Nine Skills in Practice: Curiosity

“One of the skills we actively develop at CATS Canterbury is Curiosity. We believe it is important to develop skills for enquiry and research – demonstrating a love for learning. Critical and creative thinking skills are essential in solving complex problems. We encourage students at all levels to think beyond the curriculum and engage in issues of local and global significance.

“One of the ways in which we promote curiosity is through the Extended Project Qualification. Both at GCSE and A level, students are offered the opportunity to study the Extended Project Qualification. Students are given the opportunity to work in partnership with the University of Kent who offer a Study Skills Workshop – these experiences are greatly valued by universities.

“An A level student from last year developed a prototype drink with a renowned Italian company. The success was so great that she won a contract to stock her flavoured drinks in health centres and local gyms in Italy. She received an A grade for Extended Project, and she’s now reading Management at the London School of Economics.”

This article is part of an ongoing series of ‘Skills in Practice’ blogs, where we will continue to share how we develop the nine skills across our global community of schools. To stay up to date, visit the ‘Skills’ section of our Blog.