V&A Blog Archive

 

Sixth Blog Entry - Tuesday, 6 March 2012

The exciting programme of CPD events for Spring and Summer terms 2012 has been finalised! The CPD events complement our core workshops including product design, lamp design and fashion. They will give inspirational ideas for the classroom as well as unique access to brand new galleries and exhibitions.

All schools within John Lyon’s Charity boroughs will shortly receive information in the post. However, if your organisation has links to schools who may wish to take advantage of these unique offers then circulating this as widely as possible would be greatly appreciated.

Please get in touch directly to find out more or if you have any questions! p.joiner@vam.ac.uk

Who can attend a CPD event?
All CPD events are for Secondary Art & Design and Design & Technology teachers within the John Lyon’s Charity boroughs.

CPD and outreach sessions are FREE for teachers upon booking a half price DesignLab workshop.

PRODUCT DESIGN

Opening Event: British Design, 1948- 2012

Friday 20^th April

Time: 17.00- 20.30

Learn more about this exhibition which showcases the best of British design and creative talent from curator Ghislaine Wood.

Free entry, drinks and light refreshments will be provided.

(Exhibition tickets normally £12)

Visit to Random International’s Studio

Thursday 17^th May

17.00- 20.30

This is a unique opportunity to visit the working studio of design collective Random International, whose work features in the Lamp Design workshop. Learn about their creative processes, as they talk honestly about the development of their work and show never before seen prototypes.

Opening Event: Heatherwick Studio

Friday 15^th June

Time: 18.00- 21.00

Come and explore the work of one of the most inventive and experimental design studios practising in Britain today. The evening will include a guest speaker from the Heatherwick Studio and a talk from exhibition curator Abraham Thomas.

Free entry, drinks and light refreshments will be provided.

(Exhibition tickets normally £6)

FASHION & TEXTILES

Creative event: Fashion Master Class

Friday 4^th May

Time: 17.00- 20.30

Take part in a fashion masterclass with designer Julianna Sissons. In this session you will take part in a ‘highlights’ tour which explores the rich history of the Medeval and Renaissance galleries. You will also have the opportunity to create your own garment.

Opening Event: ‘Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950’

Friday 1^st June

Time: 17.00- 20.30

See the spectacular new exhibition of Ballgowns from 1950 to the present day. Learn about the designers and the dresses featured in the exhibition in a talk by curator Oriole Cullen. The evening also features a talk by the curator of the newly opened Fashion galleries, Jenny Lister.

Free entry, drinks and light refreshments will be provided.

(Exhibition tickets normally £10)

To book a place at any of these events please contact Pippa Joiner p.joiner@vam.ac.uk

 

Comments:

The programme looks great! Please let us know if you are planning any photography-based sessions for teachers and we can feature it in our monthly teachers' e-newsletter.

Janice McLaren
Head of Education & Projects The Photographers' Gallery
07/03/12

 

 

Fifth Blog Entry - Thursday, 9 February 2012

It has been fantastic to receive so many comments on this Blog and for you to share your advice and experience with me. Here are some of my responses:

In regards to questionnaires, I initially thought that this might provide a path to open dialogue with schools. However, as this proved more difficult than anticipated, it was decided to focus on the key objective: that of getting schools involved in the core programme. So far I have been able to consult with 9 departments on initial visits to schools.
Whilst it has been difficult to draw any conclusions from having a small sample size, meeting face to face with teachers has provided in-depth insights. I hope to build up more responses as I continue to visit schools and meet more teachers. We recently ran a CPD event where I was able to talk to some of the teachers. As Alec Haylor suggested, this created a good informal atmosphere in which to discuss ideas.

I had initially hoped that schools who were not engaging with DesignLab would give some insight into the barriers they face. From the consultations so far, and my own prior experience as a teacher, ‘cost’ and ‘cover’ seem to be key factors. With support from John Lyon’s Charity the issue of cost has been dramatically reduced - yet many schools are not yet taking advantage of the workshops. A handful of schools have expressed an interest in the project and I have been quick to respond to them. It is also my hope that I will be able to reach schools who have not yet expressed an interest in DesignLab. I hope that by finding as many different avenues to reach schools as possible they will see how DesignLab can support their students. I am keen to visit as many networking events and meetings as possible and would welcome suggestions of any upcoming events.

