Curious Minds

Teaching and learning practice within Knowsley is currently going through a period of great change. Through the authority’s Wave 1 Building Schools for the Future programme schools have merged to create new Learning Centres - all teaching to a new pedagogical framework that has the ambition of creating environments and practices suited to 21st century learning.

In preparation for its transition to becoming a Learning Centre, Knowsley Hey Arts College developed a group of student researchers across Key Stage 4, who were actively engaged in evaluating teaching and learning practice within their school, presenting their findings to the Senior Management Team.

The pupils worked with Dr Nick Owen from Aspire Trust to plan and deliver their research project and with Paul Main to collect and collate information using a range of different ICT methods. The pupils set research objectives and realistic, achievable outcomes; formulated research methodologies and project plans; designed creative questionnaires; undertook research interviews and devised and managed a series of consultation and information-gathering events, facilitating participation and collating the information that was gathered. 

Change on the scale that is taking place in Knowlsey can often be challenging. This project created the means for a variety of opinions to be heard from inside and outside of the school. During the consultation days, parents asked difficult but important questions for the school to respond to and pupils played a crucial in setting up a dialogue between their school and the wider community.

• The project provided a real-life context for learning.
• Students identified communication and teamwork as skills they significantly improved through the project. They developed a good understanding of effective questioning and how to interpret responses, as well as their ability to present to an audience
• The students worked effectively as a team, supporting each other and playing to each others’ strengths to plan and deliver the research programme and associated events
• Students now have greater experience of using technology to compile and present statistics meaningfully
• Teachers were surprised by the degree of autonomy and creativity shown by students.  This was particularly evident when visiting other schools - students acted on their own initiative and with a confidence not previously evident
• Teachers said they better understand the value of allowing students to undertake projects with minimal supervision and giving them opportunities to use their own methods of finding answers.

• The idea of students as researchers will be continued into the next year of the school’s Change School programme, as they become the new Huyton Arts & Sports Learning Centre
• All of the learning from the project, and issues raised relating to the new building, will be incorporated into the School’s Development and Improvement Plan 
• Next year, based on the learning from this project, students will be engaged in designing methods of self-evaluation for different aspects of their learning.