On August 16, MCU Department for Strategic Development hosted an international seminar titled The London Curriculum: City and Education.
The seminar was dedicated to representing a city as an educational environment and using its resources to motivate students.
The Seminar opened with a welcome word by MCU Rector Igor Remorenko and Deputy Director of the Moscow Department of Education Tatiana Vasilieva. The key international speaker of the Seminar was Sheila Curtis, Science Education Lecturer at the Institute of Education, University College London. As the designer of the London Curriculum, Sheila shared with the Moscow teachers and academics the London’s experience of incorporating the city’s heritage into the modern school education.
Sheila explained that the practice-oriented London Curriculum fully meets the National Curriculum requirements for passing the national exams. Its сontents cover a wide range of primary and secondary school subjects, such as English, music, art and design, geography, history, dance (PE), STEM and computing.
The London Curriculum consists of 3 modules for each subject: Discover, Explore and Connect, which correspond to learning the theory of a phenomenon, exploring it in real life, and designing a project based on the gained knowledge and skills.
Drawing a physics example, Sheila explained how students can learn their calculus and basic physics by exploring actual London sights, such as the London Barrier.
The main objective of such an approach is establishing in students’ minds a connection between theoretical knowledge and real life, showing them how to apply their knowledge and skills to enrich their communities, and giving an idea of future careers in their field of interest.
The London Curriculum intrigued the participants of the Seminar, provoking many questions regarding the aspects of its implementation, the role of teachers and the parents’ attitude.
Sheila suggested a discussion on the best ways to adopt the London practices for Moscow, which continued during the group session.