Studio Liverpool received a grant of £99,750 in the 2016/17 Edge Grant Fund to support development of Studio DEN – a Digital Entrepreneurship Network for the Studio School’s students.
The aim of Studio DEN is to empower the school’s 11 to 18 year old students to develop and publish their own digital products. As a Studio School, Studio Liverpool is committed to project based learning embedded throughout the curriculum and Studio DEN is seen as a natural extension of this approach to real world learning. Working closely with local employers, many of which are small digital/tech companies the Baltic Triangle area of Liverpool, Studio DEN develops the critical employability and enterprise skills needed to thrive in this sector.
The Studio DEN programme focusses on student led workshops together with professional masterclasses introducing students to new digital/online tools and open source software through which students are able to design, test and produce their own products. Each year, students presented their products at a showcase event attended by other schools, parents and employers. Students were encouraged to work independently and in teams, encouraging the development of communication, project and time management skills.
Studio Liverpool are keen to disseminate the learning from this project and have invited students from other local schools to take part in future iterations of Studio DEN whether by joining workshops at the Studio School or enabling other schools to run DEN style activities in their own institutions.
Students taking part in Studio DEN have developed a number of products with commercial possibilities and addressing the United Nations Sustainable Goals agenda including a number of computer games, creating a VR (virtual reality) induction app for new students, a range of graphic novels and art installations. DEN projects are also linked as an EPQ (extended project qualification) for University applications.
Read more about the Studio Den model here.
To find out more about this project visit the Studio Liverpool website or contact Enda Carey at E.Carey@thestudio-liverpool.co.uk
