Knole Academy Teaching and Learning Book Final

HANDBOOK

TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

KNOLE ACADEMY MISSON STATEMENT Knole Academy is committed to the highest standards of teaching and learning thus ensuring that all students fulfil their potential in the taught curriculum and in extra and co�curricular activities.

We are aspirational in our targets and ambitious for our students in their academic and personal development. We aim to use external and internal expertise to provide opportunities for staff to feel valued and able to create an academy where all students understand and contribute to the local, national and global community.

CORE VALUES ASPIRATIONAL We have high expectations for every child regardless of background. The interests of students are always the priority in all decision making.

INSPIRATIONAL We intend to develop internationally minded leaners who recognise their common humanity and help create a better world.

ORGANISATIONAL Through partnership with all stakeholders we strive to ensure that no barriers are placed in the way of student achievement.

PRIORITIES The quality of teaching and learning is always the paramount principle within the academy.

The timetable and curriculum are strategically designed to maximise aims and objectives.

To embed the International Baccalaureate Learner Profile throughout the academy.

Publically and openly recognise students’ achievements and contributions.

Foster a lifelong love of learning.

The house structure promotes achievement and engagement.

The academy has a professional ethos built on mutual dignity and respect of all members.

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

TABLE OF CONTENTS Curriculum Intention Pathways Subject Allocation

Teaching and Learning Lesson planning Delivery Feedback and Assessment Teaching and Learning Team CPD and Share your Expertise Evidence Based Teaching IB Learner

The Student Teaching for Mastery Importance of Language Development SEND

Appendix

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE CURRICULUM

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

CURRICULUM

CURRICULUM Curriculum Intention Our fundamental purpose is to ensure that all learners achieve the highest standards in all aspects of the curriculum. We want to develop confident individuals who are able to live safe, healthy and fulfilling lives. Furthermore we aim to grow responsible citizens who can make a positive contribution to the global society.

In order to achieve these outcomes, it is essential that the curriculum is challenging to all, is designed to raise standards of attainment, and is broad with a balanced programme. Most importantly appropriate and relevant to our students.

Key Points Students are able to make accelerated progress over the 7 years of their time at the academy.

There is a balance between creative and academic studies.

Additional time is given to English and Mathematics to ensure students have the essential skills needed for life and to access the full curriculum.

Targeted support and additional challenge enables all students to make progress.

Additional time is available for sports, arts, and master classes through an embedded co� curricular programme.

Subject Leaders plan for a 3 year KS3 and 2 year KS4.

Citizenship is delivered in discreet lessons.

Learning Pathways Knole Academy offers discrete educational routes within a co�educational, all ability school.

Students who pass the Kent selective test or perform well in KS2 testing are offered a place in the Grammar stream. The Grammar stream is designed to allow students to start secondary school at an elevated level and ultimately maximise the opportunity to achieve the highest GCSE grades.

The High school stream remains just as ambitious, but there is more scope to select talent based and practical subjects. At the end of Year 9 students undertake a GCSE option process and are given the opportunity to follow an academic curriculum or one that follows a more vocational route.

All pathways provide access to the Sixth Form and a wide range of courses available in the IB programme. The curriculum is focused on facilitating subjects which allow the greatest scope for progression to Higher Education.

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CURRICULUM

Subject Allocation and Setting KS3 Year 7 Grammar Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 8 Mathematics 8 Science 8 Geography 3 History 3 French 4 Computer science 2 PE 4 Art 2 RE 1 Citizenship 1 3 Technology rotation (DT, graphics, textiles/food tech) Performing Arts Rotation (dance, 3 drama, music)

High Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 8 Mathematics 8 Science 8 Geography 3 History 3 MFL 4 ICT 2 PE 4 Art 2 RE 1 Citizenship 1 3 Technology rotation (DT, graphics, textiles/food tech) Performing Arts Rotation (dance, 3 drama, music)

Year 8 Grammar Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 8 Mathematics 8 Science 8 Geography 3 History 3 French 4 Computer science 2 PE 4 Art 2 RE 1 Citizenship 1 Technology rotation (DT, graphics, 3 textiles/food tech) Performing Arts Rotation (dance, 3 drama, music)

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High Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 8 Mathematics 8 Science 8 Geography 3 History 3 MFL 4 ICT 2 PE 4 Art 2 RE 1 Citizenship 1 Technology rotation (DT, graphics, 3 textiles/food tech) Performing Arts Rotation (dance, 3 drama, music)

