Karen Robertson mentioned our plans to develop
projects which link with A Curriculum for Excellence
I've copied a letter below which went out to headteachers on Friday. If you are interested and wish to take part please contact your headteacher in the first insance. You do not need any ICT expertise – just a committment to explore your own practice and to engage children more in their own learning.
Dear Colleague
As you maybe aware one of the Curriculum for Excellence strategies we intend to take forward in the coming session is the development of an integrated project approach for P6-S2 pupils.
The basic concept of the project approach is that pupils will be able to select a topic of personal interest and link that to four curricular areas. For example, a pupil may have a particular interest in Ornithology and might link that project to Science, in relation to global warming and the effect on bird migration; Geography, in relation to the migration of birds; Art, in relation and drawing/painting of birds; and Maths, in relation to statistical analysis of bird migration.
These ideas are very much in their infancy and any teachers who become involved would have the opportunity to have a significant impact on the development and implementation of this project approach. It would be our intention that the level of sophistication required by students would develop from P6 to S2 with the intention that by the end of the four year period student would have developed a wide range of skills.
The role of the Teacher will be to facilitate the project approach and to act as an advisor for their pupil. It is our intention to use to provide a webspace for each pupil to complete their project in a virtual environment.
The intended outcomes of the integrated project apporach are as follows:
To tap into children's passions and interests
The
four capacities would take a central place in the curriculum.
To build a very strong foundation for future learning
To enable homework to be of real relevance to each child
To would build upon childrens previous experiences
To make appropriate use of teacher expertise
To enable children to develop research, writing and technological skills
To enable children to see inter-connections between subjects and their learning
To enable children to work at their own level – and extend themselves
To enable learning to be collaborative
To encourage teachers to work creatively and with a focus on education as opposed to certification
I would welcome expressions of interest from interested members of staff to myself by Friday 1st September 2006. I'm aiming to get one representative from each of our schools, although I know how difficult this target might be for smaller schools. Thereafter, I intend to convene a meeting of all interested members of staff at John Muir House on Wednesday 13 September 2006 from 4.00 pm to 5.00 pm in the Education Department's Large Meeting Room, 2nd Floor.
It would be my intention to establish an overall steering group and sub-groups for each of the year stages involved.
If you or any of your members of staff require any further information please do not hestiate to contact me.
Don Ledingham