How we scrum

Students are developing new ways of working

Agile project management is how change happens in the real world and at the Studio, students are already using Agile methodology and ‘scrums’ for their project-based learning and managing their projects, getting them more than prepared for their future careers.

At more traditional schools, the day begins with form time. At the Studio however, there are daily scrum meetings instead.

Part of the Agile methodology, scrums are meetings where teams get up-to-date with their team and update them on their progress. For the students at the Studio, the daily scrums are a chance for them to catch up with the other students on their projects and the ongoing work, alongside any other schoolwork they may have going on, too.

The Agile method breaks projects down into small chunks that are discreet and manageable. These chunks are called sprints, and scrums are used to measure their progress.

Working within this methodology, Studio students are getting comfortable with the latest project management strategy; Agile is used in professional projects all over the world as, if anything changes or doesn’t go as planned, the project doesn’t have to start all over again, it just repeats the impacted sprint and replans.

Just like a professional project management team, the scrums at the

Studio have a Scrum Master – a student trained up to step into this project management role. At each scrum, the Scrum Master will ask three questions… “Have you completed your task?” “What are you doing next?”

“Do you need anything to complete your task?”

With these answered by the team, the Scrum Master will update the scrum board, moving tasks from ‘started’ to ‘completed’, so the students can see their progress in real time, learning to plan and re-plan when they need to. These boards can be as simple as Post-It notes on wall, or they can be digital.

The Studio gives the students access to project management programmes and tools such as Trello and Basecamp, which are used daily by thousands of businesses and organisations, from UNICEF to NASA.

The Studio’s project-based learning doesn’t just help students keep on top of their homework. Students are actively learning and using Agile project management principles in their day-today work.

Being comfortable with these ways of working gives the students vital experience and a major advantage when they leave school. Whether they want to fight for child protection across the globe, or launch the next mission out of its atmosphere, students from the Studio will be prepared.