CST Habits Issue 7

habits. everyday excellence

Issue 7 December 2023

HOW LITERACY IS THE LIFEBLOOD OF WA “Pride in their progress is the oxygen that empowers our students to move forward.”

STRAWBERRIES “what is the next action?”

DELIBERATE PRACTICE: THE GOLDEN THREAD OF EFFECTIVE PD “If you never push beyond your comfort zone, you’ll never improve.”

HABITS • Issue 07

CONTENTS Highlights and contributors

page 3

Strawberries

By Simon Elliott

page 4

Practice makes permanent: our first lesson back

page 6

Deliberate practice: the golden thread of effective PD

page 9

By Thahmina Begum

By Rob Clark

Cultivating Classroom Excellence

page 12

By Mehak Yusuf

Designing a curriculum for MAS

page 14

Why literacy is the lifeblood of WA

page 16

By Charlotte Clifford

By Marina Angadi

Raising standards

page 17

By Omar Deria

Marigolds and motivation

page 18

By Thahmina Begum

Scan this to read previous issues!

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Contributors

habits. everyday excellence

TB’S TOP PICKS Thahmina Begum’s top picks this issue.

CONTRIBUTORS

Thahmina Begum Executive headteacher

Community Schools Trust

Strawberries Simon Elliott softens life’s difficult choices with the option of strawberries. It’s short and sweet, just like the fruit.

Simon Elliott CEO

Community Schools Trust

Charlotte Clifford Teacher University Technical College Norfolk

Deliberate Practice: the Golden Thread of Effective PD Rob Clark makes the case for deliberate practice; we can’t just do more of the same. Read on to find out exactly what we must do instead.

Why Literacy is the Lifeblood of WA Marina Angadi explores just how fundamental literacy teaching is in the lives of our students - no matter our subject.

Mehak Yusuf Lead Practitioner

Cumberland Community School

Rob Clark Deputy Headteacher

Forest Gate Community School

Omar Deria Executive Headteacher The Petchey Academy

Raising standards Omar Deria shares the TPA journey towards excellence. The task at hand is tough, but the message is clear. Read on to find out.

Marina Angadi Lead Practitioner Waterside Academy

Designed and edited by Zubaydah Tasnim, CST 03 // HABITS // DECEMBER 2023

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HABITS • Issue 07

STRAW

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Strawberries

BERRIES

By Simon Elliott, CST

At the end of The Dice Man, the protagonist finds himself in a tricky spot. Escaping capture for heinous crimes, he has fallen over a cliff edge. Grasping onto a vine halfway down the mountain, he looks up, sees the police, and a certain life sentence; below, certain death. As he contemplates these unpleasant outcomes he glimpses something nearby: wild strawberries. “Aha” he thinks - another choice.

Loosely based on a Zen teaching, the ending (and the book) constantly reminds us that we have choice and agency in life. The choices might not be what we want them to be, and might not solve all of our problems, but they do exist.

I’m reminded of this daily as we attempt to make things better for children or colleagues in school. Some situations seem so difficult that the temptation to give in to hopelessness is strong. But it’s rare that nothing can be done.

Next time you find yourself in a seemingly hopeless situation in school, ask yourself or your colleagues this question: “what is the next action?” No matter how difficult the situation, I bet you find some strawberries somewhere.

Articles mentioned:

The Tiger and the Strawberry Dr. Munr Kazmir

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HABITS • Issue 07

We started the year pledging to move from ‘proficiency’ to becoming ‘expert’ in our performance in the classroom.

In this EEF review identifying the characteristics of more effective professional development (2021), the authors point to a consensus in the following core mechanisms existing in instructional coaching: Goal setting: coaches and/or coachees identify specific, focused areas of improvement for coachees.

Feedback: coaches provide feedback following observations of coachee practice.

Instruction OR modelling: point coachees toward improvements in practice.

coaches specific

Rehearsal OR context specific repetition: instructional coaching always involves deliberate practice of new techniques, outside or inside the classroom.

