Cambridge Edition March 2023 - Web

EDUCATION

Felsted’s successes span the age range from the Primary Gold Quality Mark for Science just achieved by the prep school, to the prestigious Arkwright Engineering Scholarship secured by a sixth-former; not to mention a host of individual and team triumphs in just about every STEM subject. Not-so-secret weapons include a winning combination of fabulous facilities, amazingly creative STEM initiatives and – of course – terrific specialist teachers, ensuring more young people have the confidence to feel STEM subjects are for them. Gresham’s, whose Dyson STEAM Building opened in 2021 following an £18.75 million donation from Sir James Dyson, deliberately puts art and design at the heart

of the premises. This ensures that ‘those studying technical subjects have a clear sense of creativity in their approach’, says the school, as well as challenging the traditional narrative where children choose options at an early stage – something that can create a division between arts and sciences. Investing in appealing spaces where STEM and STEAM subjects are taught is matched by the approaches schools take to draw pupils in. It’s all about sparking interest and curiosity from a very early

age so pupils want to keep learning, says Felsted School. “Gradually, they begin to understand how to recognise ideas and bring them to fruition; how to approach a project, progress it and refine it so ultimately they have achieved their aim.” At The Perse School, a major focus has been on encouraging the uptake of computer science, which plays a vital role as a facilitating subject. Get to grips with the fundamentals of how computing works, the idea that all data – from videos to images and beyond – is represented by zeros and ones. Take it from there and you end up with the ability to make profound connections between a whole range of subjects. Perse’s approach, which included a complete rethink of the computer science curriculum, has paid dividends, with around 60% of pupils taking computer science GCSE. This includes an increasing number of girls, in part thanks to initiatives like specialist girls’ coding and computing clubs. That ability to spark interest in a subject – and do away with gender stereotypes – is evident at Stoke College. Not only is the current year 13 physics class the largest A-level group in the school, but girls are well-represented, with some high achievers increasingly planning to study the subject at university. At St Faith’s, maths lessons regularly feature open-ended investigations as a way of encouraging pupils to develop their problem-solving skills and independence, while practical experiments are definitely a core element of the science curriculum. These include year 7 pupils researching ‘the evolution of objects’ – a post-exam project – looking at how familiar objects like ink pens, carbon monoxide detectors and toothbrushes have developed over time, as well as the science involved at every stage.

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