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

CURRICULUM

Subject Allocation and Setting KS3 Year 9 Grammar and High Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 10 Mathematics 8 Science 10 Geography 3 History 3 French 4 PE 2 RE 1 Citizenship 1

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Year 9 KS3 Options All students choose 4 from the following: Art Graphics Textiles Food tech Design tech Dance Drama Music Computer science ICT

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

CURRICULUM

Subject Allocation and Setting KS4 Year 10 and 11: Core Curriculum Grammar Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 10 Mathematics 8 Science 10 MFL 4 PE 2

High Subject Allocation over 2 week timetable English 10 Mathematics 8 Science 10 Creative iMedia 2 PE 4

GCSE Options: Grammar All students choose 4 of the following Each option has 4 lessons a fortnight Ebacc options (must choose at least 1) History Geography Business Studies Child Development Citizenship Computer Science Dance Design Technology Drama Fine Art Food Preparation and Nutrition Graphics Hair and Beauty Level 2 Creative iMedia Media Studies Music Photography PE Psychology Sociology Spanish Sports Science Textiles Triple Science

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High All students choose 4 of the following Each option has 4 lessons a fortnight Ebacc options (must choose at least 1) Computer Science French Geography History Spanish Business Studies Child Development Citizenship Dance Design Technology Drama Fine Art Food Preparation and Nutrition Graphics Hair and Beauty Level 1 Hair and Beauty Level 2 Media Studies Music Photography PE Psychology Sociology Textiles Triple Science

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

CURRICULUM

Subject Allocation and Setting KS5 Year 12 Level 3 courses All subjects are allocated 10 periods in a 2 week timetable.

The IBCP Core is also allocated 10 periods in a 2 week timetable.

Students following IBCP pathway take 2 diploma lines and 1 Career Related Study plus the core.

They can take 3 or 4 subjects with no more than 1 subject in each vertical block.

Key: CRS IB Diploma Block A Finance Physics

Block B Business Chemistry

Block C ITGS Biology

Block D Applied Law Mathematics Business

Art Film Studies

Drama Graphics

Photography

Fashion English Music

Criminology History

Social/Cult Anthrop.

Geography

Politics Criminology

Psychology English

Health and Social Film Studies

Sport Engineering

Finance

Applied Law Mathematics

Level 2 courses These are full time courses taught over 1 year.

Hairdressing Culinary Skills

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CURRICULUM

Subject Allocation and Setting KS5 Year 13 All subjects are allocated 10 periods in a 2 week timetable.

Students can take an IBCP pathway, vocational pathway, A’ level pathway or a hybrid model.

They can take 3 or 4 subjects with no more than 1 subject from each vertical block.

Key: IB Diploma Vocational A’ Level Block A Criminology Photography Finance Biology

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Block B Film Studies Business Psychology Geography

Block C Social/Cult Anth ITGS Art/Graphics Politics Music

Block D Applied Law Mathematics Mathematics Textiles

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

Block E Heath and Social Marketing Sport Sociology English Lit Chemistry

TEACHING AND LEARNING

TEACHING AND LEARNING

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

TEACHING AND LEARNING ‘Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn’

We regard all students as intelligent individuals and look to foster knowledgeable and enquiring minds. We believe all students can exceed their expectations, no matter what their prior attainment and experience. From KS3 through to the end of KS5 our pursuit is to develop students who are curious, resourceful, imaginative, thoughtful and independent.

With good teaching, students will acquire knowledge and with guidance will learn to think about, apply and evaluate their knowledge.

We look to our teaching staff to continually improve their own knowledge and understand that the world is a rapidly changing place where students are required to adapt at every corner.

We embrace educational research and look to deliver a range of teaching and learning strategies that encourage, stimulate and develop each and every student.

Lesson Planning There is an expectation that all lessons are planned; planning can be noted in your Teacher Planner or in any other suitable format. You should ensure your planning is accessible for quality assurance purposes. Lesson planning should be informed by the departments’ long terms plans and schemes of work.

The Knole Academy lesson planning pro‐forma (Appendix 1) should be used for lesson observations and is a guide to what we expect. Seating plans are also required for lesson observations. We strongly believe that ‘one size does not fit all’, and encourage staff to consider this when planning lessons. Detailed guidance on lesson planning can be found in the section ‘Delivery’.

There is no expectation that a lesson is presented through PowerPoint. There has been much debate as to the efficacy of PowerPoint as a default planning and delivery tool. We ask teaching staff to be aware of students becoming over‐reliant on PowerPoint and to turn off the presentation at appropriate intervals throughout the lesson and engage students in a variety of tasks.