I am keen to gain the support of Headteachers for the DesignLab initiative. I do appreciate, however, that this may not be an easy task as Headteachers are extremely busy. I have been trying to attend a network meeting for Headteachers which is proving difficult – if there is any advice on this it would be much appreciated.

It was great to have suggestions to reach trainee teachers. In fact, I gave a presentation at the Institute of Education (IOE) last night to a group of Art & Design trainee teachers and their mentors which had a positive reception. I hope that it will be possible to build on the relationship with the IOE to work more closely with trainee teachers in the future.

Thank you again for all your ideas and sharing your success. I look forward to hearing more of your comments and suggestions!

 

Fourth Blog Entry - February 2012

Thanks to everyone who has posted comments on the blog so far. It’s great to get different people’s ideas and advice.

Since the last post I have developed a new strategy of engaging with schools: they will be offered events as a package. Upon booking a half price workshop schools can receive a free outreach workshop and CPD session. This is a fantastic offer for schools and will hopefully provide extra incentives to engage with the DesignLab programme.

I have just finalised an exciting programme of events for teachers, including talks by designers, practical workshops and exclusive previews of forthcoming exhibitions and gallery openings. I have also been meeting a number of designers to give talks in schools. All sessions have been based on key themes in the DesignLab workshops and aim to extend and develop engagement with the core programme. A leaflet is currently being designed and will be sent to schools shortly.

Another idea we would like to pursue is using the V&A as a hub for different D&T departments within and between the different boroughs. We are working with the D&T Association to arrange the first of these events next month.

I delivered a teachers event for Brentside High School, Ealing at the end of January. This was a tailored session based on Postmodernist design. Teachers enjoyed talks by our curators and had the chance to make their own postmodern jewellery pieces. The evaluation for this was excellent and the school will be booking workshops. In this case, offering a tailor-made workshop was a good ‘hook’ for engaging schools.

However, tailor-made events could perhaps carry the risk of distracting from the

core programme instead of promoting it. With this in mind a programme of CPD events for the year was created, all specifically relating to the core DesignLab programme. Organising all these events will be a lot of work but it is very exciting and will hopefully attract many teachers. We would love it if anyone reading the blog could help promote the new CPD programme and package to their networks and contacts. We would be happy to email you full details.

 

Third Blog Entry - December 2011

I have recently expanded my focus on the 4 initially targeted boroughs to encompass 3 more: Harrow, Barnet and Westminster. This will provide an additional 41 schools to contact. There has been some positive response, with two initial visits to Barnet. So far I have made a total of 8 initial visits, delivered 2 outreach sessions and have 3 DesignLab workshops booked. I am also creating a tailor made CPD event for a school in Ealing for January.

However, there have also been some challenges. It has proved difficult to get responses for the DT provision questionnaires. I created an online questionnaire with many multiple choice answers to make the process of completing it as quick and easy as possible, but as yet have had only 1 response in addition to those completed in my initial visits. Some LA contacts have been kind enough to send reminders. I have considered incentives such as complimentary tickets, but feel at this stage that the focus should be on promoting the core programme. I have 9 responses to the questionnaires in total. This limited number of responses has made it difficult to draw generalities into provision in boroughs as a whole. However, I have gained a valuable understanding of individual departments and a useful insight into the types of projects they currently offer as well as how the V&A can continue to support them. I will keep gathering responses from teachers and add these to the report as they come in. The report will be used to inform the future development of the project.

In order to help support teachers in their long term planning I will create a brochure with a list of all the events for next year listed and send out in the summer term to allow ‘take up time’. I will also create a brochure for events this year to send out after the Christmas holidays.

