Wallasey school hosts ground-breaking education conference

Jun 30 2010 by Matt Hurst, Wallasey News

A WALLASEY school is hosting a ground-breaking conference that has seen 50 teachers from the Indian subcontinent arrive to exchange ideas on education.

The All Our Futures conference will examine the national pressures common to secondary education in both societies and the ways in which schools have found local solutions to these pressures.

The aim is to share these solutions with colleagues who, while they may come from different social, cultural and economic backgrounds, have one thing in common; their desire to prepare all their young people to cope with, and achieve in, all their futures.

The All Our Futures Conference has been organised by the Aspire Trust – a social enterprise based at The Oldershaw School that has grown out of an Education Action Zone in conjunction with EduExcellence, India.

Oldershaw headteacher Steven Peach said: “I am immensely proud that such a groundbreaking conference is taking place at Oldershaw and our students will be helping delegates and speakers throughout.

“Educators have a duty to teach children so that they can flourish in the real world – and the world is becoming a smaller place.”

Aspire Director Nick Owen said: “When we were asked to organise the conference we wondered how we could possibly talk about secondary education in a rural school in India compared with somewhere like Wirral. But it became clear that, fundamentally, the issues facing UK schools were exactly the same as the issues facing Indian schools.”

Cllr Sheila Clarke, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Lifelong Learning, added: “I am very proud that a conference like this is taking place in Wirral and hope it will prove an excellent learning environment for all the delegates.”

The conference runs until Friday at Oldershaw School.