Bambrick-Santoyo, 2018; Gallucci et al., 2010; Gregory et al., 2017; Joyce & Showers, 1981; Knight, 2007; Kraft, Blazar & Hogan, 2018

At Community Schools Trust (CST), we have attempted to embed these core mechanisms across our various T&L systems in order to ‘get better faster’: Goal setting: we set goals in every CPD session as well as with our assigned subject specific coaches Feedback: we receive live feedback from our assigned coaches and can keep a track of our progress on our school portals.

Instruction OR modelling: we discuss specific models of improvement using our T&L playbook, via our department CPD sessions and concentrations with out coaches Rehearsal OR context specific repetition: we rehearse a technique with each other before we go ‘live’ in the classroom, taking note of our ‘high frequency errors’ and ‘what a good one looks like’ – usually a video of one or more of our staff members strutting their stuff in the classroom!

Today’s post will focus on this last core

mechanism: ‘rehearsal specific repetition’.

OR

context

Rehearsal Love it or hate it, ‘role play’ is a regular feature of our CPD. From our trainees to our veteran teachers, at CST, we embrace the benefits of ‘deliberately practising’ a technique in the safe space of our CPD session before we go ‘live’ in the classroom. Yes, at times it can be corny, other times a bit of a laugh, but importantly, we achieve two things: 1. We get a bit of intellectual preparation done for an upcoming lesson 2. We have the space to fine tune a teaching practice without the pressures and cognitive load of a classroom environment However, one problem with rehearsal is what Mary Kennedy refers to as a ‘problem of enactment’ – ‘teachers can learn and espouse one idea, yet continue enacting a different idea, out of habit, without even noticing the contradiction’ – otherwise known as ‘the knowing-doing gap’.

The knowing-doing gap Even when we know a strategy will improve our teaching (and we may even advocate it), we don’t end up doing it ourselves.

This ‘knowing-doing gap’ is a common pitfall in our profession and one of the reasons is because even though we might know what to do (via our CPD and our playbook), we haven’t rehearsed enough outside the classroom for it to manifest inside the busy context of a lesson. And old habits die hard; we need to apply adequate attention to establishing a new habit. (Peps Mccrea) Paul Cline sums up our thinking well: ‘Is it going to afford a significant enough impact that it’s worth the investment of my time and effort, the tedious teething troubles, and the inevitable slump in performance as my mental bandwidth becomes overloaded with trying to do something new? Can I be bothered?’

(Getting over the knowing-doing gap)

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Practice makes permanent

By Thahmina Begum, CST

Practice makes permanent: our first lesson back Can I be bothered?

Let’s focus on this for a moment.

A full day of teaching, lunch duty in the rain, you have to deal with an incident during the one break you have to use the loo, a looming pile of unmarked assessments that has followed you over half term break… and now you have to do this thing that will improve checking for understanding in your lessons?

Given everything else you have to do, sometimes (or often), you can’t be bothered…

I totally get it. The thing is though, no matter how long we do the job, the challenges we face in the classroom won’t improve unless we confront them.

We know that expertise doesn’t necessarily lie in years of experience: we become ‘novices’ in new contexts. For example, think about when you had to teach in a new classroom, teach an unfamiliar topic, take on a new class, come back from a school holiday and teach sleep deprived, suddenly amnesic teenagers… we know the struggles too well!

In Kennedy’s (2015) fascinating paper, Parsing the practice of teaching, we learn that whatever our experience or context, every single one of us will face the following ‘persistent challenges’ in teaching: Portraying the curriculum Enlisting student participation Exposing student thinking Containing student behaviour Accommodating personal needs

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Often, one challenge will feed into more challenges! For example, if you don’t contain student behaviour, you will struggle to portray the curriculum, enlist student participation and expose student thinking.

Kennedy argues that we should frame our thinking around these persistent challenges before providing particular teaching strategies as part of our professional development.

