October 2004

Accelerated Learning newsletter, October 2004

As the days shorten and the leaves brown, you could be forgiven for experiencing the early onset of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). To guarantee against this our October newsletter is a happiness special. Our case study is from an Education Action Zone. We provide ten tips for making your classroom happier and a few jokes along the way.

Ten ways to make your classroom happier

• Smile – ‘smiles are infectious, catch mine!’
• Laugh – young children laugh spontaneously as many as three hundred times a day! What about you?
• Be there – once you are in the classroom devote all of your attention to the learners who are with you
• Build a positive culture – use the 2:1 principle (no-one comes with a problem unless at the same time they come with two possible solutions)
• Have a worry box – young children write their worry on a piece of paper and put it in the box for you to keep for them
• Have a joke of the day - encourage humour through jokes and quirky stories
• Do something different – bring in flowers, once in a while stop what you are doing for a complete break, go outside
• Focus on improving and not proving – tell learners how to get better
• Share experiences – list on a huge wall chart ‘all the things which make us happy’
• Sharing - make it easier for learners to share and to give; at the start of the year everyone writes one thing they like about each of their class mates then the statements are cut up and collated so that each person has a complete list of their own

Watch out for…

The new DVD of Accelerated Learning from Alite, Close Up: Accelerated Learning in Secondary Schools contains 11 lessons with teacher explanations, 5 leadership interviews focusing on learning and an introduction by Alistair Smith. Out November 1st. Early bird price £112.

I want that one…

Theo Theobald, author of the communications book Shut Up and Listen and recent graduate of the Alite Train the Trainer programme tells us we should , 'measure the quality of your life by the number of times you laugh'. He adds, jokingly, that it’s ‘something I made up and guess what, it works for me.’

A new study suggests that experiences fulfil us more than goods. To test this claim, a pair of psychology professors examined discretionary spending on material purchases (such as jewellery or clothing) and experiential ones (such as holidays or tickets to a concert). In a nationwide phone survey of 1,279 adults, respondents were much more likely to claim that a prior experiential purchase made them happier than a material one—57% versus 34%—even after accounting for differences in price.

Of course, some items—such as books or sports equipment —are both material and experiential. And one person’s splurge may be another’s must-have. So the researchers simply asked respondents to think of purchases they’d made “with the intention of advancing their own happiness.”

The researchers found some demographic differences in strength of preference: A higher percentage of women, for example, were happier with experiences than were men. Individuals with higher incomes and more education especially tended to prefer experiential spending—perhaps because the less discretionary income you have, the more any purchase will improve your quality of life. Even so, not a single segment reported being happier with their material buys.

In conclusion Theo points out that ‘Interestingly happiness is something that in the eyes of the media equates with success and that very often is linked with material wealth and lots of money (one of the reasons why so many kids want to be 'rich' and famous).

I try to teach my kids that it's not how much money we've got (which in my case varies wildly) but the richness of our experiences (though given the chance my son Ben would prefer a new Playstation game to a walk in the Autumnal woods!)

Plutonius said 'If I keep my character, I'll be rich enough', good news for all of those people (like me) who have spent periods of their life trying to be what someone else wanted them to be. And one final thought, I've never come across anyone who spent a childhood dripping in the material wealth of their two working parents, but starved of their affection who turned out happy, or in my book, normal…

The research appears in the December 2003 issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Theo Theobald and Professor Carey Cooper’s book Shut UP and Listen is available on Picador at £16.99 Theo will be writing more pieces in next month’s newsletter.

Freshening up Teaching

Jan Campbell is EAZ Co-ordinator in Sandwell, Jan is co-Leader of the ‘Gung-Ho’ Networked Learning Community, a National College of School leadership NLC. Jessica Parsons is a Year 6 teacher, Phase 3 Coordinator and Numeracy Coordinator at Highfields Primary School, Rowley Regis. Paul Newby is Deputy Head at Brickhouse Junior and Infant School, where he has a wide range of responsibilities. He claims that one of the most exciting is developing Accelerated Learning across the school and linking it with their Thematic Curriculum. Here they describe how learning has been freshened up in Blackheath and Rowley Excellence in Cities Action Zone (BREAZ).

