The Montsaye Approach EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION TO VOLUME 1 ISSUE 2 The Montsaye Approach, thanks to Mandy Lantz, has become an official periodical. We have registered an ISSN and each edition will be submitted to be kept in the official repository of the British Library. We have also begun to gather some quite prestigious contributors. Jackie Beere OBE, ex-head at Campion School and author of The Perfect Ofsted Inspection and The Perfect Ofsted Lesson, has contributed an article about how schools can build character with students. Another contributor, Alex Quigley who writes the blog Hunting English, has summarised the research evidence around the effect of teacher expectations. This leads us to the theme of this term’s Montsaye Approach: the power of expectations, or what the psychologist Carol Dweck calls ‘Growth Mindset’. That is the power that arises from the way a student thinks about their ability to improve and our power as teachers to influence, either positively or negatively, this self-belief. Yesterday evening I sat with the Parents’ Forum in the library while they worked through the same strategic planning exercise that all staff have undertaken. I sat with every group and, although they often disagreed, there was unanimity that two things were effective at Montsaye Academy:
Relationships between teachers and students were at least good if not better All teachers had high expectations of students
It was with considerable pride in the school that I listened to these parents. These are the two foundation blocks for developing growth mindsets and becoming an outstanding school. Finally a word on prescriptivism. I have heard discussion that some people are feeling that The Montsaye Approach is a return to prescriptive expectations of teachers and of lessons. However I have said from the very start of the year that, as we begin to move towards greater freedom for teachers, we need to keep in mind the lessons that we have learnt over the last twenty years. Our students have the right to expect high standards of teaching and learning and The Montsaye Approach is designed as a framework around which teachers can develop their own ideas and approaches. It is not about standardisation, it is about a scaffold that allows freedom, choice and individuality. Read through the documents again, carefully, and if you can spot any prescription just let me know. Peter Tomkins May 2015
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The Montsaye Approach “WHY AREN’T WE OUTSTANDING YET?” Jason Cumming This term we have been considering one key question, the one that forms the title of this article, as we have set about creating the academy’s Strategic Development Plan 2015 - 2020. The intention of course is that the plan will lay out the direction of travel for the academy across the next three to five years. However, too often development plans amount to no more than rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic, fiddling at the edges of established practice rather than addressing the fundamentals of what is actually needed to bring about significant change. So, the reason that we have approached the planning process through this question, this time, is that we need to take the time to have an honest look at what we need to do to bring about the improvement required at Montsaye. This key question allows us to address what I believe is the crucial issue facing the academy at the moment: we all work hard, we all try to do a good job, we all want the students to succeed, so how come we aren’t able to deliver the results we want? As Peter’s article on the future of CPD shows, referring to John Hattie’s excellent research, by far the greatest influences on students’ achievement are the students themselves, their characteristics and prior performance, and the effectiveness of their teachers. It seems, therefore, that we are likely to achieve the greatest impact by addressing these areas over the lifetime of the next plan. What is needed is a change of ethos: a different approach to working with students and to working with each other. Of course, as is always the case with school improvement, identifying what is needed is a lot easier than delivering it! It is inevitable that, when we work hard and results do not improve, we are likely to “blame” the students. Of course we don’t do this explicitly, but over time we begin to speak more about the limitations of the students we work with than we do about their potential. It becomes the received wisdom that you can’t expect too much of them, they are not the sort of students who grab opportunities and make the most of them, they lack ambition, they won’t revise, they don’t do homework… And yet, I am constantly asked to meet students who are being praised for their hard work, the time and effort they have put into homework, or whose revision for a test has led to a higher than expected mark, or who have redone coursework and improved their grade. And that’s before you consider that we have raised £12,500 for charity this year already. Over the first year as principal what has become increasingly obvious to me is that our students have amazing potential, that they are capable of far more than we ask of them, and that our job is to unlock that potential. So that’s the theme on which this edition of The Montsaye Approach is focused. The growth mindset we want to adopt is best expressed through the question we have posed: why aren’t we outstanding yet? The question itself allows for the potential to be an outstanding school delivering outstanding results. This belief in our potential is how we should approach our work with students, all students: they have the potential to be brilliant, to deliver better results year on year, and we need to work out how best to help them to get there. As we move forward towards being the outstanding school we have the potential to be we need to take the students with us: the focus needs to be on the challenge not success, and praise for their efforts rather than their intelligence. Creating that ethos is the next big challenge for the academy. The days of focusing on intervention to bring about short term gains are behind us; we need to ensure that every student, in every year, in every subject is being challenged every day. When they relish that challenge then we will truly be an outstanding school because the students leaving Montsaye will be leaving to be amazing adults ready to lead rather than follow. 2
The Montsaye Approach CONTENTS Editor’s Introduction to Volume 1 Issue 2 .............................................................................................. 0 “Why aren’t we outstanding yet?” ......................................................................................................... 2 Jason Cumming The Future of CPD at Montsaye .............................................................................................................. 5 Peter Tomkins (@leadlearn2gethe - https://leadlearn2gether.wordpress.com) GROWTH MINDSETS What can schools do to make sure young people leave school sufficiently self-aware, driven, resilient, receptive, self-assured and informed to succeed in all aspects of their life?....................................... 11 Jackie Beere OBE (@jackiebeere – www.jackiebeere.com) Growth Mindsets .................................................................................................................................. 15 Laura Green (from research information) Mindset - The critical key to achieving success: A personal reflection based on the research of Carol Dweck.................................................................................................................................................... 18 Pamela Sutliff The Power of Teacher Expectations ..................................................................................................... 21 Alex Quigley (@huntingenglish – www.huntingenglish.com) Kids with ADHD must squirm to learn, study says ................................................................................ 24 Reprinted from www.sciencedaily.com Becoming Influential with Troubled Students in Schools: Surprisingly Effective Therapeutic Communication Techniques ................................................................................................................. 26 Lise Griffiths Attention Deficit (Hyperactivity) Disorder: Symptoms and Strategies for Dealing with ADHD in the Classroom.............................................................................................................................................. 28 Tracey O’Leary and Lise Griffiths HOMEWORK The Montsaye Approach to Homework................................................................................................ 34 Take Away Homework .......................................................................................................................... 37 Jonathan Dean Using ICT and Project Based Learning to differentiate and manage behaviour with a tricky Geography Class ...................................................................................................................................................... 40 Rob McNally Policy Clarification................................................................................................................................. 42
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The Montsaye Approach In every lesson it would be usual for the following to occur:
There are high expectations of students: “a culture and ethos of scholastic excellence, where the highest achievement in academic work is recognised” (Ofsted 2014). The Learning Objective(s) for the lesson are made clear to all the pupils in an appropriate manner To aid learning students are arranged according to a plan or method set by the teacher Prior learning is reviewed and links made to future learning: Where are we going? Have we got there? What have we learnt?
There are usually a range of activities that “engages and includes all pupils with work that is challenging enough and meets the pupils’ needs as identified by the teachers” (Ofsted 2014). Students’ curiosity is stimulated, often through a starter activity Every student has the opportunity for verbal or other informal feedback from the teacher The teacher uses AfL techniques, for example questioning to check on progress There are opportunities for: o Participation o Praise o Reflection o Engagement with feedback
At least every fortnight it would be usual for the following to occur:
Some lesson time for directed improvement and reflection which might involve: o Teacher-student dialogue about learning o Self-assessment of learning needs o Peer assessment o Planned assessment or weekly test o Written feedback on targets and progress Homework is set according to the school policy Modelling of good examples Numeracy and Literacy input
Every term it would be usual for the following to occur:
Termly scheme of work and end of scheme summative assessment Moderation of department marking Review by subject leader of the classes progress Differentiated group work Levels and/or comments on a substantial piece of extended, usually written, work Written feedback
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The Montsaye Approach THE FUTURE OF CPD AT MONTSAYE Peter Tomkins (@leadlearn2gethe - https://leadlearn2gether.wordpress.com) It’s a quotation I’ve used several times, but I keep coming back to it because it is so clear about what we need to do to make Montsaye the school that it really could be: “If we create a culture where every teacher believes they need to improve, not because they are not good enough, but because they can be even better, there is no limit to what we can achieve.” Dylan William We should be an outstanding school. The reason we are not outstanding is not because we don’t have the ambition, nor is it because our staff don’t work hard enough, nor is it because we have the wrong students. The only thing currently holding us back is that we sometimes don’t understand what we can do that will have the greatest impact. Education is such a value-laden enterprise that we often impose our own views on what we do rather than relying upon the evidence of what works. The result of this can sometimes be that we spend a lot of time working on what we think works rather than focussing on what genuinely makes a difference. The aim of CPD is not, therefore, to add something new to the ‘to do’ list but to help focus on the tasks that will have the greatest impact. As schools we also often focus on the things that we can change easily rather than focussing on the changes that will have the greatest impact. For this reason we focus on changing exam specifications, or changing the structure of the day, or changing the way we report to parents. Not that these things are unimportant but John Hattie’s meta-analysis of the research in education has identified the aspects that cause the greatest variation in student performance. These are:
The largest effect we can influence is the most efficient area on which to focus.
