Adapting Cooperative Learning Strategies for the Most Able in English

South West Teaching and Learning Conference 2018Staylor@dhsg.co.uk

Rally robin with your shoulder partner : what are you looking

forward to doing/not doing in the summer holiday?

Challenge: include one ironic suggestion

What do you understand by ‘cooperative learning’?Task: Rally coach with your face partner.

• Student A explains what they understand by the terms in point 1.

• Student B listens/ agrees/ corrects/ develops

• Then Student B explains the second set of terms and A listens...

Cooperative Learning Terms

1. Hogs, logs and cogs

2. Group building & class building

3. Democratic talk & accountability

4. ‘Liking’ and ‘being liked’ & learning in a state of 'relaxed alertness'

Most valuable advice: use the infrastructure of the Kagan classroom to set up easy differentiation for the whole term:

Higher (8/9)

Higher middle (8)

Lower middle (7)

Lower (6/ 7)

Work with your.....1. Shoulder partner

2. Face partner3. Home group4. Colour group

Is cooperative learning fit for purpose in English lessons for our most able -

our targeted 8s and 9s?

I surveyed my top six students (yellow group) from my Year 9, 10 and 11 classes. All are 8/9 targets and on track to meet/exceed KS4 target.

Strongly agree

Agree

Somewhat agree

Somewhat disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Q1. Arranging tables into clusters of 4 is better for building working relationships than sitting in rows

39%

50%

11%

Strongly agree

Agree

Somewhat agree

Q2. Regular changes in the seating plan have helped me develop better working relationships within the class

33%

24%

38%

5%

Strongly agree

Agree

Somewhat agree

Somewhat disagree

Q3 Shared reading aloud of the text improves my understanding

8%

39%

26%

9%

9%

9%Strongly agree

Agree

Somewhat agree

Somewhat disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree

Q4 Shared reading aloud of the text improves my verbal confidence in

lessons

5%

56%

22%

6%

11% Strongly agree

Agree

Somewhat agree

Somewhat disagree

Disagree

Top 2 uses for cooperative learning in English lessons:

Q5. When do you value cooperative learning the

most in lessons? most effective uses for cooperative Q5. What areQ5. the

most effective uses for cooperative learning?

• Analysing a juicy quote

• Exploring character and themeYear 9

• Choosing quotes from an extract

• Analysing a juicy quoteYear 10

• Analysing a juicy quote

• Planning an essay Year 11

Q6. I find these cooperative learning strategies helpful - % strongly agreed or agreed?

50% 71% 67%

Q7 . The Kagan branded names for structures:

a) Not cringey; you should use them 33%

b) Cringey; you should not use them 17%

c) Cringey – but use them! 67%

Q8. The cooperative learning tasks slow me down

Always0%

Often11%

Sometimes50%

Rarely39%

Q9. Cooperative learning

increases my engagement

and motivation

100% positive responses

Q10.

Students comments:

I strongly think that mixed ability groups work very well.

Coaching/teaching is always mutual, I never feel like I help without getting some

knowledge in return. I do understand that in a competitive grammar school like ours it is hard to stop working for

yourself and help others but these cooperative tasks teaches important skills

about helping others and valuing everyone's opinion.

Year 9

I sometimes feel like teachers help less able groups more than the most able group because they assume we know everything and understand everything, but even the most able student has subject areas where help would be appreciated. In our colour groups we get more of this personalised help. Y11

In my opinion, cooperative learning has helped

me to improve my confidence and engagement in

lessons. However I find that sometimes after

discussing my ideas with others and partaking in

other methods of cooperative learning, there is

little time to make note of what has been

discussed. Therefore when I go back through my

book, I often don't have all of the detail I would

like about the characters and different chapters

Y10

Dual exceptionality students (students who are gifted and SEN) and cooperative learning

“I can imagine how any student, with or without needs would struggle immensely having to actively walk over and work with a student that is in the class that they felt nervous about. In my previous school I was bullied and so this would have been particularly terrifying.

Students with autism may also worry about the movement or use of their possessions by other people at in their usual space. The uncertainly of what will happen to your things is stressful.

