Crosshall Junior School has cause to celebrate. Government inspectors have praised the way it harnesses technology to achieve quality learning. The school is constantly finding new ways to engage 21st century children — using digital-led learning styles to supplement traditional teacher-led education.

“We really do listen to children, and that comes across strongly in our excellent Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) report”, says Head Teacher Julia Elliott. “It helps us recognise the different and very effective ways that children like to learn using computers, digital cameras and iPods. What can we teachers achieve with those methods?”

Crosshall Junior School in St. Neots, Cambridgeshire, has an outstanding record of innovation and excellence. It has enthusiastically grasped the opportunities offered by technology to inspire and motivate its nearly 500 pupils.

As a result, it is recognised by the Arts Council of England as an “Artsmark Gold School” for its achievement in the development of a creative arts curriculum. It is also a host school for the Strategic Learning of ICT (SLICT) programme for primary schools. Teachers from around the UK visit Crosshall regularly to discover how technology can be effectively integrated into the curriculum.

Our 21st century learners are used to having top-quality digital media in their faces every day. All we are doing is looking at the children’s world and taking the best resources from it to complement and enhance what we do in school.

Julia Elliott, Head Teacher, Crosshall Junior School

Julia Elliott believes technology can enhance learning for children of all ages and abilities. “If you take a child with dyslexic tendencies, he or she is always going to struggle with written words”, she says. “We can bypass that problem by using film. The output itself is not what’s important. It is the learning and thinking process that teaches the fundamentals of literacy through a different kind of medium that doesn’t need spelling and handwriting skills”.

Technology is neither a gimmick at Crosshall, nor is it used to replace proven teaching methods. “Our 21st century learners are used to having top-quality digital media in their faces every day”, says Elliott. “All we are doing is looking at the children’s world and taking the best resources from it to complement and enhance what we do in school. We’ve discovered that by using Macs, children find learning easier. It’s as simple as that”.