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The Montsaye Approach The students we receive, represented by the blue, is what we cannot – and, ethically, should not – attempt to influence. Teacher effectiveness, therefore, despite being a challenge for schools should be our next priority. From Visible Learning by John Hattie (2003) “I … suggest that we should focus on the greatest source of variance that can make the difference – the teacher. We need to ensure that this greatest influence is optimised to have powerful and sensationally positive effects on the learner. Teachers can and usually do have positive effects, but they must have exceptional effects. We need to direct attention at higher quality teaching, and higher expectations that students can meet appropriate challenges - and these occur once the classroom door is closed and not by reorganising which or how many students are behind those doors, by promoting different topics for these teachers to teach, or by bringing in more sticks to ensure they are following policy.”
Teacher Effectiveness Too much energy has been ploughed into efforts to identify and remove ‘ineffective’ teachers when the core issue is that we all need to be raising our effectiveness. It is no surprise to find out that the research indicates that teacher effectiveness has a disproportionate effect on those from disadvantaged backgrounds: “The difference between a very effective teacher and a poorly performing teacher is very large. For example, during one year with a very effective maths and English teacher, pupils gain 40% more in their learning than they would with a poorly performing teacher.” “The effects of high quality teaching are especially significant for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. Over a school year, these pupils gain 1.5 years’ worth of learning with very effective teachers, compared with 0.5 years’ with a poorly performing teacher.” The Sutton Trust (2012) The two key characteristics, therefore, of continuing professional development are:
It involves everyone It raises the effectiveness of classroom practice
Coaching Cycles
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The Montsaye Approach If you think of a continuum that runs through various forms of support for individuals from training to counselling and therapy then coaching fits in the middle ground. The main difference between mentoring and coaching is where the control and knowledge lies. With a mentor they hold the knowledge and provide it to their mentee, in a coaching relationship the knowledge is with the person being coached and the coach simply asks the right questions to draw it out. Coaching can help to unlock the latent potential of a teacher and so our CPD process for 2015-2016 is going to be based around a coaching model. By September we will have trained 22 people on the staff as coaches and a number of staff have previously received coaching training. This will allow us the capacity to make a major change for next year. 1. All teaching staff will be divided into cross-curricular coaching trios. (There will be an element of choice and selection in the creation of these trios, but there will also be a degree of direction.) 2. Each trio will include a trained coach. 3. The trios will then go through one coaching cycle per term – a total of six during the year – so that each member of the trio is coached twice during the year (and acts as a coach twice.) 4. Each cycle has three distinct sections: i. The trio meets to choose a focus lesson and collaboratively plan that lesson. ii. The planned lesson is observed – the IRIS Connect observation system can be used for this section of the cycle. iii. The trio meet again for a coaching session following the observation. During this session: The coach coaches the teacher who was observed The third member observes the coaching before giving feedback to the coach The coaching sessions are planned into the meeting schedule and have been accounted for in the timebudget. NFER Research into teacher CPD (2009)
working collaboratively with others – just under nine out of ten respondents (88 per cent) had undertaken this form of CPD, and four-fifths (80 per cent) of all respondents had found this to be ‘very’ or ‘quite useful’; only three per cent of all respondents had found working collaboratively ‘not very useful’ or ‘not at all useful’ observing colleagues – over three-quarters of respondents (78 per cent) had undertaken this form of CPD, and nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) of all respondents had found this to be ‘very’ or ‘quite useful’ coaching and mentoring – seven out of ten respondents (70 per cent) had undertaken this form of CPD, and three-fifths (59 per cent) of all respondents had found this to be ‘very’ or ‘quite useful’; only four per cent of all respondents had found coaching and mentoring ‘not very useful’ or ‘not at all useful’
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The Montsaye Approach The process will look something like the ‘Teacher inquiry and knowledge-building cycle to promote valued student outcomes’ as developed by the Ministry of Education in New Zealand (Teacher Professional Learning and Development - Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration [BES] (2007) Helen Timperley, Aaron Wilson, Heather Barrar, and Irene Fung, University of Auckland):
CPD Sessions The focus is on the effectiveness of individual teachers in classrooms because, as John Hattie explains: “The answer … lies in the person who gently closes the classroom door and performs the teaching act – the person who puts into place the end effects of so many policies, who interprets these policies, and who is alone with students during their 15,000 hours of schooling.” (John Hattie, Teachers Make a Difference: What is the research evidence? 2003)) However we do need input and ideas to refresh our pedagogy. This input will come in the form of weekly Thursday CPD sessions. Each teacher will be expected to attend one CPD session per term, a minimum of six per year, although they are welcome to attend as many as they wish and new staff and ITT trainees will be expected to attend more. The schedule of sessions will be published before the end of the previous term so that teachers can select the session they would like to attend and sign up to it. This will allow plenty of time to make appropriate arrangements to attend the session. One CPD session per term – six hours annually – have been accounted for in the time-budget. 8
The Montsaye Approach Feedback and Dissemination As the cycles develop we would help that the coaching trios will begin to develop new understanding and knowledge that can then be fed back into the system through both ‘The Montsaye Approach’ bulletin and through the CPD sessions. What is the rationale for the change? A snapshot of 75 training opportunities by the TDA in 2011 showed that less than 10% were effectively embedding new practice, and barely 1% were transforming existing practice. Our investment in terms of money, time and energy every year is considerable. We, therefore, expect the outcomes to be transformational. This is one step in our development towards being outstanding.
