ACTS (Activating Children's Thinking Skills): a methodology for enhancing thinking skills across the curriculum (with a focus on knowledge transformation)

Abstract

The purpose of ACTS was to promote the development of thinking skills in ordinary classrooms in Northern Ireland at upper primary level (Key Stage 2). More specifically, researchers worked in partnership with a small group of Key Stage 2 teachers to trial an infusion methodology across the curriculum, to produce a handbook of example lessons, and to gauge teachers’ initial reactions and evaluations of the methodology. This paper sets out to elaborate on three points: Firstly, to give a brief overview of the ACTS project, at a fairly factual level, explaining what it is, what it set out to achieve, how it was run and so on. Secondly, in the context of the “knowledge transformation” theme of the conference, to examine what kinds of knowledge were transformed - or at least considered for transformation - during the course of the project. Finally, to identify the kinds of difficulties the project encountered and to interpret these in knowledge transformation terms.