Innovation in secondary education: the added value of a community dimension

Abstract

The Specialist Schools Programme in England helps schools establish distinctive identities through their chosen specialisms and achieve targets to raise standards. In September 2004 1956 secondary schools in England were specialist schools. The paper argues that a key feature of the specialist schools programme in England is that a significant proportion of work undertaken in specialist schools is concerned with aspects that relate to the wider community. It argues that the development of the school's role as the hub of learning within the community has contributed significantly to, or even, in some cases driven, the transformation of the school itself. Much of the evidence to support this proposition has, to-date, been anecdotal or subjective. This paper will draw from the experience of specialist schools in England to develop, and test, criteria for assessing the added value of the community dimension to the agenda for transforming secondary education.