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The Montsaye Approach
THE MONTSAYE APPROACH: GROWTH MINDSETS
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The Montsaye Approach WHAT CAN SCHOOLS DO TO MAKE SURE YOUNG PEOPLE LEAVE SCHOOL SUFFICIENTLY SELF-AWARE, DRIVEN, RESILIENT, RECEPTIVE, SELF-ASSURED AND INFORMED TO SUCCEED IN ALL ASPECTS OF THEIR LIFE? Jackie Beere OBE (@jackiebeere – www.jackiebeere.com) How good is your school? Are you confident that a fist of A*-Cs are a sign that your successful students are the self-aware, self-motivated, resilient young people that any employer would be impressed by? The pressure to achieve outcomes has mobilised a flurry of successful strategies in schools such as breakfast/weekend/holiday revision or cramming sessions, mentoring and coaching individuals, 1 to 1 tutoring and, of course, changing exam boards and entry points. But with all this intervention many teachers talk of a worrying learned helplessness in many teenagers that make it more likely than ever before that they will suffer from fragile confidence, lack of initiative and downright lethargy. We know that more young people than ever suffer from depression and anxiety so how can we make sure that, as well as that clutch of good exam results, our youngsters leave school with a habit of hard work and self- management that will make them adaptable and determined, courageous and curious, resilient as learners and confident communicators. To find out how to deliver on this crucial element of education has been my mission for a career lifetime. As I travelled the country and (later the world) training teachers and leaders I could see the positive impact of this seam of character building in results and school culture. Where it worked well, running parallel to subjects and rigorous attention to progress and outcomes was a sense that our purpose in school is not just to deliver the grades but to deliver healthy, happy resilient, citizens who are self-motivated and know what it takes to be successful in work. Children at such schools could talk about their learning, challenge themselves with extracurricular programmes and staff were on an endless quest to share best practice for helping each other make progress in the classroom. However, like all initiatives it worked less well when levered in a PSHE programme or schemes of work, or added as a random Big Brain Day with no outcomes monitored or evaluated and staff without the time or inclination to engage. Like all initiatives they come and go with political change and the focus for the last few years has been ‘knowledge’ and ‘assessment’ and ‘progress’ with a stark rejection of any notion that we should be responsible or capable of teaching resilience or character. However the same voices celebrated the success of public education system where character building is endemic in school culture. Recently the outgoing head of Eton mourned the Ofsted obsession with exam outcomes stressing that this misses the essence of a good education. So I am still passionate about building the non-cognitive (I hate that inappropriate term because emotional intelligence is so cognitive) skills as central to the entitlement of every pupil. But I have learnt a lot. Discrete lessons are fun 11
The Montsaye Approach and useful because I believe, and have seen, that children can be taught how to manage their minds in a useful way. But the real impact is through school leaders and their teachers nurturing the habits of learning through high expectations, academic rigour and a ‘growth mindset’ culture. All one year olds are passionate about learning – learning to walk, talk and find out about the world. As they grow up some children are resilient, self motivated, courageous with learning, curious and confident because they have the genes or the parents that have nurtured that way of being. But reception teachers tell me that more and more children starting at reception are unable to dress themselves, let alone pick up a pencil and at the other end of the social scale we have over-protective or over ambitious parents who would rather their child wasn’t forced to do maths or PE because it upsets them or demand to know why their child isn’t top of the class. Combine this with our obsession with testing and the growth of peer pressure - result: performance anxiety and a fixed mindset that is more concerned with getting it right than learning something new. This does not develop the habits of the best learners. Carol Dweck’s research shows successful learners have a ‘growth mindset’ that is driven by the habits of wanting and needing to learn, not just getting it right. She stresses that making mistakes and challenging yourself is good for academic progress and good for developing resilience. Hard work and ‘purposeful practice’ as the route to success is also promulgated by Matthew Sayeed in his book ‘Bounce’ which challenges the myth of innate talent.. So if we want a school that delivers the exam results and nurtures a growth mindset in every classroom what are the essential strategies required? 1. Classroom teaching that celebrates learning as its core purpose and thrives on the challenge to make progress, even when it’s hard and scary. Teachers who have high expectations of every pupil and challenge them to work hard to grow their brain by developing strategies to overcome mistakes and bounce back from failure by: Giving ‘tough love’ feedback on children’s work that highlights specifically what they need to do to improve and makes sure they do it. Reflecting and discussing the learning journey and what they learned that they could use next time Doing more of what they find the hardest to make sure they improve through ‘purposeful practice’ Creating an atmosphere of unconditional support for each other’s progress in the classroom so peer learning and peer assessment is supportive, not judgemental. Rewarding and praising effort, not just outcome. Encouraging them to take responsibility and ownership of their development as a learner. 2. Effective teaching research and evaluation A school that learns from its own mistakes and rigorously self-evaluates at all levels will get no surprises from Ofsted visits. At any one time all teachers and TAs should be involved in mini research projects that evaluate latest research and what is and isn’t working in the classrooms – from seating plans to revision classes, questioning techniques to behaviour regimes. Part of this research would include asking the question of students, teachers, teaching assistants and parents ‘How are we 12
The Montsaye Approach 3.
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doing?’ ‘How do we know?’ What else can we try?’ – and sharing this on a regular basis with staff. Train teachers/TAs to model growth mindset themselves by being the best learner in the class! Part of the above is to have a performance management that delivers teacher growth and development. Using lesson observation as a learning opportunity rather than a judgement tool will mean we can have more frequent peer observation. The research projects will create learning forums that everyone can be involved in so that all teachers are constantly adapting their practice and learning from each other. Peer coaching is a highly effective tool for supporting this practice (see The Perfect Teacher Coach) Involve all the school community in your vision for excellence in academic achievement alongside personal development – demonstrate this through a website that shows your downloadable revision sessions, extra-curricular activity, learning forums, students blogs, international skype debates, meditation sessions and everything else that holds up a mirror to your eclectic offer. Invite parents in to join lessons if possible and run regular workshops on personal development and ‘how to support your child as a learner’ sessions that encourage the growth mindset elements at home. Teach children (and staff) about how their brain works, what anxiety is and how to channel stress to make it useful. Show them how and why CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy) works and some strategies for self-management and metacognition. This can be delivered through whole days or programmes within PSHE and additional session can be offered for those who have extra needs. There are plenty of resources out there to help – I have summarised many in my books ‘The KS3 Learner’s Toolkit’ and ‘The Primary Learner’s Toolkit’ Develop a full and engaging extra-curricular programme beyond the regular sports and clubs– Insist that ALL children to take part in events that really challenge them to move out of their comfort zones for example: Sports challenges where we really celebrate winners and losers ‘Strictly dancing’ events for those that can’t dance Challenging projects such as Rocket Building or Creating a School Garden Employ Me day such as Me andMyCity or Business Enterprise Projects Ensure that every child takes part in a volunteering or charity work programme in the community Set up disaster scenarios to help children understand how to cope with emergencies Interview and appoint a student Ofsted team to inspect the school and report back to staff. Create a reward system for effort and persistence in the above programmes Literacy across the curriculum is now an expectation in every school. Every teacher and TA needs to model standard English and ensure that reading and writing is improving. Quite rightly – because communication skills are the key to high achievement and self confidence. If children can communicate their feelings they are less likely to suffer in silence when anxious and stressed. For too many children school isn’t a place where they develop confidence as speakers and writers. Putting literacy and communication skills at the heart of the school ‘growth mindset’ culture should mean that every child can blog, debate, present, pitch, coach, discuss and indeed, teach on a regular basis in the classroom and in a more public arena. Developing their public speaking skills (yes, even 13
The Montsaye Approach if you find it as scary as I did for many years) builds confidence and flexibility. School productions are often a catalyst for children finding their voice so it should be the mission of every school to provide such opportunities for performance. It is ironic that when we try to protect children from tough experiences such as getting it wrong, coming last or failing at exams what we actually do is make them more vulnerable to anxiety. When we struggle we develop strategies for coping that immunise us against future challenges and build our resilience. When you are all grown up you know this. Our job is to help our children to leave school with an outstanding set of grades and the self-management skills to tackle the life challenges ahead with confidence and determination.