As with all things educational, recommended pedagogy changes. We want teachers to experiment and take risks. Each week your department will allocate a lesson where you are encouraged to trial new ideas and approaches to teaching and learning in your subject. A key skill of any expert is the ability to reflect and evaluate therefore we do not expect every new strategy to work and failure is just as important as success.

Key Planning Questions 1.

2.

3.

4.

What can my students currently do?

What do my students need to understand next?

What will they do to generate those understandings?

How will we all know they have been successful?

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Delivery There are certain key features teaching staff should consider when planning and delivering a lesson. The following guidance is based on the questions asked on our lesson observation report (Appendix 2) and therefore provides a clear indication of expectation. However, the suggestions and advice provided are by no means definitive or absolute.

Key Features of a lesson  Is feedback given and are assessment opportunities aligned to goals and objectives?

There are many assessment and feedback opportunities in a lesson. ‐ Planning the lesson as a learning journey allows for appropriate pauses to gather feedback and assess progress. ‐ A learning journey framed within a success criteria provides opportunity to assess and confirm understanding. ‐ General questions such as: What are we trying to achieve? What do we want to achieve? What will it look like? Will help when writing a specific success criteria. ‐ Using student friendly assessment objectives for KS4 are useful for outlining success criterion. ‐ Question and answer sessions are often the most frequently used strategy but how effective are these sessions? Are you simply repeating the task? Is there a need to take feedback at the end of every activity? Use more effective ways to gather feedback – quizzes, students set questions, maybe move on to next task because you know from circulating the room that over 90% of the class are on track. ‐ Be aware of peer assessment, this is really only successful with high ability students and very clear prescribed guidelines. ‐ The most common feedback given to students is through discussion work and individual chat. How as a teacher do we know if a student has listened and then acted on the feedback given? It can be useful to formalise this process by simply asking the whole class to list together key feedback points at intervals, or to note at the end of the lesson the areas for improvement suggested by the teacher throughout the lesson – ensure the students are active in understanding any feedback given. ‐ If you wish students to engage in written feedback then appropriate time must be given to this activity; the most effective responses to written feedback is correction and improvement of work according to feedback.  Is the teacher’s communication of high quality, are instructions given with clarity?

To ensure student success, it is essential for the whole class to understand instructions and explanations. ‐ Voice control and body language are of vital importance when addressing the class. ‐ Only raise your voice when absolutely necessary, a calm quiet voice is more effective than a shout. ‐ Don’t underestimate the power of a whisper ‐ Your voice can become white noise and students will swiftly disengage if teacher talk becomes overly long.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

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Negative body language will result in negative behaviour and responses. Do not cross your arms unless you wish to demonstrate anger.

Do you ensure that all students are looking at you when giving instructions? Are there some prompts to support instructions once given?

Depending on the class, are complex instructions given in stages?

Are you able to adapt instructions using a variety of methods?

 Are high expectations set and does the teacher value all of the students in the lesson?

Your success criteria will establish the expectation of the lesson. ‐ High expectations will encourage the lowest attaining students to progress more rapidly and therefore teaching to the highest denominator will stretch and challenge all students. ‐ Be fair and expect the same from every student – inconsistency will lead mistrust. ‐ To ensure that all students are included, use a name selector app or old fashioned lollipops. ‐ Students are usually respectful when correct behaviour is modelled by teachers, it is therefore important to show gratitude and kindness to all students. ‐ Are students able to risk giving the wrong answer or worse still not know an answer?  Does the teacher maximise learning time and deal with disruptions effectively?

Time versus quality of outcome ‐ Unfortunately teachers have been led to believe that planning for many tasks results in better lessons, but do they increase learning and knowledge? ‐ If you want your students to produce a quality piece of work then this will take some time, maybe a whole lesson for a quality piece of writing. It is difficult to see that anyone can write a paragraph in 5 minutes. ‐ It is vital that enough time is given to FINISH a task. If a student never finishes a piece of work then why should they even begin. ‐ Have you built in time to think? Thinking will lead to far better outcomes and produce inquiring minds. ‐ Focus on the student’s learning and not on their behaviour. Debates about behaviour will waste valuable time and distract others in the class. ‐ Carefully consider the transition time between tasks as disruption will be kept to a minimum if expectations are made clear and resources are organised. ‐ To ensure a controlled and managed lesson, a prompt and purposeful start to the lesson is imperative.  Are all students involved in the lesson and does the teacher take student differences into account?

