LVS Ascot Principal Addresses Forum On Future Of Education At International Show
07 Dec 2017
LVS Ascot Principal Christine Cunniffe was invited to share her expertise at the Independent Schools Show in London on Sunday 12th November, addressing a forum on the future of education.
With 5,000 visitors from around the world attracted to the Independent Schools Show, a series of talks featured the Vice-Chancellor of Birmingham University and the Education Editor of The Sunday Times alongside Christine Cunniffe, who has also featured several times recently as an education voice of authority on ITV’s This Morning show.
In her address on the future of education, Christine Cunniffe said: “The employment landscape is changing with certain professions disappearing and I believe automated services will signal an impact on the workforce. My youngest son spends 3 hours or more a day on his computer, which horrified me initially, but for what he wants to do it is essential and therefore what is the difference between that and me practicing on the piano for 3 hours a day forty years ago?”
She continued: “Now we are all producers, not consumers, and we are not all the same – that’s why we recognise at LVS Ascot that all students are individuals and learn differently and at different times. The confines of the traditional classroom often don’t recognise this. I’m not sure that there is enough encouragement of entrepreneurship and innovation and encouraging our children to take risks. Our job should be to nurture and support them, and give them the opportunities to find and develop new skills. We have set up a party of LVS Ascot parents working in industry to look at the challenges of the future and help initiate programmes at school, such as our recent apprenticeships evening where we welcomed Coca Cola amongst others to talk about future opportunities for our students”.
LVS Ascot’s stand at the event drew large numbers of visitors to find out more about the independent all-ability school’s ethos of inspiring students to exceed their expectations. The confidence being instilled in pupils was demonstrated by LVS Ascot sixth formers Ana
and Ilia Vlasov, both 17 and boarding students at LVS Ascot, managing the stand for an afternoon as ambassadors for the school. This allowed prospective parents to find out from the students themselves what LVS Ascot has helped them to achieve, and express interest in attending the school’s next open day on Saturday 18th November.