Category: Interdisciplinary Learning

Global Storyline develops at Carron PS

Heather Nicol and her primary 6 class at Carron PS in Falkirk, are working on the Global Storyline project “Our Crop, Our Land” created by WOSDEC. Click here to learn more about this excellent global citizenship resource.

Heather’s pupils created the community of Springfield where most of the villagers rely on farming the crop Berryblush to earn their living. Each pupil has a Springfield persona which they pop in and out of during the storyline to help them understand complex global citizenship and sustainability issues. Click here to see how pupils shared their existing knowledge of farming, and here to see the daily diary of Olivia Spriengeer, one of the Springfield farmers.

Within the drama, it is harvest time and the people of Springfield are preparing to sell this year’s crop of berryblush to the highest bidder at market. (See their marvellous harvesting machines on the right). Outside the drama they have been learning about farming and global commerce and how the cost of real life crops is appropriated to each party who helps to get it to our shops. Click here  and here to see how pupil thinking has been affected by a learning experience called Banana Split, and explore pupil thoughts on why people are hungry by clicking here.

These are some of the learning activities integrated within the storyline to develop real and deep understanding of global commerce, rights, fair trade and social responsiblity and help pupils to become responsible citizens and effective contributors.

Heather’s class are really enjoying this connected learning experience which links experiences & outcomes in social studies, expressive arts and health and well-being. The storyline approach develops empathy and genuine understanding of global issues, as well as making the learning coherent and relevant to the pupils. Heather has applied her global storyline training and context building so well, that pupils asked to take some of their learning experiences home to work on them with their parents. They feel outraged that most farmers get so little payment compared to the other parties involved in getting food to us, and want to make sure others get to know about this too. Heather and her pupils will soon discover just how volatile this market can be, and how that volatility impacts on food producers around the world.

This is an excellent example of type 2 interdisciplinary learning where pupil skills and understanding are broadened and challenged through the cross-cutting themes of global citizenship and sustainability. The storyline approach and integration of drama and art and design ensure that pupils are consistently engaging in higher order thinking and reflection, which results in real progression.

Inference the Interdisciplinary Way!

Ewan Shanks, P7 class teacher at Carron PS has been developing his pupils’ understanding of inference by linking literacy and art.

Ewan explored and built on existing pupil understanding  by asking them to analyse images of Scottish inventors (their class topic as context).  

Ewan found that his pupils could say and write their thoughts. (see one group’s example on the right.) However, they found it difficult to say how they were able to make these statements. Ewan used  questioning to increase pupil awareness of how they were picking up on the clues around the people in their picture, its composition, the objects which were visible, etc.

Pupils were then asked to create a self-portrait using a simple interior composition (see left). At first, the children were too obvious with the clues they added to their pictures. Through careful questioning and discussion though, they were soon able to be infer information about their likes/dislikes, character traits, etc in a more subtle way.

To broaden and challenge pupil understanding even more, Ewan then played his primary 7 pupils various pieces of music to explore the ideas and images this suggested to them. He used various listening exercises and a staged process (see storyboard on the left) to build up to a creative writing text which demonstrated that pupils could use inference themselves. Click here to read one of the children’s stories. (You will also see the success criteria rubric Ewan and his class use as part of their assessment of and for learning)

As you might imagine, the children were very engaged by this whole process, and were able to demonstrate their understanding in a range of ways, as can be seen above. This is a great example of deep and creative learning in literacy of course, but it is also a very clever use of type 1 interdisciplinary learning. By showing pupils the natural overlaps and common features in written, drawn/photographed and musical texts, Ewan helped develop deep understanding of inference, AND higher order skills transferable across literacy and the expressive arts.

S1 Curriculum Enhancement Course

Fiona Malcolm, Faculty Head of Social Subjects and RMPS at Braes HS worked with colleagues to create a new course for S1 pupils which is currently being delivered. Click here to see the presentation shown to all Braes cluster primary 7 pupils as an introduction to the course. The rationale for the course states:

Curriculum for Excellence is seen as a continuous process of learning during and beyond the school years. The purpose of this course is to provide the pupils with time in S1 to build on skills and values learnt in primary school and develop them for further use across the secondary curriculum and into adult life.

In her message to S1 pupils inside the cover of their enhancement course booklet (click to view), Helen McCulloch, head teacher writes:

Our Enhancement Course is designed to improve and increase the quality of your education at Braes High School by helping you to pull together all the skills you gain across the different subjects you study in the junior school so that you can link them together and put them to good use in every classroom and in this way, have real success in your learning at Braes High School. …

One obvious problem with our Enhancement Course is the title. Enhancement Course sounds pretty boring so as the year goes on we are hoping that one of our pupils can come up with a good catchy name for our course. There will be a prize for the winning entry – so get your thinking caps on, pay attention to what is in the course and see if you can come up with an innovative and catchy title.

I look forward to receiving your ideas!