I am currently marketing free CPD events with designers from Seymourpowell taking place in early January and February, with three places booked so far. Meanwhile, the V&A Sanctuary events, which allow teachers to work with practising artists and designers, have been successful. Following this success I am currently planning a programme of twilight Sanctuary events for teachers within John Lyon’s Charity boroughs. The Design & Technology association have kindly offered advertising space for CPD events on their website. I am also in contact with the co-ordinator for London branch meetings for the Design & Technology association and am discussing the possibilities of holding an exclusive event for members in March.

Second Blog Entry - Monday, 14 November 2011

The visits to schools have gone well. In addition to the four schools previously mentioned I have met with two other schools (in Ealing and Hammersmith)for initial visits. The teachers have all expressed interest in the programme and developing a sustainable relationship with the V&A. Two workshops have been booked so far and three places for special sessions with the product design company Seymourpowell(whom worked in collaboration with the V&A to devise two of the DesignLab workshops). I am in dialogue with the other teachers I visited whom are negotiating dates to bring students to the V&A within their schools.

Whilst on my initial visits I was able to conduct a short questionnaire to gain an understanding of the DT provisions at each school. One finding so far is the identification of ‘inspiration’ as a reason for booking workshops with the V&A. Teachers commented that DesignLab could offer new ideas and techniques to use within their teaching practice as well as the opportunity for students to gain inspiration.
I have contacted all the schools in the initially targeted boroughs again and am asking them to take part in the questionnaire about DT provision. The Local Authority Education advisors have kindly agreed to assist me in gaining responses from schools within their boroughs. Hopefully in understanding the schools more clearly, I will be able to devise ways to meet their needs through the DesignLab programme.

I have also been busy developing an outreach lesson, which schools have been offered upon booking a DesignLab workshop. I delivered the first of these to a school in Hammersmith & Fulham last week. I developed a practical activity to stimulate quick, creative thinking and for students to learn through making. Students worked together in teams to creatively solve a design challenge. They were given images of the V&A’s collections as design inspiration and a bag of materials with which to create a 3D rig. The teacher commented that it was valuable for students to be introduced to the museum and the premise of the workshop before visiting.

Over the coming weeks I will continue to talk to the Heads of Departments within the initially targeted boroughs of Hammersmith & Fulham, RBKC, Ealing and Brent. I have contacted schools in the other John Lyon’s Charity boroughs and hope to organise initial meetings and outreach sessions with them. I will continue to compile a report of DT provision across the boroughs and have started to devise a Teacher Training event to further interest schools in the DesignLab programme.

First Blog Entry - Thursday, 6 October 2011

My name is Pippa, and I am working on this project funded by John Lyon’s Charity to support Secondary D&T students and teachers within specific London boroughs through offering new ways and opportunities to engage with the V&A's flagship programme DesignLab.

DesignLab was launched in 2008 alongside the opening of the Sackler Centre and aims to engage students with iconic design collections and professional design practice through innovative workshops and projects.

I will be writing about the experiences of involving schools with the programme and sustaining links with them. Hopefully this will give some insight into the working methods, including the successes and challenges involved!

I have been in post since the beginning of September and have spent the first few weeks in my new position getting to know the V&A’s education programme, observing workshops and analysing data to identify key wards within the John Lyon's boroughs to work with. In the initial phase of the project these will be Brent, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC), Ealing and Hammersmith and Fulham (H&F).

I started by contacting the Local Authority Education Officers to see what platforms were available to reach teachers. I organised a stall for an ‘Arts in Education’ event held by the RBKC Cultural Service for teachers in the borough as well as surrounding Westminster and H&F. The event proved really useful for promoting our Primary Programme, but unfortunately not many secondary teachers attended.

I have met the Secondary Curriculum Co-ordinator for H&F and will be sending out information to schools in their newsletter.

Directly contacting schools has proved successful. Several schools have registered interest through a phone call following an initial letter.

One school in Ealing, one in Brent, one in RBKC and two in H&F have booked free introductory sessions. Over the next few weeks I will be going out to these schools to explain what DesignLab can offer them.

This will also provide an opportunity to talk with teachers about their D&T provision. Industrial Designer, Steve Rogers has said that ‘Designing a product is designing a relationship’. Hopefully these initial meetings will form the start of an ongoing relationship between the schools and the V&A.