Reading time: 3 minutes
Supporting students to achieve the best possible outcomes in education can present difficulties. However, we must consider a child’s thoughts, and feelings and provide positive behaviour reinforcement whilst celebrating their successes to instil confidence and self-esteem.
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Reading time: 8 minutes
Ofsted Chief, Amanda Spielman has said the coronavirus pandemic has caused ‘a crisis for all children’, as disadvantaged children look set to fall behind in education as a result of inequality.
BBC Newsnight this week reported that the pandemic could undo 10 years of improvements in the education sector. Children may have to go to school 7-days-per-week to make up for lost time. The pandemic is also likely to increase the north-south divide.
The situation has caused a great deal of concern for individuals across the education sector. But what difference is the crisis making to pupils from the most disadvantaged backgrounds – and how will this crisis affect everyone concerned?
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Reading time: 3 minutes
Our educational games app, EDVille, is free for the duration of the BETT Show which takes place on 22-25 January 2020.
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Reading time: 3 minutes
The subject of whether or not exam results are an accurate measure of achievement is one that has found itself in the headlines quite frequently over the past couple of years.
There are many voices on either side of the debate – all seemingly promoting logical yet diametrically opposing views. So, do exam results matter and are they an indicator of ability?
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Reading time: 2 minutes
You have more than likely heard that there is a correlation between the diet of a child (and even an adult) and their ability to learn as well as retain information. In fact, it is this very correlation, along with the rise in childhood obesity, that led to many school lunches being completely revamped and made that much healthier for children.
Since then, there have been many positive effects observed – such as better concentration and improved learning abilities. But how can diet affect learning and memory, and which foods are best to eat?
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Reading time: 2 minutes
There has been much research on the topic of just what it is that makes for an effective reward system; despite extensive academic literature on the subject (and debates that rage on between topics such as intrinsic and extrinsic motivation) rewards really needn’t represent a complex, time-consuming system that adds to your everyday pressures as a teacher.
Here are five ideas that work and require minimal effort on your part.
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Reading time: 2 minutes
For any teacher, the balancing act in recognising every student’s achievement is a tough one. After all, schools, teachers and educational professionals have never faced more targets to hit and more metrics to yardstick their students against – whilst students themselves now know all too well of exactly how they’re performing compared to their peers and the wider averages.
For the less able in classes of mixed abilities, this can often result in far less frequent recognition – whilst the more able follow a cycle of achievement, and recognition (which then further bolsters their progression) – ultimately, this is the purest demonstration of a ‘self-fulfilling’ prophecy.
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Reading time: 2 minutes
It has been suggested that a person’s aspirations are shaped by the likelihood of them being achieved. When linked with the concept that a child’s belief in their ability to achieve something is in part based on whether they see those they consider to be peers achieving in a similar way, then it is no wonder that the biggest challenge to raising aspiration in schools is socio-economic status.
The longer the negative messages received by a child go unchallenged the harder they are to overcome, which is why raising aspiration in younger children is increasingly an issue being raised by school leaders.
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Reading time: 2 minutes
There is such controversy surrounding assessment in the current educational climate that it is hard to see the wood for the trees. Inspectors will expect each student to know their own targets and current levels of progress but many teachers find that this can demotivate those whose progress is perhaps at a lower level than that of their classmates.
Competition within a class can be motivational for those at the top but for those at the bottom it has the opposite effect. One method that can help to combat this issue is using an ipsative form of assessment and feedback.
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Reading time: 2 minutes
When schools are looking to raise aspiration, parental power is an invaluable and powerful way to enhance and introduce enthusiasm and motivation.
Success is seen at its highest when schools and parents work together as a partnership, but whilst almost all schools involve parents in activities at the school itself, this is parental involvement rather than engagement and does not directly affect achievement as opposed to direct parental engagement which increases aspiration for all the family.
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Reading time: 3 minutes
Improving attainment for C/D border students can mean a huge difference to their lives. It can be the difference between being offered a place at their FE college – or not, or it can mean starting an Apprenticeship – or not.
The reasons pupils fall into the C/D sector of a year are varied, but the solution is intervention to look to resolve the issues in the run up to exams as much as possible.
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Reading time: 2 minutes
Whilst formative feedback is used as a tool for regular evaluation of achievement or to look at and set up methods to stem the areas where students need to make improvement, summative feedback is just as crucial and should be used in conjunction with formative assessment to give a rounded picture of learning rather than purely on its own.
Summative feedback can be used just as effectively as formative feedback as there are a number of tools and processes for obtaining the data and information regarding the learning which has taken place.
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Reading time: 2 minutes
This blog touches on one of the biggest challenges facing anyone in school leadership: how to promote student achievement.
Improving the raw data that defines the progress of the pupils is the bottom line to end all bottom lines and can make or break an inspection.
Aside from the raw data, the phrase all head teachers want to hear in an inspection report is that ‘a culture of achievement’ has been created in their school. So how does this happen?
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Reading time: 2 minutes
Extension work is crucial to sustaining the rapid progress demanded by Ofsted and can often tip teachers over the edge.
Read these top tips and see if they help provide a solution for this common issue.
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