Pedex Issue 11

This issue‌

Issue 11.

March 2017

TEEP The Underpinning Elements Focussing on AHCC Teacher Learning for 2016-17.

Google Classroom Educational Blogs How Google resources are helping to connect students in and out of the classroom.

The rise of the Edu Blogger and how you can tap into their ideas and resources.

Pedagogy exchange - steeped in practice

Teacher Learning focus 2017 Alex Cook

TEEP Underpinning Elements

T

he five underpinning elements of TEEP support teachers to present a relevant and purposeful curriculum to learners as part of the learning process. The elements act as a conduit between what the teacher and the learner has to do and how they go about it. It is when theory and practice merge for the benefit of student learning.

Assessment for Learning in the TEEP model explores strategies and techniques that support teachers and students to give and receive quality feedback, use assessment in a purposeful and on-going way, supports a positive approach to learning and makes sense to the learner.

Thinking is a process that invites the learner to make sense of the information at hand. It is the way to understanding. The TEEP model explores strategies and techniques, to support and develop higher order thinking in order to deepen understanding and enrich student learning.

Accelerated learning is the term that the TEEP model uses to describe the techniques and strategies that we use to actively engage learners in learning. It is based on research of brain function, student motivation and multiple intelligences and provides a platform for life-long learning .

Collaborative learning is an approach to teaching and learning that involves groups of students working and learning together to complete a task, solve a problem or create a product.

Our students are growing up in a world that increasingly uses ICT to communicate knowledge, ideas and information. The digital world is their present and their future. The use of a range of technologies like cameras, game consoles, mp3 players, mobile phones, computers and electronic white- boards can be used by students and teachers to enhance teaching and learning.

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.2

‘‘

students can share documents that you have set with each other.

’’

Rob Jones

Google Classroom

G

oogle Classroom is an online resource which teachers and students can access for free through their Google drive account. ‘Classroom’ tasks and assignments can be set and submitted online through a platform which allows students to stay connected to classmates and teachers outside of the classical classroom setting.

As a Google resource, Classroom, along with their in-house versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, can be accessed anywhere with an internet connection, allowing students to save work on computers in school and pick up where they left off at home.

I have found Classroom to be particularly useful when setting research tasks where students have to prepare a presentation for the rest of the class. Through Google Drive you can set up a template with scaffolding statements to help students hit specified success criteria which can then be shared with the class, or groups of students, allowing you to differentiate tasks and personalise learning.

For group work, students can share documents you have set with each other allowing many users to edit the same document at the same time. My classes have loved watching their classmates work appearing on their screens in real time! You can also keep a watchful eye on these documents from your computer and, when linked to an interactive whiteboard, can show off any excellent work to the rest of the class.

Having this access from your computer also simplifies setting up for presentations as students won’t have to save work anywhere else, including using memory sticks or emailing.

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.3

For the past 3 months I have been using Classroom as an online platform for science club which has been very popular this year. As students use their All Hallows emails, and can only access the class if provided with a code, it is very easy to moderate.

Students have enjoyed being able to discuss current issues in science, discuss results or findings from previous science club sessions, and share YouTube videos with experiments they would like to try in the future!

Here is something I have also set up for my year 12 physics class. Being able to share folders from your Google Drive means you can share large files with classes, allowing them to download and create their own copies of documents, without them having permission to delete or move any of your files.

I envisage this being an incredibly useful platform during the exam period when students can share ideas, and ask questions to their classmates and teachers. This resource allows a increased level of connectivity between students and teachers in a moderated setting

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.4

Online Spy B logging is an exciting

and growing trend in education and an excellent platform for sharing ideas and practices – check out these top picks to see for yourself!

From tips on spotting Rhinos, to helping students tackle unseen poetry, Rachel Stevens' blog contains lots of useful advice – especially for those teaching English

Hunting English is written by Alex Quigley, an English teacher who writes about resources and learning strategies. If you want to read about DIRT and marginal gains, it's all here.

https://www.huntingenglish.com/

Stephen Tierney's blog is a great way to stay up-to-date with the latest education debates. His blog is thoughtful, informative and contains some useful 5-minute plans coauthored with @TeacherToolkit

https://leadinglearner.me/

http://edulike.blogspot.co.uk/ Blogger Thomas Starkey once made a student cry during an Ofsted observation. If this isn't enough to persuade you to read his blog, then perhaps its familiar sounding title will draw you in. His blog captures all the trials, tribulations and joys of teaching. https://stackofmarking.wordpress.com/

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.5

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.6

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.7

Emma Stebbings

All Hallows teachers taking the lead on learning

D

uring some of our recent professional ance development Wednesdays teachers across the college have been meeting in faculty groups to research good practice. The action research, which is based around the underpinning elements of the TEEP model, aims to explore teaching and learning challenges faced by our students or areas of the curriculum and devise and trial practical solutions. The groups will then be presenting their findings at a 'teachmeet' during our Romero Teaching School Alliance Teaching and Learning Conference on 30th; here teachers from our partner primaries and high schools will come together to share best practice and inspire each other.

impact on a number of ‘‘ Positive students final outcomes. ’’ M aths are experimenting with the 'going back to the basics' of pictorial, concrete approaches to help students progress towards more abstract ways of thinking about Maths.

The department demonstrated how they would give students a more 'hands on' approach in lessons, using counters, pictures and writing on tables so that students could visualise mathematical concepts such as division or probability before then applying this to exam questions. Ms Wise commented that 'we often expect students to come to college being able to understand maths without these tools, but perhaps sometimes we take away these strategies too soon and we should be letting students continue to use them until natural progression and problem solving skills take over'.

Similarly, RE are also working on Thinking for Learning and how to improve students' understanding of theological concepts or arguments, that may initially appear outdated to students in the 21st century. 'St Augustine doesn't have a Twitter account,' said Mrs Stewart, 'so we need to show them how these issues are relevant to the world we live in today!'

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.8

Paul Deay

Languages: Teacher Learning snapshot

Bite size TES

For this years Learning Conference Languages are looking at building independent learners though the underpinning element of Accelerated Learning and staff have split into pairs to focus on a particular aspect to achieve this goal. One of these is developing international links, as research has shown that enabling students to use their language skills to communicate freely and naturally increases their motivation and thus helps them reach the goal of becoming independent learners. We currently have an exchange with the Schiller Gymnasium in Cologne, we work closely with the Confucius Institute and as a result of work currently being done by colleagues we have set up an email exchange with a school in Spain. Watch this space!

Extract from March 2017

Revision tips for students with SEND: Literacy Doughnuts.

Using 3 circles (blown up onto A3 paper) prioritise the important information or words into the inner circle and then, in descending priority, the middle and the outer.

Literacy doughnuts can help to prevent some students from panicking, as they can initially concentrate on the inner circle.

Decoding exam questions: Train students to differentiate between the command words of a question and the subjectspecific words. It’s worth having 2 separate colours and getting students to highlight which are which. What should be left is extraneous carrier language that can be ignored

What is your department tackling for the AHCC Learning Conference? Share your ideas with us here!

Twitter steals @WeAreTeachers Challenging homework ideas to stretch and challenge all students.

PedEx Issue. 11 Pg.9