• Question: Hello, I am a teacher in a mixed comprehensive secondary school. We have introduced the IMYC program of study in year 7 and will roll it out to year 8 next year. This is how the IMYC defines itself on its website: The IMYC helps your students to make meaning of their learning by: Linking all subject learning to a conceptual theme Responding to the specific developmental needs of 11-14 year olds Working towards understanding through a personal and global perspective How effective is that approach in helping students develop learning skills? It is an "off the peg" curriculum. Is it better to stick to recommendations made by the providers in terms of learning activities or is it better to amend and customise? If we customise, are we at risk of losing the essence of the course, thereby negating any benefits? If we don't customise, are we reducing teachers' ability to use their experience to teach thereby under-utilising the staff's pool of knowledge? Which approach would you recommend? Thank you

    Asked by Monnomdeplume to SusannaMarie, Paul, Michael, Kathrin, Joe, Iroise, Ian, Emma on 28 Apr 2015.
    • Photo: Susanna Martin

      Susanna Martin answered on 28 Apr 2015:

      Hi, I’m afraid I haven’t heard of the IMYC so I am a little out of my depth in responding. However, it sounds like an interesting idea, and certainly thematic learning and providing context for content can really help students learn. In my opinion (and this isn’t my area) I would have thought it made sense to combine this with your existing methods and knowledge to provide more opportunities for the students to learn. I imagine you are already using some of the techniques such as group work and projects.
      How have the year 7s responded? I think the key is to also be evaluating how you teach and being open to modify it depending on the students in your class. Just because the methods works for some doesn’t mean it will work for all.

Comments

  • Photo: jtracy86

    jtracy86 commented on :

    We have tried this in my school and we found it was very difficult to get all teachers fully in board with it. It required a lot of changes to existing schemes of work and an increased workload. The idea itself I think is really great, but it is a big ask, and we only started with one of the themes for the first term! I can imagine that doing it all at once provides some quite big challenges.

    Is it not possible to take the ideas from it and fit them in with your existing schemes of work?

  • Photo: Lia - WellcomeTrust

    Lia - WellcomeTrust commented on :

    It would be interesting to find out what the developers mean by “The IMYC is specifically designed around the critical needs of the adolescent brain” – have they elaborated on that at all?

  • Photo: Abena

    Abena commented on :

    This question got me curious as a school I worked in previously did the IPC. The IMYC is an off-the-peg curriculum but does have room for customising to your context and cohorts. As for the “specific developmental needs of 11-14 year olds” I called them up (they are based in London) and they identified them as:
    Key 1: interlinking learning
    Key 2: making meaning
    Key 3: taking risks and practicing decision making in a safe environment
    Key 4: adolescents needs to work with their peers
    Key 5: adolescents need support with transition between primary and secondary education
    When I asked if these were referenced to studies, I was told they were and suggested I use their contact form to request more information, so that’s an option for anyone looking for their evidence.

    • Photo: Abena

      Abena commented on :

      The ‘requested information’ just came through, and it does not contain any references but does expand on the above:
      Much of this research tells us that the brain learns in an associative way; i.e. connecting new learning
      to previous learning, and adapting previously learned concepts to incorporate new learning. Making
      connections between the learning of different subjects is just as important as making connections within
      subjects.
      • Because the adolescent brain is at a stage of specialising and pruning connections in a ‘use it or lose it’ fashion, it is crucial for students to make meaning of their learning to help strengthen the new connections and to ensure that the existing knowledge or skills connections are not lost or pruned.
      • Teenagers also don’t view risk in the same way that adults do. As teachers, we need to create opportunities for teenagers to be active, practise their decision-making skills and to be given the opportunity to take risks during their learning, but to do so in a safe environment.
      • Peers play an increasingly important role in validation for teenagers as they move from childhood towards adulthood.
      • Lastly, the adolescent’s prefrontal cortex which houses the executive function, is in flux during the teenage years; specialising and maturing. As a result, teenagers need extra support with behaviours affected by the executive function such as self-organisation, decision-making and self-control.