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The Montsaye Approach GROWTH MINDSETS Laura Green (from research information)
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The Montsaye Approach MINDSET - THE CRITICAL KEY TO ACHIEVING SUCCESS: A PERSONAL REFLECTION BASED ON THE RESEARCH OF CAROL DWECK Pamela Sutliff “It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.” Theodore Roosevelt
Imagine a student, Kieran, who refuses to even open the booklet and read the questions, but prefers to sit for the duration of his science assessment with his head on the desk and only his name written on the front cover. Although, perhaps, an extreme example as practising teachers I’m sure that we can all recall similar anecdotes of students who may appear disengaged, lacking in determination or simply claim not to care about outcomes. We can perhaps empathise with the frustrations of Kieran’s teacher who spoke to him about his poor performance compared to his target grade, a B. Kieran spoke openly and bluntly to his teacher explaining his refusal to attempt any questions: “I’m not good at science; if I don’t try, I can’t fail.” Our perceptions of Kieran may now change: someone we should pity because he has been let down by his teacher who failed to recognise his difficulties and sufficiently scaffold his learning; or perhaps we may recommend that Kieran participates in a programme to develop his drive and resilience. Surely he must realise that the only sure way of failing is not to try? I suggest that Kieran’s attitude reflects an underlying lack of self-belief in his own intelligence. Greater self-confidence could be the key to his success giving him greater motivation to learn and a positive ‘can do’ attitude. But how can this be unlocked? Carol Dweck, a psychologist at Stanford University, USA, is renowned for her research into the field of achievement and success, and her psychology of success based on Mindset. Her books “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success” (2007) and “Mindset: How You Can Fulfil Your Potential” (2012) are well worth a read. What are Mindsets? A mindset is defined as an established set of attitudes formed from previous experience. However Dweck’s research has allowed her to expand on this and distinguish two perspectives that people might hold about their abilities. She described this difference between a fixed and growth mindset. 18
The Montsaye Approach “In a fixed mindset students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that's that, and then their goal becomes to look smart all the time and never look dumb. In a growth mindset students understand that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort, good teaching and persistence. They don't necessarily think everyone's the same or anyone can be Einstein, but they believe everyone can get smarter if they work at it." Dweck, C. S. (2012)
People can have different mindsets towards different aspects of their lives, e.g. a fixed mindset towards their ability to do maths, but a growth mindset towards their ability to play tennis. Fixed Mindsets Intelligence is fixed. Challenges are avoided as to fail suggests that they ‘lack the intelligence’ required. Effort is seen as fruitless: if they don’t ‘get it’ then it again suggests that they lack intelligence. Getting things wrong and receiving feedback is negative - it reveals limitations. Growth Mindsets The brain in malleable and new neural pathways lead to greater brain density. Intelligence and ability can be cultivated and developed. Challenges are embraced as it is believed that they can improve at a task. Effort therefore is seen as worthwhile - a path to mastery. Mistakes and setbacks are inevitable and a natural part of learning. Receiving feedback is positive - it guides further improvement. It’s not just learners who have mindsets, we all do. A teacher’s mindset can influence how they perceive the performance of learners. A fixed mindset teacher sees those that struggle or fail to understand an aspect of the curriculum as not being sufficiently bright or talented in the subject. Growth mindset teachers see struggling students as a challenge; learners in need of guidance and feedback about how to improve. Dweck’s work supports the value of formative assessment, and provides strategies that will enhance motivation and engagement in learners. Mindsets can be changed and Dweck reports that: “Just by knowing about the two Mindsets, people can start thinking and reacting in new growth-orientated ways”. As a biologist I advocate that students benefit from being taught about the brain. If children start to appreciate the complexity of the brain and understand that the brain makes new neural connections in response to learning, this provides them with a model of why practice, effort, and determination lead to achievement. Growth mindset: The power of believing that you can improve https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_X0mgOOSpLU
Animation for use with students: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_oqghnxBmY
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The Montsaye Approach Dweck’s research provides solid advice for teachers.
Praise wisely: Praise for effort, strategy, focus, perseverance and improvement. Feedback: Use language that suggests expected growth eg. Not yet achieved or working towards rather than not passed or failed. Teach: Every time you go out of your comfort zone to learn something new and difficult, the neurones in your brain can form new, stronger connections and over time you will develop your abilities and improve outcomes.
The fried egg model of learning zones can be used as a visual aid when considering, with students, in which zone most effective learning takes place. 1. Comfort zone – everything is easy and you can sit, relaxed feeling confident in your abilities and talent. 2. Challenge zone – posed with a problem and a degree of difficulty you are stretched and require determination to solve or comprehend.
PANIC
CHALLENGE
COMFORT
3. Panic zone – complete unfamiliarity where you feel under immense scrutiny that initiates the ‘fight or flight’ response resulting in racing heart, sweaty palms and an overwhelming need for the toilet. Personally, both as a teacher but also as a self-confessed pushy mother, I consider Dweck’s thoughts about the impact of praise to be particularly interesting. She provided evidence that praise linked to reassuring learners about their intelligence or talent is detrimental to their view about their abilities. It reinforces (fixed mindset) ideas that their achievements are a consequence of IQ or other finite innate ability. Whereas praise that acknowledges process related activities such as practice, study, persistence and good strategies were shown to instil and develop a growth mindset in learners. A Study on Praise & Mindsets:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWv1VdDeoRY
The previous edition of the Montsaye Teaching and Learning bulletin explored Hattie’s high currency teaching strategies. He showed the importance of formative assessment and feedback so that learners are clear about how they can progress towards their goals but I wonder what would be the effect weighting if a comparison was made between two groups of learners who had been previously identified as having a fixed compared to a growth mindset? I am incredibly excited to be joining the staff of Montsaye Academy in September and would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff and students who have already offered me a warm welcome. I hope that I can work, and continue to learn, with Montsaye students to improve their outcomes, through encouraging them to try, persevere and embrace challenges, whilst having fun and making the most of every opportunity. Thanks for reading and I look forward to meeting you during the new staff induction.
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The Montsaye Approach THE POWER OF TEACHER EXPECTATIONS Alex Quigley (@huntingenglish – www.huntingenglish.com) Mr Laing was my year 8 Maths teacher. He was a rare breed indeed. He helped me, and my fellow pimple-clad teens, find mathematics interesting. Intermittently, he would betray a deep excitement about a mathematics problem or reveal that he had woken up in the middle of the night with an answer to some mathematics concept. We were incredulous – being excited by mathematics was anathema. Soon enough, incredulity became intrigue. Over time, he made us think that such interest might be possible for us too. Mr Laing had once been like us, he had told us. He didn’t like Maths either at school – he had found it too difficult. He spoke about how he had persevered and something had inexplicably clicked. Though still difficult, it had become gradually easier. He found pleasure in what W. B. Yeats termed, “the fascination of what’s difficult“. Maths became his passion. Over the course of a year or two, with the implicit language of high expectation and an unremitting belief in our capacity to be better at mathematics we became believers. What magic was this? What trickery? As a teacher, now, I wrack my brains to remember the detail of what he did and what he said. I can’t quite remember – I can only recall the lingering feeling he had created. Sadly, Mr Laing left and with different teachers my instinctive aversion to mathematics returned. A lifetime of impressions from my family – that we were natural born readers and artistic types, naturally hopeless at mathematics, reasserted itself grimly. My own expectation of success in Maths was diminished. Later on, with a better understanding of psychology and teaching, Mr Laing’s magic became something less mysterious. The Pygmalion Effect “I shall always be a flower girl to Professor Higgins because he always treats me as a flower girl and always will; but I know I can be a lady to you because you always treat me as a lady and always will.” —Eliza Doolittle, in Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw The Pygmalion effect goes some way to explaining why the impact of Mr Laing on my motivation and achievement in mathematics rocketed under his tutelage. This concept was first researched by the famous Rosenthal and Jacobson study in 1968. Many studies since have 21
The Montsaye Approach charted the powerful impact of teacher expectations. It is instinctive stuff: a student charged with self-belief sticks at problems longer, tries a little harder, drawing upon that extra motivation. It is often implicit and beyond noticing, but it is omnipresent in schools. We must be acutely aware of the expectations we convey and the mindset we model for our students in our every interaction, our every utterance. Whether I thought I could learn maths or not, I was right. Sadly, when Mr Laing left my school my love of mathematics left with him. The Galatea Effect In Greek mythology, the name Galatea is given to a statue that is carved in ivory by Pygmalion of Cyprus. Though created by Pygmalion, Galatea became real and came to believe in herself and flourished. This concept is very similar to the Pygmalion effect but with one key difference. Whereas the Pygmalion effect is founded upon the power of expectations from other people, like teachers, the Galatea effect is based upon the expectations we hold for ourselves. Self-efficacy, our belief in our capacity to successfully complete a task, is effectively the Galatea effect, but without the nice mythic tale. The power of self-efficacy, though no guarantee of success, can prove essential fuel to help drive our self-improvement. We are all aiming to mould our own students so that have the self-belief that they can learn successfully. Mr Laing brought mathematics to life for me alongside my fragile self-belief that I could tackle the problems. The vital image of a statue emerging into life, like Galatea, is a potent metaphor for the power of self-belief and fashioning a great future. The Golem Effect I went to a school that would have been labelled a “bog standard state school” or worse. The number of students from deprived backgrounds, and with special educational needs, was sky high. Mr Laing could have easily assumed that we were not ‘academic’ enough to flourish studying maths. He could have exercised the ‘Golem effect’ – effectively the opposite of the ‘Pygmalion effect’. The Golem, a monster created by Rabbi Loew in Prague, in Hasidic mythology, is a creature made of clay used as a tool for its maker. Alas, one Sabbath, the Rabbi forgets to shut down the monster and left to its own devices, the Golem is destructive, and is in turn destroyed. This mythic tale reveals that dark flip-side of expectancy. If we expect students to fail then they may prove more likely to do so. Even the most subtle instinct to lower our expectations can have damaging effects on the achievement of our students. Again, we must be aware of the tremendous 22
The Montsaye Approach power of our beliefs and the expectations of our students in every small interaction we undertake. It may be the simple act of selecting a student to show their answer or share their work, or the student groupings we allocate. It may be the setting system we deploy, or the degree of difficulty in the class work that we select. High Expectations The call to have high expectations is an act of stating the bleedin’ obvious, but the reality of human nature, our mindset, and those of our students, can too often subtly prove damaging to deeply held expectations of success. A teacher having a deep belief in the tremendous plasticity of the human brain and the capacity of our students to become great mathematicians or historians really matters. For me, it often marks out the great teachers from the good. One of the redeeming features of being a teacher is the endless annual renewal. Like flowers emerging in spring, our new classes begin afresh, afresh, afresh and our expectancy can be renewed. Each school year, each class, each relationship a new start, with many students maturing and changing for the better (I am not naive – the converse can also prove true for some). With teachers like Mr Laing, who patently loved teaching mathematics, believing in the limitless potential of my friends and I, anything felt possible, and we flourished. That feeling, and those memories, have never left me and they inform how I try to teach. Of course, no one teacher can create such expectancy alone – it takes a school, parents and even peers, and more – but each individual teacher can make a difference small, but significant difference.
