The National Debate on Education
A Contribution from the Cultural Sector
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Introduction
This is a paper that synthesizes the contributions made by members of the
cultural sector. The contributions come from institutions including museums,
galleries, archives, contemporary and performing arts, built and natural
heritage and on-line resource bases. Five key areas were discussed:
o Cultural heritage as a learning resource
o The role of cultural heritage in any future curriculum
o Using on-line collections for learning
o Heritage sites and cultural institutions as learning environments
o Lifelong learning and the cultural institution
Issues that were raised and suggestions that were generated are detailed
under the six suggested areas for discussion set out by the Scottish
Executive.
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Why we educate children and young people
o Education in its broadest sense should help to prepare young people
for life and broaden their horizons. Learning should develop skills,
knowledge and understanding and foster the creativity and confidence
of the individual.
o A key aim of education should be to encourage individuals to
participate in learning throughout their lives and to give them the skills
and knowledge to access resources that will help them to do this.
o Education should be an holistic experience in that developing skills,
knowledge and understanding must go hand in hand with development
of attitudes and values that show an awareness of self, others, the
local and wider environment and community.
o Education should involve young people in their community so that by
participating in and valuing their local and national heritage they can
have a sense of ownership and pride in their culture.
o Education should provide young people with opportunities to
demonstrate basic skills and understanding in imaginative ways.
What children learn and what takes place in schools
o In addition to the formal curriculum, the boundaries should be pushed
to encourage young people to develop informed attitudes, think
creatively, and have an awareness and appreciation of themselves,
others and their environment. This is already happening in schools but
there is potential for adding value to these learning experiences
through cultural organisations and special events where a range of
resources and experiences that are not available in schools can be
accessed.
o Heritage institutions can provide many experiences that support the
formal curriculum but allow children and young people to learn in
different ways to those possible in the classroom. Value can be added
to the learning experience through opportunities to investigate,
research and interact with individuals, exhibitions and objects in a nonclassroom environment.
o Children can learn many skills relating to citizenship and personal and
social development from exhibitions and archives that detail social
history and events; they can also learn these skills through involvement
in initiatives such as Junior Boards, volunteering and work experience
in cultural institutions.
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o A key principle of the National Cultural Strategy is that culture is at the
heart of education. Currently, children learn about their culture through
a number of subject areas such as Environmental and Social Studies;
Language and Literature; Religion and the Expressive Arts. Stimulating
and appropriate materials to support some subject areas can be hard
to access. A variety of support materials: objects, staff expertise, online resource bases, the physical and built environment, special
performances and exhibitions is available in and through the cultural
sector. It is important, when there is such a diverse and broad
curriculum, that teachers and learners are aware of the full breadth of
experiences and resources that are available. It is equally important
that the institutions and organisations within the cultural sector are
aware of what is being taught in schools and evaluate, adapt and
present their services so that they can be of most use.
o The increasing importance of ICT in delivering learning means that
learning can take place effectively in a number of different
environments. The SCRAN website allows learners to access materials
from a variety of cultural institutions, removing many geographical and
physical barriers. There is the added value of having learning objects
relating to a subject area, with contributions from a number of different
institutions, available on one site. Learning using on-line resources can
take place in schools but can also be followed up at home, in libraries,
museums and galleries in learning zones and areas such as NMS
ExhibIT.
How learning and teaching are delivered
o Learning and teaching can be supported and followed up with after
school clubs, homework clubs and interest groups making use of the
facilities and resources available in cultural institutions.
o Partnerships should be developed to facilitate learning in the most
appropriate and stimulating environment. If strategic partnerships
between schools, the cultural and heritage sector, the wider community
and on-line databases are created then opportunities for learning in a
variety of ways and environments are possible.
o Skills, knowledge and understanding relating to specific subject areas
can be developed through involvement in volunteering, work
placements and special projects. For example, pupils could be involved
in working in areas such as developing exhibits, tourism, marketing and
audience research. This allows learning and teaching to be delivered in
context as well as effectively developing links between the education
and cultural sector.
o In museums, galleries, archives and visitor’s centres, teaching and
learning can become a two-way process through visitor participation.