Question:
What do you get if you take six geographically close primary schools, add in networked learning and some training for Lead Learners?
Answer:
Classrooms that physically look different, children who can articulate ways in which they are smart and apply their skills according to their learning preferences, and staff who claim to be “once again enjoying teaching” and “remembering why I came into this profession.”

In 2002 the Blackheath and Rowley Excellence in Cities Action Zone in Sandwell (BREAZ) began their partnership with Alite. The challenge was to improve SATs results by bringing a breath of fresh air back into teaching. For the Headteachers involved, this approach would answer one predominant question: how can you motivate and inspire staff and children to produce these raised standards? Our starting points were very different, but our mission was the same. One school was ahead of the game, having already incorporated Accelerated Learning into their school CPD programme. Another school had a thematic curriculum, whilst others believed in the need to develop learners’ emotional literacy, for children to know and appreciate their own successes and build on these. Others were more traditional in their approach, but desired something more: to re-capture and update everything that was best about ‘the way we used to teach’.

We felt that one way to achieve our objective was to utilise Lead Learners in each school to drive the change. These teachers would specialise in becoming more familiar with the theory behind Accelerated Learning and identify techniques that could be embedded in their school’s classroom practice to bring about the intended outcomes. If each school had trained Lead Learners on its staff, then by a process of dissemination and classroom modelling more effective learning would be spread throughout the zone.

Above all else, BREAZ has identified five breaths of fresh air that have re-invigorated the teaching and learning in our schools.

1ST BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Make Time to Think
Like many of the most effective ideas it seems obvious when suggested, but how many of our schools are given (or allow) time and space to think? BREAZ schools needed to set time aside, as we wanted our staff to seek answers to two key questions:

Our Lead Learners were taken out of school and given the space to mull over these as they engaged in training that would become crucial to the changes needed. Simply by asking the questions, BREAZ had effectively ‘given permission’ for the teachers to think afresh about learning. And the answers that emerged from their reflections led to a paradigm shift. They began moving away from the ‘I have to do it this way’ approach to the ‘how best can I provide for the variety of learners in my class?’ Furthermore, they convinced other members of staff and the winds of change began to blow through BREAZ. Staff increasingly took more risks in their teaching, having seen the benefits of challenging the mindset.

One such fundamental risk was teaching in a different style to what they had been used to.
The teachers had recognised that they often taught in a way that mirrored their own preferred style of learning – fine if all pupils learned how they did! This greater self-awareness of their own preferences and how to access effectively those of all their learners was an uncomfortable, yet fulfilling, experience for them and one of many examples of how reflection and training led to a tangible change in classroom practice.

We quickly realised that if we were to sustain the progress we all desired then the more key teachers in our schools who were able to be part of Lead Learner training the more thinkers and doers we would have driving progress.

2ND BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Work Together in School
Teaching and learning experiences should not be hidden away in individual classrooms, modestly kept from colleagues. We need to spend time talking to each other, sharing what works, learning from what others have done. Some BREAZ schools have a slot in weekly staff meetings to share their tips and stories together. One school uses trios (of lesson planner, lesson teacher and lesson observer) for classroom improvement, followed by a discussion about the learning that has been observed. Planning collaboratively has been successful in bringing about changes in teaching styles and pupil learning experiences.

With the increasing knowledge about ourselves as learners emerged discussions in schools about why some staff work well together.

3RD BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Network Across Schools
Working towards a common goal with other schools means that staff meet other professionals with a range of experience and expertise; we can learn from and with each other. We use a Learning Walk approach, a model of visiting each other’s schools to observe good practice, which two schools were already familiar with through their involvement in a Networked Learning Community. This is also an ideal way of demonstrating and sharing successes.