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The Montsaye Approach KIDS WITH ADHD MUST SQUIRM TO LEARN, STUDY SAYS Reprinted from www.sciencedaily.com Date: April 17, 2015 Source: University of Central Florida Summary: Excessive movement common among children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is actually vital to how they remember information and work out complex cognitive tasks, a new study shows. The findings show the longtime prevailing methods for helping children with ADHD may be misguided.
New research shows that if you want ADHD kids to learn, you have to let them squirm. The foot-tapping, leg-swinging and chair-scooting movements of children with attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder are actually vital to how they remember information and work out complex cognitive tasks, according to a study. Credit: Š Rawpixel / Fotolia For decades, frustrated parents and teachers have barked at fidgety children with ADHD to "Sit still and concentrate!" But new research conducted at UCF shows that if you want ADHD kids to learn, you have to let them squirm. The foot-tapping, leg-swinging and chair-scooting movements of children with attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder are actually vital to how they remember information and work out complex cognitive tasks, according to a study published in an early online release of the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology. The findings show the longtime prevailing methods for helping children with ADHD may be misguided. "The typical interventions target reducing hyperactivity. It's exactly the opposite of what we should be doing for a majority of children with ADHD," said one of the study's authors, Mark Rapport, head of the Children's Learning Clinic at the University of Central Florida. "The message isn't 'Let them run around the room,' but you need to be able to facilitate their movement so they can maintain the level of alertness necessary for cognitive activities." The research has major implications for how parents and teachers should deal with ADHD kids, particularly with the increasing weight given to students' performance on standardized testing. The study suggests that a majority of students with ADHD could perform better on classroom work, tests and homework if they're sitting on activity balls or exercise bikes, for instance. The study at the UCF clinic included 52 boys ages 8 to 12. Twenty-nine of the children had been diagnosed with ADHD and the other 23 had no clinical disorders and showed normal development. Each child was asked to perform a series of standardized tasks designed to gauge "working memory," the system for temporarily storing and managing information required to carry out complex cognitive tasks such as learning, reasoning and comprehension.
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The Montsaye Approach Children were shown a series of jumbled numbers and a letter that flashed onto a computer screen, then asked to put the numbers in order, followed by the letter. A high-speed camera recorded the kids, and observers recorded their every movement and gauged their attention to the task. Rapport's previous research had already shown that the excessive movement that's a trademark of hyperactive children -- previously thought to be ever-present -- is actually apparent only when they need to use the brain's executive brain functions, especially their working memory. The new study goes an important step further, proving the movement serves a purpose. "What we've found is that when they're moving the most, the majority of them perform better," Rapport said. "They have to move to maintain alertness." By contrast, the children in the study without ADHD also moved more during the cognitive tests, but it had the opposite effect: They performed worse.
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The Montsaye Approach BECOMING INFLUENTIAL WITH TROUBLED STUDENTS IN SCHOOLS: SURPRISINGLY EFFECTIVE THERAPEUTIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUES Lise Griffiths This is the first part of a three part series exploring ways of communicating with students. Teenagers know everything don’t they? Of course; you’re a nag. How do you know what you’re talking about? How do you know how they feel? In all honesty you don’t, and you simply can’t control what they do or how they think. However you can learn skills to understand their version of the world and have a positive influence over it. The advice and information that follows has its roots in Richard Bandler’s Neuro Linguistic Programming Theory™ as well as the related work of Lewis & Pucelik (1990). Communication and attention to subtle cues is the key to gaining the most complete understanding of an individual’s version of the world. It is then possible to guide them towards perceiving new choices of how to think and behave, once rapport and trust have been gained.
Gaining Trust and Rapport Mirroring Body Language With many students, adults find themselves needing to establish and reaffirm ‘authority.’ However to actually influence their behaviour and teach them new ways to behave, it is important to first gain the students’ trust and a good rapport, particularly if those students have difficulty trusting adults due to a troubled past. Leaving aside the need for overall authority in a classroom, showing that we are equal to the student on a one-to-one basis has endless benefits. The discrete mirroring of a student’s body language shows unconsciously to the student that we are similar to them in mood and attitude, and therefore nonthreatening and familiar. This allows the student to set the pace and tone of the communication to suit their comfort, and once this barrier is broken and trust is gained, there is freedom to influence the pace and tone as you see fit. ● ● ● ● ● ●
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Mirror general postures and positions Mirror the pace and tone of voice Keep a friendly face or at least an even expression If humour is detected reciprocate it – this builds rapport extremely efficiently Don’t force eye contact – the student may not be ready yet (see below) Wait for the student to make consistent eye contact or other affirmative feedback before assuming that rapport and trust have been built (e.g. nodding, agreeing with what we say by choice, mimicking our gestures, and sharing humour). Once rapport is gained, pace or tone can gradually be adapted to direct the communication with the student.
Importance of the Senses in Making Sense of the World 26
The Montsaye Approach With knowledge of which sense dominates a person’s memory it is possible to tap into their version of the world and refer to it on a level they understand. For example if a student is making sense of their environment visually you can connect with their understanding if you communicate using visual language such as ‘can you see yourself doing that?’ Listening carefully to the student’s language can help identify how they are processing information. They are processing visually if they are frequently referring to someone ‘giving them looks’ rather than what they actually said; or processing aurally if they frequently refer to a confrontation as ‘the way’ the other person said something. If it is known that a student is processing visually (e.g. ‘he is always staring at me’) their attention can be redirected to another visual element which challenges their perception of confrontation – visual because we know they will pay attention to it - (e.g. ‘what were his facial expressions like? Was he angry or intrigued when he was staring?’) Hopefully the latter. People process information in a variety of ways depending on the task or situation, and there may be subcategories, however it is expected that people may have a primary sense dominating the encoding of memories. ●
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A ‘visual thinker’ tends to pay most attention to and refer to facial expressions, images, and the way things look in general. A non-verbal cue is a tendency to have upwards eye-movements when speaking and processing information. An ‘Aural’ thinker tends to pay most attention to and refer to people’s tone of voice, and the way things sound in general. A non-verbal cue to this is a tendency to have level sideways eyemovements when speaking and processing information. A ‘kinaesthetic thinker’ tends to pay most attention to and refer to feelings – emotional and physical, and the way things feel in general. A non-verbal cue to this is a tendency to have lower down eye-movements when speaking and processing information. A ‘digital thinker’ tends to be sensitive to the actual language used in conversation. It is a very conscious way of processing information. All people use all of these at various times, but may have a dominant method of representing information.