Staff used collegiate time in session 2013-14 to design the course, ensure that it meets the needs of all learners, and uses a wide variety of activities and different methodologies. This course is interdisciplinary – click here to see the skills poster for pupils. In addition, the course connects the four contexts for learning in Braes HS: pupils have opportunities for personal achievement; they contribute to the life and ethos of the school as a community; and specific knowledge and understanding is developed within curriculum areas, and through interdisciplinary experiences. (Click here for more information about these) http://glo.li/1rRhBYp

The course is being delivered over 2 periods per week – click on each term below to see the overview of learning for each term.

Term 1          Term 2           Term 3            Term 4

As part of the course, pupils are encouraged to explore, develop and share their personal achievements through Braes HS own award system called BRAW. Staff also intended that the course would enable pupils to achieve a Dynamic Youth Award, but are now in discussion with primary colleagues to explore how this element could be taken forward in primary 7 leading up to S1. This holistic approach to curricular planning for S1 helps build a coherent learning experience for pupils and alerts them to the transferability of the skills they will be developing. In addition, in contributes to a positive transition for pupils and encourages them to apply their skills, knowledge and understanding within a range of contexts.

S2 IDL at Braes High School

Fiona Malcolm, Faculty Head of Social Subjects and RMPS at Braes HS worked with a range of colleagues to create an interdisciplinary unit of work entitled Braes Anatomy. Over the course of last session, all S2 pupils experienced connected learning across science, history and religious, moral and philosophical education. The theme which connected this learning was vaccination and its impact on society past and present. In science, pupils discovered how vaccination works with the body’s immune system, and in RMPS they explored the ethics of the ways in which vaccines are produced and used. During history lessons, pupils explored the pioneering role of Edward Jenner and his discovery of the first “vaccinations” as the cure for smallpox.

The overarching learning intentions for this connected learning were:

By the end of these courses, I will:

Be able to develop an understanding of medical knowledge and innovation in the past and present

Be able to develop an understanding of social, moral and ethical views on medical discoveries, past and present.

The project was launched during a history lesson, then each teacher taught their subject content discretely. Click here to see the introductory teaching presentation and here to see the final one for pupils. Pupils then used the 2 weeks leading up to their Easter holiday in their RMPS lessons to begin the task below – they completed this as a homework task. Click here to see the overall IDL homework task.

You are part of the original scientific team that discovered HPV. This is the most important scientific discovery on cancer research in the past 5 years. As such, your evidence is in demand. To keep your funding, you have to produce an article for Medical News Today sharing your findings on HPV.

You must consider the social, moral and ethical implications of your research, including the historical background.

One challenging element of the collaboration for staff was their shared responsibility for marking the pupils’ work. To help with this, each department prepared assessment guidance on their subject content – click here for science, here for history, and here for RMPS key learning points. Fiona and colleagues are still working on how best to manage the joint assessment and maintain their focus on teaching for deep understanding and higher order thinking in line with Curriculum for Excellence ideals.

Staff involved in the project are keen to develop it further this session because it obviously engaged pupils’ interest in all 3 subjects. By making the overlap between subjects evident to the pupils, staff increased the coherence and relevance of learning. Pupils have responded positively and enthusiastically, and can better appreciate how curricular learning in school is actually used and applied in an interconnected way in the workplace and by society. Despite the challenges of finding time to communicate and co-ordinate their work, Fiona and her colleagues have designed connected learning which uses an interesting theme to integrate effective assessment, and develop a shared set of skills, knowledge and understanding for their pupils.

STEM support materials for Interdisciplinary Learning

STEM Central is a very rich source of support materials for discrete and interdisciplinary learning which develops understanding of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Click here to explore the range of learning journeys and contexts available. These resources also support planning of learning which meets recommendations of the Learning for Sustainability Report. Click here to view a second level learning journey linked to the theme of Using Water, and here to view a third level example. These documents demonstrate how to bundle related experiences and outcomes across the STEM subjects. They also show the prior learning required for the study, and the skills being developed. There are suggested success criteria, learning experiences and evidence of learning and next steps. Most learning journeys have additional “challenges” which  follow on and allow pupils to apply and deepen their understanding using an unfamiliar context – click here to see an example. The STEM website also has excellent information on how higher order thinking skills are integrated into the learning journeys.

Senior Interdisciplinary Learning Partnership

In early September 2014, Yvonne McBlain of Falkirk Council Education Services met  with Alan Christie, Community Engagement Manager and his colleague David Love of Falkirk Council Housing Services to explore potential partnership working. Alan and David had noticed links between the pupil entitlements of our education services policy Learning to Achieve, and their Housing Services’ Tenants’ & Residents Participation Strategy 2013-16. They hope to involve Falkirk young people from S5 & 6 in a Stepping up to Scrutiny Course (click to view) they intend to run between February and March 2015. The course is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Housing – level 3 (GCSE equivalent) Award in Resident Scrutiny http://glo.li/Z6MOgx . The course  takes around 5 days over 8-12 weeks and pupils will work with politicians, senior managers, residents and employment training unit participants. This would therefore be a very diverse working group which could significantly enrich the experience of the young people involved.

