State School Innovator Voices
Click on the links below to read some inspiring stories from the state sector. Find out how staff at these schools are innovating, why progressive education is important to them and how education could be reimagined for the 21st century.
1. Mike Fairclough – Head Teacher at West Rise Junior School
“Ever since I became a teacher, I have felt that a creative approach to education, and one which puts the child at the centre of their learning, enables children to make the most progress, academically, emotionally and in relation to their personal development.”
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2. Richard Gerver – Former Head at Grange Primary School
“We need to nurture generations who are enterprising, outward focused, collaborative, pragmatic, innovative, entrepreneurial and capable of self-management. Our tradition system is predicated on doing more and more of the same, as efficiently as possible but as Eric Hoffer once said, all that will do is prepare children brilliantly for a world that no longer exists.”
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3. Charlie Moreno-Romero – Head of Studies in a Democratic Branch of a State School
“We consider that young people have the right to control their learning and have enough time to engage in activities of importance to them. Our school timetable is divided in a way that there is a lot of free time and unstructured activities for young people to decide what to do.”
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4. Ben Levinson OBE – Headteacher at Kensington Primary School
“Children wear tracksuits and trainers to school because research shows this helps them be more incidentally active throughout the day. They also have active learning breaks to help them focus.”
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5. School 21 and XP: Real World Learning
“Real world learning offers lessons for all schools, says an independent report by the National Foundation for Educational Research, commissioned by the Edge Foundation…
While the emphasis in each school was slightly different – School 21’s focus is on oracy and XP School is characterised by its learning ‘expeditions’ – both schools employ the principles of Expeditionary Learning and share many qualities.”
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