A Learning Walk booklet and guide is written every term before the four walks take place in the zone. It is produced by Jan as zone co-ordinator, using a model created through the Gung Ho Networked learning Community (NCSL) and is issued to all participants. The guide contains pre-agreed walk dates, facilitator names and contact details of all schools and leaders involved, the processes and protocols for each of the Home and Away walks and facilitator questions, together with details of the related professional text for that term. This text is used to develop our own learning and to encourage this learning to be related to the school situation. This term (summer 2004), for example, the agreed text is Accelerated Learning: A User’s Guide. There are ten questions that the host school has to ask itself, variations of which the visiting school has as reference questions. The questions include:

1. The first type of walk is for emergent leaders. Two teachers from each BREAZ school with leadership responsibility or potential pair up with two similar teachers from another BREAZ school over a one-term period. In this walk, each pair of teachers plays host (for the ‘home walk’) and guest (for the ‘away walk’). The purpose here is for the hosts to show evidence in their school of practice that supports the message of the learning text. It is also the hosts’ responsibility to structure the morning session to address the questions raised in the guide that will be discussed after lunch when the facilitators join them.

The facilitators are Headteachers drawn from two of the other four schools. These afternoon sessions take place in a local hotel, and tend to take 2/3 hours. Later, one of the facilitators produces a written report based on the day’s learning and this is sent to the participating schools to check for accuracy before being published to the group. A collated copy of all the walks is available to the schools in the zone at the end of each term. Many of the schools choose to share these reports with staff and governors.

2. Walk Two is a ‘Staff Meeting Swap’. After the leadership walks have taken place, each pair of leaders is asked to identify an aspect about the other’s school for the host Headteacher to speak about to the guest Headteacher’s staff.

Why did we do this?

When the emergent leaders returned to their own school after a Learning Walk they were often highly motivated and enthusiastic about sharing what they had seen. Other staff asked, “Can we go too?” Consequently, Walk Two was established, giving all staff a snapshot of their partner school and an opportunity to listen to and learn from another Headteacher.

3. Walk Three began in BREAZ in spring 2004, when the Heads from the paired schools spent half a day in each other’s school. They discussed the learning from Walks One and Two, and how they were moving their schools forward. These conversations resulted in the question:

This walk was also facilitated and written up by a colleague in the zone, so the learning could be both captured and shared. The most obvious benefit was related to our 1st Breath of Fresh Air: the Headteachers had time to think!

4. Walk Four became the obvious next step. If teachers were gaining from this process why not involve the pupils? This was already happening in the two Networked Learning Community schools in BREAZ.

From summer 2004 all six BREAZ primary schools will be involved in pupil home and away walks. Four Year 5 pupils, two boys and two girls, will visit their partner school accompanied by a classroom assistant. They will focus on the question:

The advent of the walks meant that learning was now firmly on the BREAZ agenda! From the summer term 2004 we are also having our first primary / secondary cross phase walk to focus on Accelerated Learning as a transition strategy.

4TH BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Let Those Who do the Teaching Write the Plan
Now that BREAZ is in its third year and Accelerated Learning has become a significant driver for school improvement in BREAZ, it has become obvious that teachers need to identify the best way of moving forward.

Each school was asked to nominate one lead teacher to join each of four BREAZ Action Groups: Teaching and Learning, Assessment, ICT and Family Learning. These groups meet for half a day, half-termly. Each group has a nominated leader and it is this person who organises the group agenda and feeds back outcomes, challenges and ideas to the BREAZ Steering Group. As these are the practicalities that school staff want to address they help inform the zone’s annual plan, which creates the backbone of activities within BREAZ. The feedback from schools is universally positive, ensuring that the zone plan is driven forward by their enthusiasm. It also ensures that zone activities are within each school improvement plan. An additional benefit of the Action Groups is the mutual support and assistance they provide. This has produced a powerful, additional informal network that, together with the fact that schools now have several individuals involved directly in the zone work, means that more people in school are familiar with the zone agenda.