Initial discussion between Alan, David and Yvonne suggested that this opportunity might enhance and enrich existing course work in Modern Studies. Yvonne will also consult school pupil council representatives about the opportunity  and alert colleagues in a pastoral or careers advice role. Participation in this course offers valuable chances to challenge and apply a range of transferable and higher order skills such as: development of text analysis, interpersonal skills, team working, and a culminating task which will require pupils to collaboratively evaluate a range of data and apply systems thinking to their suggested action plan.

What is interdisciplinary learning?

 Education Scotland states that  interdisciplinary learning: “enables teachers and learners to make connections across learning through exploring clear and relevant links across the curriculum. It supports the use and application of what has been taught and learned in new and different ways. It provides opportunities for deepening learning, for example through answering big questions, exploring an issue, solving problems or completing a final project.”

The importance of interdisciplinary learning as one of the 4 contexts for learning is highlighted by this quotation. Education Scotland has just published assessment and moderation exemplar materials which show how teachers carefully select a relevant and related “bundle” of experiences and outcomes. These  exemplars (click here to view the collection) provide an assessment overview of the significant aspects of learning being developed  in one subject area, but almost always show the teacher making a type 1 connection between one or more subject areas and/or with the cross-cutting themes of Curriculum for Excellence.. Click here to see how E & Os within HWB & LIT were linked at early level. Click here to see how higher order reading skills were integrated with contexts for learning at first level. To see how modern language vocubulary skills and thinking skills within literacy were linked at second level, click here. To explore how RME & Buddhism were linked to modern life at third level, click here. These do not prescribe the way these things must be done – they simply show how teachers have planned, delivered and assessed linked learning  for their pupils. They may act as useful examples of very focused IDL which provides breadth, challenge and/or application opportunities for pupils.

Graeme HS Meta Literacy Event

On 18th June 2014, Graeme High School staged a meta-literacy event involving subjects from each of the 8 curricular areas within Curriculum for Excellence. The whole of the new S2 year group attended this event, with new S6 pupils acting as facilitators at each of the workshop stations. The event was a culmination of development work by teachers in every subject area looking to extend literacy across learning strategies. Click here to see the rota of activities.

Caroline Harper, principal teacher of English worked with colleagues in school to develop teaching strategies which enriched and deepened awareness of  literacy across learning and helped pupils transfer and apply their skills more effectively.  

The activities experienced by pupils during the meta-literacy event developed skills such as: mind-mapping, note-making, summarising, visual words, using “post its” and extending vocabulary. Each subject area devised a task which was relevant to their course content, and pupils rotated each 15 minutes. The activities were facilitated very ably by the S 6 pupils and school staff  visited the event to see how other departments integrated these literacy skills. The event provided valuable ideas which could be applied in a range of contexts and shared practice very effectively.

Pupils were engaged throughout and gave very positive verbal feedback. The literacy experience was enriched by this event and pupil awareness of how to apply their literacy skills was enhanced. There was a lovely collaborative and exciting atmosphere during the event which added to the positive ethos within the school. Caroline and her colleagues were pleased that the event widened their exemplification of literacy across learning, and acted as a showcase for staff development work. Read more in Falkirk’s Literacy Strategy blog http://glo.li/1luPT26

Bonnybridge PS Commonwealth Games Legacy runners up

Sarah Ritchie and colleagues from Bonnybridge PS worked with pupils to create a range of learning experiences linked to the Commonwealth Games and building on their Olympic Games legacy. Their plan helped children learn about citizenship at a local and global level, and resulted in the school being nominated for the Legacy Award at the Scottish Education Awards. Although they did not win, everyone involved was proud of the difference this interdisciplinary learning has made to pupils this session, as this extract from their Facebook page explains:

So, we never won the Legacy Award but we had a brilliant time at the ceremony!! We were the only primary school to make the final so that’s a massive achievement and a big well done to our pupils, staff and parents. We got a nice £250 voucher and other goodies to take away.

For a more detailed understanding of the learning involved, click  http://t.co/wGfHrzXBbD

New Education Scotland BGE Resource

Click here to view  a new set of resources about life in medieval Scotland published by Education Scotland. The ‘People of Medieval Scotland’ resource materials and learning journeys are the result of a collaboration between scholars at the University of Glasgow and school teachers and Education Scotland officials in a project funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Education Scotland. The resources and supporting documents have been produced by Joanna Tucker from the University of Glasgow, with Dr John Reuben Davies and Professor Dauvit Broun. They provide valuable and reliable source material and ideas to support interdisciplinary learning linked to the medieval Scotland context.

Click here to view the thirty-two sources which can be used at all levels. These aim to make the lives of people living in medieval Scotland more accessible to practitioners and learners.

Click here to see examples of practitioners’ learning journeys (for pupils at every level) using these resources. Click to view a plan of 3 learning experiences linked to the reign of John Balliol. This second-third level learning journey bundles experiences and outcome across social studies, literacy and health and well-being.