npqh unit 3: curriculum and assessment
TRANSCRIPT
NPQH Unit 3:Curriculum and Assessment
ACTIVATE
(Webinar)
This unit is delivered in our 4-stage learning cycle, made up of the ACTIVATE webinar, the asynchronous TEACH study activities, the PRACTICE group coaching and the whole cohort APPLY face to face session.
Our NPQ Learning Cycle
ACTIVATEKnowledge entitlement, cognitive
signposting, professional accountability
TEACHResearch engagement, knowledge
organisation, deepen understanding
PRACTICEExpert-led coaching, scenario exploration,
knowledge application
APPLYCritical reflection, case study evaluation,
assessment preparation
What do I already know?
What do I need to learn?
What skills do I need to practice?
How shall I lead differently?
ACTIVATE Section 1:
Introduction, Unit Context and Knowledge Check from PREPARE
(15 minutes)
Understanding the importance of Curriculum and Assessment is crucial to a headteacher’s role in developing and implementing a culture of teacher excellence where every pupil gets an excellent education.
In this unit, will be developing your expertise as a new or aspiring headteacher, which can then be applied to both identifying and addressing the persistent and common challenges in school leadership.
Introduction to NPQH Unit 3:
Curriculum & Assessment
We have grouped all of the ‘Learn That...’ statements into 6 key interacting areas, which are covered in the ACTIVATE, TEACH and PRACTICE phases of the learning cycle:
Key Areas of Study – ‘Learn That’
Section 1 - Implementing strong curriculum plans, based on secure teacher knowledge(LT 3.1, 3.4, 3.6)Section 2 – Recognising the importance of pupil knowledge (LT 3.5, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 3.10)Section 3 - Reviewing and engaging with subject disciplines(LT 3.2, 3.3)Section 4 - Implementing effective approaches to assessment(LT 3.13, 3.14, 3.15, 3.16, 3.19)Section 5 - Delivering high-quality feedback which helps all pupils improve(LT 3.17, 3.18)Section 6 - Leading effective whole-school approaches to literacy(LT 3.11 & 3.12)
In the PREPARE section for this unit, we asked you to read SECTION 2 of the HANDBOOK and also:
Simonsmeier et al. (2018) Domain Specific Prior Knowledge and Learning: A
Meta-analysis
Education Endowment Fund (2018) Toolkit: Mastery approaches
NOW, CONTRIBUTE TO OUR ONLINE DISCUSSION:
Knowledge Check Activity
In your school, what actions are taken to ensure that pupils have a strong foundational knowledge?
What is working well and what needs to be developed?
Following a 5 minute paired discussion, please put your individual responses into the Chat facility
ACTIVATE Section 2:
Introducing and engaging the research base through the ‘LEARN THAT’statements
Section 1
Implementing strong curriculum plans, based
on secure teacher knowledge
[25 minutes]
There is great flexibility and choice in what a
school’s curriculum can contain, therefore a
headteacher needs to give careful consideration
as to what knowledge, understanding and
skills they expect their curriculum to
deliver.
A headteacher must also have confidence in the
subject content knowledge being delivered
by teachers, and that this content is being
delivered in the most effective way for
learning. Consequently, a headteacher needs
to have considered, in deep discussion with their
subject leaders, the subject knowledge of
their teachers to ensure that their curriculum
content is well taught.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #1
Section 1 Overview
Detailed reading in the asynchronous TEACH section using the Participant Handbook of all ‘Learn That’ statements, Key Takeaways, and directed
deeper reading of key sources
Answering the ‘Knowledge Engagement Question’ for this section to bring to your PRACTICE group coaching session
[Read and reflect in depth from the Participant Handbook]
[Detailed unpacking in the live ACTIVATE session]
+A school’s curriculum enables it to set out the knowledge, skills and
values that its pupils learn, encompassing the National
Curriculum and other statutory subjects within a coherent wider
vision for successful learning.
(LT 3.1)
Secure subject knowledge helps teachers to motivate pupils and
teach effectively.
(LT 3.4)
Anticipating common misconceptions within particular subjects is also important aspect of curricular
knowledge: working closely with colleagues to develop an understanding
of likely misconceptions is valuable.
