Barry Smith - Learning about Learning

Generating assessment information using web 2.0 tools.  This will be old hat to some readers but it is interesting that the ideas are appearing on SQA website amongst others.  If you already use web 2.0 technologoies in working with young people it gives some ideas about using these tools as part of ongoing assessment.  Worth a look.  There is also a full paper, published in April of this year which also makes interesting reading.

I am interested in how the ‘bottom up’ process espoused in the CfE documents is becoming a reality.  I wonder what changes individuals have made to their own practice.  One aspect that CfE focuses on is the change in emphasis from content to methodologies based upon formative assessment to improve outcomes for young people.

Do you think the changes that are happening are at the methodology level, ie people’s thinking about learning and teaching(beyond the inevitable early adopters group), or at a more superficial level(by the wider teaching community) in terms of the way things are organised and the content that is ‘delivered’?

It is an interesting question, because I think that we are, potentially, at a point of such monumental change in Scottish Education that we might end up with a big shuffle in the way things are organised, but not impact upon the deeper levels of thinking about learning. 

This may also be compounded if the NQ consultation returns a framework for qualifications that basically reflects what we already have without any move towards a recognition of teacher judgement that is being promoted in BtC3 as a necessary condition of CfE. 

Any thoughts?

I found out at the weekend I have passed Unit 4 of SQH, this is a tremendous relief as I was slightly concerned about whether my submission had covered all the bases.  It was a pleasant surprise to receive my tutor’s comments and I can now look forward (maybe!) to the next 7 months and completing the Scottish Qualification for Headship. 

We are very much now on the home straight and I almost can’t believe how quickly the time has passed. I’m really beginning to focus upon where I can develop myself further in terms of my career.  I’ve had some encouraging experiences as well as some doors closing, which is a part of the process, but my confidence is really growing with each passing unit and the feedback I get from ‘the day job’.

…..changing the way I and others perceive my blog or reflecting the fact that I drink gallons of coffee, either way my new theme is wholly appropriate!

“Drink more coffee, do stupid things faster and with more energy” as my colleague’s coffee cup states!

I’m currently struggling to get back in the habit of blogging after a long summer break.  It’s making me re-visit why I’m doing it.  I’m spending much less time on the computer in the evening these days and having a breather from SQH reading after the Unit 4 submission. 

I have defined the blog by my work towards SQH so maybe I’ll pick things up again when the next taught days arrive at the end of September. 

Have been preparing the ALPs interim report which has been an interesting experience.  It has been a mixed bag of successes and setbacks, quite a learning experience for me.  So far however I’d say that on balance it has been a positive exercise for all involved.  This year will be crucial in preparing the group for life beyond PLHS.  Our mentors and careers adviser will hopefully come into their own in providing appropriate guidance for each individual and ensure they have a direction beyond school.

Each student is having a one-to-one interview this week and then regular meetings with the school careers adviser throughout the year to ensure they develop a ‘pathway’ for success beyond school. 

I’ve been neglecting the blog a bit recently, a number of factors have combined to cause this, not least the excellent weather!  I’m also doing a great deal of drumming now that we move into the summer so something has to give somewhere. 

Now it is SQH unit 4 time in earnest I think my brain has returned to something like being able to function in relation to educational thinking.  I am currently considering the implementation of change in the school context.  Specifically in relation to the ALPs programme. 

I made a short presentation to staff on our progress so far at the in-service day yesterday.  As with every new venture there have been ups and downs and there are many issues that have arisen, both with the provision and the organisation of the programme.  I am happy to say however that at this stage, 12 weeks into the programme, that there has been a significant impact on the number of incidents some of the students have been involved in.  

Three of the participants have reduced the number of incidents (detentions and exclusions) by half as compared with the preceeding 12 week period.  It is still very early days but I am encouraged greatly by this.  These are youngsters who have significant difficulty in accessing much of the mainstream curriculum so any progress in terms of changing patterns of behaviour is a real success.

I am going to be meeting with parents over the next fortnight to discuss progress, careers input and targets for the coming year.  It is very pleasing I will have some excellent news to report. I think once again it shows the commitment of all concerned beginning to pay off.  Watch this space for news of the interim report in June.

We finally managed to get one of the students, Conor, up and running with his learning log this morning.  The others will appear over the course of the next week on the ALPs site.  The difficulty has been getting access to the site while in school with the student present!

If you get a chance pop on to his log and leave a comment, it’ll mean a great deal I’m sure.  We have been encouraged by how engaged those on the programme are at the prospect of writing something that others will read and possibly comment upon - and that’s just the staff!

