An Outline | PLTs

Schools are notoriously busy places with a plethora of competing priorities related to teaching and learning, all vying for attention. Each of them are important - mapping curriculum, analysing learning data, reviewing reporting practices, to name a few – so it is crucial to have a clear understanding of what actually has the biggest impact on the learning of our students.

Fortunately, it is well established that after the student, the teacher has the single greatest impact on student learning (Hattie, 2012; Marzano, 2003), and that what happens in the classroom is what makes a difference. Knowing this has helped us declutter out priorities and focus on what is most important – strengthening our collective focus on pedagogy to develop the capacity of teachers in order to improve student learning. Teaching is such a complex job that even the most experienced of us can improve.

From the beginning of 2022, Professional Learning Teams (PLTs) have been our vehicle to help every teacher get better. This format has allowed teachers to share their experiences, gain new insights, and exercise choice to gradually embed new strategies within their classrooms. We have incorporated Peer Observation into this process, so teachers are supported to reflect on their practice, while enabling them to see how others approach their lessons. Most importantly, the content of learning within PLTs has been embedding formative assessment strategies into our lessons and the explicit teaching of writing. A limited number of priorities allows us to have a clear focus as a College, where teachers are united as they strive towards similar goals. In the pages that follow you will read reflections from Braemar College teachers about how these two areas have impacted their practice.

Within the Formative Assessment component, teachers learnt how to elicit evidence of student learning to adapt their teaching and be more responsive to student needs. They also considered how to help students become owners of their own learning through reflection, metacognitive strategies, feedback and exemplars so that students share the responsibility of identifying where they are at, where to next and how to get there. In a groundbreaking review of research evidence related to formative assessment practices, Emeritus Professor Dylan Wiliam and colleagues found that effective use of formative assessment strategies can double the rate of student learning. It is one of the most cost effective and impactful things that teachers can focus on and is at the heart of effective teaching, hence the focus on this important area. The Literacy component armed teachers across all subject areas with the knowledge and skills to explicitly teach students how to write. Sharon Hitti will elaborate more on this work in her piece on the following page.

We hope you enjoy reading this Professional Learning Publication, and that it provides you with valuable insight into the learning that is taking place at Braemar College, by students and teachers. A big thank you to all of the PLT Leaders for facilitating their sessions. Wishing you a very happy and restful break.

Ms Emily Ryan

Dean of Learning and Teaching.

“As well as learning together, it also provided a time to celebrate wins, sometimes sigh together in frustration and debrief alongside our colleagues at the end of a busy day.”