Subliminal Non-Verbal Cues Other people’s actions affect us on an unconscious level. People have assumptions about what they ‘know’ and have learned about how others are feeling or thinking based on subtle cues like posture, eye contact or gestures. These can be spot-on, or too generalised. For example, when working with students (especially those with troubled pasts) it can be easy to make assumptions such as no eye contact = being rude or untrustworthy. However it is important to question the reason and not just apply what we have learned from most other communication. It could be an overwhelming feeling of intimidation, or a fear of confrontation that is preventing the eye-contact for example. Another’s interpretation of it as rude may well fit in with wider society, but this student’s internal version of what is going on is likely to be very different, and of course more complex.
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The Montsaye Approach ATTENTION DEFICIT (HYPERACTIVITY) DISORDER: SYMPTOMS AND STRATEGIES FOR DEALING WITH ADHD IN THE CLASSROOM Tracey O’Leary and Lise Griffiths There are three main categories of behaviour difficulties specific to ADHD that result from neurological activity rather than environmental activity. The student’s environment, however, undoubtedly mediates their behaviour: Inattention,
Impulsivity,
Hyperactivity
The text below shows specific behaviour a child may exhibit. The green text shows the various strategies that can be used with children who have ADHD, which will hopefully help them understand their own behaviour as well as help direct their attention. All people with ADHD have varying symptoms which interact with their personality, attitudes and general habits, therefore some of these strategies will be more effective than others and this will vary from child to child. 1.
Inattention
Day-dreaming: o Set varied, engaging and interactive tasks. o Encourage other children to engage them in the task by creating competition, teamwork or comparison. Forgetting instructions: o Give clear and simple instructions, stating explicit relevance to themselves. o Ask them questions or to repeat the instructions in their own words to aid processing. Not finishing things – easily disengaged or distracted: o Point out the progress that has been made. o Give time-limits and friendly reminders, try and use a visual aid like a stopwatch or countdown timer. o Powerpoint ones are available which you can add to your own slides: http://www.a6training.co.uk/resources_powerpoint.php
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The Montsaye Approach 2.
Impulsivity (disinhibition)
Defiance as a result of frustration and feeling threatened: o Avoid ‘telling them off’ – maintain your authority in a calm and friendly way, and concisely explain your decision – repeating if necessary. o Don’t engage in any persuasive talk, or begging, or whining – ignore this, and give praise when it is absent. Difficulty controlling emotional reactions: o Allow time/space to calm down and ignore where appropriate. o Try getting into a routine with the child and at the last resort, send them out for a specified and agreed amount of time. Doing something bad, saying sorry, then doing it again straightaway: o Change seating or task straightaway – respond with immediate consequence while their attention is still on what they are doing. Calling out/Interrupting: o Gentle, immediate reminders and ignoring where possible Not ‘thinking things through’: o Allow time and space without distractions for tasks which require sophisticated problemsolving. o Give concise step-by-step reminders/instruction Swearing: o A short but immediate reaction is best. o If the child has a lot of difficulty controlling this you can develop a pattern of reactions with the child – a sharp look when they use a certain word, then a quick discussion with them at the end of the lesson. o Try and set specific targets for them or give them alternative words to use, to express themselves. Rigid or egocentric/selfish thinking when angry or stressed (difficulty inhibiting this): o Give a concise and immediate response but in a friendly and down-to-earth way. E.g. “It’s not FAIR!” “Everyone else has to do it and you’re no different, sorry.” o Try and be tolerant and ignore rude or silly comments where possible.
3. Hyperactivity (can be linked to impulsivity)
Motor-restlessness – fidgeting: o This may help a student to direct their attention or cope with anxiety, but if it is causing problems with their focussing on a task it can help to get them out of their seat. o Perhaps send them on a small errand whilst you calm the class down and when they return to a quiet room they are more likely to focus. o You can also give them a task to do which involves their hands and stops them fidgeting. Talking constantly: o Engage with this conversation and direct it to a close (or back to the lesson topic) in a friendly way. 29
The Montsaye Approach o
Ask them questions about the topic to give them a chance to direct their vocal energy to the actual lesson. o Remind them that their talking is disrupting the lesson and if they stop now, they won’t need X consequence (last resort). Climbing, running, kicking: o Give immediate response but avoid creating shock/drama if they seek attention. o A concise and firm response will show that you are serious, but allow the student to save face and change their behaviour on their own terms by turning your attention back to the other students/something else. o Physical exertion may be a result of activity at break/lunch/PE, or it could be restlessness. Send student on an errand/walk while you create a calm environment for them to return to. If this problem recurs on a regular basis it could be related to their routine (e.g. PE previously) or their medication. Maybe try to have relevant engaging/addictive tasks ready for them if they show restlessness. Finding quiet and sedate activities difficult: o Give regular breaks, reward concentration very well. o Ensure as calm environment as possible, with minimal distractions. o Give them regular attention and engage them with the task yourself
Top Tips & Things to Avoid
‘Nagging’ – this is so tempting, but remember that where appropriate, ignoring is powerful, it is a direct and relevant consequence for the child. (e.g. in response to silly questions, calling out etc). If you need to, explain your ignoring to the other children later on. If you’re nagging and what you’re saying is not working try something else! Telling the child off without listening to them - When the child is calm and cooperative, get them talking about their behaviour - this requires them to process it and therefore properly think about it. Negative reprimanding – a child is more likely to do what they hear. If they hear ‘stop talking’ they are still only hearing and focussing on the ‘talking’ element (not the stopping). If they hear ‘Listen’ it is a whole new concept and their attention will be more easily focussed on the idea of ‘listening.’ Tell the child what you want them to do, not what you don’t want them to do. Negative expectations – Avoid naming things that the child shouldn’t do. They may not have even thought about it but if you tell them not to do it, you are inadvertently setting an expectation that they might do it. They are also more likely to only pay attention to the act itself, not the request not to do it.
Other Issues Related to ADHD Rebelliousness and Defiance Rebelliousness and Defiance in ADHD appear to result from frustration of impulsive behaviours and motivations not being understood or acknowledged by others. The impulsive thinking leaves no time for logical thought about others’ emotions and others’ needs, therefore aggression and selfish behaviour can occur and be related to ADHD. Give 30
The Montsaye Approach immediate and concise responses to this sort of behaviour, and try and allow time for them to calm down and start thinking more logically again. Academic attainment Children with ADHD have a deficit in their inhibitions and find it hard to supress cognitively rigid, impulsive thought processes. This interferes with their working memory and therefore affects concentration and attainment in many academic areas. Break down the information concisely and use diagrams and visual aids to support the student to synthesise the elements of the task. Medication for ADHD The medication is a stimulant – it reduces uptake of neurotransmitters like dopamine and norepinephrine or increases production of them – increasing the levels of them in the brain as they are responsible for increased attention, organisation and the management of emotions. (Drugs like cannabis will be detrimental to ADD due to their long-term effects on the uptake and production of these neurotransmitters). The ideas of the meds is to have the primary effect of calming children down and focussing their attention long enough to learn in lessons and be properly socialised with others - which are the secondary outcomes, but the main ones. The idea is for them to learn to manage their behaviour by themselves without the drugs once they have showed/experienced desired behaviour in lessons. Issues with medication Many symptoms of ADHD or ADD overlap with boisterous behaviours or impulsive behaviours which do not have neurological deficit causes. The behaviour may be due to home life, environment and friendship groups, as well as hormones. Using the same behavioural strategies with these children won’t cause any harm, but medication is only for diagnosed ADHD/ADD cases. The medication for ADHD is classed as an amphetamine and is a serious drug. The long-term effects of stimulants on brains which are still developing is not fully understood. Existing heart conditions are exacerbated by stimulants, and depression, anxiety and bi-polar disorders are linked to stimulants, and triggered by them. It is important that children are given the chance and the help to manage and understand their own behaviour, to minimise the need for medication where possible. Children can also become very irritable with the medication, and suffer from other side-effects such as upset stomachs and headaches.
