Curriculum Champions – In the beginning – 4^th October

You will notice that I have deliberately not given ideas about what I want from the weekend.  I would rather give my passion for what Highfield should be.  These are in no particular order.

•     Recognised as a place of outstanding learning

•     Using AND generating current best practice

•     Fostering learning through a team approach with the community

•     Forward looking – utilising cutting edge technologies and teaching methodologies

•     Supportive of children and families to enable success

I am very excited about the whole aspect of the Curriculum Champions idea.  We have a golden opportunity to take charge of the changes around us.  QCA, ECM 14-19, BSF all parts of the transformational changes taking place in our society today.  The new school may concentrate our minds on what we are hoping to achieve but really we know that the current schooling is quickly becoming outdated for the children growing up in today’s and tomorrow’s world.

Our core ethos values and vision as set out below gives is a marker for what we stand for.  We may want to reconsider this in light of what comes out of the weekend.

We aim to provide a supportive, friendly learning environment that promotes high achievement, a desire to learn and respect for others.

Highfield is committed to high achievement, effective teaching and learning and good relationships between staff, pupils, parents and the wider community.  The School promotes the knowledge, skills and attributes essential for adult life in a rapidly changing technologically based society.  The wider community is embraced as a valued contributor to pupils’ attainment and personal development.

I am hoping to see recommendations and proposals that reflect the spirit of Highfield and show how we can make childrens’ learning relevant to their lives and preparing them for their changing world.  I am confident that Highfield has the right calibre of people with a keen interest and passion to make this happen.

I have a quote that I think links to what Curriculum Champions will be considering;

“The fabric of a building affects the way people behave.”

What I mean by this is not just the bricks and mortar, but also the people (adults and children), the organisational structure, the ethos, the values and the vision.  If we are to truly make a lasting difference, that will positively affect the lives of generations over the coming years, we need to be prepared to critically evaluate everything we do.  We need to have the courage to stop what is not working or is unnecessary and to fight for what we truly believe will make the difference to the children.

Change whether we like it or not is part of our lives.  Change happens. It can be daunting, it can be scary, but it can also be liberating and exciting.  It is the way in which we mange the transitions of change that affects those involved.  I feel certain there will be discussions over the weekend that will result in actions that will make minor alterations to what we do in school. (Fine tuning, tweaking, and improving.)  There will also be decisions that will involve radical, transformational changes.  We are embarking on what I would call informed experimentation.  We need to know where we want to go, we cna then make steps towards this, we may not get it right first time, and we may need to modify what we do as we go along but it will always be relevant to the needs to the children and their successes.

Peter says schools haven't changed much for one hundred years !!