Classics is ACE
Last Saturday, the 1st of July, I attended the Advancing Classics Education (ACE) launch event at King's College London as a teacher member of the advisory board. It was fantastic and I came away incredibly inspired and renewed in my evangelical fervour for all things ancient and the right every child should have to study them.
The driving force behind this is the formidable pairing of Prof. Edith Hall (quote of the day - "Classics for the many, not the few!") and Dr Arlene Holmes-Henderson. Together, they aim to
(1) research the role of Classical Civilisation and Ancient History in UK curricula and,
(2) raise the profile and status of these subjects as viable options for study in UK schools.
So, how will these noble aims be realised? Certainly not by the two of them alone. There are researchers, patrons, various Classical associations and other collaborators supporting, sixteen universities as partners who will do much of the local co-ordination, and about a dozen teachers like myself on the advisory board, with room for more to be involved. This is BIG! With a significant grant from the Arts and Humanities Research Council for the next eighteen months, I couldn't help feeling that a significant change in the level of access to Classical Civilisation and Ancient History for 14-19 year olds in the UK is on the way.
How will it affect Redborne? Positively, I hope and expect, and in three main ways.
(1) Direct benefit and opportunities for Redborne Classics students, mainly through work done by our nearest ACE partner university, the Open University.
This will be enjoyable, educational, and inspiring in its own right, but should also smooth the path for students considering where Class Civ A level, and perhaps an associated degree, can take them. Our Classics Symposium on the 17th July has four speakers, all of whom are involved in the ACE project!
(2) Opportunities for leadership and outreach.
Inspired by the launch event on Saturday I contacted five local middle and lower schools. I'm already planning an outreach day on the Romans with one of them for 150 year 6 students next year! If the others follow suit, that could be about 500 students we'll work with. Obviously this gives great opportunities for Redborne students to develop their leadership and teaching skills, but also will empower them to become Classics ambassadors in their own right. It should also lead on to...
(3) Increased uptake of Classics subjects.
Although there are students who take our Latin GCSE course (which has a Civ component) or A level Classical Civilisation because it is something completely new and different, most come with a special memory or encounter that makes them feel positively towards Classics in the first place. Whether that is a family holiday, Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson, Caroline Lawrence's Roman Mysteries, Asterix, or the spells in Harry Potter, or a special event in earlier school years. That special event is what I hope (2) will provide.
If you've read this far, you might want to know how you can get involved yourself. Well, any large project like this aims to be evidence-based and you can provide that evidence in just three minutes. Please complete this questionnaire; it doesn't matter whether you've a degree in Classics or never studied it, all data is helpful. Then take a spin around the wider ACE website to find your local contact, or even just email me directly and I can point you in the right direction.
I can't wait - the future's bright, the future's ancient history!