If we have any hope in tackling these persistent challenges, we need to be bothered!

That’s why, this year, we’re taking ‘rehearsal’ and ‘containing student behaviour’ to a new level as part of our professional development:

The first lesson back After we rehearse a teaching practice with each other in CPD, the first time we try it out for real, is with our classes.

What if we had the space to practise these techniques with our students too?

What if our students were in on our efforts to perfect particular routines that serve to enhance their learning?

This is what we aim to do in our first lesson back.

You will see the walkthrough of the play you need to master with your class You will be provided with the ‘content’ and questions you will use to execute the play The content provided focuses on deliberately teaching our school values. For example, this term’s focus is on having an ‘attitude of gratitude’.

Share your objective of perfecting the routine with the class so that it is a shared endeavour.

Repetition to achieve the highest standard is key.

Here’s an excerpt from Feely and Karlin’s ‘The Teaching and Learning Playbook, which I think provides a pretty good ‘why’ behind our first lessons back: Repetition is powerful because it enables students to immediately compare their latest attempt to their first attempt, and builds a culture in which things can always be done better.

Excerpt from our first lesson back instructions: Your objective: to master the play with your class – focus on this rather than the content of the teaching. If this means repeating more than once or twice, do this.

ge page xtpa next theene onth ueddon Co ntininue Cont

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HABITS • Issue 07

Hattie Effect Size: Deliberate practice (0.78); Effort management (0.76)

After a break of any kind, we are ALL out of sync a little bit – students and teachers alike. We ALL need a bit of a reset to ensure we don’t forget the small things that make a big difference.

Some potential trade offs: We lose one lesson of curriculum time – but the learning time gained as a result of better routines and engagement means this may well be worth it.

It might feel repetitive and pointless – only if we sell it like that! Remember, we set the tone.

No class will do every play absolutely perfectly all of the time – such is the challenge of our jobs!

Let your students in on the nuances of a routine you want to perfect with them: year 10, that took us exactly 12 seconds to settle down – I’m impressed. But shall we see if we can do it in 10 seconds? I reckon we

can… this next round make sure you do the following…’

Your high expectations are key here.

Some benefits: An additional ‘safe space’ to perfect crucial teaching routines to enhance learning Context specific rehearsal (EEF 2021) – with our students It allows us to ‘contain student behaviour’ (Kennedy, 2015) There is no pressure to ‘cover the curriculum’ No planning involved for you – simply intellectually prepare on the provided booklet There are limited T&L ‘plays’ so that we have the time to repeat and perfect The ‘content’ focuses on deliberately teaching our school values (eg. gratitude) The superordinate goal shared by both the teacher and students mean it is more likely to be understood and achieved.

Final thoughts As with anything we try new, I am keen for your feedback. Initial feedback from the start of the year has been overwhelmingly positive. This time around, we are fine tuning some of the niggles from the first time. Let your T&L lead know how it goes. What can we do even better in time for the next ‘first lesson back’?

Remember, if we do this well, every student in your school will be practising instructional and behavioural routines which, because of your high expectations, will mean learning will be immeasurably enhanced, right from day one.

I can’t wait to see it in action.

Scan to read more articles by Thahmina

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Deliberate Practice: The Golden Thread of Effective PD

Deliberate Practice:

By Rob Clark, FGCS

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HABITS • Issue 07

Deliberate Practice: The golden thread of effective PD

By Rob Clark, FGCS

How long does it take to become elite at teaching (or any craft)? What do the people who master their goals do differently compared to the rest of us?

John Hayes investigated the role of effort, practice, and knowledge in top performers. He studied the most talented creators in history, people like Mozart and Picasso, in order to determine how long it took them to become world class at their craft.

Furthermore, he has investigated the choices and experiences that have led to their success.

