Enfield - NLSIN - Haselbury Infants Seminar Day
and Midwheb

Midwheb is becoming a real centre of research and development into links with schools in other countries with three groups now working on this topic, and a further group developing foreign languages in primary schools.

Teacher gathered in the Mansion at Trent Park on Saturday 27th January for the "International Studies" projects organised by Enfield, the North London Schools International Network and Haselbury Infant's School.

New participants worked with Leonie Breeds and Lilian Sanders while the group from last year were able to put the finishing touches to their assignments and research on the impact of the links with schools. Lessons have been learned in linking with Ghana, Beijing, Jamaica and other places. Bernie Ashmore led a session on the aims and outcomes of linking schools and its contribution to the curriculum.

Once more the highlight of the day was delicious international meal to celebrate the links with China that are being forged.

Developing Professional Practice in Primary Modern Foreign Language Teaching.

A real delight of the Midwheb programme is the MFL in Primary Schools programme, which is innovative and ground breaking in developing languages.

The Enfield LEA group led by Bernadette Clinton met on Wednesday 22nd January. The programme included outlines of each teacher's personal journal in learning languages, which proved to be fascinating insights into how laugages are learned, with obvious implications for teaching.

Each teacher brought some representative artifacts of their journey. The group went on to plan individual practitioner research projects into aspects of learning languages in the primary school including, using Visual, Kinesthetic and Auditory learning styles, games and memorisation.

• Julie Advantage of IWB games in order to teach MFL
• Laura Impact of using IWB and software on motivation and learning
• Sera Impact of memorisation techniques.
  
• Caroline MFL and EAL: A symbiosis.
• Jennifer How movement can enhance FL learning …
• Sandra Impact of use of IWB in MFL lesson
• Jo Action and movement in MFL lesson….
• Jane MFL: movement for learning!
• Debbie Implementing French into KS2 curriculum by non-specialists:
• Class teacher or external specialist?

After the development of the approaches and the materials the teachers will be researching the impact of their approaches on language learning later in the year

The Midwheb - SSAT Lips Group
Course Tutor Gina Revill on the web link to New Zealand with Frances and Kitty

Launch of Learning through International Partnership Programme.

Developing partnerships with schools across the world is the growing as a major theme of the Midwheb Partnership with two projects with partners.

Saturday was the launch of the "LIPS" programme in conjunction with Kathy Wicksteed and the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust and Gina Revill of Core Education in New Zealand.

Featured here are researchers Frances Carr and Kitty Walsh.

Teacher-Researchers on the programme are drawn from specialist schools across the UK who are developing internal links. The programme is a year long project aimed at developing effective links, planning implementation and evaluation of the link, and revealing the impact that such links make on student learning.

The day featured a video link with Gina Revill in New Zealand a leading expert on online learning communities introducing the new online learning environment. Researchers across the country will be developing electronic portfolios of their work. Kathy Wicksteed developed a seminar theme looking at the purpose of international links and who they are designed to benefit.

Next week see the launch of the London Borough of Enfield and North London International Schools Consortium, second cohort activity "Developing Professional Practice through International Study"

Midwheb Researcher of the Week


Working with Carol Gray at Stratford School yesterday. Carol is developing 'peer and self assesment" with gifted and talented pupils in Geography. The work has been stimulated by the secondary national strategy and specifically the "assessment for learning" policies. ( see QCA, DFES Standards Site, AAIA and others)

She plans to develop from best practice literature and research lesson activities and materials anbd then to explore what happens to the learning process and outcomes. She will be using observation, and asking students questions about the impact of the activity on their learning.

Carol said that her previous assignments on Gifted and Talented Learners and Coaching had stimulated a lot of interest from staff and senior managers. We talked about starting a school based programme down in East London as she had colleagues in local schools who may be interested. Watch this space!

Hi Everyone

This is the new blog of the Midwheb Partnership for 2007.

I hope that you enjoy the news and stories.

Have a look at our website and see our programme of Post Graduate Professional Development for Teachers. Or have a look at our evaluation of the impact