GLOBAL FELLOWSHIPS
Lighting fires
“That is the difference
between good teachers
A tale of two cities
and great teachers: good
teachers make the best of a
pupil’s means; great teachers
foresee a pupil’s ends.”
Maria Callas
“Study without desire spoils
and some fairly influential characters in the world of
the memory, and it retains
education.
Over the weekend we were also introduced to the
nothing that it takes in.”
Prime Minister’s Global Fellowship Alumni Committee
and various other opportunities. The weekend finale
Leonardo da Vinci
was a formal reception at Lancaster House in the
presence of the prime minister and the secretary of state
“Dreams do come true, if
for children, schools and families.
I find it difficult to fully convey how valuable and
we only wish hard enough,
unforgettable the experience was on the whole.
The fellows are selected on aspects of their characters You can have anything in
which supposedly distinguish them as possible
influential characters of the future. However, I would
life if you will sacrifice
suggest that it is such experiences as offered by the
everything else for it.”
Global Fellowship that truly shape these individuals.
As for myself, I am going back to China on Tuesday
James M Barrie
(March 23) for another six weeks, and, following a
course change, will now be reading Mandarin and
Spanish at the University of Leeds next year. I would like
“A well-written life is
to finish this piece by extending an enormous amount of
almost as rare as a well-
gratitude to all those that worked on the scheme, in all
continents involved, for making the Global Fellowship
spent one.”
the best thing I have ever done. SecEd
Thomas Carlyle
• Samuel Myers is 19 and went to Hampstead
Comprehensive School in West Hampstead. He is on
“The true teacher defends
a gap year at the moment and plans to return to the
University of Leeds to study Spanish and Mandarin
his pupils against his own
in September.
personal influence. He
Further information
The Prime Minister’s Global Fellowship is a fledgling
inspires self-trust. He guides
government-funded programme delivered by the
their eyes from himself to
British Council. The scheme offers a platform through
which 100 young individuals from England may escape
the spirit that quickens him.
normality for a summer to learn about the rapidly
Exploring new cultures: During his emerging economies of Brazil, China and India. The He will have no disciple.”
trip, Sam enjoyed the chance to British Council is now accepting applications for its
Amos Bronson Alcott
take in some shopping in Qi Bao in third year. Those wishing to apply, should register
Shanghai and was also taught to cook online at www.global-fellowship.org
with his host family (below)
Psycho babble
Our final week in Beijing was spent in a fairly International Airport. Our time with Virgin Atlantic
similar routine to the week before. On the second to was, in my opinion, the only disappointing aspect of
last day we were tested on our spoken Mandarin before the trip.
a fairly relaxed final day and a farewell lunch at the I was fully prepared for what I believed was to be Memory work
university followed by the most incredible acrobatics a fairly challenging experience. In fact, seven of the
show (I’m talking 15 people on one bicycle) after 10 days we spent with Virgin Atlantic consisted of us YET ANOTHER proposed initiative from the There is an increasing emphasis on the fact that
which almost all the fellows, and some student helpers, waking up at 4am to get to Pudong International airport Tories involves bringing rote learning back to the kids need to learn material, not just memorise it.
spent a night out. for 6am (the airport is based just outside Shanghai) in classroom; in other words, memorising the list of This is obviously a sound principle as an overall
We arrived in Shanghai in the early evening of August order for us to watch the check-in process in a language kings and queens and passages from Shakespeare, goal; however, memorising chunks of information
7 and were struck by the humidity and uncomfortably we couldn’t understand. The check-in process would and effectively returning to a traditionalist education. is effectively the bricks of knowledge, held together
hot climate of China’s second city. Despite the perma- then usually be followed by a long session of sitting By jove, I think they’ve got it. Here’s why. with the cement of comprehension/understanding.
smog that shrouds Beijing, it had become quite sunny in an office with even less to do, before being told we A few months ago, I sat opposite a secondary Together, they form the foundation of learning.
and pleasantly hot over the course of our stay and so weren’t needed and going home. school teacher at a function. The conversation turned Remembering key data, speeches, multiplication
most of us were unprepared for the climatic differences If it was not for the company I had, or the support to how we learned when we were at school, and and periodical tables, phonetical sounds, alphabets,
between the two cities. of the British Council and particularly the student how much of it we actually remembered. I proudly anatomy, science formulas and, it has to be said, lists
Despite the travelling, we were offered little respite helpers they had appointed, I dare say that my corporate confirmed that I still remembered my grade 10 (year of kings and queens, provides a framework upon
as we launched into a two-hour Mandarin lesson the placement would have ruined my first two weeks in 10) history presentation on the Vikings, word-for- which new information can be carefully hung.