What were his findings? Not a single person produced incredible work without putting in a decade of practice first. These findings have been further confirmed by research from professors like Anders Ericsson, who produced research that revealed that you needed to put in “10,000 hours” to become an expert in your field. A finding that was later popularised by Malcolm Gladwell.

However, as Hayes, Ericsson, and other researchers started digging deeper, they discovered that time was merely one part of the equation.

Success wasn’t simply a product of 10 years of practice or 10,000 hours of work. To understand exactly what was required to maximise your potential and master your craft, you had to look at how the best performers practiced.

The term 'deliberate practice' was coined by Ericsson to describe a type of practice which 'is a highly structured activity, the explicit goal of which is to improve performance. Putting in a lot of time might make you tired, but simply working a lot (even if it’s 10,000 hours over the course of your career) isn’t enough to make you a top performer. It’s not the same thing as practicing deliberately. For example, many gym users who think they’re working hard are merely developing the skill of being in the gym, not the skill of mastering their goals.

Let’s dig a little deeper by looking at the career of Kobe Bryant. He is one of the most successful basketball players of all–time. The winner of 5 NBA championships and 2 Olympic Gold Medals. Kobe didn’t merely show up and practice a lot. He practiced with purpose; he practiced deliberately.

In 2012, Bryant was selected as a member of Team USA. During this time, one of the athletic trainer’s for Team USA, a man named Robert, was working with Kobe to prepare for the Olympics. Robert described his first experience with Kobe and revealed one of the reasons the superstar became so successful.

For example, to make 800 successful jump shots, he deliberately focused on developing the skill of making baskets. The time he spent doing it was almost an afterthought. That sounds simple, but it’s very different from how most of us approach our work each day. When most people talk about working hard, they use the amount of time they worked as an indicator of how hard they worked.

Kobe always had a very clear goal during practice.

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Deliberate Practice: The Golden Thread of Effective PD

Getting outside of your comfort zone; feeling uncomfortable. If you never push beyond your comfort zone, you’ll never improve.

A way to monitor your progress Maintaining motivation

How do we make our PD purposeful then?

We know from the work of Peps Mccrea that “PD is the best bet we have for improving the learning and life chances of students in our care. It’s more cost effective than other approaches to improvement, such as reducing class sizes, restructuring schools or providing performancerelated pay”. Furthermore, Mccrea defines purposeful practice as one of the key ingredients to an effective PD model, referred to as ‘Try it’ in the model below.

We know that changing habits is hard; if we’re not purposeful in our effort to get better, faster then we flip back to our default mode. Making deliberate practice the golden thread of our PD, including the exciting opportunity we have to work with our subject specific coaches this year, we will stay on the edge of our comfort zone and keep improving.

Research suggests that students taught by effective teachers are more likely to attend school regularly, pursue further education, and live happier, longer lives. Crucially, PD compounds - when we become more effective in the classroom, every single child we teach from that point on will benefit.

Deliberate practice is not a comfortable activity. It requires sustained effort and concentration.

There is one thing about it though: it works.

Ericsson defines the components of purposeful practice as the following: Putting baby steps together to hit a long term goal and having a plan Feedback: you have to know whether you are doing something right and if not, what mistakes you’re making

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HABITS • Issue 07

The Mini Whiteboard play for Active Learning and Concept Clarity As a classroom practitioner, I've come to appreciate that teaching isn't just about pouring new information into students' minds; it's about building a strong foundation of knowledge that they can draw upon as they continue to learn and grow.

One of the most effective ways to do this is by creating a bridge between their prior knowledge and the new material, enabling them to construct and solidify mental

frameworks that support long-term memory retention.

In this article, I'll share my experiences with the use of mini whiteboards as a tool to achieve this objective. I've found that mini whiteboards not only encourage increased thinking and participation among students but also foster a positive culture of error, empowering students to be more confident in their learning journey.