I had an interesting conversation at the weekend with Andy Marjoribanks,  headteacher of a secure special school in Edinburgh.  We were discussing the ‘chaotic thinking’ that characterises many of the youngsters for whom mainstream schooling is unmanageable and breaks down in a flurry of exclusions, at times characterised by violence and aggression. The youngsters often have not had the opportunity to develop the thinking skills that most of us take for granted, such as seeing things from another point of view.  There may be a number of explanations form this, including damaged or non-existent relationships with the significant adults in their lives or that those adults have not themselves had the opportunity to develop the skills as youngsters and pass them on to their children.

He was telling me that one of the strategies used in the secure unit to help empower the youngsters and give them the self control and skills to make positive decisions for themselves is teaching Edward de Bono’s cognitive thinking skills. This was music to my ears as I was (obviously!) relating what he was saying to our Alternative Curriculum plans, part of which was using Edward de Bono’s six thinking hats to do exactly the same thing.

I’m looking forward to meeting Leslie Gillies at Dunbar Grammar this week to pick her brains on the possible pitfalls in setting up  the Alternative Curriculum programme.

This attention grabbing title was the subject of our in-service day today.  Sue Palmer ex-headteacher cum educational writer and researcher gave an extremely thought-provoking session on the subect of how boys learn and why we may be expecting too much of them at an early age in terms of the mastery of spoken and written language. 

She argued that some boys may be ‘turned off’ education at an early age because they don’t feel they can have the same success as girls in learning to read and write, an issue that seems to be backed up by research suggesting that the young male brain processes symbolic language on one side of the brain as opposed to both sides in girls, which apparently gives them an advantage.  Another factor was that boys are not allowed to ‘play to their strengths’ in terms of developing their spatial awareness and risk-taking skills which are more inherent in boys than in girls, a developmental hangover from when we really were hunter gatherers apparently. 

The whole nature/nurture debate was again sparked off and discussed through the course of the day and I have to say made for a very stimulating sesson. 

To what extent can schools intervene and provide necessary skills to promote the ‘fully rounded’ development of both boys and girls in this age of blurred gender roles? I won’t get involved in further conjecture on this matter, because I certainly don’t have answers, but I will be reading more on this fascinating subject. 

I was further impressed today by the presentation of Yvonne Binks, currently seconded to Better Behaviour Scotland,  who was launching the ‘Be Cool in School’ behaviour programme for primary 6/7 youngsters while also giving us secondary teachers a chance to look at the draft of the secondary version which will roll out in August.  At an early assessment, it is the closest attempt I have seen at teaching emotional literacy amongst young people in a ‘mainstream setting’ and as such I think is a real step in the right direction.  I can’t wait to have a look in more detail.  All in all a top quality in-service day. 

I think I have also ‘firmed up’ my idea for a comparitive study on the SQH.  I am hoping to go into on of the companies shortlisted in the National Business Awards for the corporate social responsibility to see how they have put their policy staements in to practice and how they monitor and evaluate the impact they have had.  The only thing I have to do now is to get someone to agree to take part!

I have a full week ahead with parents visiting to discuss support we have put in place to help our youngsters in S4 who are missing out on some of their standard grade subject time through going to college, the next Extreme Learning meeting, my first alternative curriculum working group meeting and the Pre-vocational strategy group meeting this week too!  On top of that I’m trying to organise and advertise an African drumming workshop a week on Saturday for my Senegalese Teacher who is coming up from Bristol for the weekend.  I’m extremely lucky to have all these great things happening, just hope my head can keep up!

I sit tonight feeling somewhat bewildered at the task facing me. I am attempting to analyse the school’s capacity for change and improvement usisng Barbara MacGilchrist’s ‘Nine Intelligences’ model. I have to submit a section of this analysis along with the school improvement project rationale and plan in draft form on Thursday. I’m having real difficulty understanding the task fully so I think some input from my tutor will be required. At this rate it will be a flimsy draft.

I presented the current state of play of the alternative curriculum at our joint Pastoral/Learning Support Team meeting today. One of the striking features of bringing the information together was the large drop in numbers of young people involved in pre-vocational college education in the school. There are a number of reasons for this which I don’t need to go into here, but it made me realise how things are changing in terms of the provision of vocational experiences for our youngsters and how very important it will be to find local solutions in the future. This is an important area of education for many of the young people at Preston Lodge High School and I think we will have to be creative in the future in finding appropriate opportunities for them.