There is a growing sense of realisation that childhood education is increasingly irrelevant for tomorrow's world.
There are however some schools that are actively adapting the standardised academic curriculums, still so prevalent in mainstream schools, where instead of relying on the memorising of content for the sole purpose of passing examinations, provide real-life learning opportunities.
On such initiative is the introduction of Enterprise where students start-up and operate their own businesses through the application of knowledge and understanding gained in other subjects.
As a pre-cursor to Mont21 which provides forward thinking education, the Year 6/7 students embarked on the first Enterprise program with them presenting their own business ideas to the Senior Leadership Team.
Whilst this was primarily student led, essential guidance was provided with market research, writing business plans, ensuring financial viability through the calculation of budgets and cash flow projections and with marketing and publicity.
With support from the ‘school bank’, the students launched an organic fruit and veg shop, a tuck shop selling healthy snacks on campus and an online teenager fashion store selling bespoke t' shirts.
The level of dedication and commitment to their businesses was astounding with widespread support of the parents who were able to see how this real life experience was only achievable from what they had learnt in their academic studies.
It was also seen how through this, the students fostered and strengthened other life skills that would not ordinarily be achievable through the delivery of standard content based curriculums. The students had to negotiate with suppliers, work with each other collaboratively, be resilient when it was found some of their original ideas had proved unsuccessful and be creative in the design of their websites and online marketing.
The intention is obviously not to make every student a budding entrepreneur but instead to bring the usual predicable classroom learning to real life and to demonstrate at a formative stage of development that anything is possible as change-makers of the future.
The student's success was awarded by a skiing trip to Serrea Nevada this winter.
Comments