Building bridges with mini whiteboards

Fostering a positive culture of error

Mini whiteboards are powerful tools for teachers seeking to bridge the gap between students' existing knowledge and new information. These portable whiteboards provide an interactive platform for students to actively engage with the content being taught. Here's how they help:

One of the most significant advantages of using mini whiteboards is the creation of a positive culture of error. Students are more confident in making mistakes on a mini whiteboard than in their exercise books. Here's why this is so valuable:

Active engagement: Mini whiteboards encourage students to participate actively in the learning process. When teachers pose questions or present problems, every student has the opportunity to respond on their individual whiteboards. This immediate engagement allows them to process new information and relate it to what they already know.

Immediate feedback: Whiteboards provide instant feedback. When students write down their answers, teachers can quickly assess their understanding and adjust their teaching accordingly. If a majority of students get an answer wrong, the teacher can address the misconception immediately, ensuring that the students are on the right track to build an accurate mental model.

Concept clarification: Mini whiteboards allow students to clarify concepts by visualising their thoughts. They can draw diagrams, make connections, and represent information in ways that make sense to them. This visual element helps solidify the connections between prior knowledge and new material.

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Reducing fear of failure: Mini whiteboards offer a low-stakes environment for students. Since their responses are not permanently recorded, students feel less pressure to be correct. This freedom reduces the fear of failure and encourages students to take risks in their learning.

Learning from mistakes: When students make mistakes on whiteboards, they can discuss their errors immediately. This process promotes a growth mindset, where mistakes are seen as opportunities for learning and improvement. Students become more resilient and eager to correct their misconceptions.

Increased participation: The low-pressure atmosphere created by mini whiteboards enhances student participation. Students who may be hesitant to raise their hands in front of the class are more likely to participate when their answers are private.

This inclusivity is especially beneficial for shy or introverted students.

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Cultivating Classroom Excellence

By Mehak Yusuf, CCS

Effective utilisation To effectively utilise mini whiteboards in the classroom, begin by frontloading instructions for student participation and interaction with these valuable tools.

Here are some tips to ensure a smooth experience: Plan thoughtful questions: Craft questions that connect to previously taught content, challenging students to apply their prior knowledge to new concepts.

Provide clear instructions: Explain how students should use the mini whiteboards when answering the questions for starters or during a CFU moment in Phase 2 or Phase 3.

Countdown for simultaneous Display: To maintain engagement and prevent "floppy boards," consider using a countdown approach. This prevents delays and maintains engagement.

Check your More Able Students (MAS) and underachieving students: Continuously monitor student participation and use this information to inform your teaching approach, addressing specific needs. Utilise students boards as a WAGOLL or a WABOLL and explore the effectiveness of the response.

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Offer positive reinforcement: Brighten the lines and praise students for participation and efforts in correcting mistakes, boosting confidence and encouraging a growth mindset.

Mini whiteboards are simple yet powerful tools for enhancing the learning experience. They not only facilitate the construction of schemas by bridging students' prior knowledge with new material but also create an environment where errors are embraced as opportunities for growth. By incorporating mini whiteboards into Phase 1, 2 and 3 of the EDI playbook, you can foster active student participation, boost confidence, and contribute to the long-term memory retention of the knowledge they acquire. These versatile teaching aids empower both teachers and students in the quest for meaningful learning.

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HABITS • Issue 07

FOCUS

Consider the examiner’s report and adapt the curriculum for the highest leverage actions for MAS

DESIGNING A CURRICULUM FOR MOST ABLE STUDENTS

By Charlotte Clifford, UTCN

With the misconception of Bloom’s Taxonomy being embedded in teaching practice as a hierarchy of skills to conquer consecutively, it can be difficult to establish what it really is that our most able students need in order to stretch their thinking within, and out of, the classroom. Often value is placed upon “evaluate” and “create” as the ultimate higher order skills for MAS however these aren’t the pinnacle of skills students need to 1) succeed within their exams 2) stretch their critical thinking beyond the classroom.

