1) Learners in the 21 st century How will we equip our students to thrive as adults ? Curriculum Reform? 2) Park Commun

1. Literacy: Achieving Excellence through Innovation • 1) Learners in the 21stcentury • How will we equip our students to thrive as adults? • Curriculum Reform? • 2) Park Community School: A Case Study • Literacy: addressing the deficit, securing progress and application across the curriculum and beyond. • Curriculum design: practical and purposeful innovation • Collaboration and Staff development • The Rich Challenge Model: securing progress • 3) Next Steps Ofsted 2012 draft: Inspectors will evaluate: ‘ How well teaching enables pupils to develop skills in reading, writing, communication and mathematics.’

2. What do we believe about learning? What does a 21st century learner look like?

3. Developing Successful Lifelong Learners The context: Educational policy Society Our Focus: Autonomous young people- in control of their future Critical thinkers: evaluating evidence and interpreting for themselves Motivated learners Resilient individuals

4. The Wider Context http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U People starting education now will be retiring in 2065. We are educating them for a future we cannot predict or understand’ Robin et al, 2006 ‘To be a teenager today is to be a shape shifter and a quick change artist, and there is pleasure and risk, but also stress, in that freedom’ Claxton, G, 2008, p7 ‘The purpose of education is to prepare young people for the future. Schools should be helping young people to develop the capabilities they need to thrive.’ Claxton, 2008, pvi Social competence is a greater predictor of success in later life than exam results.’ Smith et al, 2010, P58

5. Autonomy Resilient learners Motivated learners Critical and Creative Thinkers How does our current curriculum develop or hinder this learning?

6. Why ‘New Basics’? ‘New Basics’ (Education Queensland, 2000) represents a new approach to curriculum delivery. Attempts to bring ‘new’ and ‘old’ basics together. 59 Schools Strategic, state wide and cross phase programme: implemented, carried out and reviewed on large scale. Curriculum: organised around 4 key areas: life pathways and social futures, multiliteracies and communication, active citizenship and environments and technologies. Pedagogy : Learning and Teaching practices based on intellectual quality, connectedness, supportive classroom environments and recognition of difference Rich Tasks : authentic assessment opportunities that drive the learning. ‘ There is a need for a redefinition of the purpose of public education that meets the unique challenge posed by the transition to a globalised knowledge economy and society’ Education Queensland, 2001, p8

7. ‘New Basics’ (Queensland Education, 2000)

8. The Star Curriculum ‘ Innovation with purpose ‘If we always do what we’ve always done, we’ll always get what we’ve always had. • This model for learning offered us a framework through which to develop a year 7 curriculum focussing on: • Academic progress & Literacy • Transferability of skills • Student autonomy • Authentic purpose for learning

9. The Key Principles

10. What did it look like in practice? 20/40 periods are Star curriculum (+& Science and 4 Arts)English, History, Geography, ICT,, Values, Art, PE (1/3), MFL, Maths (1/7) 7 classes each taught by a team of 1-2 Star teachers. Trans-disciplinary Curriculum with a strong Literacy focus. ‘Rich Challenge’ model used at the end of each set of ‘learning episodes’ wherein students apply their learning independently to a new challenge. Assessment: English N/C, ICT N/C, Progression Ladders, Team Worker, Self manager. 2010-11

11. A Curriculum Map

12. Organisation of Star Curriculum Star lessons: Communication, Identity, Enterprise, Culture and Arts, Science and Us, Around the World. Daily Accelerated Reader Daily numeracy challenge Daily Brain Gym Short, regular French (Spanish) inputs with French teacher and Star teacher

13. Stimulating Positive What have I learnt before and how will this help me? How does my learning link to my own experiences? Create the supportive learning environment Connect the learning The big picture/ The big questions Low stress High challenge BASIS How is the work relevant to me & to the ‘real world?’ Star Curriculum Learning Cycle Feedback and Reflection Exploration/ Posing questions Have I achieved my goals? What do I want to know? What have I learnt? How can I find out? What are my future goals? What do I still want to know? What have I learnt? Planning and preparation How will I know that I have been successful? Demonstration How can I test my predictions? Discuss Presentation to class Enquiry Activity What skills will I need to use to be successful? How can I show what I have learnt? How do I learn best?

14. ‘Rich Challenges’ The independent application of learning to a new challenge or experience: Communication: Telling the story of your first 6 weeks at Park for a French audience and parents- multimedia Identity: Planning and hosting a ‘Great British tea Party’ for elderly residents Enterprise: Devising, planning and presenting business ideas: ‘Dragon Den’ style, real audience, real outcomes. Culture & Arts: Planning and hosting an Arts festival for the community Science and Us: ‘Come Science with Us’, lead own enquiry and teach others. Around the world: Applying my learning in France! Authentic Learning

18. Communication Progression Ladders 2011-12 Ofsted 2012: Inspectors will evaluate ‘ how well teaching enables pupils to develop skills in reading, writing, communication and mathematics.’ Progress ladders are the foundation of coherent cross curricular planning to secure skills progression.

