On the morning of the second day in London (Jan. 21), the Brazilian delegation The group split up to visit several schools in the city. Six elementary schools welcomed the Brazilian visitors: St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wellington Primary School, Lansbury Lawrence Primary School, Cubitt Town Primary School, and King's Cross Academy.  

Magda Motta, director of the IT department at the Rio Grande do Sul Department of Education, believes that her visit to King’s Cross Academy will help bring about changes in her school system in Brazil. “I’m thrilled because I saw so many possibilities for our school system. I saw a teacher using a tool in class, and now I’m already thinking about which school to choose to set up a pilot program,” she said.

According to Magda, issues related to methodology and mindset seem more challenging than acquiring devices—the school district in Rio Grande do Sul already has thousands of Chromebooks like the ones at the school she visited.

“I saw a very dynamic hybrid teaching method. The teacher does an exercise on the digital whiteboard, then moves on to the flipchart. The students have their Chromebooks and paper right next to them,” he says. He also saw students helping one another and helping the teacher use the technology. “The teacher had a technical issue, and it was natural for the student to help.” 

The visits continued in the afternoon, with the delegation being welcomed at King’s College. Chris Harrison , a professor and researcher at the university, led a “class” for the delegation on assessment for learning and raised the issue of the underutilization of digital potential.

“In practice, classroom assessments have changed a lot. But we still need to ask ourselves: How can technology improve formative assessments? For example, to help provide feedback, which is an extremely important element,” said Chris.

Brazilian delegation during a visit to King's College. Photo: Bett Brasil.

After listening to and speaking with the British expert, Vanessa Santos, Poliedro’s assessment manager, also said she was inspired by the experience. “We need to broaden our perspective on assessment in Brazil and break out of our paradigm. It was very interesting to hear the professor talk about the power of questions and how we can use assessment to improve learning,” she said.

Educational Project

Jonathan Shoobridge, director of studies at EF Education First, made a point of welcoming the Bett Brasil delegation in London as if they were a group of students: first, they took a tour of the century-old campus; then they went to a classroom and received teaching materials for a real class. The goal of the activity held on Tuesday afternoon was for everyone to have an experience similar to that of actual students.

In class, the instructor immediately assigned the group a task: to analyze Unit 1 and identify points that caught their attention. There were several observations: the material was relevant to current events, included resources for those interested in delving deeper, and encouraged oral discussions. “Students come to the United Kingdom because they want to speak. So our material aims to ensure that they learn through practice,” Shoobridge explained.

A Brazilian delegation had the opportunity to learn about EF Education First's initiatives in London. Photo: Bett Brasil.

But beyond the pedagogy itself, the EF representatives discussed their strategies for student engagement. That was the part that most interested Fábio Crespi, principal of the Lyceum. “It was interesting for us to understand the school’s business model—to see that they offer experiences beyond the classroom and how they organize students into interest groups,” he said.

Alberto Brasileiro, chief technology officer at the Damas school system in Recife, also said he enjoyed the visit. “It was enriching to tour the school, talk with the principals, and be introduced to a school that serves students from so many different places,” he said.

The EF center in London that the delegation visited serves 700 students from more than 100 countries who are learning English as a second language.

Although the network offers programs for children ages 7 and up, the school we visited accepts students ages 16 and up. EF’s new business manager, Nicole Santos, also believes the visit was productive. “Since people are in London, it makes sense to bring them to the school so they can get a tangible sense of our work. It’s a group with whom we had a lot of interaction,” she said.

Government Partners

That evening, Britannica Education hosted a networking dinner for some of the delegation members affiliated with state departments of education. During the event, company executives had the opportunity to present the company’s proposal; the company has been operating in Brazil for two years.

Marcelo Zanon, director of curriculum at Britannica Education, emphasized the importance of helping children and young people become global citizens. “We have to use our country’s education system to transform our students into global citizens. English is essential for this,” he said, noting, however, that Britannica Education also offers solutions for various subjects, such as science and Portuguese.

The Bett UK Delegation is supported by the British Consulate General, Britannica Education, SQUARE Ecosystem, Editora do Brasil, EF Education First, Google, Letrus, Samsung, Start by Alura, and Quizizz.

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