Academics in charity schools event

On the first of November, a group of academics and postgraduates from Cambridge University travelled to Dormers Wells School in the London borough of Ealing. The event was organised by St John’s College and Dormers Wells, and funded by KICK, a charity committed to supporting educational projects in Ealing. The aim was to introduce school students in Ealing to new academic subjects and give them a taste of the vast opportunities offered by higher education.

 Around thirty students, aged between thirteen and fifteen, from several schools around the borough, took part in sessions on medieval Irish history, neuroscience, and linguistics. Each student had the opportunity to attend all three sessions, exploring new topics and discovering new interests. Dividing participants into small groups of around ten allowed each student to get involved in the session and engage with the academics.

 Lindsay Moore, Cambridge MPhil student in neuroscience, introduced the students to the fascinating complexities of the human brain. They learned about some of the most significant (and mind-boggling!) discoveries in the field. and encouraged to think about some of the practical, political and ethical issues surrounding investigation into the workings of the human brain.

 PhD student Albertyna Paciorek introduced the participants to the study of linguistics. Having studied languages at school, they had the opportunity to learn about some of the theory of language, and how humans learn. For many this was a new concept and they were able to see how the academic fields of languages, psychology, biology and sociology can fit together to create a new, exciting discipline.

 Dr Lizzie Boyle, lecturer in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic, took the students on a journey into the culture of Medieval Ireland. Reading the darkly humorous story of ‘The Death of Conchobar’ was very entertaining and opened the door into the mentalities and practices prevalent at the time of its writing. The students engaged in a forensic dissection of the text to discover medieval ideas about war, women and religion. They also began to think about parallels between the events and attitudes of the Middle Ages and the twenty-first century, thus seeing the history in a new light.

 The participants gained an insight into where their school studies could take them and were able to appreciate that academic study can be diverse, multi-disciplinary, and exciting. Whether or not they end up being neuroscientists, linguists, or medieval historians, they should know that there is likely to be a subject that really stimulates them. They will hopefully be inspired to strive towards higher education, having enjoyed what universities, and indeed Cambridge, have to offer.

 If you are a teacher interested in hosting a similar event at your school, or becoming involved with Cambridge outreach work in other ways, please contact the Schools Liaison Officer at St John’s College: slo@joh.cam.ac.uk, 01223 339361.