I am a very able student but will choose not to complete the extension task or offer an answer because I’m inherently lazy! ‐ Students are different in many ways, not just ability; some are loud, some are shy, some are determined and self‐motivated. When planning it is essential you know your students.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

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If you plan group work, ensure that one individual does not take over; allocate roles and responsibilities within the group.

Think about pair work, are they able to motivate each other?

Ask questions directly to students adapting your wording and difficulty of questions depending on the student.

If you know you have a particularly shy student then ask the questions directly one to one.

If you teach to the highest common denominator then you do not need extension tasks, you need to scaffold for those who might find the work challenging.

Lack of language acquisition is often the cause for slow progress – subject specific language must be explained and contextualised. Vocabulary/terminology mats are a good scaffolding tool.

Scaffold the thinking for those who are finding it difficult.

It is often useful to allow the students to verbalise their learning, so think carefully about asking students to write everything down.

 Is the teacher able to engage the students?

Do your students want to study your subject at GCSE, in the 6th Form and then at university. If not, why not? ‐ No matter the constraints of the curriculum and or examination specification, at no point should your students dislike your subject? ‐ Your subject knowledge should encourage students to ask questions – to establish a line of inquiry. ‐ Is your subject contextualised within the world our students live? ‐ Is the history and development of your subject shown to be relevant and significant to our lives and our communities? ‐ Students will often make more sense of knowledge when it is shown to relate to another subject studied. ‐ Students may be better in other subjects and therefore drawing their attention to cross curricular skills may enable them to access you subject and engage more positively.  Does the teacher show good questioning skills?

Do you ever prepare your questions and are you willing to accept the wrong answer? ‐ Planning questions can be difficult, but thinking about the type of questions you want to ask is vital. ‐ Questions can be used for a variety of different purposes: to check comprehension, to prompt memory and retrieval skills, to consider possible outcomes – ‘what if’, give directions, ‘can you’ and so on. ‐ When was the last time you looked at or considered Blooms Taxonomy, to enhance critical thinking questions? (Appendix 3)

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

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Do you keep asking the same question until you get the right answer and is their only one right answer?

Students writing questions is a valuable task, but ensure that you have modelled and given clear guidance as to the purpose of the questions being formulated.

Do you want a question to be answered as soon as you ask it? Think about when you ask questions and time given to answering questions.

It is okay for a teacher not to know the answer to a question, but it’s not okay for a question to be left unanswered – someone should try and find out the answer.

 Does the teacher use a variety of teaching methods and strategies?

Routine versus change ‐ How often do your classes walk into your classroom and find the unexpected? ‐ Do the students know that after you have set a task you will provide answers at the end of the task? What would happen if you didn’t give the answers? ‐ Is it necessary for students to write in every lesson ‐ do you ever practice listening skills? ‐ Do you use the same format for every class or consider the difference in class ability, size and gender split? ‐ If you are studying the same types of text, do you approach it with the same formula every time – how useful is this? ‐ Routine is useful and does have a place but it can hinder critical thinking and limit development of ideas. ‐ Do all tasks/activities have to be active – can some be thinking tasks? ‐ Are you always centre of the learning – what happens if you become invisible for 30 minutes of the lesson? Explain to the students what you are not going to do and how they can think for themselves or ask each other or look in a book. Do not circulate, do not answer questions, simply watch? ‐ Are students confined by the expectations of sitting in a chair at a desk? Can more creativity be injected to a mundane environment – how about a working wall?  Is the lesson planned effectively?

What is the purpose of the lesson and what should the students have learned by the end of the lesson? ‐ A lesson objective is for the teacher and not just a phrase stated on PowerPoint for students to write passively into an exercise book. ‐ A learning goal/objective for one lesson is part of a long term aim.

- Realistically, on average maybe 1‐3 skills and some small amount of knowledge can be taught or attained in a one hour. Anything more becomes superficial and lacks depth and detail. ‐ A lesson is not about filling time or blank space in an exercise book. ‐ One hour is not a long time. Do not waste time with overly long verbose introductions.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

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Plan tasks in real time allocating time for thinking and writing if appropriate.

 Does the lesson present as part of a long term plan?

Is the learning journey for each of your classes made clear throughout each half term? ‐ Contextualise the learning within the long term plan. ‐ Demonstrate and explain the link to prior learning and where it will link up in the future. ‐ Use retrieval strategies to engage with prior learning. ‐ Can students link and use prior learning when appropriate?  Does the teacher demonstrate good subject and pedagogical knowledge?

