Video and chat platform. Used here for a partner-school live link, which lifts a debate from IA to IT.

Live cross-school pair programming

Year 9 · 60 min · 1 device per student

Students are paired with a peer from a partner school in a different country. They share a Replit workspace and work on a small Python project together (e.g. a number-guessing game). They use a video call alongside for live discussion. The teacher reviews each pair's commits at the end and asks two pairs to present their reasoning.

Tools: Replit, Microsoft Teams

Cross-school case-study debate

Year 10 · 60 min · 1 shared screen plus per-pupil prep devices

UK class debates a partner school in a developing economy on a contested globalisation question (e.g. is fast fashion a net good or harm?). Each side argues from their national perspective; teacher-judges on both sides facilitate. Live, contested, peer-vs-peer.

Tools: Microsoft Teams

Live global-data collaboration with partner school

Year 10 · 60 min · 1 device per student

A class partners with a school in a different climate zone (e.g. UK paired with a school in southern Australia, the US Southwest, or Singapore). Both classes record local rainfall, temperature and humidity data into a shared spreadsheet for two weeks. They then video-call to compare patterns and discuss what the climate difference reveals about geographic processes.

Tools: Google Sheets, Microsoft Teams

Real-time fieldwork data sharing across countries

Year 11 · 80 min · 1 device per student

Two classes (UK and a partner country) conduct similar fieldwork (e.g. high-street pedestrian counts, river-channel measurements at equivalent sites) and share data live to a joint spreadsheet over a video call. Both classes interpret the cross-country data together; each team writes a one-line interpretation of the other team's findings.

Tools: Google Sheets, Microsoft Teams

Live joint research on a shared event

Year 10 · 80 min · 1 device per student

A class partners with a class in a country directly involved in a chosen historical event (e.g. partition of India 1947 with an Indian school; the Gold Rush 1849 with a US school). Together they build a shared web page combining sources, photos and oral history from both countries. Each side contributes content; the other side responds and integrates.

Tools: Google Sites, Microsoft Teams

Cross-cultural source analysis with partner school

Year 11 · 60 min · 1 device per student

A class is paired with a partner-school class in another country (e.g. UK class paired with a German class for a topic on WWII; UK class paired with a US class for a topic on the Cold War). Both classes annotate the same primary source on a shared Doc, with each student tagging their nationality. The classes then debate where their national perspectives diverge.

Tools: Google Docs, Microsoft Teams

Real-time historical-debate competition

Year 11 · 60 min · 1 shared screen plus per-pupil prep devices

A class hosts a live debate competition on a contested historical question (e.g. who was responsible for the start of WWI?) with a partner school in a different country. Two teams of three argue different interpretations; native-school peers argue alternative interpretations. Teacher-judges on both sides give feedback; the class watches and votes on the strongest case.

Tools: Microsoft Teams

Moderated language exchange with native speakers

Year 8 · 40 min · 1 device per student

Each student is paired with a peer in a target-language country through a school-moderated platform. They exchange a sequence of asynchronous voice memos and short videos over six weeks, with one live video call midway. The teacher reviews messages weekly for safety and language progression.

Tools: Microsoft Teams

Co-authored cultural photo essay with partner school

Year 9 · 240 min · 1 device per student

A class partners with a class in a target-language country. Together they build a single shared photo essay on cultural similarities and differences (food, school day, family rhythm, weekend life). Each student contributes one photo plus a 50-word target-language caption; their partner-school peer responds with a comparison. The essay publishes as a co-authored web page across both classes.

Tools: Google Sites, Microsoft Teams

Live target-language debate competition between schools

Year 9 · 60 min · 1 shared screen plus per-pupil devices for prep notes

A class hosts a live debate competition in target language with a partner school in another country. Two teams of three argue a position (e.g. "school uniform should be abolished"); native-speaker peers argue the opposite. Teacher-judges on both sides give feedback. The class watches the full debate live and votes on the strongest case made.

Tools: Microsoft Teams

Cross-cultural ethical dialogue with peer school

Year 12 · 60 min · 1 device per student

A UK A-Level RE class is paired with a peer school in a country with a different majority religion (e.g. India, Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Vatican). Both classes annotate the same ethical scenario on a shared Doc, each student tagging their religious tradition. The classes then video-call to debate where their traditions converge and diverge on the scenario.

Tools: Google Docs, Microsoft Teams

Cross-school live ethics debate

Year 12 · 60 min · 1 shared screen plus per-pupil prep devices

A UK A-Level RE class hosts a live debate competition with a partner school on a contested ethical issue (e.g. capital punishment, assisted dying). Two teams from each school argue different positions; teacher-judges on both sides give feedback. The class watches live and votes on the strongest case.

Tools: Microsoft Teams

Live joint research with religious community

Year 13 · 240 min · 1 device per student

Students collaboratively research a religious community by conducting live video interviews with practitioners (e.g. interview a rabbi, an imam, a priest, a Buddhist monk). Each student records and anonymises one interview clip, posts a transcript with analysis to a shared class web page, and engages with classmates' submissions. The class collectively builds a multi-tradition study.

Tools: Microsoft Teams, Google Sites

This page is one of a growing set of PICRAT examples by cell, subject and key stage. Page maintained by Andy Perryer.