Six principles to support great teaching and learningAndy Tharby, Durrington High School

www.reflectingenglish.wordpress.com

Images: Jason Ramasami

Excellence and growth = calculated effort + great teaching

‘… the effect of achievement on self-concept is stronger than the effect of self-concept on achievement’.

(Muijs and Reynolds, 2011)

Sutton Trust – What makes great teaching?

Content knowledge. Teachers with strong knowledge and understanding of their subject make a greater impact on students’ learning. It is also important for teachers to understand how students think about content and be able to identify common misconceptions on a topic.

Sutton Trust – What makes great teaching?

Quality of instruction. This includes effective questioning and the use of assessment by teachers. Specific practices, like reviewing previous learning, providing model responses for students, giving adequate time for practice to embed skills securely and progressively introducing new learning (scaffolding) are also found to improve attainment.

Sutton Trust – What makes great teaching?

The authors name the following strategies as being myths that have little impact on learning:

• lavishing low achieving students with praise;• encouraging students to discover ideas for themselves;• grouping by ability; • rereading as a revision tool; • attempting to improve motivation before teaching content; • teaching to ‘learning style’; • the idea that active learning helps you remember.

Please remember!

• This is a ‘tight but loose’ approach

• Tick-lists can narrow and stifle great teaching

• Great teaching is context-specific, not generic

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Differentiation?

In-class challenge

But remember … challenge is a long-term venture

Three key principles for explanations

1. Tethered to something already known.

2. Allow for the limited capacity of the working memory.

3. Aim to make the abstract, concrete.

Keys for modelling

Model the creation of products/procedures

Deconstruct expert examples and use worked examples

Two types of practice

1. Practice for fluency and long-term retention.

2. Deliberate practice at the outer reaches of ability.

• Does it close the learning gap and/or move the students forward?

• Is it manageable?

• Is it fit for purpose?

• Does it take the most effective form?

• Is feedback holding students back?

Key questions for your feedback policy

Implementation – a growth mindset school is always learning and developing its

understanding of teaching

• By finding great practice in the school and sharing it.• Whole-staff CPD.• Sharing ideas and evidence through 15-minute

forums, whole-staff edu-book club, research bulletins and blogs.

• Action research projects.

• Next year: subject-specific CPD, collation of IRIS videos, open-classroom weeks.