Learning Environments for the Whole Curriculum

The core of this book consists of 18 teachers' reports on attempts to change traditional learning environments. The reports, mainly from secondary schools, range from innovative work in 'A' English, GCSE Maths and Business Studies to a school pottery class, individually negotiated timetables, community placements and a Primary School railway station. The reports, and additional chapters on assessment, staff development and contributors' shared principles, point to ways in which schools should and can respond creatively to the requirements of the National Curriculum. The book argues for a commitment to whole curriculum planning, which embraces a variety of learning environments both inside and outside the school walls. There is a particular concern in several of the reports for lower attaining pupils and those pupils who seem to gain little from 'normal lessons'.