(LT 3.6)
[Read and reflect in depth from the Participant Handbook]
+
Curriculum is “a framework for setting out the aims of a programme of education…for translating that framework overtime into a structure and narrative with an institutional context; and for evaluating what knowledge and understanding pupils have gained against expectations.” (Ofsted 2018)
A school’s curriculum enables it to set out the knowledge, skills and values that its pupils learn, encompassing the national
curriculum within a coherent wider vision for successful learning.
(LT 3.1)
Unpacking a ‘Learn That’ statement
• As headteacher, your considerations must begin with principles and purpose. Set out the intent
of your curriculum.
• This should start with establishing your school’s curriculum principles. Curriculum principles are
the values a school believes will give both their pupils and community the best chance of
succeeding, and what they know to be right, given its context.
• Your curriculum principles need to reflect your school’s values, context, pedagogical approaches
and needs.
• In line with documentation from Ofsted, schools should know the intent or purpose of their
curriculum and be able to articulate it.
Considerations for curriculum design
Group Discussion
To what extent are your school’s vision and values reflected in your Curriculum Policy?
How much work has been undertaken with all stakeholders into your curriculum intent?
Following an 8 minute discussion, each group should allocate a spokesperson to feedback to the whole group
Every state-funded school must offer a curriculum which is balanced and broadly based and which:
• promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of
society, and
• prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.
The school curriculum comprises all learning and other experiences that each school plans for its pupils.
The National Curriculum and other statutory subjects, among which is Religious Studies, forms one part of
the school curriculum.
- DfE, 2013
The National Curriculum
• Alongside your subject leaders, begin by looking at the programmes of study and make careful
choices about what will be taught, when and why.
• Decide which concepts and subject aspects your curriculum will cover and how they interconnect
with other subjects.
• You’ll then need to break these down into smaller component parts, which are the knowledge and
skills objectives that provide building blocks for learning. These should be carefully sequenced,
revisited and built upon through your curriculum.
A school’s curriculum enables it to set out the knowledge, skills and values that its pupils learn
INDIVIDUAL FEEDBACK
Every Participant to feedback in the ‘CHAT’ facility on Blackboard LMS
Based on this instructional input, what should a headteacher’s priorities be when overseeing the implementation of their school curriculum?
What are the key expectations of subject leaders in your school in relation to this?
• Effective teaching will be supported by having a well-designed curriculum, that reflects the
knowledge and values that have been identified as important for pupils to learn.
• Headteachers should be clear about what curriculum choices have been made and why.
• The national curriculum provides an outline of core knowledge. There is time and space to
range beyond the national curriculum expectations.
TEACH
Key takeaways from the research base
Secure subject knowledge helps teachers to motivate pupils and
teach effectively.
(LT 3.4)
Anticipating common misconceptions within particular subjects is also important aspect of curricular
knowledge: working closely with colleagues to develop an understanding
of likely misconceptions is valuable.
(LT 3.6)
+
KNOWLEDGE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION 1
What knowledge (both subject based
and pedagogical content knowledge)
should headteachers ensure the
subject teachers have to ensure
effective teaching of a school’s
curriculum?
Pages 17-21
Section 2
Recognising the importance of pupil
knowledge
[20 minutes]
Headteachers need to be focused on whether
pupils are learning, as opposed to
‘performing’ in the lesson, on the day, but not
actually remembering what they have been
taught.
It is important to consider what factors will
support pupils in their learning, how we can
ensure that they are successfully
developing new knowledge, that they can
transfer this to new scenarios and are able
to think critically about what they have learnt.
Key factors in ensuring that students learn are
equipping students with strong prior
content knowledge and giving consideration
to how new knowledge is broken down and
explicitly taught.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #2
Section 2 Overview
Detailed reading in the asynchronous TEACH section using the Participant Handbook of all ‘Learn That’ statements, Key Takeaways, and directed
deeper reading of key sources
Answering the ‘Knowledge Engagement Question’ for this section to bring to your PRACTICE group coaching session
[Detailed unpacking in the live ACTIVATE session]
+
Ensuring pupils master foundational concepts and knowledge before moving on is likely to
build pupils’ confidence and help them succeed.
