SMSC online – a service for teachers
Over the last few years reforms have swept through our primary and secondary education systems and education remains high on the political agenda. The role of schools in delivering spiritual, moral, social and cultural education and guidance to our children has been acknowledged through the National Curriculum. Christianity is officially acknowledged as the basis for daily collective worship and Religious Education is required by the National Curriculum to be taught in all schools.
Yet teachers are struggling to find good teaching materials, model lessons and other resources to support their work in this area. The nation abounds with churches, youth missions, specialist Christian organisations, skilful and committed individuals and others who can - and often do - provide information, resources and other services to our schools.
What has been needed is a service that connects more effectively this supply of Christian resources to the demand in the schools for better support in this area. This is why we have created SMSC online at www.smsc.org.uk
Bridging the gap
In essence, the opportunity is, on the one hand, to give schools and teachers access to the most appropriate and effective Christian resources to support their teaching across all curriculum areas, through SMSC online and on the other hand the opportunity is to raise awareness of the needs of schools amongst Christians and to encourage and facilitate the provision of these resources.
Using the service
SMSC online is first and foremost a service to teachers, who can use it to research spiritual, moral, social and cultural topics and locate the best resources to use, for example in assemblies, classroom projects, field trips and, in fact, across the entire curriculum. There are also special areas for staff training and development.
A particular feature of SMSC online is an interactive online forum, where teachers can exchange ideas and information, and “Ask Morag” – our resident moral agony aunt.
Once a resource has been located, SMSC online facilitates either direct “click through” to the providers website or the supply of detailed contact information.
Providers - for example Christian publishing companies or theatre groups - can access a special area of the site where they can provide up-to-date information on their organisation and services.
SMSC online is also happy to channel information on non-Christian resources that directly support the school SMSC curriculum.