Visiting teachers from Germany inspired by College values

More than 20 German teachers visited the College to sample how a British approach to education compares to their experiences back home.

The party of 24 secondary school principals and teachers are exploring what Merseyside’s schools and colleges have to offer and spent a morning learning how our specialist Sixth Form College operates and how our A Level and BTEC students achieve their success.

They also took part in a special session of our award-winning BePART mental health and wellbeing programme and found the unique approach to students’ all-round education something of an eye-opener.

Teacher, Dörthe Rick, is a member of the travelling party and was enthused by her experience of BePART.

She said: “It was fantastic. I think that maybe this is the basis for successful learning and there are some parts that we could take over and apply in our schools. Often it’s a question of money but there are a lot of elements of the BePART programme that we could start applying anyway.”

Describing how she found her visit to Birkenhead Sixth Form College, Dörthe said: “I’m overwhelmed actually. It’s such an amazing College and you can be so proud of everything you do here. I’m lost for words to describe it really! I like the general attitude of the staff and students, the atmosphere in the building, and that every staff member is so positive. The positivity is not just in a slogan and your values: it’s actually the general life of the College.”

Dörthe went on to explain the reasons for the teachers’ trip to the area from Germany: “We’re here to broaden our horizons and learn something about English schools. We want to take some good examples and see how other schools work,  learning what we can do better, and what we do well too. Overall, it’s about what we can do to achieve better results.”

Principal at Birkenhead Sixth Form College, Mike Kilbride, said: “It was a pleasure to welcome our German counterparts to the College and all the staff here have really appreciated how well-received our approach to education has been by their fellow teachers.

“It’s fantastic to know that they’ve taken some inspiration from what they’ve seen, and from the BePART session that they all took part in with such enthusiasm.”

“Their genuine interest in the differences of approach between British and German schools and colleges just goes to show how passionate they are about their work, as we are here. We’ve greatly enjoyed their warm and friendly company and relished the opportunity to learn from them too. We'll certainly be looking to take them up on their invitation to have a reciprocal visit in the near future."