May 15, 2022

Wood Green School Paves the Way for Baccalaureate Style Education in United Kingdom

W Wood Green School is spearheading a new approach to education, one that rewards pupils for debating skills, teamwork and community service. The program teaches children debates, innovative science drills, and community work developing school kids into all round human beings. A modern menace of fake news is also being tackled. Students get lessons in how to spot fake news.

Called the ‘Baccalaureate’ awards, Wood Green School plans to reward students for extra-curricular activities to ensure their all-round development. The idea struck when Wood Green headteacher Rob Shadbolt met local employers and former Prime Minister David Cameron sometime last year.

…we need to have a 14-18 curriculum with one set of exams/assessment at the end, at 18, which would include both academic and vocational qualifications, including apprenticeships, and give young people a wide-ranging portfolio to present to the next stage, whether that is university or work…

Speaking to the press, Mr. Shadbolt remembers his conversation with David Cameron, He said, “I asked how the education policy of the government created young people with the skills that Turning out grades 4 or 5 in a maths or English GCSE, although important, isn’t enough. Broader opportunities are built into education in private schools. Why shouldn’t every child have that entitlement? This is about social justice as well these employers wanted. He [Cameron] replied that what employers needed was employees with good maths and English. Although no one disagreed with the importance of numeracy and literacy, the employers in the room said they prioritised young people who could communicate, work well with others and by themselves, and who showed initiative.”

After weeks and months of consultations, the project finally kicked off last week on the Rethinking Assessment website. Setting the agenda, Wood Green’s initiative has caught the eye of other educationists and stakeholders, there is a clamour for ‘Baccalaureate’. Conservative One Nation group supports the baccalaureate idea and believes it would contribute to the government’s levelling up agenda. They aren’t the only ones in support; Tory MP and chair of the Education Select Committee, Robert Halfon, proposed abolishing GCSEs altogether and replacing them with a baccalaureate qualification at 18. Conservative MP Flick Drummond said she didn’t believe the existing curriculum was fit for purpose, she said, “We need to have a 14-18 curriculum with one set of exams/assessment at the end, at 18, which would include both academic and vocational qualifications, including apprenticeships, and give young people a wide-ranging portfolio to present to the next stage, whether that is university or work.”

Posted in News and tagged News, United Kingdom, Baccalaureate Style Education, David Cameron
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