Saturday, March 28, 2009
Flying without wings
A school in Stoke-on-Trent has taken learner voice and "flown" with it...learners suggested a plane as a solution to the lack of classroom space... it arrives next week.
Kingsland Primary School in Stoke-on-Trent needed some extra teaching and learning space and were keen to involve their children in the process of planning it. Following advice on best practice in learner voice the school ran an assembly to ask the children for their ideas. Six year old Ryan put up his hand and suggested putting a plane in the playground to use as a classroom. Nothing unusual so far, what makes Kingsland a great example of the value and benefits of effective learner voice is what happened next ... the school took on the idea and investigated whether it was feasible.... and much to the adults surprise (but not to Ryan) it was. At £20,000, the whole project has cost the school less than opting for a standard temporary classroom in the playground. Headteacher, David Lawrence explained.
"We were in need of extra teaching space in our grounds and were considering a portable classroom...amazingly, buying, transporting and converting a jet turns out to be less expensive."
But, this cost has also been recouped in the teaching and learning opportunities the project has provided for the school, even before it is actually in use as a classroom. The school, with the support of Creative Partnerships has developed an innovative scheme which has allowed all aspects of the new "classroom" to be developed and decided by the school community. For two terms all 370 children at the school have been working on preparing for the plane's arrival through the KingsWings project.
Eleven year old Natasha explains how the project works:
"Everyone has responsibility for something: the Year 2 for the outside of the plane and the surrounding environment; Year 3 and 4 for the inside design; Year 5 for sorting out the on-board music studio and my class, Year 6 are doing the communications."
This responsibility has involved the children researching Planning Permission and contacting local residents, writing press releases and taking part in TV and Radio interviews. The project has developed skills and competencies in the children at the same time as solving a real problem for the school. The school employed a designer for a day to work with the children on how to fit and store furniture in the 27metre length of the plane, the children then planned and ordered the furniture.
"We mapped out the plane's full size in our hall and worked out where the furniture should go..we used lots of Lego. " ( Jordan, aged 7)
The crucial success of the project is not the plane itself, although pretty exciting for staff as well as the children, but the learning along the way. The plane was used as an integral part of the school's teaching and learning from first idea to delivery.
Paul Collard, Chief Executive of Creativity, Culture and Education who manage Creative Partnerships across England identifies the characteristics which make risk-taking with learner ideas, as well as those of staff, successful:
"Such ventures need to be rooted in high-quality learning...and delivered as fun with rigour."
Kingsland School has set an example of how commitment to use learner voice as part of the everyday processes of teaching and learning and decision-making at school can lead to possibilities and benefits not expected or predicted by staff.
To view the KingsWings website. http://www.thekingswings.com/projects.html