Revolutionising Education: New City College launches ‘nation first’ Teaching and Learning Lab to create teachers for the future

An innovative Teaching and Learning Lab to enhance the quality of education and bring a new dynamic to the classroom has been launched by New City College.

The Lab aims to improve teaching and leadership in the Further Education sector, push boundaries, drive standards and ultimately improve outcomes for students.

Lab patron and author Geoff Petty, one of Britain’s leading experts on teaching methods, gave a keynote speech at the launch, praising the idea and telling guests that trying different concepts and stepping out of comfort zones is the way forward.

He said: “This is a nation first and I think it’s going to be copied by a lot of other institutions who will learn from your entrepreneurial streak. It’s a fantastic idea and I’m sure in the future you will see the improvement it will have on teaching and learning – and on morale.”

Working in partnership with the Education and Training Foundation, New City College is creating teachers for the future, with some describing it as a ‘game-changer’.

The Lab will support professionalism and growth through mentoring, coaching, innovative research, and sharing best practice. Some of the topics covered include ‘What motivates the motivator?’ and ‘The effects of English and Maths skills on everyday life and engagement with democracy’.

Ruth Kendrick, New City College’s Group Director for Teaching, Learning and Development, who initiated the idea of the Lab, said the ethos was about striving for excellence.

She said: “The Lab will inspire and challenge our practitioners to be even better education and training professionals than they already are. We will encourage them to undertake research projects, push the boundaries and tackle the big questions in the FE sector.

“The hard work, dedication and passion of our talented practitioners have brought us to this moment, and I am incredibly proud of them. The commitment we all share in delivering the very best teaching, and improving outcomes for our learners is the driving force behind everything we do. Quite simply, education changes lives.”

Among the special guests attending the launch were Katerina Kolyva, CEO of the Education and Training Foundation (ETF), Professor Gerard Hanlon, from Queen Mary University and Lab Patron Geoff Petty, who joined via video-link.

On the night guests, staff and organisations were asked to make a pledge in support of the Lab. The pledges included: providing research supervision for a project, offering sponsored masters modules, offering individual coaching or mentoring, offering to deliver a masterclass, or offering training and shadowing for vocational upskilling.