1. You might like to show the film at the beginning of the session – it lasts about 4 minutes and you will need sound.
This session will take about 45 minutes.
An Introduction

2. British Council ContactsUK
Ruth Cocks Project Delivery Manager
Stephen Hull Project Delivery Officer
Mexico
Bruno Hernández Project Manager
Venezuela
Mark Gregson Project Delivery Manager
Jamaica
Camille Neil Project Delivery Manager
Trinidad and Tobago
Allyson Pantin Project Delivery Manager
Introduce team (add officers overseas) 2

3. What is Connecting Classrooms?
British Council Connecting Classrooms builds lasting partnerships between groups of schools in the UK and around the world.
Through these partnerships, the programme develops trust and understanding between different communities, and gives young people the skills and cultural awareness they need to live and work in a global society.
Ruth:
Read this slide then play the video 3 3 3

4. Connecting Classrooms
Funded and managed by the British Council
Sustainable partnerships between groups of schools in the UK and around the world
Aims to bring about long-term change through working with teachers, school leaders, local authorities and policy-makers
Joint curriculum projects
Professional development for teachers and school leaders
Online community of schools
DCSF International School Award accreditation

5. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
To embed the international dimension
COLLABORATIVE LEARNING
Collaborative Curriculum Projects
Connecting Classrooms has three core components which will be delivered worldwide.
RECOGNITION
International School Award
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6. COLLABORATIVE LEARNING
Core:
Collaborative Curriculum Projects
RECOGNITION
International School Award
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
To embed the international dimension
Global Citizen Award
International Teacher Award
International Leader Award
Community Action Projects
Language Projects
Bilateral Leadership Programme
Coaching and Mentoring
Students as Leaders
Arts Projects
In order to respond to different educational priorities around the world, Connecting Classrooms also offers flexibility through a unique menu of additional options.
Connecting Classrooms recognises that education systems are different around the world and therefore allows us to “think globally but act locally”. 6 6 6

7. Collaborative curriculum projects
Enable learners to
interact across
Geographical
boundaries
to enhance their
understanding of each
others societies,
languages and cultures.
Collaborative Curriculum Projects and school links are the key focus for CC LAC.
The main aim is to create the opportunity for clusters of schools to from sustainable partnerships through developing joint projects which focus on pupil to pupil collaboration to create global citizens of the future
Back 7 7 7

8. Professional development
To enable teachers
and school leaders to
build capacity, support,
international
partnerships and
embed the international
dimension within the
culture and ethos of the
schools involved.
This will be provided through access to the leadership tools already produced and also through the opportunities provided to the international co-ordinator course.
Back 8 8 8

9. Recognition
Schools that participate in Connecting Classrooms become eligible for the International School Award, recognising the school’s commitment to forming international partnerships and developing global citizens
We will talk more about the ISA later
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10. Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)

11. Connecting Classrooms
Country
Pilot Schools
Cohort One Schools
Cohort Two Schools
Brazil 25
Mexico 15
Venezuela 10
Colombia
Argentina 8
Cuba 5
Chile
Jamaica
T&T
Total 93 95
Connecting Classrooms in the LAC
Highlight total numbers of schools – 3 year programme, Started with leadership focus (SLANT) now largely focussing on school links and collaborative curriculum projects but the leadership work with pilot cohort still continues and your schools may be interested in accessing the toolkit for example.
Next year another 95 schools.

12. The Programme Year 2 Year 1 Year 3 Cluster grant
UK and LAC cluster receive £2,500 for project work.
Cluster co-ordinators receive £1,000 for co-ordinating partnership
Joint curriculum projects
Curriculum related joint project activities
Professional development opportunities
Developing practitioners’ skills e.g ICC
ISA?
Year 3
Year 1
Contact seminar preparation workshop
making the most of the contact seminar
Contact seminar, 4 days
Meeting partners, forming partnership, planning joint project work
School visit and case study
Joint curriculum projects
Starting curriculum related joint project activities
Overview of CC Programme
Up 3 years of organised activity – hope partnerships will continue for many years.
Professional Development – for teachers and Principals. Vital that school leaders are supportive and understand the international partnership. Teachers can develop skills for leading international work within the school.
Partnership – workshop to prepare for Contact Seminar, Contact Seminar to meet partners and plan joint projects, Joint Curriculum Projects for students and teachers to learn together
£1,500 per school (actively working on partnership – not ‘sleeping’ partners!).
Year 2 MED schools visit UK, Year 3 UK schools visit MED. Visits should be done in this order unless there is very good reason for a swap. There is more budget for MED schools (as there are more of them) so we need to be able to plan how much budget is required each year. It also alternates the visits – Year 1: contact seminar in MED.
Visits organised by schools themselves – apply for funding from BC. Who visits, for how long etc can be decided by the schools using the travel grant as the whole amount or through raising additional funding.
Partnership
Partnership between schools, not the British Council!
We provide opportunities to meet, framework to work within and grants to enable visits. They must establish the partnership and keep it alive themselves with the support of colleagues in their schools. BC is here to help. Important you set the ground rules for your partnership together, understand each others’ expectations etc.
Important!
Contact Seminar is not a one off seminar – it’s the beginning of a long term partnership
Expectations that schools will work together, communicate, produce project materials
Very important to establish good relationship at the contact seminar
ISA and CCO
Overview of the programme. We will go over the grants and timeline in more detail now this is just to contextualise
International Leader Award
International Schools Award Pilot

13. Scope & dissemination:
Values
Systemic impact:
Partnerships within the model are characterised by three principles:
The programme impacts on actual curriculum delivery and entitlement though policy dialogue and partnerships with ministries and government agencies, curriculum bodies, local authorities or districts.
Scope & dissemination:
Sustainability:
Partnership work is embedded in the ethos and curriculum of the organisations participating and based on mutuality.
The next two slides are in addition if this session is being run at the ICC course rather than at the contact seminar.
The programme reaches millions through strategic area links, media partnerships, high profile events and conferences and pre-established networks. 13