Educating students holistically, not just teaching subjects

During an 11-day study visit in UK primary and secondary schools, a group of students from the University of Malta's Faculty of Education, Department of Psychology, of which I formed part, were impressed by the schools' dedication to educate the students holistically rather than solely teaching subjects. The schools did not just hold sessions in PSD; they regarded PSD as a whole school policy.

The Maltese delegation was also amazed at the amount of responsibility that the students themselves carried. The students were seen answering telephone calls, attending the school's reception area and the library on a roster basis. It was wonderful to notice how such simple duties can instil a sense of pride and belonging in the students and help them identify themselves with the school.

The visit give us the opportunity to observe PSD practices in primary and secondary schools and compare them with what we learned in the local scene. We visited and attended lessons in various primary and secondary schools in Sunderland and also went to Northumbria University, where, after touring the City Campus, we attended a lecture on alcoholism by Dr Mark Moss, from the School of Psychology.

Incidentally, PSD sessions at these schools are called PSHE or Personal, Social and Health Education, CRED or Citizenship, Religion, Education and Development, and PSHECE or Personal, Social, Health, Economic and Citizenship Education.

It was the third consecutive year that students of the Faculty were given the opportunity to visit England to follow a study unit entitled "Observations of PSD practices abroad". The delegation comprised seven students reading for a Post-Graduate Certificate in Education with Personal Social Development, and four third year students reading B.Ed. (Hons) PSD, accompanied by our lecturers and co-ordinators of this study unit, Ruth Falzon and Christiane Sullivan.

At Southwick Primary School, we were very impressed by the amount of resources at the school. Besides the ample number of computers in every classroom, students make use of a laptop on a roster basis, whereby they are allowed to take it home and use it for academic purposes. Each classroom has an interactive board, and the school walls were colourfully decorated with the pupils' work.

Among the secondary schools we visited were Thornhill Secondary School, St Aiden's Boys' Catholic School, and the Venerable Bede Secondary School, all located in Sunderland. The Maltese delegation was impressed at the extensive facilities at by these schools.

During break times, all the schools very generously invited us for lunch, which we enjoyed while relating with the pupils. After each school visit, a tutorial was held daily with our study-unit lecturers and co-ordinators. During these tutorials, we were able to express our thoughts regarding the schools visited and discuss any concerns.

During our stay in Sunderland, we also visited Newcastle, Durham, York and Windermere in the Lake District. We had the opportunity to watch a marvellous performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in Sunderland's Empire Theatre and The Vagina Monologues in Newcastle's Royal Theatre. One cold evening we opted for Sunderland's City of Lights Stadium and saw a football match where Sunderland played against Crystal Palace.

These activities helped us as university colleagues to further strengthen our bonds of friendship, as well as provided us with an opportunity to get to know our lecturers in a more relaxed environment.

I wish to express our gratitude to our accompanying university lecturers, Ruth Falzon and Christiane Sullivan from the University of Malta's Department of Psychology, who co-ordinated this learning experience.

Thanks also go to Jean Robson from Sunderland's City Council and all the schools who welcomed us during our stay. The experience was a truly unique and enriching learning opportunity.