Do you believe you are an expert in your subject? ‐ Key subject terminology is used with confidence. ‐ Lexicon of subject used fluently and modelled consistently. ‐ If you don’t know the answer, you know where to look for the answer. ‐ You ask probing, philosophical and ethical questions relating to historical and current debates surrounding your subject. ‐ You are aware of current thinking and pedagogy specific to your subject. ‐ Opportunities are given to discussion of your subject at higher levels of study and employment.  Is the teacher able to reflect on her/his own practice?

Can you adapt a lesson quickly and effectively? ‐ If students are moving quickly through the lesson with relative ease and competence, are you prepared to move with them and find greater challenge? ‐ Conversely are you able to slow down, recap and revisit the learning if students are struggling and not comprehending? ‐ Are you able to evaluate when instructions are not clear, and vary the delivery and style of instruction?

 Does the lesson promote active learning and develop metacognition skills?

Are students are aware of how they learn?

Is learning given a context, day, time, environment.

Students are encouraged to revisit prior learning by referencing books, retrieval strategies, emotional connections.

- Are there clear links to prior learning and future learning?

- Knowledge banks are designed and embedded to ensure memory fluency.

- Are students able to reflect and evaluate their own learning – given appropriate time?

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Marking and Assessment Each department has a marking policy which can be amended at the discretion of the Subject Leader and in consultation with the department. Marking should give a clear indication to a student of what they have done well and what they need to do to improve. Departments set assessment windows in line with whole school data collections each full term, but can include further assessments if necessary. The academy recommends departments limit assessment opportunities to once a half term.

Parents and students are given a breakdown of attainment, progress and attitude to learning grades at the end of every half term. This is then discussed with a member of staff on our academic tracking days held at the end each term.

The Teaching and Learning Team The Teaching and Learning Team are responsible for lesson observations; this is an equitable and transparent programme allowing for colleagues to share and learn from each other.

Teaching staff are invited at the beginning of the academic year to apply for a position on the team; this offer is open to all teaching staff without restrictions. Meetings are held once every four weeks where discussions of teaching and learning across the academy take place.

Training is provided on lesson observations and lesson observations are non-judgmental.

There may be opportunity to expand roles within the team such as; undertaking specific support roles for developing staff, leading on specific learning initiatives, and leading cross department collaborative teaching and learning meetings.

CPD and Sharing your Expertise Our CPD programme allows staff to choose training that will specifically enhance their subject knowledge, staff can source their own training and submit a CPD/INSET form. We are mindful that individual training needs can change throughout the academic year, therefore, we do not hold any compulsory all staff CPD sessions unless there is fundamental policy or curriculum change. We do offer specialist themed training and Educational Discourse sessions in response to the AIP and staff requirements throughout the year. These sessions are limited to 12�15 places within a two week booking window prior to delivery date. Notification of sessions are sent via email and the sessions are delivered by a variety of staff members.

Each member of staff has their own CPD file where all training is recorded, including lesson observations and research papers, as well as annual appraisal paperwork. The CPD file is integral to all staff appraisal and is referenced throughout the appraisal process. CPD and appraisal files are private and can only be accessed by the staff member, Subject Leader, Head Teacher, Senior Deputy Head Teacher, and Deputy Head responsible for CPD. Each year the academy publishes the required amount of CPD hours for all staff to complete.

There is a minimum threshold requirement but no maximum limit of CPD hours.

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THE STUDENT Evidence Based Teaching For us to remain in touch with current thinking and also consider the revolving nature of education we encourage staff to undertake a research project. This can form part of your annual CPD training. EBT meetings are held regularly to support colleagues, we also work in collaboration with Sevenoaks School and CamStar for some EBT projects.

Research projects should firstly consider the needs of the academy, and or department development. Please refer to the Academy Improvement Plan for our three year vision and actions for the current academic year. Research projects are shared with the whole school and published on the website.

We also work with other institutions and educational bodies to conduct research. Staff are invited to partake in these projects for usually one year.

If you are interested in participating in any of these projects please speak with the Deputy Head for CPD.

IB World School As an IB World School we embed the values and ethos of the International Baccalaureate within the taught curriculum and wider school life. It is our vison that students who attend Knole Academy have a sense of who and where they are in the world, and that they share a common philosophy of inclusivity and tolerance of all within the school, local and global communities.

