School-University Partnerships for Research

The University of East Anglia (UEA), part of the Norwich Research Park (NRP) will form a partnership with a consortium of secondary schools in Norfolk and Suffolk over a period of three years. Within this partnership we will engage pupils with the ideas and processes of research that occurs across all subject areas, including science, history, literature, language and art. Research is the foundation upon which all new knowledge is built and it is a vital and fascinating process; it is also a crucial part in the development of a knowledge economy. We will show how research is done and highlight the differences and similarities between the research processes in different disciplines. We will also show that sciences, arts and humanities subjects do not exist in isolation, and that much can be gained by working together in a cross-disciplinary way to investigate and solve problems. In an education system increasingly built upon the acquisition of facts we recognise the importance of sharing the excitement and challenge of the research process with pupils. UEA and their partner schools will work with local and national organisations to deliver the project, but we are not restricting our focus to supporting Science Technology Engineering and Maths subjects. Local organisations include the Teacher:Scientist Network (TSN) which partners scientists with teachers, the Science, Art and Writing (SAW) Trust, which utilises a cross-disciplinary approach to engagement with research, UEA's newly established Centre for Writing and Science, the Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery, and the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts. We will establish the Teacher:Humanities network (THN), which will offer an equivalent partnership scheme to TSN. Working in partnership in the classroom will provide a mechanism to boost teacher knowledge and confidence. Additionally, these organisations will run activities within our partner schools, such as extracurricular clubs, 6th form conferences in biodiversity, literature and history as well as workshops investigating the research process in different environments. The partnership will also work with national organisations, in particular the Engineering Development Trust (EDT) who will be involved in running projects designed to encourage participation in STEM subjects, however, these projects will also have the philosophy of cross-disciplinary approach at their core and give pupils the opportunity to work for nationally recognised CREST Awards. We recognise that staff time is a barrier to school engagement, and 25% of our total budget will go directly to the schools so that teachers and researchers can meet and plan ongoing interactions, ahead of working together in the classroom. Direct work experience is highly beneficial and UEA along with partner organisations will be able to offer work experience places for pupils at the end of Years 10 and 12. The local and national organisations will provide crucial training opportunities for teachers and researchers at different stages of their career. Training for school engagement will be embedded into postgraduate schools and UEA and also into continuing staff development programmes and will focus on the communication skills required to work in a school environment, mentorship training as well as workshops supporting grant writing for engagement projects. Outside of the classroom teachers will also benefit from training through continuing professional development courses, enabling them to interact directly with researchers and to update subject specific knowledge and practical skills. The schools will support each other by organising swapshop opportunities to share teaching resources, equipment and also engage pupils in careers fairs. By the partnership working together with local and national organisations we will be able to inspire a future generation of pupils seeking higher education and career opportunities across all disciplines that involve research