Engaging Children with ADHD in Learning Engagement Anything that holds a person’s attention is engaging. Ideally tasks and activities in learning should be interesting in some way. This could be for many reasons from it being funny, to surprising, to simply being novel. Motivation Children and young people learn far more effectively when motivated directly by the learning, not some secondary or extrinsic motivator. For example if they want to learn what they are learning. Easier said than 31
The Montsaye Approach done, but if it is interesting for any reason, this is the biggest and most important factor. Create curious situations where students want to discover, diagnose, uncover etc… Elements of Engaging Tasks Varied Tasks Limit the student’s opportunities to become distracted by something new or more entertaining (such as a friend throwing and catching a piece of blue-tack) by keeping tasks short and varied (and therefore new and entertaining). Interactive Tasks Make tasks interactive by avoiding too much listening, reading and writing at one time – this takes a lot of concentration and with ADHD it is highly cognitively demanding. Instead get them sorting, drawing, choosing, talking, experiencing, making… anything that uses varied senses and ways of going about things. Addictive Tasks Make tasks addictive by adding competition, or creating tasks that have small but meaningful rewards – the same way that simple mobile phone games are addictive – getting to the next level, seeing the numbers/scores creep up, reaching a goal. Creative Tasks Encourage tasks that get children to use their imagination and if it is appropriate allow them to approach a task in their way, if they feel it is more engaging for them. Be creative by keeping things fresh, new and exciting where possible. Contextual & Relevant Learning Learning is far, far more efficient if it is attached to relevant sensory-rich experiences. For example: If I learn a list of French foods in a classroom with a book and a pen, I may remember a few of the words by sound and order. If I learn a group of French foods by sitting in a restaurant full of delicious smells, in France, outside on a terrace in the sun, choosing them on a menu I’ve never seen before, and ordering them in French to a French waiter, I have all five senses involved in storing that information to my long-term memory. In other words, to go with the sound of the words, I have sensory information to access/retrieve along with the memory of the sound, and to add meaning to the sounds of the words. Bearing in mind the limitations of a classroom, replicate this effectiveness in any way you can, using the senses, and contextual relevance (and imagination of course!) Pace & Timing Reminders, time limits, lists, visual aids and routines all ensure that a child with difficulty staying focused and suppressing impulsions, has less cognitive demand placed on them, and therefore finds it mentally easier to focus, without even being aware of it. Aiding Processing Asking questions and getting children repeating instructions in their own words are important for ensuring that instructions have been stored in long-term memory. Simply listening to instructions is not enough – 32
The Montsaye Approach listening places an enormous demand on cognitive resources and children will not process verbal information efficiently, especially with ADHD. Immediate Praise Praise and sanctions must be immediate in order for children to associate them with the thing being praised or reprimanded. Physical Movement/Tactile Tasks Physical movement and circulation-promoting activities are good for motivation and energy levels, however be aware that too much exertion can hinder attempts to get children in a calm and mentally focused frame of mind. Simple things like moving seats/groups during the lesson, or getting up to collect items around the class.
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The Montsaye Approach
The Montsaye Approach to: HOMEWORK
‘We need to define what good homework looks like and feels like: It is clear, well scaffolded, and it can be done independently, with minimum support. It has just the right amount of challenge. Not so challenging that students easily give up, but not so simple that they may as well not bother. It has taken into account that students have the right resources. It is monitored for completion and it is an integral part of the ongoing learning cycle. It has elements that encourage curiosity and enquiry to flourish. Such homework can be completed in the half hour slot allocated, but that wouldn’t stop a student going on a flight of excellence that sees him or her lost in learning that is wholly worthwhile.’ Alex Quigley, Home Truths, in Teach Secondary, April 2015
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The Montsaye Approach To Homework Handbook for the Inspection of Schools, Ofsted, September 2014 The most important role of teaching is to promote learning and the acquisition of knowledge by pupils and to raise achievement. It is also important in promoting the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Teaching includes the setting of appropriate, regular homework across subjects.
Inspectors must consider whether teachers set homework in line with the school’s policy and that challenges all pupils, especially the most able. Outstanding Grade Descriptors – Quality of Teaching, Ofsted, September 2014 Teachers use well-judged teaching strategies, including setting appropriate homework that, together with clearly directed and timely support and intervention, match pupils’ needs accurately. Montsaye’s four principles for homework
Homework should be set regularly and recorded on ‘Show My Homework’. Homework should provide opportunities for pupils to prepare and research; to consolidate and reinforce learning; or to extend learning. Every pupil’s homework should provide appropriate challenge. Homework must be promptly marked and effective feedback provided. Heads of Department need to set the homework policy in their subject area so that it fits within these four principles.
Setting homework Years 7, 8 and 9: English, Maths and Science will set one homework of roughly 30 minutes each week and all other subjects will set at least one homework in each two week cycle. Years 10, 11, 12 and 13: The setting of homework will be dependent on the demands of the examination courses which will vary throughout the year. The academy will attempt to ensure that deadlines vary so that the student workload is manageable. Students who fail to produce satisfactory homework should be dealt with through the usual departmental disciplinary structures. Students who regularly fail to submit homework will be kept in detention.
The academy actively seeks the support and involvement of parents in the work their children do at home. Types of homework might include: GCSE Pod
Research
Consolidation
Reading
SAM Learning
Project work
Preparation
Choice
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The Montsaye Approach Relevant extracts from The Montsaye Approach At least every fortnight it would be usual for the following to occur:
Homework is set according to the school policy
Parental Views – From Parents Forum – February 2015 Purpose of Homework
Consolidate and reinforce learning from the lesson Extend learning beyond the lesson Create independent learners and encourage drive and motivation and develop good study habits
Issues
The quantity and challenge of homework should be proportionate to age and ability Marking and feedback needs to be prompt and effective Parents need feedback: Was it completed and handed in? Was it to the required standard? What are the next steps for learning? Homework can and should take a variety of forms Parents want detailed information about when homework will be set, the tasks and resources available and the assessment criteria
Visible Learning, John Hattie (2009) after Sherrington (2014)
Hattie suggests that we should focus on effects above 0.4 Homework has an effect of 0.29 However if we divide this by phase then the effect is 0.15 for Primary and 0.64 for secondary
So, what Hattie actually says about homework is complex. There is no meaningful sense in which it could be stated that “the research says X about homework” in a simple soundbite. There are some lessons to learn:
The more specific and precise the task is, the more likely it is to make an impact for all learners. Homework that is more open, more complex is more appropriate for able and older students. Teacher monitoring and involvement is key – so putting students in a position where their learning is too complex, extended or unstructured to be done unsupervised is not healthy. This is more likely for young children, hence the very low effect size for primary age students.
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The Montsaye Approach TAKE AWAY HOMEWORK Jonathan Dean In the current Montsaye whole school development plan two of the key areas are differentiation and homework. These have been identified from a range of lesson observations, marking reviews and department self-review documents. In order to achieve our shared goal of becoming an outstanding school we need to develop our students’ independent learning skills. This has been a key discussion point in MLT, House and Department meetings over the last few weeks. Differentiation and homework are both key to developing more independent and resilient learners. Below are two examples of ‘Take Away’ homework. I am sure many of you will have seen this format before. One of the examples is written specifically for a component of the AS Physical Education course, the other is more generic. I am certain the Take Away homework format could be successfully used in a wide range of subjects or adapted for use within the classroom. If you would like an electronic copy to adapt and use with one of your classes let me know and I will email you a copy. Please let me know of any successes you have in order that I can disseminate your findings to all staff in the future.
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Take Away Homework!
The Montsaye Approach
Choose your homework from the menu below: The Peri-Ometer suggests the difficulty or challenge the Homework may offer. Every term you should attempt at least one ‘EXTRA HOT’ task! Write a poem or song which Write a formal letter to an Write a newspaper article relevant summarises the topic we have institution explaining the topic we to the topic we are studying. studied recently. have studied recently. Include specific, accurate facts
Make it informative but catchy and Use a letter layout, remember key with good English. You should remember to include key terms… terms and use persuasive language include quotes and images… to explain key issues… Create a leaflet which summarises Create a factsheet summarising Create a comic strip to explain a the topic we have studied recently. the topic, but also add additional new process we have learned or to Use key terms, make it informative research and facts. summarise a topic.
and eye catching…
Use correct terminology and use Use pictures and key words to the internet to include extra facts explain the process in a clear way… (no copy & paste!)