The value of examiner‘s reports in adapting curriculum Peps Mccrea recently tweeted a thread on the ‘Knowing-Doing Gap’ which encompasses us knowing that we can use or do something but not actually embedding it into our practice. We all know that we should be reading the Examiner’s Reports but the reality is we aren’t all doing this and even when we are, it’s not done effectively. Here’s how we can eliminate the ‘Knowing-Doing Gap’ when it comes to adapting our curriculum.

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1. Actually read the Examiner’s Reports! Take the time to sit down and read them. Print them out if it is easier to record, with a highlighter, the gaps in your practice.

2. Identify your strengths and weaknesses. From someone who loves organisation (and pastel highlighters), I would be highlighting WWW and EBI in two different colours. From this you will be able to see where you hold your strengths and how you can promote these areas further, and also what you are currently not doing that the examiners are saying is successful.

3. Recall exam papers. Find examples to see if your theories are correct. Can you cross reference the information you have found with your own student work? This is also a great way to build confidence in your department by praising their successes in exam season!

4. Adapt your curriculum in a manageable way. As educators, our schedules are already full and designing a curriculum for More Able Students (MAS) should not involve reinventing the wheel every single year. Selecting the highest leverage actions for your department will ensure that students are stretched without overloading teachers. Incorporate places into your curriculum where you can model the elements of the perfect example that you have previously been missing. You are looking for high leverage actions.

Small changes that have big impacts!

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Designing a curriculum for most able students

Examples of Embedding Examiner’s Reports into the Curriculum 1. Thesis statements Noted in the 2023 Examiner’s Report for English Literature Paper 1, students who achieved the higher grades were ones including a thesis. It has become apparent that now even students lower down on the mark scheme are able to boost their academic performance by including this. This is a perfect example of a high leverage action for a department to undertake. Not only does it stretch the top end of the classroom, but it also raises the academic thinking of all students making it a useful and productive adaptation to a curriculum. The impact of this is students moving up entire bands on the markscheme through what is ultimately a tweak in your teaching.

2. High leverage vocabulary Doug Lemov writes about rewarding ‘“right” answers with harder questions’ in Teach Like A Champion (TLAC). What is stopping us as educators rewarding right vocabulary with harder vocabulary? Not only does it provide us with more accurate responses, but also a conceptual view of the world. When studying ‘An Inspector Calls’, students identifying Mr Birling as “middle class” is right and allows them to talk about social hierarchy. Students identifying Mr Birling as a member of the bourgeoisie is precise and allows them to cement their ideas within materialistic attitudes and the beginnings of Marxism. Sparking curiosity through high leverage vocabulary closes the gap between word poor students and their peers but also develops cultural capital. Lemov’s idea that students are never done learning teaches them that there are wider concepts to grasp, a world outside of that individual word; in this case a world of politics which might just be the horizon they weren’t expecting to come across.

Teach Like a Champion

by Doug Lemov

Ultimately, we should be redesigning our curriculum in manageable ways using the resources that are available to us (e.g Examiner’s Reports). Adaptations like this enable us to further advance the learning of most able students which will promote success inside and outside the classroom. In doing so, you will find that you pull all students towards greater success and opportunity, not just the most able.

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Why literacy is the lifeblood of WA

Literacy is fundamental to education

BY MARINA ANGADI, WA

Let us imagine proudly saying goodbye to our students at the end of the school year.

As we send them off, we are confident of having prepared them well for the GCSE syllabus and for the next stage of their life. Unfortunately, we have forgotten that our school is on the moon and we haven’t given them oxygen masks. Afterwards, at the inquest, we say, “We taught them everything on our specification.

Supplying them with equipment wasn’t our job!”

That’s like sending our students out without literacy skills. Literacy is like oxygen: no matter how well we prepare students otherwise, they won’t survive without it.

It is too important a task to leave just to one department. Literacy affects us all.

