On Wednesday I had the opportunity to visit a school in the city of Bradford called Carlton Bolling College. This was a school that didn’t interview anyone that came through Engage Education, but because they are closely affiliated, and I only had one school who asked me to visit for a second interview on Thursday, Engage Education arranged for me to visit Carlton Bolling just to get an idea of the British school system/curriculum.
It was interesting to visit this school because there is an extremely high population of Pakistani Muslims so it wasn’t a “typical” British school (92% “non-native English speakers” in the school with over 90% of them being from Pakistan). I observed 4 classes and all together I saw only 2 students who were not Pakistani. Aside from the school having different demographics from what I’m used to, I was immediately drawn in to how the power structure and professionalism was so strict in the classrooms. Teachers called each other “Miss” or “Sir” inside the classroom (they were on a first name basis in common places, such as the staff room) as did students to the teachers. The teachers were extremely direct with students, if one misbehaved he/she could be sent to the hallway without a warning. This is so different from when I was volunteering and teaching at schools in BC because we were trained to give students warnings and chances to correct their behaviour (a more rehabilitative approach).
What I really loved about the school was that they made teaching differentiated skill levels so easy. In BC we discussed teaching using a differentiated approach, but it was hard because it was all on the teacher to figure out how. At Carlton Bolling College, they had a system in place, where based on students’ performances the previous year, they have a target level to reach each class. For example, in Canada it would be like if a student had an A average the year before, their daily skill level shown should be a 8-9, if they get a B average they need to do 6-7 level work, etc. The way that teachers assess if students are reaching their target level of learning is by having in class questions to answer and each question has a skill level associated with it, if students are able to answer correctly, then they have achieved their skill level for the day. What also makes it so easy for teachers to create work so that they are comparative to other teachers is that they set all their expectations at the beginning of the school year. Teachers will discuss what lessons to do for what grade, and collaboratively come up with lessons and worksheets, etc. After compiling everything, the department head compiles it all into their database for everyone to access. Of course teachers also will have their say in how they execute each lesson and sometimes even have a lesson unique to themselves, but in general all teachers have the same expectations and tools to work with.
Overall, I really like some of what has been set in place (especially with the differentiated learning). I feel like some of the classroom control strategies are very harsh at times, but that is probably because I was taught to do things differently so my ideals are a little bit different when it comes to discipline.
To see school statistics visit: https://www.schoolguide.co.uk/schools/carlton-bolling-college-bradford
To see school website visit: http://www.carltonbolling.co.uk/
Fun story of that day:
In one class particularly, a few students were extremely curious about me and where I come from. One student asked me, “Do you like Canada or here better?”
I replied with, “I can’t compare because I haven’t been here long enough. If I asked you the same question could you decide?”
Without much pause he said, “I like Canada better than here.”
So I asked, “How can you say that? Have you been to Canada?”
He said, “Well I watch a Canadian Youtuber and I think they have nice houses.”
Then I asked, “What part of Canada is he from?”
No reply…
It’s funny how he thought Canada is the best place ever, yet I really don’t think he understands how big Canada really is, and how what he sees in those videos are probably from a wealthier part of a large city.