October half term saw Highfields represented at a prestigious CPD event provided by UCL to support our 2022/23 Beacon School status. Head of History, Miss Tappenden, attended the four-day residential in London between 21st-24th October, alongside representatives from 25 other schools from across the country.
The Beacon School Programme aims to raise standards in teaching and learning about the Holocaust by supporting schools in creating a school-wide collaborative approach to Holocaust Education. Miss Tappenden, who is Lead Teacher for the programme in school, said “When we had the opportunity to apply for the programme, I knew that this was something I had to do. As Head of History, I am always looking to raise the profile of the subject across the school and most importantly, give our students the very best opportunities and experiences. The Beacon School Programme will fully support our curriculum development and positively challenge our thinking about how we deliver this crucially significant history”.
The residential opened at the Imperial War Museum, where teachers met their UCL mentors and other Beacon School Lead Teachers for lunch and an introduction to the new Holocaust gallery which opened in 2021. Time was then given to fully explore the gallery, ahead of a reflection with James Bulgin, Head of Content for the new Holocaust Galleries at Imperial War Museums, who explained the new design and selection of material for the gallery.
Mila Tribich MBE (left)
Over the course of the weekend, UCL mentors provided Lead Teachers with a variety of sessions, masterclasses which aimed to support teachers in the development of schemes of learning and lessons on the Holocaust, develop of expert knowledge and understanding of the Holocaust, and provide opportunities for reflection on issues associated with Holocaust Education, research and pedagogy. This included challenging misconceptions about the Holocaust and exploring missed or under-represented stories. Lead Teachers were also given the opportunity to reflect on the power of testimony, meeting and hearing directly from Mala Tribich MBE about her experiences before and during the Second World War, and of Bergen-Belsen.
The residential concluded with a visit to the Wiener Holocaust Library, where teachers were given the opportunity to see the library and archives, as well as interact source material which considered a range of British responses to the Holocaust. In reflection of the four-day residential Miss Tappenden said, “I have been truly inspired by the programme and I know that there is much more to come. The care and dedication from UCL staff towards the research undertaken, and the time taken to process that and work tirelessly to translate it to a classroom level is beyond admirable. Their passion for history as a subject discipline is infectious, and I feel extremely honoured that our students will be beneficiaries of their expertise”.
