Poplars Farm Primary

Findings from Include.net (our previous Erasmus project), have demonstrated the important place of the arts in providing an inclusive education…an education for all.  We have successfully used the arts to promote shared values and human rights, how the arts are an effective vehicle for accessible learning (Special Educational Needs and drama, dialogic talk for second language learners are two examples).  Open Minds @Include.net builds on this work and will enable partners to receive innovative training from some of the best trainers/educationalists known at a Europe wide level (for example Lau Lau and Mantle of the Expert), continue to be 6 schools of change- implementing training, sharing expertise and tools around inclusion and working collaboratively on developing key core competencies across our schools(we refer to them as global competencies, Fullan et al). As our schools have built up a strong professional relationship, we believe that this project will foster quality improvements, innovation excellence and be anchored in an international dimension. 

During the COVID-19 outbreak, we have seen a rise in the use of IT and virtual technology, we want to consider how we can incorporate some of the effective new ways of working into this project.

Objectives: 

1. To receive quality continuous professional development national ‘experts’ together, implement the training in our own schools, having planned together and evaluate the impact across the countries. 

This training, supporting school development plans and national priorities, will be anchored in current worldwide educational research with creative education and the arts as major drivers.

2. To collaborate as united agents of change, planning and evaluating new teaching methods and activities arising from the 'experts' training sessions. Attention will be given to the support of teachers new to the profession, allowing for other staff and coordinators to develop leadership skills, strengthening the profile of the teaching profession.

 3. To enhance all objectives through the effective use of IT, developing the use of virtual technology as a communication tool for staff and students. 

4. There will be a focus on global competencies and how these are offered to all pupils regardless of their socio-economic background, ethnicity, gender or special educational needs and enabling cultural heritage, self identity and global issues. The 6 global competencies  will become embedded: partners will share/disseminate expertise including the coordinator’s link to the  global network for new pedagogies for deep learning (NPDL). 

Hosts will offer keynote presentations and practical activities, inviting local partner schools, teacher training institutions. 

5. Twinspace/Google Classroom will be used as key form of partner to partner communication, planning, sharing of evidence/evaluations and the impact of new approaches. The quality assurance of actions towards these objectives will be paramount, considering a variety of new assessment strategies to complement the new approaches to teaching and learning. 

6. To strengthen a network (hence project title) of educational practitioners who have expertise around the promotion of inclusion. To create concrete products and tools to enable wide dissemination of the project at a regional, national and international level.

 The project will follow a cycle in both years:

During each visit

1.Participants will attend a training session led by an expert in the focus themes of the project. Shared reflections.

2.A Keynote presentation on global/key competencies and practical activities will be led by the host school. There will be focus on how these

activities lead to inclusion for all and enhance cultural heritage, self identity and global issues.

Other educational establishments, including teacher training settings invited to the keynote presentation/activities to increase impact

3.Project meeting- to evaluate progress against the project's objectives. Findings shared through presentation by the pairs from different

partner schools (with video recordings showing lessons) , see below about pairing up of teachers, sharing of products displayed on Twinspace, including further evidence of implementation of training. Decisions made around wider dissemination

Back in Own School

1.Pairing up of partners across schools to plan (virtually) , implement (contributions by partner through virtual technology) evaluate lessons

based on the training together, thus getting a wider evidence base.

2 Staff apply learning from partners keynote presentation/activities in own school. All pupils develop global (key competencies)

3.Recording and evaluating new ways of working and preparing findings for the next visit and ongoing through Twinspace.

4. Collaborative work: the production of training materials including the dissemination of quality assurance documents (measuring impact of

actions), assessment strategies on global (key) competencies.  Dissemination of the project- At every opportunity! 

Include.net is the name given to our partnership with schools in five European countires (Finland, Romania, Cyprus, Greece and Turkey) and will run until 2021. The project is funded by Erasmus + and its aim is for our teachers to share exemplary practice and learn from each other around the theme of Inclusion. Rooted in the partnership is the teaching of Human Rights and the involvement of the community, including those from minority groups.

Due to the funding element to Include.net, staff will be able to travel to partner schools, observe the exemplary practice, reflect on their own and develop new teaching and learning ideas. This is highly effetive professional development for our teachers at Poplars Farm.

Out staff observed two fabulous approaches to learning- creating a Reggio-Emelia inspired environment and Step by Step, creating areas for provision to actively learn about the Rights of the Child.

In Finland, staff observed the development of pupils' personal and social skills throuigh active learning. Project based learning was explored, as was the use of drama and stories to develop second langauge learning doe all (children in the group were from 1  to 5 years old!)