Mike Griffith, formerly Assistant Headteacher at Arbour Vale School in Slough, UK, set up Global Leap to support schools in developing videoconferencing in the classroom. Global Leap is the name that his students at Arbour Vale School chose for their 16-hour marathon global videoconferencing event on February 29th 2000. During a day of curriculum based videoconference events, pupils linked with classrooms in Australia, South Africa, Japan, Israel, Germany, Belgium, France, Iceland, Finland, Kosovo, USA and Peru. The Prime Minister, Tony Blair, joined us to answer questions from classrooms around the world, and to launch the Global Leap website. Read the Global Leap story in full story.

Since then Mike has continued to work with schools to support teachers around the world. In October 2001 he took time out from his role as Assistant Head Teacher at Arbour Vale School, to work in association with the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to look at the curriculum application and implications of videoconferencing on standards and teaching and learning in schools. Mike pioneered the development of videoconferencing content for teachers here in the UK by taking videoconferencing technology to Museums and Galleries. Mike used grant funding from the DfES project "Videoconferencing in the Classroom" to evaluate the use of videoconferencing in the curriculum in 27 selected schools across the UK, and by developing pilot projects with a range of museums and galleries to provide curriculum links for schools. He also worked with schools to develop international links and identify and support partners in international locations.

The Grant funding for the project finished in March 2005. Since then Mike has continued to develop Global-Leap/Videoconferencing in the Classroom as a resource for teachers and continues to support and promote the museum and gallery programme, support new provision and extend content development and support for international colleagues.

Mike is an independent education consultant. Global-Leap does not represent resellers of equipment, or providers of connectivity.

Mike is available to offer help and advice to schools, LEA's, EAZ's and RBC's.

This page was last modified June 15, 2006 by the Webmaster