(LT 3.5)
Explicitly teaching pupils the
knowledge and skills they need to
succeed within particular subject areas is beneficial.
(LT 3.7)
In order for pupils to think critically, they must have a secure understanding of
knowledge within the subject area they are being asked to think
critically about.
(LT 3.8)
+
In all subject areas, pupils learn new
ideas by linking those ideas to existing
knowledge, organising this knowledge into
increasingly complex mental models (or
“schemata”); carefully sequencing teaching to facilitate
this process is important.
(LT 3.9)
Pupils are likely to struggle to
transfer what has been learnt in
one discipline to a new or
unfamiliar context.
(LT 3.10)
+ +
“Factual knowledge must precede skill.”-Willingham, 2009
Explicitly teaching pupils the knowledge and skills they need to succeed within particular subject areas is beneficial.
(LT 3.7)
Unpacking a ‘Learn That’ statement
• Explicit teaching is the most efficient way to develop pupils’
mental models – the collection of concepts, knowledge, skills
and principles which comprise their understanding of a topic
or a subject.
• Willingham acknowledges that research from cognitive
science has shown that the sorts of skills that teachers want
for pupils - such as the ability to analyse and to think critically-
require extensive factual knowledge.
• Headteachers must ensure that students acquire background
knowledge parallel with practising critical thinking skills.
Explicitly teaching pupils the knowledge and skills they need to succeed…
• Background knowledge is necessary to being a good thinker.
• Another effect of background knowledge is that having factual
knowledge in long-term memory makes it easier to acquire
still more factual knowledge.
Explicitly teaching pupils the knowledge and skills they need to succeed…
What are the implications of this in the classroom?
How can we close the ‘background knowledge gap’ for pupils?
Do you have any examples of how a lack of background
knowledge can effect pupil outcomes?
• Factual knowledge makes cognitive processes work better.
• Having prior knowledge supports how we learn. It is important to have both prior procedural
knowledge (skills) and prior factual knowledge.
• A headteacher’s goal is not simply to have students know a lot of things -it's to have them know
things in service of being able to think effectively.
• Knowledge must be meaningful - knowledge pays off when it is conceptual and when the facts
are related to one another.
• Cognitive science principles of learning can have a real impact on rates of learning in the
classroom. There is value in teachers having working knowledge of cognitive science
principles. (EEF, 2021)
Key takeaways from the research base
Ensuring pupils master foundational concepts and knowledge before moving on is likely to
build pupils’ confidence and help them succeed.
(LT 3.5)
In order for pupils to think critically, they must have a secure understanding of
knowledge within the subject area they are being asked to think
critically about.
(LT 3.8)
+
In all subject areas, pupils learn new
ideas by linking those ideas to existing
knowledge, organising this knowledge into
increasingly complex mental models (or
“schemata”); carefully sequencing teaching to facilitate
this process is important.
(LT 3.9)
Pupils are likely to struggle to
transfer what has been learnt in
one discipline to a new or
unfamiliar context.
(LT 3.10)
+ + TEACH
KNOWLEDGE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION 2
Why should Headteachers prioritise
the development of a curriculum with
a strong focus on developing pupil
subject knowledge? How will this
support pupils’ future learning?
Section 3
Reviewing and Engaging with Subject
Disciplines
[15 minutes]
There is great flexibility as to what it taught in
our school curriculum. A wide range of
disciplines are taught throughout school and a
headteacher needs to be clear that each
subject is distinctly and faithfully taught.
It is not possible for a school’s curriculum to
teach all the subject knowledge that a discipline
knows, therefore choices must be made. A
headteacher needs to ensure that the most
powerful disciplinary knowledge is taught
and that careful consideration is given by
subject leaders as to what this looks like in
the curriculum.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #3
Section 3 Overview
Detailed reading in the asynchronous TEACH section using the Participant Handbook of all ‘Learn That’ statements, Key Takeaways, and directed
deeper reading of key sources
Answering the ‘Knowledge Engagement Question’ for this section to bring to your PRACTICE group coaching session
[Detailed unpacking in the live ACTIVATE session]
+
School’s subjects are their own distinct disciplines which have reference points in
disciplines and practices beyond the school.
