16 PLC i n Pri nt | J u ly 2 0 2 1
Creativity – skilling our girls for future work
Junior School
Head of Junior School What will you be doing in 2033? That seems such a long way into the future, but in the Junior School, staff are already thinking that far ahead. That year, 2033, will be the year that our current 2021 Prep girls will be graduating. The Junior School Learning and Wellbeing Framework centres around developing exceptional learners who are strong communicators, effective collaborators, engaged citizens, skilful thinkers and who are of good character. As learning experiences are developed across the year levels, and in all curriculum areas, to align with the framework, the girls will not only develop their academic capacity, but will also foster skills and dispositions that will be built upon each year to enable them to exemplify the PLC Graduate Outcomes – Scholar, Thinker, Citizen, Advocate and Leader. At present in the Junior School, staff are unpacking the ‘skilful thinker’ section of the framework as part of their professional learning. They are embedding critical thinking activities into their programs to both build the girls’ capabilities and challenge their perspectives. Dr Michelle Cafini Head of Junior School
Creativity remains in the top 5 job skills needed for the future, according to The World Economic Forum. Also at the top of the list are complex problem solving and analytical thinking and innovation. Scott Belsky, Chief Product Officer at Adobe, states: ‘Half of human work could be taken over by artificial intelligence and automation in 15 years, a timeframe which is being accelerated by the pandemic.’ However, he also acknowledges that ‘creativity is a uniquely human trait that no algorithm can replace’. This means that creativity will continue to be a skill required on a daily basis. PLC is preparing girls for the future workforce. Drawing on their human senses, problem solving and innovative thinking, girls are asked to creatively transform their ideas into physical reality. This requires a range of skills to be brought together. This semester, Year 6 students were challenged to use their problem solving skills to create a bird feeder that would keep the bird seeds dry from the elements, allow for the replenishment of feed, provide access to the feed by birds and be visually attractive. Using their analytical thinking skills, they observed various species of mushroom whose forms complement the storage of seeds and water; they also analysed features of existing bird-feeding products. They then made connections between the ideas, justified their ideas to their peers and consolidated their learning with their knowledge and skills in clay building to create their own ‘mushroom bird feeder’. Art at PLC nurtures students’ creativity to prepare them for future success. Joyce Khor Junior School Art Teacher
Didi 6C
Sara 6C
