International Education Masterclass
Kay Stevenson, PT at Park School, and I have spent two days finding out about International Education in the Masterclass held at Stirling. The Masterclass was attended by teachers from across Scotland. Secondary teachers of RME, Geography, Social Subjects, Citizenship, Science and Modern Languages plus primary, nursery and special school teachers were present.
The key message is that IE is an integral part of the curriculum and there is real support for it at Government level. This was reflected in the enthusiastic keynote speech by Maureen Watt, Minister for Schools and Skills and by the presence of 3 civil servants throughout the proceedings.
We heard from many in education including classroom teachers. The main points are that international education fits across the curriculum. It is about knowledge and skills but also attitudes and values. It fits in with curriculum for excellence and builds the ethos of the school. Lessons in eg Maths or Science with an international dimension can raise an HMIE rating from “very good” to “excellent”.
It is not just about visits abroad although there are lots of opportunities for study visits. It is about making pupils aware of the wider world and Scotland’s place in it.
There are lots of ways of linking with real people in other countries eg letter and parcel exchanges, emails, etwinning, joint blogs and video conferencing.
I was impressed by a primary school who had a joint blog on healthy lifestyles with a school in Finland.
http://healthypassportp5.blogspot.com/
We heard about teachers going to work for 5 weeks in Africa and building on their new knowledge with their classes at home.
An international education newsletter is downloadable
I have requested paper copies as well. This gives information on deadlines for visits.
Schools in East Ayrshire are already doing lots of international education although you may not have thought of it as such.
We have an International Education Coordinator, Jean Nisbet QIO and an international education committee consisting of teachers from all sectors, Jean and myself.
You can find out more about International Education from the committee. We can advise on how to find partners and how to apply for visits.
I will keep you posted of events on this blog.
Government statement
The key message is that IE is an integral part of the curriculum and there is real support for it at Government level. This was reflected in the enthusiastic keynote speech by Maureen Watt, Minister for Schools and Skills and by the presence of 3 civil servants throughout the proceedings.
We heard from many in education including classroom teachers. The main points are that international education fits across the curriculum. It is about knowledge and skills but also attitudes and values. It fits in with curriculum for excellence and builds the ethos of the school. Lessons in eg Maths or Science with an international dimension can raise an HMIE rating from “very good” to “excellent”.
It is not just about visits abroad although there are lots of opportunities for study visits. It is about making pupils aware of the wider world and Scotland’s place in it.
There are lots of ways of linking with real people in other countries eg letter and parcel exchanges, emails, etwinning, joint blogs and video conferencing.
I was impressed by a primary school who had a joint blog on healthy lifestyles with a school in Finland.
http://healthypassportp5.blogspot.com/
We heard about teachers going to work for 5 weeks in Africa and building on their new knowledge with their classes at home.
An international education newsletter is downloadable
I have requested paper copies as well. This gives information on deadlines for visits.
Schools in East Ayrshire are already doing lots of international education although you may not have thought of it as such.
We have an International Education Coordinator, Jean Nisbet QIO and an international education committee consisting of teachers from all sectors, Jean and myself.
You can find out more about International Education from the committee. We can advise on how to find partners and how to apply for visits.
I will keep you posted of events on this blog.
Government statement
posted by Kay McMeekin at
8:14 pm
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