19. Key Successes Student focus/ happiness in year 7: pupil, parent and staff feedback, Exceptional Ed etc Smooth transition from KS2 Learning and engagement: Students can recognise links across subject areas and common language is facilitating progress. Reading: Student enjoyment of reading and progress associated with this. Shared Reading with yr 10 and 11… Brain Gym: Physical activity every day. Rich Challenge model: engages, offers real purpose, application of learning etc Staff capacity building and collaboration: Whole school literacy, planning and assessment, collaborative planning, potential for greater collaboration in years 8-11. Pupil Progress: English is comparable with/ above previous cohort, reading data, French as should be. (based on student, staff and parent feedback, assessment data and reading data, HIAS Literacy consultants) “It’s wonderful to see least able pupils motivated to read and getting excited when they do well.” Star teacher “Our learning is always linked so we know why we are learning it and we can use it in different situations” Yr 7P1 Initial Reading age data suggests at least double ratio gains for 58% of cohort.

20. Reading Data Accelerated reader continues to be a huge success. Year 7     1671 Books   10,052,626 words Year 8     609  Books      7,235,327  words (At February half term) Reading Age

21. Key challenges and solutions Specialist teaching: non specialists are not as confident delivering certain areas as specialists! Training needs… Large team: accountability and consistency is more difficult to achieve with tem of 16 who also have commitments elsewhere Building capacity beyond Star…

22. Key challenges and solutions Make links across subject areas: connect their learning. Apply their learning to real challenges for real audiences Transfer their skills (progression ladders, shared assessments etc.) A common vocabulary Enquire and problem solve Use Literacy and numeracy every day Involve their parents What Star students expect to do…

23. What would/does a creative curriculum does it look like for you? How can Literacy create more effective learners in your school/ subject?

24. Bibliography Abbot, J (2009) A Briefing Paper for Parliamentarians on the Design faults at the heart of English Education: 21st Century learning initiative. Australian Council for Educational Research (2004) Evaluation report of the New Basics research program, Queensland, Australia Bassey, M (1999) Case study in Educational settings. Open University press, Buckingham Briggs, A, Coleman, M (2007) Research Methods in Educational Leadership and Management. Sage press, London Claxton, G. (2008) What’s the Point of School? Oxford, England, Oneworld Publications Cohen, L, Mannion, L (1994) Research Methods in Education. Routledge, London. Your child, your schools, our future: building a 21st century schools system DCSF (2009). London, England, Crown publishing.

25. Education Queensland (2001) Queensland State education 2010. Brisbane: Office of Strategic Planning and Portfolio Services, Education Queensland. Jorgensen, R et al (2009) Reforming Schools: a case study of New Basics in a primary school, International journal of Leadership in Education, April- June 2009, Vol 12, No 3, P115-113 Kalantis, M et al (2003) Assessing Multiliteracies and the New Basics, Assessment in Education, Vol.10, No. 1, March 2003 Postlethwaite, N (2005) Educational research: Some basic concepts and terminology, UNESCO Robinson, K (2010) Changing Education Paradigms, RSA conference and animate, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U Robson,C (2004) Real World research. Blackwell, Oxford. Smith, A. (2010) Winning the H factor: The Secrets of Happy Schools. London, Continuum International publishing Group Taylor, C (2008) A Good School for Every Child. New York, Routledge. Yelland, N. (2006) Changing Worlds and New Curricula in the Knowledge Era. Educational Media International, Vol 43, No.2, June 2006, pp121-131

26. Action Research (8/1/14) Action research is a term which refers to a practical way of looking at your own work to check that it is as you would like it to be. The idea of self reflection is central.

27. Developing Practice

28. Action Research - the objective • Improves teaching and learning • Provides opportunities for professional development • Acts as a catalyst for collaboration as part of a professional learning community • Offers a focus for partnership between universities, schools and colleges • Deals with and initiates change • Helps the management of sustainable school improvement

29. Characteristics • Arises out of a genuine issue and a wish to improve learner outcomes • It will involve trying out something new • It will require careful observation • There should be findings which should be written up and shared • Often findings lead onto another area and often deeper questions

30. Action Research is: • Is learning through doing • Involves changing and evaluating • Requires you to know yourself and your practice before the research • Necessitates being CRITICAL and ANALYTICAL • Is ENQUIRY LEARNING • Help to develop theories and rationale for practice • Develops professionalism through reasoned debate about pedagogy and the sharing of good practice • To facilitate the embedding of expert practice • The modelling of learning and enquiry

31. What questions about your teaching practice have you recently asked? What new practices can I try? Do you discuss what works in the classroom with certain individuals? How can I improve outcomes with my year 9? Is there another way I can teach these skills? How can I use creativity to make this topic more engaging? Individual X really understood however Y & Z found it difficult – how shall I tackle this with them next time?

32. The process • Plan Identify the issue that you want to investigate – what do you want to improve/what is the issue/priorities? • Act Read and draw up and action plan – intervention • Monitor Monitor the activity, collect appropriate data and keep records • ReviewAnalyse the data collected, explain and evaluate different ways forward

33. An example… • Narrowing the Gap: • Identify where there is a significant gap in achievement • Look at this in your own class (or yours and another) • Read literature to gain background of certain groups / of why this may happen • Action plan - design practice to investigate and try new approaches to improve • Observe, collect results and analyse • Reflect and evaluate • Write up and share • Present next half term