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Involvement in exhibition planning, input into design, and text
hierarchies on captions can facilitate skills development, help to ensure
relevance and appropriateness for different groups of learners and
provide a sense of ownership to the end user.
o If teaching and learning are to be delivered effectively in the cultural
sector more audience research is needed to raise awareness of user
needs and wants. Audience evaluations and surveys are standard
practice after school visits, however, these are not seen as providing
enough detailed information about how learning and teaching can be
delivered to maximise benefit to teachers and pupils.
o There is a role for links between the cultural sector and education
bodies such as LTS and the NGfL to allow teachers and learners
greater access to information relating to services offered by the cultural
sector.
o Teaching and learning can be delivered more effectively and provide
even greater value and range of experience through cross-sectoral and
cross-institutional services, for example, combined trips to more than
one exhibition for one cost or mixtures of loans, visits and ICT
resources.
o High quality, customisable materials can be made available to teachers
and learners through the development of repositories of digitised
learning objects. Teachers and learners can then pick and mix what
they require and present and use the resources in ways that suit
individual needs and learning styles. SCRAN allows users to search for
materials and provides tools that encourage all users to create their
own publications, foster creativity and develop learning in the widest
sense. Individuals can be involved in selecting, ordering, structuring
and presenting learning materials. This in turn develops a range of
transferable skills that can be used within and outwith schools.
o A range of tools for customisation of digital resources is essential if
teaching and learning is to be delivered effectively. In addition to the
tools detailed above, a portal of information relating to outreach
facilities, digital objects, customisation and exhibitions from the cultural
sector would allow learning and teaching to be planned either
institutionally or individually to take full advantage of the services and
resources available. The portal would be a metadata repository of
cultural resources, events, outreach, talks, presenters etc. These would
be searched through a ‘learning’ focussed interface with geographical
and calendar based facilities.
o Teaching and learning using the cultural sector needs to be taken
forward in new ways, the use of ICT facilitates new ways of making the
sector accessible and useful to schools. Digitisation initiatives and
websites allow users to find and use on-line resources and information
that can be downloaded and customised for classroom use or to
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prepare and follow-up visits to museums and galleries. Use of cultural
objects on-line can contribute to raising standards in the classroom and
to making trips to museums and galleries a worthwhile and high quality
experience that can extend beyond the one-day visit.
o When teaching and learning are being delivered in the environment of
a museum, gallery or heritage site it is important that the materials
accessed by children are designed to be used for school-age learning.
The objects, materials and activities should be presented in a way that
they are accessible to as many different groups as possible.
o There are limitations on the number of different interpretations/ levels
that can be catered for within a museum environment. One way of
overcoming this may be to have on-line guides to exhibitions with
different foci, a variety of captions at different levels and access to
interactive learning materials for different subjects and stages. Not only
would this facilitate teachers and learners using materials in a number
of ways it would add a different dimension to the learning experience
compared to the worksheets and handouts that have often been used
in the past.
o When planning exhibitions or educational events, consideration has to
be given to the possibility of a number of different interpretations during
planning. Different interpretations in terms of subject matter should be
considered, as should the possibility of different learning styles and
how these can be addressed within the scope of the exhibition.
Consultation with pupils, teachers and other members of the cultural
sector would be one way of ascertaining what ideas are of greatest
value, what has been good practice and how the educational value of
heritage and cultural institutions can be enhanced.
Who can help children and young people to learn
o The participation of young people in volunteering programmes in
museums, galleries, archives and historical sites can help the
volunteers to learn skills for life and allows access to the experience of
museum staff.
o In order to help young people to learn there has to be two-way
communication between the educational and cultural sectors.
