Cpd Newsletter

TOP TEACHING TIPS April 2015 Schools supporting schools CPD NEWSLETTER The Federation of schools exists to sustain and improve the quality, range and access to opportunities for all students within Wokingham secondary schools, academies and other settings, in support of improved student achievement Contents Page Snapshot of the Common INSET Day 2015 2 Positive Behaviour Management 9 The Voice 12 Planning Challenge and Differentiation 15 Active Learning 19 Classroom Control 22 Developing Inclusive Practice (SEN) 25 School Direct Initial Teacher Training 27 1 Common INSET Day 23rd February 2015: The Wokingham Secondary Federation Common INSET Day on 23rd February 2015 provided training for eight hundred staff from the Wokingham Federation and other local schools. This date was chosen because it coincided with the date selected by the Surrey Heath Schools for their Common INSET day and would allow delegates from the Wellington College Teaching School Partnership to attend without the need for cover. All the Federation’s main stream schools provided a venue for a least two subjects, as did Wellington College. We had over one hundred and twenty speakers which enabled staff to select from a range of different workshops to suit their needs. Curriculum Change: The main focus of the INSET day was subject specific workshops on curriculum change. Heads of Department met at the beginning of the Autumn term to decide on the specific focus for their particular subject. We were very grateful for the considerable support we received from the three main exam boards, (AQA, Edexcel and OCR), who came and supported for as long as the subject leaders required them. We received very positive feedback on their contribution to clarifying the requirements for fu- ture assessment. The English teachers were particularly grateful to AQA for providing separate workshops for GCSE and A’ Level and Business and Economics teachers worked with subject specific examination representatives for the whole day. At Wellington College the Maths and Music teachers had the additional benefit of hearing from the CIE as well. Kate West, brilliantly put together an online workshop on curriculum change for the Drama teachers when the AQA subject specialist pulled out at the last minute, due to illness. Where exam boards were not invited, delegates were provided with an overview of curriculum changes by subject experts. The SEN Conference had Anita Devi, Special Educational Needs Consultant, as a keynote speaker. She was able to provide an overview of current legislation while Nick Lait from the Joint Council for Anita Devi Qualifications , (JCQ), provided a guide to the latest Access Arrangements. The Religious Education teachers had a Keynote from Alan Brine, Ofsted’s national advisor for Religious Education. Technology teachers had an overview from Heidi Ambrose-Brown from DATA (Design & Technology Association). Careers Leads had an overview of what ‘outstanding careers advice and guidance looks like’ from Olwen Parkinson, Careers & Employability Consultant, King's School, Winchester, while Network Managers were able to benefit from advice from RM and WBC on the latest Data Management systems. Expert Speakers: Curriculum change was further explored in workshops delivered by people who are recognised experts in their field. Richard Lissaman from the Further Maths Support Programme provided an inspiring start to the Maths Conference, which was is developed in detail by his colleagues, Jeff Trim and Cath Moore who demonstrated the impact on A’ Level Mechanics and statistics. