Education
News
Sir Ken Robinson was awarded the Benjamin Franklin medal by the RSA on 16 June 2008, and spoke on the need for a paradigm shift in education if the needs of the 21st century are to be met. Watch the video, download the audio (MP3, 20MB) or join the conversation on the events page.
Project briefing
RSA Education develops innovative educational practices in response to the challenges faced by today's children.
What is the problem?
Children today are growing up in a rapidly changing world and face new social, economic, environmental and technical challenges.
For this reason, the RSA believes schools need to enhance the content of their curricula and adopt new teaching practices in order to meet the evolving needs of the young people they serve. This goes beyond the scope of the National Curriculum.
We understand more today about intelligence and the process of learning than we did in the past. Through collaboration with teachers and practitioners, RSA Education has spent eight years researching the practice of teaching, the process of learning, and the skills and capabilities needed for tomorrow's adults to thrive in an evolving economy. We work with schools to ensure this research is put into practice and to make an impact on policy.
How we work
The RSA strives to address today's educational challenges through four core areas of work:
- RSA Future Schools Network - a national network of practitioners, committed to creating schools for the twenty-first century
- RSA Opening Minds - a pioneering competence-led curriculum framework, designed to address a broad range of skills for life
- RSA Academy in Tipton is a school with an educational vision based on RSA Opening Minds, and sponsored by the RSA
- Education Campaign - a broad and progressive vision for 21st-century education in Britain, communicate that vision to parents, students, and teachers, and stimulate practical change in local areas
Over 180 schools now use the Opening Minds competence-based curriculum. And with the Future Schools Network, RSA Education is poised to help develop even more ground-breaking thinking in the educational field.
Our beliefs
RSA Education believes that schooling in the 21st century should:
- Enable all young people to fulfil their potential
- Ensure students love learning and have the capability to continue to learn through life
- Prepare young people for potential economic and social uncertainty
The RSA: innovators in education since the 19th century
The RSA has a long history of innovative educational practice, which began with many great achievements during the 19th century:
- 1855: The Society held its first examination for artisans
- 1856: We became the first organisation to launch national examinations
- 1859: The Society launched its music examinations
- 1870: The Society launched inquiries into the state of education, the findings of which were published in the RSA Journal
- 1872: We helped to establish the Girls' Day School Trust
- 1876: We established a National Training School for Music, which later became the Royal College of Music
And in the 20th century:
- 1978: We initiated the RSA Education for Capability movement to counteract the academic bias of British education and promote the value of the practical and co-operative skills
- 1988: The RSA Education for Capability project is expanded to include Higher Education
- 1994: We launched the Start Right campaign for Early Learning, which called for the availability of nursery education for all four-year-olds
- 1996: We launched the Campaign for Learning, to encourage life-long learning
- 1999: The RSA launched Opening Minds, a competence-based school curriculum
- 2008: The RSA Tipton Academy opens
