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Duncan O'Leary

photo of Duncan O'Leary

Duncan works on projects looking at public services, skills and work.

Posted by Duncan O'Leary at 12:25pm on Tuesday, 28th November 2006

The Education Secretary, Alan Johnson, wants learning outside the classroom to be at the heart of every school's curriculum – and is encouraging more school trips. Good idea.

 

This is something Demos has been arguing for over the last couple of years. A Child’s Place argued that we need to reverse the decline in school trips and in The Leadership Imperative we tried to make the case that there are risks associated with non-action aswell as action – and that risk aversion was damaging children’s personal development.


You have to wonder, though, whether this is enough.  If young people are going to take advantage of the opportunities that lie beyond the school gates, the odd excusion is useful, but how far will it go to help nurture the learning, skills and aptitudes needed for the modern world? Don’t we need something more systematic than that? Different learning opportunities? New qualifications? Fresh ways of encouraging partnerships between schools and the community?

We think so, and we make some suggestions here.

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