An evaluation of the impact of the NW Museum Hub’s Primary Consultant (Museums and Galleries) with Manchester Education Partnership
22 November 2006
The primary consultant (museums and galleries) post was created by the NW Museum Hub with Manchester Education Partnership.
The post holder has developed and run a programme (called Magpie) of collaborative projects between five Manchester museums and over 40 schools. In addition she has performed the broader role of consultant, advocate and mediator between the education and museum sectors in Manchester.
The research by Warwick University shows that
The Magpie programme made a considerable impact upon teachers’ practice, confidence and satisfaction in the teaching of writing.
For all of the pupils involved in Magpie there was progress in writing attainment greater than the national norm of 2 points over two terms. The 201 pupils for whom returns were received throughout the intervention made an average progress of 2.7 points which is a 35% rise in average attainment over and above the norm
These achievements make clear the benefits of skilful collaboration between museum and gallery educators, teachers and the Manchester Education Partnership. Namely, professional development, attainment and the provision of curriculum resources from the museums. The converging objectives of the two sectors provide exciting possibilities for greater collaboration which can lead to benefits for museums, teachers and pupils alike.
The executive summary and the full report can be downloaded here.