Case studies

View examples of work related to Area Based Curriculum ideas undertaken by the RSA and partner organisations.

Manchester Curriculum in North Manchester School for Boys [PDF, 123KB]

Manchester Curriculum in Parklands School [PDF, 164KB]

Manchester Curriculum in Whalley Range School [PDF, 141KB]

Engaging Places - Divine inspiration in Coventry

Engaging Places - case study from Coventry

This is a case study by Engaging Places, based on a project in Coventry.

Divine inspiration
Key stage 2
Religious education, history, geography and English
Diocese of Coventry in partnership with St Bartholomew’s CE Primary School

The teacher wanted to increase student:

  • awareness and appreciation of their surroundings
  • understanding of building design
  • ability to work as a tea.

The mission embraced by the Divine inspiration project was to open pupils' eyes to the places around them and to give them an enjoyable and rewarding experience of learning outside the classroom. Starting with a fresh experience of the city of Coventry - a place the pupils associated with the boredom of shopping with their parents - the project then focussed on the exploration of two very different churches. 

St Bartholomew's is in Binley on the outskirts of Coventry. The initial problem the project encountered was that the young people recognised little or no imaginative appeal in their local built environment. Their favourite buildings tended to be the small number of contrasting modern and bright buildings in Binley. Their appreciation of the wider environment was limited. The experience of the new places visited in Coventry city centre began to change this outlook. The pupils were asked to be detectives. They began to notice buildings and details that had until now been unseen. The curved roof of The Herbert art gallery caused excitement, as did an impromptu visit to a tower in the old city wall. 

An excitement for buildings began to be felt in the special places the project took them into. The pupils began to recognise the 'power of place', and nowhere was this experienced with greater immediacy than in the silent and beautiful crypt of Berkswell Church. They also began to develop in depth historical knowledge through their church detective exercises, with many being able to identify differences between Norman and Saxon windows. After these experiences the pupils’ attitudes towards the familiar places that belong to their daily routines have changed profoundly. 

Divine Inspiration embraced learning outside the classroom, with the pupils going on ten visits to buildings and places in Coventry. The cost of all ten visits was just £8 per pupil. The benefits of this approach to teaching and learning was huge with all the teacher’s objectives met, marked improvements in behaviour and raised achievement particularly in English and maths. 

Read more about the development of this project.
Read what the pupils thought.

Case studies from Manchester