A Meaningful and Empowering Education
Big Education is a Multi-Academy Trust formed of three schools - School 21, School 360, Surrey Square Primary - that is working to develop a more meaningful education for every young person, empowering them to make a positive difference with their communities, for their world and their future. We are rethinking practices and challenging mindsets to ultimately shape futures.
There are two strands to this:
A ‘meaningful education’ for young people is one that is much broader than the current National Curriculum. We call this an education of the head, heard and hand. It is one that recognises and develops the whole child, balances academic knowledge with skills needed for their futures, prioritises wellbeing and mental health, and develops young people to use their voice so that they can make a difference to the world and encourages young people to explore a broad range of strengths (such as creativity). We are striving for this education in our own schools and working with schools across the country to rethink their practices.
A ‘meaningful education’ for many employers is one that prepares young people for the working world. This involves developing their ability to solve problems, be reflective and successfully manage practical tasks from sending emails to holding meetings and writing reports. Many employers have raised recent concerns over the education system not equipping young people for work. The Times Education Commission found that a third of employers were providing basic and foundational work training to new employers, because they did not leave education with the skills1