next morning, followed by a day of workshops in which Shanghai. word. I remember every soliloquy I was Not only does this encourage confidence in
we reflected upon and shared our experiences with the Perhaps the only positive aspect of this period was ever forced to memorise. What’s more, students, but it encourages them to make
remainder of the group (something that was to happen that it passed quickly due to the routine in which we to this day, I apply mnemonics and links between what is stored in long-term
every Saturday in China). found ourselves. That is not to say that this phase of other memory aids that I learned at memory and what is being added to the
It seemed the British Council, which organises the the scheme is ineffective. On the contrary, the majority school. short. Information is effectively slotted
Global Fellowship on behalf of the Department for of corporate partners offered their fellows much more Well, this teacher became into existing “knowledge”, whether
Children, Schools and Families, wanted to remind us, in the way of responsibility, experience and education, very sniffy and said that this that knowledge was memorised or
and quite rightly so, that this was no holiday. However, and a very large proportion of the fellows found this type of learning stilted creativity, learned.
we did have the rest of the weekend as free time. I feel phase of the trip to be very rewarding, insightful and did nothing to encourage Memorisation builds mental
ashamed to admit that I spent the morning of my first enjoyable. comprehension, undermined discipline, retention and
free day in Shanghai soundly asleep in bed until the Our final two weeks in China consisted of organised self-esteem, and was currently confidence, and allows a student
early afternoon. activities alongside a fair amount of free time for us to frowned upon. to build a foundation in any
I like to think that I made up for this though by complete our Final Pieces, which we were to present on “What?” I gasped. “You mean subject for later studies. Thinking
visiting one of the “Tesco” supermarkets in Shanghai the last evening of the trip. We went to the 100th floor no ‘I before E except after C’?” skills alone are not sufficient to
with three others, which was, to say the least, a strange of the third tallest building in the world, traversed all 33 “No,” she said, “too many encourage comprehension; you
and stressful experience. The shop was absolutely kilometres of the seventh longest bridge in the world, exceptions.” need some facts and some stored
packed full of people who (without meaning offence) stayed overnight at a remarkably American activities “No ‘divorced, beheaded, died, data, too. For example, learning
completely lacked any sort of spatial awareness. I think resort, and spent a night with some Chinese peers. divorced, beheaded, survived’?” how to conjugate verbs will get
one of the fellows best described it as “a Primark on Alongside all this we were preparing ourselves “No,” she said, “there are better you virtually nowhere if you haven’t
Oxford Street that sells food, mainly”. Seeing the Tesco for the trip home, as well as our lives after that. ways to learn.” memorised some words to slot into the
logo atop a tank full of live eels, shrimps, huge fish, This, of course, consisted primarily of many hours “What? No monkey face?” I asked, sentences you hope to create.
toads and other bizarre goods was oddly comforting spent in either the Tailor’s Market or the Science and with disbelief. (For those of you who are I have to say that having studied mathematics
however. Technology Market. unfamiliar with this one, monkey face is the well into my university years, my best grasp of
Tesco Shanghai, it seems, also sells a great variety The final ceremony, held on the night before our technique I learned for solving algebraic maths still comes from my secondary school years,
of other products, including mopeds; it was rather departure, was at the Hyatt on the Bund hotel and equations in parentheses. I use it all the time.) simply because I can apply the formulas and “tricks”
fascinating to see how this British company adapted its featured our Final Pieces on which we had worked so So, teachers and administrators, please tell me I learned to any mathematical problems.
stock to an Asian market and in doing so how successful hard. what is going on. I know that you have little say in So which is the better system? You tell me. All I
it was (judging by the hoards inside the store). As part of the scheme, we were asked to complete an ever-changing curriculum, but do any of you have know is that I’m happy for my three boys to stutter
We first met out corporate hosts for a formal, two- a piece of art work, individually or in a group, that experience of using these methods for teaching? Do through “if music be the food of love” and “30 days
hour breakfast the following Monday and so truly represented what we had learnt and experienced. Each you use them despite their being ‘frowned upon’? has September”. At least I know they’ve learned
began the second phase of the fellowship. We then Mandarin class had also prepared a performance piece What boils my blood is the fact that trendy something, and they well find good use for that
headed off with the representatives of each company to (ours was a Chinese rendition of Romeo and Juliet). approaches to education often overlook the sound something later in life. For ideas on this, visit www.
their offices located around Shanghai. Our arrival home, however, did not mark the end science behind the traditional methods. Every child web-us.com/MEMORY/mnemonic_techniques.htm
The Virgin Atlantic office in Shanghai is on The of our experiences with the Global Fellowship 2009. benefits from using techniques to aid learning and
Bund (perhaps the most famous colonial road that runs From October 30 to November 2 all 100 fellows were facilitate the retrieval of information from our “hard • Karen Sullivan is a bestselling author, psychologist
alongside the Huangpu River). We did in fact end up invited back to London to share their experiences with drive”. and childcare expert. Email KESullivan@aol.com
spending the next few days with little to do at Pudong the delegates from other countries, the British Council,
SecEd • March 18 2010 9
08-09 Confis.indd 9 15/3/10 13:48:59
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