Conference involving local schools

On Wednesday the 14th June Lingfield College hosted a conference involving speakers from the think tank The Institute of Economic Affairs. Invitations were extended to a number of schools and students from Skinners, RGS Guildford, Walthamstow Hall and Old Palace of St Johns Whitgift attended, plus some pupils being home-schooled. The conference was divided into three sessions. Each session consisted of a talk followed by a session for students to discuss key points raised by the speaker, then a feedback session where students put forward their answers to questions posed by the speaker. The three topics covered were highly topical, covering free market solutions to climate change, the UK's productivity puzzle and Social Health Insurance as an alternative to the taxpayer-funded system of the NHS. The students engaged closely with each topic with some very good questions and answers in the sessions following each presentation. 

The teachers also enjoyed meeting their opposite numbers and plans were made to instigate debates between Skinners and Lingfield College; co-operation on such activities fell during the pandemic but making these contacts allows more of these activities to take place, increasing the level of enrichment and interaction of our students with students from other schools.

It is clear these events can be powerfully engaging for students studying Economics, developing their understanding far beyond the content in the syllabus. Having students from different schools mix in this environment helps them see different perspectives and starts the networking process. Lingfield College plans to make this an annual event, extending invitations to more local schools.