In order for groups to work out everyone has to be given a chance to participated. In my personal experience working with people who allow new people to get a word in and who are willing to discuss topics with people outside their existing friendship group makes all the difference.

Uncertainly is a major source of anxiety and discomfort. Being mentally ready before class helps exponentially.” Year 13 ASD student

Student voice

Agreed that clustering grouping into 4s has helped build relationships

Disagreed that changing seating plans have helped

Strongly agreed that positive relationships with peers in lessons help learning

Agreed that cooperative learning had helped make progress in English

Agreed that cooperative learning had been challenging

Somewhat agreed that the benefits of cooperative learning had outweighed the

negatives

Focusing on a specific Kagan structureWhat is Fan-N-Pick ?

Who uses it? Groups of 4 (colour or home)

Why? To explore new ideas or test understanding

What does it replace? List of questions that an individual/pair or group may ‘discuss’.

Benefit? Democratic talk / lively atmosphere/ less pressure than written answers / moments of ‘rest’ & ‘intensity’

Practicalities:

5-20 minutes to design

10 minutes to print /cut/paperclip

Top tip: laminate for longevity (eek break the budget!)

Top Tip: print different sets on different colour card

Top Tip: generic card set numbered with specific questions numbered and on a slide

How can I differentiate fan-n-pick for the most able? Identify 'challenge' cards on the reverse side “Pick me a challenge card

please” or “I challenge you ..” Add an optional 'challenge' question on each card Project a generic slide showing a top band item of content that the most

able must assimilate into their answer (e.g a critic quote / ambitious vocabulary / contextual detail)

Make two sets of differentiated cards – yellow and blues / reds and greens Mid task drop in a 'WILD CARD' - lateral thinking question (creative/

associative thought) – which sustains momentum and adds a frisson (!) of excitement.

Make their own fan-n-pick – yellows devise challenge questions using higher level thinking

Fan-N-Pick – your turn!CHALLENGE extension:

Incorporate some of this vocab into your answer:

Current grade/ predicted grade/ target grade/ fine grade/ expected

progress/ close the gap / better than expected

progress / formative feedback/ sub-groups / SEN / FSM

Can be used in English lessons to:• Explore quotes - annotate ( ideas/methods/context/writer's

intention)• Fine grade A02 quote analysis (language/ visual imagery / auditory

imagery / cumulative effect)• Explore character or theme in a chapter /passage – mind map

(appearance/words/actions/relationships)• Revise a poem - context/ key quotes / key methods/ links to other

poems

Top Tweaks for the most able: Allocate most challenging skill/task to themost able expert group Teacher is attached to most able expert group to invite higher order

thinking and input subject knowledge Play 'Pointless' – most able given other groups’ task sheets and they

must think up the most original/obscure point they think the other three expert groups will miss out

Provide a companion poem/extract/wider reading extract to link with the original text (associative thinking / literary context

How is Lydia’s elopement

presented in chapter 46

Yellows –critics /

alternative views

Reds –secure quote

inference

Greens –fine grade

A02

Blues-precise

A03 context

Write a collaborative top band answer and annotate it to show why it deserves a grade 9.

Checklist:Clear statement5-7 short quotes (most can be “peppered” but use one juicy one )Fluent, exploratory inference to show strong understanding of how the elopement news affects Lizzy/ Lydia/ DarcyPrecise Regency A03 context anchored to a quote and used to explain her reactionModern reader response (would overlap with modern critic?)Two contrasting critical quotes that are assimilated into the line of argumentA concluding sentence

Jigsaw example task – differentiated for most able

Reds

Vocabulary

Greens

Visual Imagery

Blues

Auditory imagery

Yellows

Cumulative effect of devices

GCSE English Language Paper 1 Questions 2 / Paper 2 Question 3Read the passage and identify method (A02) . Highlight quote/ label device/ annotate effect

Reds

Alliterative plosive consonance /

onomatopoeia

Greens

Sibilance

Blues

Alliterative fricatives and aspirates

Yellows

cumulative effect: cacophonous or

euphonic?

GCSE A02 auditory imagery focusHighlight quote / identify device/ annotate effect