Staff should try to provide opportunity in lessons for students and fulfil the 10 key IB learner profiles: Enquirers Knowledgeable Thinkers Communicators Principled Open�minded Risk Takers Balanced Reflective Our Students should be taught to think for themselves and drive the learning process.

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THE STUDENT

THE STUDENT

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THE STUDENT

THE STUDENT ‘The student should remain central to all pedagogy, planning and policy.’

Our guidance to lesson delivery and planning are real time observations and advice. Our next section looks to illustrate and exemplify practice that drives progress at all levels and requires reflective analysis of approaches and the importance of knowledge.

Teaching for Mastery In secondary schools ‘mastery’ is a term associated with teaching Mathematics effectively, however, it is also a level descriptor awarded to those students in Year 6 at primary school who perform above expected progress at the end of the year. Primary school teachers are trained to teach mastery across the curriculum thus striving for their students to become experts. Therefore it seems a little wasteful not to continue with mastery pedagogy across the secondary curriculum and ignore the research and findings of some of the most respected educationalists of our time.

It is impossible to summarise in a ‘Teaching and Learning Guide’ nearly 80 years of th educational research of mastery techniques. Bloom and Washburne in the early 20 Century clearly identified the limitations of state schooling; nearly a century later it is questionable how far we have moved on and how much have we really grasped Bloom’s ‘mastery model for schooling’. Is it time to readdress the conveyor belt of schooling – a system that focuses on coverage rather than learning.

Core Elements of Mastery 

Mastery is about becoming more expert, not about mastering things.

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Teachers should not focus on what they have taught but what the students have learnt. If a student has not learned what I as the teacher, want them to, the conclusion is that the teaching has not been effective. I must reflect on my instruction – do I have a range of approaches, do I model, do I provide evidence based instruction?

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Planning instruction is vital in ensuring that a student’s attention is drawn to the relevant information and ideas.

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Regular low-stakes or no-stakes quizzing is a key element of mastery. Testing is used to enhance learning.

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All teachers appreciate that all students can learn all things expected of them given the right amount of time and the appropriate conditions.

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Teachers should strive to be subject experts.

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Thinking time must be focused and specific.

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Learning journeys should be clearly mapped and shared with students. As the learning

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THE STUDENT journey is revealed, students can make new connections, revisit ideas and build on previous understanding. 

If a student cannot solve a problem it is because they do not have the toolkit to overcome it.

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There is no point whatsoever in asking students to carry out tasks if they have no way of becoming successful in time. Success breeds success.

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Mastery is not simply acquiring knowledge or an idea, it is becoming an expert where ideas grow and develop and, as new knowledge is acquired, a student can interrelate ideas, thinking is fluent and learning becomes easy.

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Strike a balance between teacher‐directed methods and inquiry methods.

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Inquiry is an intellectually demanding process and should not be paired with ‘discovery learning’. When carrying out inquiry, students draw on embedded knowledge and understanding - this relies on students having the required knowledge in place.

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Retrieval strategies will embed knowledge.

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Recognise student’s efforts – effort matters.

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Be honest with students and parents. Those who recognise the importance of their own effort will determine their own success. If they are making little effort then they need to be told.

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Ensure all students are learning the right level of content for the right amount of time.

When taught at the right level all pupils can learn at pace.

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The students will consider the information important when they have faith in the person telling them the new knowledge. The teacher must establish a relationship so the student trusts them and has belief in their assertions. The student must believe that the teacher is a carrier of truth.

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT

Language Development

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT In order for students to maximise their achievement in all subjects, they need to be able to speak, listen, read and write well and with confidence; language and learning are intrinsically linked.

For long-term sustainable improvement in student attainment and to support the development of happy and healthy young people beyond school, good literacy is the key.

Young people have an innate ability to learn language; by the age of 8 they have mastered basic language structures and then begin develop language skills through experience and knowledge.

Additionally, they are successfully moving through their psychosocial development resulting in a healthy personality and the acquisition of basic virtues.

Language Development through Adolescence We know children develop language fluency well before adolescence - their oral and written language use evolves over the teen years. During this time; • students demonstrate improvement in abstract thinking skills, which will enable them to make word associations and understand syntax better.

• Physical changes in the portion of the brain associated with language learning begin in early childhood but decline dramatically after age 12. In the teen years, there is growth in the frontal lobe, where cognitive processing takes place. The temporal lobe is associated with language.