The Teaching and Learning Group are now responsible for the development of Accelerated Learning across BREAZ and have made decisions about the way they wish to share learning across our schools. Holding meetings in a different school each time, and
conducting a walk through as part of the meeting, helps them to witness and share their AL practices.

5TH BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Gift It!
What happens when key staff leave a school and new staff join?
How are new staff inducted into the work of the zone?
How easily can you bring new staff up to speed?
What happens when you need practical support and lack the resources?

No longer should a member of staff in a BREAZ school struggle to formulate a policy or start planning from scratch; a gift culture is now encouraged, where we learn from and with each other, to give and to take; it is the opening up of our schools to support each other in any way needed. This may be realised by giving a zone school time to share another’s good practice, by providing a policy to enable them not to start from scratch, perhaps with a planning or assessment format, or tips about an AL strategy that worked well. It may be one teacher modelling to another or to a group, knowing the focus is on the positives and that staff do not criticise the work of another, but seek to share rather than be in competition.

BREAZ teachers are freshening up their teaching as enthusiasm from our Heads and Lead Learners catches. Volunteers abound for cohort three training, AL is in all SDPs and it has been recognised by Heads as motivating staff and pupils. Enabled by the zone, but developed and applied by the teachers themselves, these six schools have reappraised learning and in the process re-energised themselves. Our prime motivator, to raise standards, is being realised and at the same time the teachers’ own learning is going down a storm.

Learning to Learn: Personalised Learning in Practice

A new public programme launched this Autumn, the Alite Learn to Learn programme is the only one of its kind in the UK. It links teaching to learning and planning to assessment. Discover how to use it to take learning in your school into the 21st Century. See and hear how Learning to Learn works successfully. Find answers to the following questions:

• What is Learning to Learn?
• What are the features of the best Learning to Learn programmes?
• Why should I introduce Learning to Learn into my school?
• How do I overcome doubters and build enthusiasm for Learning to Learn?
• How do I track improvements in learning abilities ?
• How do I fully integrate technology?
• How do I accredit Learning to Learn?
• Where do I begin?

The programme is led by Alistair Smith and Mark Lovatt, co-originators of L2, the unique Learn to Learn programme.

Starting out with Accelerated Learning

If you are just setting out on your Accelerated Learning journey, Alite has a new programme that is ideal for you. Starting Out with Accelerated Learning (SowAL) will answer these questions:

What is Accelerated Learning?
Is Accelerated Learning for me?
Where do I go with Accelerated Learning?
How do I make a start?
Why does it make a difference?

Starting Out with Accelerated Learning shows you how to use the Accelerated Learning cycle. It helps you begin to transform learning in your classroom and your school. If you are keen to freshen you thinking about learning, build your confidence as a classroom practitioner or re-invigorate learning across your school Starting Out with Accelerated Learning is for you!

For full details, please email events@alite.co.uk, or visit Starting Out with Accelerated Learning on the Alite website.

“Tomorrow will feel like my first day of teaching!”

How to Reach the Hard to Teach is a one-day course designed for professionals who would like to increase their flexibility in helping pupils who exhibit challenging behaviour.

Participants consistently tell us how this practical course will make a real difference:

”I cannot believe how negative I have been with the kids. Tomorrow will feel like my first day of teaching. I am totally inspired and enthusiastic with the content of the course and can't wait to put it into practice. Thank you so much!”

The course starts from the premise that successful learning occurs when effective teachers successfully motivate students. During the course you will find out what effective teaching looks like in the most challenging of circumstances. You will be given techniques for motivating the disillusioned, re-directing the disruptive and managing the disturbed.

For full details, please email events@alite.co.uk, or visit How to Reach the Hard to Teach on the Alite website.