(LT 3.2)
The potential content of many subjects (especially literature, humanities, and arts) is contestable and
requires thoughtful, sustained review and engagement with that subject discipline.
(LT 3.3)
[Read and reflect in depth from the Participant Handbook]
“It is that part of the subject where pupils understand each discipline as a tradition of enquiry with its own distinctive pursuit of truth.”- Counsell, 2018
School’s subjects are their own distinct disciplines which have reference points in
disciplines and practices beyond the school.
(LT 3.2)
Unpacking a ‘Learn That’ statement
• Substantive knowledge is the content that is taught by teachers as fact – this is the what, the
factual knowledge.
• Disciplinary knowledge is ‘how that knowledge in gained, how it is validated and tested, with
what certainty we hold this information’ (Counsell, 2018).
• It is important that a discipline’s specific structure is recognised- both the substantive and
disciplinary knowledge.
Substantive and Disciplinary Knowledge
• Young (2014) explains that knowledge is powerful ‘if it predicts, if it explains, if it enables you to
envisage alternatives’.
• Powerful knowledge is distinct from the knowledge that is acquired through everyday life.
• Acquiring knowledge that goes beyond everyday experiences is particularly important in
disadvantaged contexts.
• Teachers must consider the balance between breadth and depth, idea sequencing, factual and
conceptual knowledge and choice of texts.
Powerful Knowledge
Young M, Lambert D, Robers C, et al. (2014) Knowledge and the Future School: Curriculum and Social Justice,London: Bloomsbury
FACILITATED DISCUSSION
As headteacher, what would you expect your subject leaders to be able to explain about their planned curriculum intent and the impact this is having on pupil knowledge?
How might you challenge/extend their thinking based on the understanding you have developed today?
• A school teaches a range of subjects, each of these must be respected as part of its own
discipline, as part of a wider tradition.
• A discipline’s specific structure should be recognised and it is important for all pupils to know
these distinctions between subjects.
• Pupils should be taught the boundaries between subjects, and between specific subject
knowledge and ‘every day’ knowledge. Therefore, this knowledge has to be specifically
acquired.
Key takeaways from the research base
The potential content of many subjects (especially literature, humanities, and arts) is contestable and
requires thoughtful, sustained review and engagement with that subject discipline.
(LT 3.3)
TEACH
KNOWLEDGE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION 3
What curriculum knowledge (both
subject based and pedagogical
content knowledge) do leaders in your
school need to have to ensure effective
teaching of your schools’ curriculum?
How can you ensure they have this?
Section 4
Implementing effective approaches to assessment
[20 minutes]
The question of how teachers assess, how
often and to what end is central to good
education.
Effective assessment is vital for Headteachers to
improve learning across the school yet careful
consideration needs to be given to validity,
reliability and, most importantly, purpose.
Unfortunately, since the release of the
significant research led by Paul Black and Dylan
Wiliam, ‘Inside the Black Box’ (1998), there has
been much misinterpretation into what
effective assessment looks like in action. It is
often measured by how much time is given
to collecting data rather than improving
learning outcomes.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #4A
Headteachers need to recognise the assessment
climate within their schools to ensure that it is
focused on learning rather than purely
performance.
Careful consideration must also be given to
teacher workload and practices that may be in
place which may not only be time consuming
but may also provide little impact upon pupil
outcomes.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #4B
Section 4 Overview
Detailed reading in the asynchronous TEACH section using the Participant Handbook of all ‘Learn That’ statements, Key Takeaways, and directed
deeper reading of key sources
Answering the ‘Knowledge Engagement Question’ for this section to bring to your PRACTICE group coaching session
[Detailed unpacking in the live ACTIVATE session]
+
Effective assessment is critical to teaching because it provides
teachers with information about
pupils’ understanding and
needs.
(LT 3.13)
Good assessment helps teachers
avoid being over influenced by
potentially misleading
factors, such as how busy pupils
appear
(LT 3.14)
Before using any assessment, teachers
should be clear about the decision it
will be used to support and be able
to justify its use
(LT 3.15)
To be of value, teachers use
information from assessments to
inform the decisions they make; in turn, pupils must be able to act on feedback
for it to have an effect
(LT 3.16)
Working with colleagues to
identify efficient approaches to assessment is
important; assessment can
become onerous and have a
disproportionate impact on workload.
