods of time without being able to retreat from those situations,” Ben explains. “We give the pupils basic skills in food hygiene, communications, problem-solving, teamwork and leadership, then present them with gradually more extreme settings in which to apply them.” Get something wrong and – unlike in almost any other area of school life – the impact can be serious and very real. “A lot of learning in the classroom does have a theoretical impact,” says Ben. “Ultimately, when you’re working in an outdoor setting, if you make food and do it badly, for example, it will cause other people to have a bad experience. “If you don’t make the right decision there, you could find yourself in a difficult situation out on an expedition and put yourself in danger. So, there are real-world consequences to your actions.” What comes across from schools in our area is just how much thought is going into planning for the future, with initiatives that fuse clever new ways of delivering education with older and highly effective techniques, in and out of the classroom. Getting it right means giving their pupils the best chance of a successful future. “We want to make sure that our pupils can differentiate themselves in the workplace,” adds Ben. “One of the realities of AI is that, ultimately, many jobs won’t be necessary. We’re trying to make students stand out, providing not just the academic but the transferrable skills that will make them better equipped later on.”
INSIDE AND OUT Kimbolton (left) is employing augmented reality in lessons, a trend that’s increasingly popular for creating a more immersive, interactive experience Adapt to survive Building connections with individual pupils and offering a more personalised approach is another focus for schools in our area. Take St Mary’s School, where adaptive teaching involves setting the same goal for every pupil, but then helping them achieve it with appropriate levels of challenge and support, tailored to the individual students along the way. “We adapt our teaching in the moment to the various strengths and needs of our students,” explains senior teacher Andrew Abery. “This approach stretches and supports the individual needs of the highest academic achievers and students with a range of special educational needs alike, using direct questioning, modelling or prompts.” This is deployed with other strategies, like giving groups complex problems to solve – each student assigned
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