Critical Skills in St Mary

A group of Jersey primary school children will be learning some Critical Skills this Wednesday (June 11^th – from 1.15-3pm) – and so will their parents, teachers and classroom assistants.

St Mary’s Primary School Reception pupils and their parents have been invited to take part in a Critical Skills activity with the school’s Deputy Head, Tony Parkes. Critical Skills is a teaching programme that’s been used in Jersey since 2002 and is all about learning through problem solving and by working together.

It doesn’t mean teachers sit at the front of the class with their feet up while their pupils teach themselves. It does mean teachers help children develop problem solving and decision making skills for themselves, skills which employers need in a motivated and creative workforce, and skills which will help students develop a positive attitude to lifelong learning.

Young children have a natural curiosity about the world which can be forgotten in the race to pass exams and meet targets. Critical Skills teaching works to retain that spark of creative thinking and harness it for each student’s long term learning.

The head teacher at St Mary’s school, Linda McKenzie, says “We use this approach because we’ve found it works. This Wednesday afternoon there will be an opportunity to look at how the children are taught these skills, and to talk to teachers about why they think it’s a useful tool in the classroom.”

The Education Director Mario Lundy says ‘The critical skills approach is motivating, both for the pupils and the teachers. It provides the children with opportunities to apply their learning to real life challenges and it empowers teachers to develop a creative learning environment where there is a strong emphasis on the development of skills. The effect is formidable.’

Page Last Updated: 09/06/2008