(LT 3.19)
+ + +
“The biggest improvements in student learning happen when teachers use assessment minute-by-minute and day-by-day as part of regular teaching.”-Wiliam, 2017
Effective assessment is critical to teaching because it provides teachers with
information about pupils’ understanding and needs.
(LT 3.13)
Unpacking a ‘Learn That’ statement
Both formative and summative assessment should reflect and influence school learning in the best
possible way.
The purpose and outcomes of effective assessment
Formative Assessment
takes place on a day-to-day basis during teaching and learning, allowing teachers and pupils to assess
attainment and progress more frequently.
Formative assessments may be questions, tasks, quizzes or more formal assessments. Often formative
assessments may not be recorded at all, except perhaps in the lesson plans drawn up to address the
next steps indicated.
Summative Assessment
sums up what a pupil has achieved at the end of a period of time, relative to the learning aims and the relevant national
standards.
There may be an assessment at the end of a topic, at the end of a term or half-term, at the end of a year or, as in the case of
the national curriculum tests, at the end of a key stage.
A summative assessment may be a written test, an observation, a conversation or a task. It may be recorded
through writing, through photographs or other visual media, or through an audio recording. Whichever medium is used, the
assessment will show what has been achieved.
• Assessment is most effective when it is driven by the learning needs of the pupils but often it
can be driven by the need for gathering data for school systems.
• “Data is often used too much for monitoring and compliance, rather than to support pupil
learning and school improvement” (DfE, 2018)
The purpose and outcomes of effective assessment
Do you have an example of data that you, or other teachers, have gathered that was not directly
used to support pupil learning?
• Headteachers need to emphasise, to both teachers and pupils, the understanding that effective
formative assessment is an opportunity to respond and improve.
• Poorly designed assessment may not provide the information required about pupils’ learning.
• By utilising a range of assessment strategies, teachers can ascertain information about a pupil’s
understanding and needs, subsequently responding and adapting their teaching as necessary.
• Teachers need to have good evidence about decisions that they make in the classroom and part
of this is identifying whether they have good evidence from all pupils in their classroom.
…provides teachers with information about pupils’ understanding and needs
‘check understanding systematically, identify misconceptions accurately and provide clear, direct feedback’ (Ofsted 2021).
PAIRED DISCUSSION
You will have 5 minutes in a breakout room to discuss this question with another participant
Identify the most effective elements of your current school assessment policy and any challenges that still need to be overcome
• Effective assessment should be at the heart of high-quality teaching and learning.
• Assessments should provide teachers with information about what pupils know and what gaps
exist in their understanding.
• Assessment should be driven by the learning needs of the pupils not by a data collection
system.
• A range of assessment strategies should be used to ascertain information about a pupil’s
understanding and needs.
Key takeaways from the research base
Good assessment helps teachers
avoid being over influenced by
potentially misleading
factors, such as how busy pupils
appear
(LT 3.14)
Before using any assessment, teachers
should be clear about the decision it
will be used to support and be able
to justify its use
(LT 3.15)
To be of value, teachers use
information from assessments to
inform the decisions they make; in turn, pupils must be able to act on feedback
for it to have an effect
(LT 3.16)
Working with colleagues to identify
efficient approaches to assessment is
important; assessment can become onerous
and have a disproportionate
impact on workload.
(LT 3.19)
+ + + TEACH
KNOWLEDGE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION 4
How can Headteachers identify
evidence-based solutions to
overcome the potential problems
of current school assessment?
Chapter 1
Section 5
Leading effective whole-school
approaches to feedback
[15 minutes]
It is generally agreed that feedback is one of
the most important tools in the teaching and
learning toolkit that promotes positive learning
outcomes. However, there is a lack of
understanding of what effective feedback
looks like in practice. Therefore, Headteachers
must have an astute understanding of the
evidence for effective feedback that can
inform whole-school feedback policies.
Whilst studies tend to demonstrate that
feedback has a positive impact on learning,
some studies suggest that when feedback
is ineffective it can have a negative impact
on pupils learning outcomes (EEF, 2018).