• Due to social and emotional developments within adolescence and the emergence of social media, recent research shows teenagers pare down their daily vocabulary to just 800 words, although they know an average of 40,000 words.

• Children’s declining reading comprehension largely results from a lack of vocabulary knowledge this is primarily caused by a lack of learning opportunities, not a lack of natural ability.

Language in the Classroom Each subject requires a slightly different nuanced approach to language and we must move away from viewing literacy/language as a generic tool applied in the same way to each subject. Each subject has its own disciplinary literacy and this will apply to not only to subject specific vocabulary but also reading strategies and writing formats. For example predictions in English and Science are similar but have nuanced differences that need to be exemplified and modelled. A reading source in history would be very different to reading a novel in English. Students must be made aware of and explicitly taught these subject specific literacy strategies. Also note that different subject disciplines draw upon varied academic codes – science and mathematics texts encompass words, symbols, graphs and diagrams whereas English, MFL and history share a more traditional academic text.

Every subject has its own language and this code needs to be communicated to our novice students if they are going to flourish academically.

Word rich Classrooms Reading is and always has been the reliable method by which to broaden and deepen a student’s vocabulary, Students also need to immerse in rich academic talk. This can then lead to making word categories and connections, to then word play. By following these four strands we can begin to develop our own word rich classroom.

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THE STUDENT

Reading with purpose and pleasure

Academic talk Word rich Classrooms

Making connections and categorising

Word play

Brief Strategies for Language Development that can be made subject specific; a short description is provided if it is not self-explanatory. This is by no means an exhaustive list. 

Word walls



Knowledge Organisers with words glossaries



Reading aloud – allows for those who may have trouble accessing the text independently to check understanding. Only ask the confident to read complex texts.



Reciprocal Reading – Assign roles to group whilst reading to engage in discussion of text.

Roles include summarizer, clarifier, questioner and predictor. If necessary ensure individual roles are explained prior to starting task.



Writing to consolidate reading – help students make well organised and sophisticated notes, such as triplicate note-making, three columns; 1 core information, 2 key questions and 3 memorable words, images, symbols.



Dictionary training



Model academic talk and talk like an expert



Signpost synonyms



Give students plenty of time to explain and formulate explanations using academic talk.



Etymology quizzes and questions set by the students



Word maps – the teacher offers a model to unpick a complex word or concept with multiply related meanings.

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT 

Concept maps – a hierarchical model for connections and organising key words and ideas that define a concept.



Word categories



Word ladders – encourage students to try words at the top of the ladder, ladders can be created by students.



Word pairs – pair up real and fake words, play with prefixes, good for prior learning.



Word of the week

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT

Concept Map

Rocks

Sedimentary

Sandstone

Metamorphic

Shale

Word Map

Limestone

Word Ladder

Vectors and scalers

repugnant

grotesque

Forces between objects

Forces

Leavers and gears hideous

Resultant forces

unsightly

ugly

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT

SEND Knole Academy follows the graduated approach when supporting students with SEN. The responsibility and accountability for the progress and development of students with SEN lies with the subject teacher.

SEN students aren’t those with low ability but those students that have a specific barrier to their learning, in one or more of the 4 areas of need; Cognition and Learning, Communication and Interaction, Physical/Sensory Needs and/or Social Emotional Mental Health.

The graduated approach will only secure good outcomes for vulnerable students if: ‐ ‐ ‐

all those who teach and support students with SEN have the highest aspirations for them. those who lead and manage provision demonstrate an ambitious vision and plan of action to enable this to happen. an identification of SEN should not result in excuses for lack of expected progress or a lowering of expectations.

APDR Cycle (Assess, Plan, Do and Review) Assess: Teachers should aim to gain a growing understanding of a student’s needs. This is a precondition to planning effective teaching, determining appropriate provision, informing adjustments to teaching that will lead to good progress and improved outcomes for students.

Plan: Teachers gain a growing understanding of what teaching approaches work. This part of the graduated approach cycle will be most effective when teachers, working with the SENCO, have completed a thorough assessment of a student’s needs during the ‘assess’ phase described earlier. For students requiring SEN support, there are two areas that need to be considered when planning provision: High‐quality class and/or subject teaching, targeted provision.

Do: Teachers gain a growing understanding of effective support. The SEND Code of Practice (2014) emphasises that the teacher has day‐to‐day responsibility for the learning and progress of all students. It also sets out the role of the SENCO. It is important that teachers work closely with teaching assistants or other specialist staff to plan and assess the impact of targeted interventions. This planning and review time should be planned for explicitly and take place regularly.

