Executive Summary

The Kings College London (KCL) summary, and full evaluation reports can be downloaded at the bottom of this web-page.

My Primary School is at the Museum

My Primary School is at the Museum was developed against a backdrop of threatened museum services, a shortage of school places, and ever growing evidence for a wide range of benefits of learning in cultural environments and through collections. The project concept has synchronicity with many calls to action to bring the educational and cultural sectors closer together and for every child to have the right to participate in cultural learning. In the past, there have been a range of museum-school partnerships and some have cultivated deeper, longer term relationships. However this is the frst time in the UK that school classes have been placed for extended residencies into museums. The partnerships To pioneer the concept, three very diferent partnerships between schools and museums across the UK – in Swansea, Liverpool and South Shields – were created. Classes from two primary schools and a nursery moved into a museum or gallery for between two weeks and a term while continuing to deliver the requirements of the National Curriculum and the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework. Impacts Overall the project successfully developed momentum in testing the concept, demonstrating a range of impacts for all stakeholder groups.

Introduction

At the heart of the My Primary School is at the Museum concept is a symbiotic strategy to place school classes within museums and galleries for extended periods, potentially leading to co-location. As the result of a feasibility study, and driven by a partnership between education, culture, business and academia, an innovative project was developed by King’s College London to explore whether or not there could be a range of beneficial outcomes from this approach.

The project concept has synchronicity with many calls to action to bring the educational and cultural sectors closer together and for every child to have the right to participate in cultural learning. In the past, there have been a range of museum-school partnerships and some have cultivated deeper, longer term relationships. However this is the first time in the UK that school classes have been placed for extended residencies into museums.

The Partnership

To pioneer the concept, three very different partnerships between schools and museums across the UK – in Swansea, Liverpool and South Shields – were created. Classes from two primary schools and a nursery moved into a museum or gallery for between two weeks and a term while continuing to deliver the requirements of the National Curriculum and the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework.

Impact

Overall the project successfully developed momentum in testing the concept, demonstrating a range of impacts for all stakeholder groups.

Children

Children proved themselves to be surprisingly adaptable to the new environment and stimuli. In particular, many became more confident and effective communicators, developing new social skills as a result of their extended stay in a public and adult structured environment. They also enjoyed some memorable learning experiences. Their immersion in museum and gallery collections led to a growing enthusiasm for the opportunities that their local cultural organisations can offer.

Museums

Museums and galleries developed a deeper understanding of formal education audiences, enabling them to create more relevant, engaging programmes tailored to particular age groups. They were also able to extend the use of their spaces and collections.

Schools and teachers

Schools and teachers became more confident in using out-of-classroom resources and spaces for teaching. The more relaxed environment encouraged teachers to explore a greater range of resources, in creative ways, to deliver the curriculum. The projects also fostered deeper relationships between schools and parents, contributing to greater community cohesion.

Key challenges

A number of issues prevented the partnerships functioning at full capacity. Not surprisingly, the school and museum staff initially had difficulty understanding each other’s different ways of working. Teachers were not familiar with the museum resources, while museums were not accustomed to hosting extended residencies, or delivering all aspects of the curriculum.

Conclusions

The project served to highlight some of the most pertinent issues in the cultural and education sectors – embracing flexibility and creativity, exploiting local resources to the full – and put a spotlight on the potential of radical new ways of working. New partnerships formed and there was a flow of skills, knowledge exchange and ways of working between the partner organisations. However, it was evident that if educational and cultural organisations are to work together in this way longer term, much closer communication and a better understanding of the different organisational cultures are required. My Primary School is at the Museum demonstrates that the concept has real potential to significantly enhance cultural learning by building strong partnerships between local schools, local museums and local families, bringing many benefits to all. The project illustrates the huge opportunity waiting to be grasped by both the education and cultural sectors to support our nation’s children in becoming adaptable and culturally confident citizens of the future.