Often, feedback is translated as ‘marking’
which can provide valuable feedback to pupils
whilst supporting teachers in identifying
misconceptions in the learning.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #5A
However, the Government’s Workload Challenge
Review (2014, 2016), identified feedback as
a key factor in exacerbating teacher
workload, recognising that many feedback
policies became unnecessarily burdensome
for teachers and lost purpose for pupils.
Headteachers need to understand the potential
benefits and limitations of feedback as a
teaching and learning approach (EEF, 2018).
Providing and receiving feedback requires a
high level of skill by both pupils and
teachers (Hattie and Timperley, 2007),
therefore, headteachers must engage teachers
in programmes of professional learning that
develops their knowledge and skill in providing
high quality feedback so that they can also
engage pupils in the feedback process
effectively.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #5B
Section 5 Overview
Detailed reading in the asynchronous TEACH section using the Participant Handbook of all ‘Learn That’ statements, Key Takeaways, and directed
deeper reading of key sources
Answering the ‘Knowledge Engagement Question’ for this section to bring to your PRACTICE group coaching session
[Detailed unpacking in the live ACTIVATE session]
+
[Read and reflect in depth from the Participant Handbook]
High-quality feedback can be written or verbal; it is likely to be accurate and clear, encourage
further effort, and provide specific guidance on how to improve.
(LT 3.17)
Over time, feedback should support pupils to monitor and regulate their
own learning.
(LT 3.18)
“Feedback that attends to self-regulation is powerful to the degree that it leads to further engagement with or investing further into the task, to enhanced self-efficacy, and to attributions that the feedback is deserved and well-earned”.- Hattie and Timperley (2007)
Over time, feedback should support pupils to monitor and regulate their own learning.
(LT 3.18)
Unpacking a ‘Learn That’ statement
• Ultimately, feedback should focus on moving learning forward.
• High-quality feedback may focus on the task, subject, and self-regulation strategies.
• The effectiveness of feedback can be impacted by pupil motivation, self-confidence, a pupil’s
trust in their teacher and their capacity to receive information.
• Teachers must implement strategies that encourage pupils to welcome feedback.
• Teachers must provide opportunities for pupils to use feedback.
The focus of feedback
Hattie and Timperley (2007) argue that effective feedback should enable the pupil to answer three
important questions when aiming to move their learning forward:
• Where am I going? (goals)
• How am I going? (progress)
• Where to next? (actions)
…pupils to monitor and regulate their own learning
Do the teachers in your school know and apply this evidence on effective feedback?
Which aspects of the evidence do they often use, and which are more rarely applied?
Does the school feedback policy reflect this knowledge about effective feedback?
How does the school feedback policy impact classroom practice in your school?‘
• Both written and verbal feedback play a fundamental role in moving learning forward.
• Teachers must be highly skilled in knowing which type of feedback will be most effective in
moving learning forward.
• Feedback should enable pupils to apply self-regulation strategies, so that overtime they are
better equipped to monitor and regulate their own learning.
Key takeaways from the research base
High-quality feedback can be written or verbal; it is likely to be accurate and clear, encourage
further effort, and provide specific guidance on how to improve.
(LT 3.17)
TEACH
KNOWLEDGE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION 5
What are the features of high-quality feedback and
how can school leaders ensure this is a reality in
their school?
Pages 81-90
Section 6
Leading effective whole-school
approaches to literacy
[25 minutes]
Good literacy is a key building block for pupil
success in school and in later in life. It is essential to
ensure access to all areas of the curriculum, which
will allow pupils to discover their individual talents
and interests, and therefore it must be a focus for a
headteacher.
Language and literacy are clearly very important in
primary school; however, our efforts have not
always been completely successful is developing
the literacy of all our pupils. Despite our best
efforts, children from disadvantaged backgrounds
are still more likely to leave primary school
without secure skills in reading and writing. The
impact on secondary school attainment continues
(and in some cases worsens) this trajectory.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #6A
Good literacy is essential for all students to
appropriately access the curriculum, at whatever
stage of school they are at and yet in many secondary
schools teachers have not seen themselves as literacy
experts.