Review: Teachers should continually review students’ progress, formally and informally, and this should be no different for students with SEN. This level of support should be recorded and added to the student’s learning plan on Edukey. ‘How to guides’ can be found in Edukey via HELP. AEN are there to support teachers with each stage of the cycle, and are working with targeted students that, despite targeted/evidenced interventions from the class teacher, are not making progress.

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

THE STUDENT There are teacher checklists in Resources 20AEN, to support teachers, as well training materials.

Interventions and information from external agencies including reports are stored on Edukey. An up to date SEND register can be found also in Resources 20AEN, this gives details of needs as well as Access Arrangements. Queries should be directed to the senco@knoleacademy.org as this mailbox is monitored by the AEN admin team.

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

SYSTEMS GUIDE

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

SYSTEMS GUIDE

APPENDIX

TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

APPENDIX

Knole Academy Lesson Planning Pro forma Teacher Name

Teaching Room

Year/Class/Set

Class information (e.g. PP/SEND/EAL)

Date/Time/Number of Students (Girls/Boys) Topic/unit Relevant Prior Learning

Learning objective/s: (not an activity)

Learning outcomes: (something measurable)

Resources:

Important Vocabulary

Lesson Plan Time

Teacher Activity

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Student Activity

Key questions and assessment

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

IPG

APPENDIX

IPG – Individual, Paired, Group

Lesson Observation Protocol Lesson plans should be submitted 24hrs prior to observation Feedback should be given with 48hrs of observation Feedback forms are given to Sam Ireland in HR – copies will then be emailed to relevant colleagues. Once received lesson feedback forms should be kept in individual CPD files.

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KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

APPENDIX Knole Academy Lesson Observation Report

Teacher:

Date and time:

Year Group/Ability

Subject:

Observer:

Observation Focus:

Key Features of the lesson: In order to provide effective support and feedback please indicate whether the following were observed using the following criteria: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5. 

Not evidenced Inconsistently evidenced with limited impact Some evidence with some impact Evidenced consistently with sound impact Exemplary practice Is feedback given and are assessment opportunities aligned to goals and objectives?



Is the teacher’s communication of high quality and are instructions given with clarity?



Are high expectations set and does the teacher value all of the students in the lesson?



Does the teacher maximise learning time and deal with disruptions effectively?



Are all the students involved in the lesson and does the teacher take student differences into account?



Is the teacher able to engage the students?



Does the teacher show good questioning skills?



Does the teacher use a variety of teaching methods and strategies?



Is the lesson planned effectively?



Does the lesson present as part of a long term?



Does the teacher demonstrate good subject and pedagogical knowledge?



Is the teacher able to reflect on her/his own practice?



Does the lesson promote active learning and develop metacognition skills?

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APPENDIX

Progress and Strengths – identified in the lesson:

Targets – identify development:

areas

of Ways of addressing targets:

Signed: Teacher ………………………………

Observer …………………………………

Feedback given – date: …………………..

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK 36 | P a g e

Date…………………………………

APPENDIX

CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS name

locate match

recall spell

tell underline

memorize

? ? ? ?

How

?

Describe

What is

?

restate retell in your own words rewrtie

paraphrase putIn order

Whot differences exist between Can you write a brief outline?

Re-tell In your own words.

What Is the main Idea of ?

apply compute draw

construct

find out

an example of related to significant?

make operate

?

contrast

diagram

debate deduct

dlfferentlote dissect

compare

determine the factors

distinguish

What are the parts or features of according to

state a rule or principle

use

?

Do you know of another Instance where Could this have happened In ?

?

analyze categorize classfiy

Classify

?

show solve

conclude

How is How Is Why Is

trace translate

_? _

How does

examine infer

specify

compare/contrast with _?

What evidence can you present for

?

Outilneldlagramtweblmap -----

formulate generate

pretend produce

invent

rearrange

originate plan

reconstruct reorganize

What would you predict/infer from What ideas can you add to ?

How would you create/design a new

? ?

decide defend evaluate g'i!!}'O.JIL2 Do you agree that ? Explain.

What do you think about ?

What is most important?

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suggest suppose visualize wrtie

What solutions would you suggest for What might happen If you combined with ?

?

judge justify prioritize

an

Prioritize according to ?

How would you decide about ?

What criteria would you use to assess

KNOLE ACADEMY TEACHING AND LEARNING HANDBOOK

?