Which of us does not teach through the medium of words? We may not always realise it but when we explain new material to our students, we are also extending their vocabulary. Too many of our students come to us with low levels of literacy. They may only half understand what we say. They listen, they obey our instructions but without the ability to manage vocabulary for themselves, their understanding is blurred. It is as though they hear it all through a barrier of white noise. Even with non-verbal problemsolving, they need language skills to apply their knowledge in different contexts.

They need to be aware of the verbal connections between subjects to turn

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compartmentalised understanding.

learning

into

That is why we are embedding Explicit Vocabulary Teaching (EVT) across our curriculum. EVT makes the identification of Tier 2 and Tier 3 words into part of the experience in every lesson. Whatever the subject, whatever the MTP, our staff have selected a number of Tier 2 and Tier 3 words, enough to have a ‘word of the week’ in every subject. Tier 2 and Tier 3 words are not subject specific but have a level of difficulty that takes them out of the simple Tier 1 category. For example, in English this week our word for Year 7 was ‘objectify’. In PE it was ‘validity’. Both were words that students would need in that part of the MTP but were also ones that could come up in any environment.

And we hope they will.

We share our chosen Tier 2 and Tier 3 words with our colleagues, so that they can bring them into their own teaching whenever appropriate.

When our students hear them, they recognise them and they start bringing them into their own daily vocabulary. They use them like trophies, like badges of accomplishment.

EVT empowers us as teachers too. It gets us talking to one another and learning each other’s verbal priorities. EVT gets oxygenated blood flowing throughout the whole school.

Pride in their progress is the oxygen that empowers our students to move forward.

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Raising standards

RAISING STANDARDS

By Omar Deria, TPA

T&L Transformation at The Petchey Academy

The task at hand When I became the headteacher of The Petchey Academy in April 2022, one of my key priorities was to review the Teaching and Learning framework that was in place. Despite the school's commitment to providing an ambitious and knowledge-rich curriculum based on research, there was no clearly defined model for delivering the school’s ambitious curriculum. Coming from a school that had a well-established Teaching and Learning framework that was consistently upheld by all teachers, along with a comprehensive CPD programme to support the implementation of it, it was evident that the school would quickly benefit from adopting the CST EDI (Explicit Direct Instruction) Playbook which had a proven track record of delivering success.

After only one year into our transformative journey, our GCSE Progress 8 results rocketed by half a grade. The correlation is clear: one of the key factors contributing to this was the introduction of the CST EDI playbook. In the early days of adopting the playbook, our teachers found that visiting other schools within the Trust provided one of the most effective forms of CPD; an opportunity to see that researchbased pedagogy in practice. These visits to these high-performing schools offered an insight into the scale of improvement needed in our school and also a sense of urgency and excitement about the change that we could make in the lives of our pupils.

Open doors One core change that helped our school adapt to this new approach is to have an open-door policy, allowing teachers to freely visit each other's classrooms. I have a clear memory of distributing door stoppers to every teacher on a Monday morning following a staff briefing where one of our Teaching and Learning leads shared a great tip on ‘The best possible start to a lesson.’ This supportive and collegiate mentality soon became second nature, allowing for more learning visits, live coaching, and mentorship to take place, all with a T&L playbook in hand.

Subsequently, it led to teachers engaging in regular deliberate practice sessions with a determination to refine their practice and get better faster.

uniformity and a common language are implemented and embedded for the benefit of our students. This consistency is vital for students as it provides them with the necessary stability that some only find during their hours with us. When conducting learning visits, seeing teachers use the familiar language from our EDI glossary fills me with great joy. This does not happen accidentally; in our school, we plan meticulously to ensure that we have a clear CPD plan that is carefully planned throughout the year. Through weekly deliberate practice sessions, encouraging teachers to step out of their comfort zones, and maximising all T&L touch points throughout the week, we have significantly raised the standards and overall performance of our school.

A shared language

This transformative journey has laid the foundation for a bright and promising future at The Petchey Academy for years to come.