To ensure young people leave our schools with strong
skills of literacy, pupils’ language capability, reading
and writing skills should be consistently developed
throughout school. It should be a focus in each subject
area so that disciplinary literacy improves, and pupils
are able to read a range of academic texts.
It is not a simple task to create this literacy-rich
environment, delivered by all teachers, improving the
literacy of all students. Therefore, Headteachers need
to consider the best evidence available when
planning how to do this.
COMMON LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES AS A HEADTEACHER #6B
Section 6 Overview
Detailed reading in the asynchronous TEACH section using the Participant Handbook of all ‘Learn That’ statements, Key Takeaways, and directed
deeper reading of key sources
Answering the ‘Knowledge Engagement Question’ for this section to bring to your PRACTICE group coaching session
[Detailed unpacking in the live ACTIVATE session]
+
[Read and reflect in depth from the Participant Handbook]
To access the curriculum, early literacy provides fundamental
knowledge and reading compromises of two elements: word reading and
language comprehension
(LT 3.11a)
Systematic synthetic phonics is the most effective approach for
teaching pupils to decode.
(LT 3.11b)
Every teacher can improve pupils’ literacy, including by explicitly
teaching reading writing and oral language skills specific to
individual disciplines
(LT 3.12)
+
“Literacy skills are both general and subject specific, emphasising the value of supporting teachers in every subject to teach students how to read, write and communicate effectively in their subjects.”-EEF, 2019
Unpacking a ‘Learn That’ statement
Every teacher can improve pupils’ literacy, including by explicitly teaching reading
writing and oral language skills specific to individual disciplines
(LT 3.12)
• Headteachers should ensure that disciplinary literacy is developed in each subject.
• All teachers should be supported to understand how to teach students to read, write and
communicate effectively in their subjects.
• As pupils progress through school, teachers need to ensure that pupils are trained to access the
academic language and conventions of different subjects.
• Headteachers need to think carefully about how whole-school approaches will be implemented
and balanced with more subject specific support.
• headteachers should consider the quality of the professional development aimed at supporting
teachers to develop the disciplinary literacy of their pupils.
Disciplinary Literacy
Prioritising disciplinary literacy
• Auditing existing literacy practices
• Creating subject specific literacy plans.
• Supporting teachers to define effective reading, writing, and talk in their subjects.
• Evaluating the quality and complexity of existing reading materials.
• Ensuring that the development of disciplinary literacy is coherently aligned with curriculum development.
SMALL GROUP BREAKOUT ROOM DISCUSSION
To what extent is literacy a priority throughout your school?
How is this evidenced?
What specific elements need to improve?
You will have 5 minutes to discuss as a group. Please elect a spokesperson to provide feedback on return.
• School leaders should prioritise subject specific literacy training to ensure that disciplinary
literacy is developed throughout their school.
• Headteachers should ensure that literacy should be developed in each subject, ensuring that
teachers consider opportunities for structured talk, high quality reading and writing.
Key takeaways from the research base
TEACH
To access the curriculum, early literacy provides fundamental
knowledge and reading compromises of two elements: word reading and
language comprehension
(LT 3.11a)
Systematic synthetic phonics is the most effective approach for
teaching pupils to decode.
(LT 3.11b)
+
KNOWLEDGE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION 6
What key steps should a
headteacher take to ensure that
effective approaches to literacy
are implemented throughout
their school?
ACTIVATE Section 3:
Role-specific signposting to the research base and setting up for the TEACH and PRACTICE phases
(15 minutes)
FINAL GROUP PLENARY - MENTIMETER
Identify and explain which of these is a challenge in your current school settings.
What do you think needs to be done to overcome the challenge?
Every participant to respond through online Mentimeter platform
Headteachers should:
•ensure a broad, structured and coherent curriculum entitlement which sets out the knowledge, skills and values that will be taught
•establish effective curriculum leadership, developing subject leaders with high levels of relevant expertise with access to professional networks and communities
•ensure that all pupils are taught to read through the provision of evidence-informed approaches to reading, particularly the use of systematic synthetic phonics in schools that teach early reading
•ensure valid, reliable and proportionate approaches are used when assessing pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the curriculum
(Headteachers’ Standards 2020)