Create a poster summarising Create a flow diagram/chart to Create 10-15 challenging quiz today’s lesson/topic we have been explain a new process we have questions about what we have studying recently. learnt. covered so far in this topic.
Use key terms, make it informative Use pictures and key words to Write the questions with correct and eye catching… explain the process clearly… answers separate to test a peer… Create a mind map summarising today’s lesson/topic we have been studying recently. Use key terms, make it informative and eye catching…
Identify key terms we’ve used in Write 3 Tweets that could this topic and write a dictionary. summarise the lesson/topic.
Find the definitions of key words No more than 140 characters; use and write a glossary to help you to #’s for key words and they must learn spellings… be informative… 38
The Montsaye Approach
Take Away Homework
Extra hot = (A/A* ) explain/analyse Hot = (B) describe Mild = (C) identify and begin to describe, use practical examples. Lemon and herb = state.
Your task is to complete at least 1 starter, 1 main and 1 dessert task over the summer (3 in total). The colour indicates how hard the task is and you should look at this in relation to your target grade.
STARTER
MAIN
DESSERT
(Feedback)
(Methods of learning skills)
(Motivation)
Describe the 4 types of feedback, explain why they are important and give practical examples of how they are used in physical activity.
Design a news report (video/paper) which describes/explains the different methods of learnng skills and why feedback is crucial during this process.
Identify the 2 different types of motivation and explain how these can help a participant, coach and official to learn/improve giving examples.
Make a fakebook page which describes the 4 different types of feedback and give examples of when it is used in physical activity.
Design a game which highlights the different methods of learning skills and link in feedback.
Identify the 2 different types of motivation and explain how these can help 2 of the following participant, coach and official to learn/improve giving examples
Design flash cards/Q&A cards which identify the 4 different types of feedback and states their importance.
Using a sport of your choice, identify the 4 different methods of learning skills giving specific examples from your chosen sport.
-Identify the 2 different types of motivation and explain how these can help either a participant, coach or official to learn/improve giving examples
Compose a tweet identifying the 4 different types of feedback.
Make a fakebook page which identifies the 4 methods of learning a skill.
Identify the 2 different types of motivation and explain how these can help a participant to learn/improve giving examples
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The Montsaye Approach USING ICT AND PROJECT BASED LEARNING TO DIFFERENTIATE AND MANAGE BEHAVIOUR WITH A TRICKY GEOGRAPHY CLASS Rob McNally As a new teacher to Montsaye Academy, I have thoroughly enjoyed my first year and have learnt a great deal from staff and students alike about the importance of planning lessons to manage behaviour, engage students and to maximise student outcomes. One of the strategies I have found most successful has been to embrace student centred learning and the use of Project Based Learning. This form of ‘flip teaching’ has allowed me to establish a rapport and relationship with classes that perhaps before Christmas were resistant to both a new teacher and to change. My Year 8 Class for Geography was one class that I have in mind. They are a varied group with target levels ranging from Level 3 to 6 and yet with students who appeared, at first, to be lacking academic focus. I have to be honest, I struggled with this group’s behaviour and resorted to ‘control’ style teaching: rejigging my seating plan; making increasingly simplistic PowerPoints, posters, word searches; and sticking fairly rigidly to the school’s staged behaviour system. In assessments the engaged students flourished, however many of the other students lacked knowledge and had little basis with which to attempt the assessments. One student complained, “We aren’t all the same Mr McNally.” And he was right. I needed to re-focus my energy on engaging with learners and planning lessons that rewarded and encouraged positive behaviour. By reflecting on student feedback, and with support from SLT, I was able to revise my approach to this group and draw upon some of the excellent research I had used at previous schools on Independent Project based Learning. Project Based Learning (PBL) http://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning or flip teaching http://flipteaching.com/ are pedagogical tools that can be applied to any subject. The premise is you set the task and provide exciting learning outcomes that the pupils buy into. Students then choose to explore the subject independently through suggested methods or use methods of their own to produce a dynamic learning outcome. This is often referred to as flip teaching, where the outcome is taught initially and resources are provided for students to find their own way through a topic so that they create a piece of individualised work. The process of PBL or flip teaching encourages teachers to rethink our role, to embrace consensus in the classroom, experiment and see ourselves as coaches rather than instructors. With my year 8 Geography class this has helped move the emphasis away from confrontation towards consensus. Students enjoy the enquiries and many of class conversations are now about volcanic eruptions rather than about weekend high jinx! As a case study, students have recently undertaken a project on Natural Hazards. This project began with them watching a short, yet incredibly moving, YouTube clip from survivors of the Tsunami of 2004. The testimony and images were powerful; students were immediately hooked and talking about what they had seen. I asked them what questions they wanted to ask about what they had just seen and we wrote them on the board. This became the basis for the project. Students were then given a PBL investigation sheet that linked into what they had just seen with the option of making one of several things as an assessed piece, but all with a shared outcome about the causes, effects and consequences of a Natural Hazard. Internet links and detailed instructions were placed on ‘Show My Homework’ and written resources were made available. With the computer room booked, students then had four weeks to produce their investigation. Some students chose to make PowerPoints, others movies and some wrote letters and 40
The Montsaye Approach newspapers. Each lesson, students knew what was expected of them and picked up from where they previously left off. I was able to chat about Geography. Feedback from students has been positive, to the point that we are now on our third consecutive PBL project. They just can’t get enough of them! The outcomes have been staggering with every student now working either above, or within one sub level of, their target. On reflection, I have also learnt a great deal about my own practice. For instance, the importance of moving beyond judging poor behaviour at face value and therefore judging students superficially. For some young people, the expected academic rigour and everyday school rules are a massive stumbling block to learning. A traditional classroom situation will seem irrelevant and perhaps intimidating and consequentially behaviour can, as I found, be challenging. What I have discovered is that rather than retreat into tried and tested ‘closed’ teaching methods that limit the possibility of poor behaviour; more can be achieved by building strong relationships, offering exciting learning outcomes and promoting enquiry. Learning with this class has now become the starting point for student conversations. Therefore, for this to work, we perhaps need to reflect on how we can use teaching techniques to manage behaviour, to excite students, to fire enthusiasm and to promote positivity. I have found PBL/flip teaching is one way of doing this.
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The Montsaye Approach POLICY CLARIFICATION The following things are now elements of the Learning and Teaching Policy at Montsaye Academy: 1. Lessons should demonstrate the aspects of The Montsaye Approach. 2. Department Feedback and Marking Policies should be written to fit within ‘Montsaye’s Four Principles for Feedback’ as below: Montsaye’s four principles for feedback
Assessment criteria should be shared with students. Feedback may take a variety of forms. Teachers need to consider what form of feedback is appropriate to the task or activity. All feedback should promote learning and time should be given for students to respond to feedback. Different forms of feedback are appropriate to different tasks and no single form of feedback is appropriate across all subject areas. Heads of Department need to set the feedback policy in their subject area so that it fits within these four principles.
3. Department Differentiation Policies should be written to fit within ‘Montsaye’s Four Principles for Differentiation’ as below: Montsaye’s four principles for differentiation
Knowing each student’s progress is the foundation for differentiation. Differentiation is integral to the teaching process and not an add-on. Feedback and questioning are the key methods of differentiation. Differentiation may involve alternative tasks, scaffolding, and extension tasks. Heads of Department need to set the differentiation policy in their subject area so that it fits within these four principles.
4. Department Homework Policies should be written to fit within ‘Montsaye’s Four Principles for Homework’ as below: Montsaye’s four principles for homework
Homework should be set regularly and recorded on ‘Show My Homework’. Homework should provide opportunities for pupils to prepare and research; to consolidate and reinforce learning; or to extend learning. Every pupil’s homework should provide appropriate challenge. Homework must be promptly marked and effective feedback provided. Heads of Department need to set the homework policy in their subject area so that it fits within these four principles.
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