Specifically, the dialogue between teachers, LEAs, SEED and the
cultural sector should be made more explicit. There has to be a better
understanding of educational needs and priorities at a local and
national level and improved awareness of the valuable resources and
opportunities for learning that are available to young people.
o In order that the resources and people within the cultural sector can
help young people to learn there has to be initial training given to
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educators so that they are aware of the possibilities. It is important that
the cultural sector takes an active role in the training and continuing
professional development of teachers. This involvement could be in the
form of twilight courses, in-service training, and involvement in and
integration into ITE courses. Individual cultural institutions could work
corporately in any future initiative of this kind, in this way the links and
benefits of using a range of cultural assets could be made apparent
and training courses would be developed to address a range of issues
and needs. Partnerships with Higher Education institutions could also
lead to the cultural sector becoming involved in delivering accredited
training as part of CPD.
o To ensure that the educational initiatives that take place in cultural and
heritage institutions are meeting the needs of the education sector,
teachers can be involved in the work of the cultural sector. Teacher
placements and secondments through initiatives such as Excellence in
Education through Business Links and volunteering opportunities
provide a way for practitioners to contribute to the development of
educational resources and practice. These initiatives may also help to
contribute to a ‘cascade effect’ with teachers who have undertaken the
work highlighting the opportunities and resources that are available to
others.
o Staff in the cultural sector have an important role in helping children
learn. Therefore, they must be trained to the highest standards and
need to be aware of educational priorities and initiatives. The staff
should be ready to adapt to change and development including the use
of new technologies and how these can be used to help learners.
o Partnerships are central to ensuring that enthusiastic, skilled staff can
work together to help children learn. The cultural sector, working in
partnership with teachers, advisors and other LEA staff can help to
create a meaningful and exciting learning experience for young people.
Partnerships could be developed at a strategic level and also through
teacher visits, the use of on-line materials, tool sets, CPD training and
ITE courses. These will all impinge on the quality of educational
experience delivered by education and cultural sector staff.
o There needs to be a greater degree of consultation between museum,
gallery, heritage sites and archive staff to produce the highest quality of
materials and the best possible experience for visitors. More strategic
planning between institutions to make the best use of resources and
staff expertise will enhance and take forward the role of cultural
establishments in education. This could include exhibitions running
concurrently that complement each other, resources developed by a
range of institutions that are available on one on-line cultural portal, or
the sharing of staff to provide educational events and activities.
o Through a consultation process, pupils’ views can be taken into
account when planning exhibitions, events and educational materials.
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The more that is done to find out about pupils’ learning needs, the
more relevant materials and visits can be made and an improved
learning experience can be achieved.
When learning takes place
o Learning within the cultural institution can take place at a number of
different times: during structured school trips, in an individual’s spare
time or as part of a group or club. More use may be made of the
resources available in museums, galleries and archives if opening
hours were extended to allow more self-study.
o Learning using cultural materials can take place at a time and place of
an individual’s choosing due to the availability of images, multimedia
and information on-line. The availability of on-line materials should
continue to be developed to facilitate 24 hour access to a range of
cultural assets. This open access via the Internet can complement
physical access to heritage and cultural sites. For example, interpretive
panels and information sheets should be available on-line so that follow
up and research can take place.
o Young people should be encouraged to learn in and enjoy the cultural
resources that are available to them from an early age so that they are
confident and familiar with the environment. The cultural sector also
has a duty to try and make exhibits appropriate, interesting and
accessible for young people, some specific suggestions for how this
can be done are detailed in the section on how teaching and learning
are delivered. It is also clear that involvement and inclusion should
begin at the earliest stage. We need to investigate the equivalent of the
‘child’s alphabet frieze’ for culture.
o There is a need for a toolkit, either ICT or paper based, which provides
a framework for higher order skills development. This could be
thematically structured according to the venue or object of study but
should look at areas such as reading for information, developing a
critical visual sense, selecting and organising, reference, planning,
presentation through different modes and media, critical evaluation and
communication.
Where education takes place
o Developing a single on-line database of information relating to
exhibitions, trips and resources that are available may help to make a
range of different experiences more accessible and meaningful to
pupils and allow teachers to pick and mix to support learning.
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o The cultural and heritage sector already provides a valuable
environment for learning – this space can be used for learning that is
directly related to schools or for self-directed learning through life.
o Areas of cultural institutions could be developed to foster the inclusion
of different age groups, communities and interest groups.
Developments could include areas for special needs groups, groups
interested in using ICT, local history groups etc.
o Improvements could be made in the physical layout of cultural
institutions and the designated education areas within them. There is a
need for clearer signage to ensure that visitors can find exhibitions or
areas that are of interest to them, education areas should be integrated
more where possible and greater informality at the front of house may
help to make visitors more welcome and more likely to ask staff for
help and guidance.
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