World-leading innovation school comes to Glasgow

NuVu's exclusive partnership with Kelvinside Academy could disrupt the UK's education model

Posted by Hannah Vickers | June 04, 2017 | Teaching

• #partnership
• #micro-school
• #alternative-education

The future of education may not solely involve exams, classrooms or a timetable. That’s the opinion of Kelvinside Academy Headmaster Ian Munro.

The 35-year-old, who is the youngest serving rector of an HMC independent school, has been eager to institute change since taking on the post one year ago. This major coup may be his most significant initiative to date.

The Headmaster has secured an exclusive partnership with NuVu, the world’s leading innovation “micro-school”, whose pupils are stretching the boundaries of what constitutes education in America.

Mr Munro has been working closely with the NuVu team to make this exciting partnership a reality. He said: “NuVu was ranked as the number one school worth visiting in the USA by leading educational consultants Getting Smart. As NuVu’s sole European partner, we are thrilled to be able to offer our pupils such an exclusive opportunity.  

“The opportunity for our pupils to be the first in Europe to work with the NuVu team is an exceptional one. Our young people will inherit a planet full of uncertainty and challenge, but also opportunity. We are deeply committed to preparing our pupils for the challenges and opportunities beyond the school gate. 

“We want to ensure that our pupils can be a real force for good in the world. This partnership, both this summer and in the future, can help us meet this goal.  From the moment we started working together, it was clear that Kelvinside and NuVu share a passion for a creative and pupil-centred approach to education.”

NuVu was established in 2010 by three graduates from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Since then, thousands of pupils have experienced their unique educational model.

Gone is the traditional timetable. Instead, pupils spend their days like engineers, creating and testing solutions to everyday problems. Pupils follow a fluid two week programme with the help of experts.

Rather than an exam, students present their finished project to guest experts – including professors, entrepreneurs and designers – for constructive feedback.

At Kelvinside Academy this summer, pupils will work on two projects; one on Biofashion and the other on Swarm Robotics.

We want to ensure that our pupils can be a real force for good in the world - this partnership can help us meet this goal

Emily Glass, NuVu’s Head of Partnerships, will lead the team responsible for launching the ground breaking NuVu approach in Europe which includes Nathan Melenbrink. Nathan, is a Swarm Robotics expert and a Research Fellow at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University. He also teaches the How to Design [almost] Anything course at MIT.

NuVu’s founder and Chief Excitement officer, Saeed Arida said: “The entire team at NuVu Studio is thrilled to collaborate with Kelvinside Academy in spreading our mission of making creative learning an integral part of all pupils’ education. 

“Kelvinside shares with us the belief that young people are capable and exceptional participants in our society and we eagerly await the opportunity to create and explore with faculty and pupils alike. 

“We look forward to both commencing our NuVu-Kelvinside partnership through our 2017 summer programme and taking in the stunning beauty of the Scottish Lowlands.”

Also on the team who will carry out NuVu’s first ever programme in Europe will be Anjali Patel, a NuVu Design Fellow, who is an architectural designer and researcher, and Andrew Marcus, an architect and NuVu's Chief Academic Officer. Becca Rose, a Senior Lecturer at University of West England in Creative Media Design, will be joining to coach Biofashion.