As a headteacher, one of my aspirations is to witness consistency throughout the school, where

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HABITS • Issue 07

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Marigolds and motivation

MARIGOLDS AND MOTIVATION

By Thahmina Begum, CST

The marigold effect I first came across the term in this post by Jennifer Gonzalez.

‘Companion planting’ is when gardeners place certain plants or vegetables near each other in order to help them grow or develop. The best example of this is the marigold. It is known to help ‘companion’ vegetables grow big and strong and healthy, protected and nurtured by its marigold.

Conversely, if you are a self certified marigold – or you know someone who is – do not underestimate the power of this disposition. The colleagues you are helping to thrive through your everyday interactions means ultimately, our students continue to get the best deal.

Gonzalez encourages new teachers to find a marigold in order to grow and thrive in our workplace.

“Don’t look at the wall. Your car goes where your eyes go.”

Mario Andretti, multi award winning racing driver.

She says you can usually spot them if: their offer for help sounds sincere they make you feel calm and hopeful they make you feel excited to get started on a teaching task

When young drivers start to race, they are told to focus on the road, not the wall. If they focus on the wall (at 200mph) they are likely to hit the wall.

I was fortunate to find a marigold early in my career. Although she was hardened to the perils of the professions’ burdens, as my marigold, she maintained the support and nurture that I so needed at that time in my career.

It’s hard to always be a marigold though. In our profession, we have many things to be frustrated with. Some we can control, some we can’t and some we feel like we can’t.

The walnut tree It’s easy, therefore, to turn into the walnut tree. Yes, this is the metaphorical antithesis of the marigold. Gardeners avoid planting vegetables near walnut trees for they are known to give off toxic substances, wilt and eventually kill its nearby vegetables.

When the going gets tough, even the sunniest of marigolds among us are in danger of turning into the walnut tree.

Here are some walnut tree behaviours: They make you regret asking ‘how are you?’ by telling your how hard their life is (compared to yours or anyone else’s) They leave you feeling deflated and bitter about the things you have to do at work They make you feel like you aren’t doing enough!

We are all capable of being marigolds and walnut trees. Our jobs are emotionally and physically taxing and in the worst of times, the walnut within us may appear. Learn to recognise it. When you do, if it is worth voicing, speak to your line manager or equivalent. Importantly too, have a marigold to turn to.

19 // HABITS // DECEMBER 2023

Focus on the road, not the wall

James Clear says the same could be said for your life and your work.

Negativity can be like a wall. If you focus on it, you are likely to run right into it. You will be blocked by negative emotions. I know this is true in my own practice. For example, early on in my headship, one horrible parent complaint could ruin my entire day. I would seeth for hours. My interactions with colleagues would be affected. I would find myself talking about it to anyone who would listen. I would become the walnut tree.

What you focus on, grows. It will distract and prevent you from being the best you can be in the workplace. Focus on the road, not the wall.

Motivation is mundane In this study analysing top performing swimmers and what made them have a ‘consistent superiority in performance’, one of the findings was the mundanity of motivation. Swimmers went to practice everyday for seemingly ‘mundane’ reasons – to see their friends, impress their coach and beat their personal best. These mundane social rewards were crucial in developing their ‘excellence’. They found that daily satisfactions and achieving ‘shorter term tasks’ were much more effective than having a large overarching goal, eg. winning the Olympics.

In teaching, what are your daily satisfactions? In this post I refer to ‘red threads’, identifying and amplifying the aspects of our jobs we love and thrive in. In our deliberate practice sessions, we make ‘implementation intentions’ – in other words, shorter term tasks to achieve. These endeavours also mean we focus on the road, not the wall.

‘In the pursuit of excellence, maintaining mundanity is the key psychological challenge.’

Daniel F. Chambliss

In summary Be a marigold. Surround yourself with marigolds.

Recognise the walnut tree.

Don’t look at the wall; focus on the road Give yourself daily satisfactions and short term goals to achieve.

@CST_LONDON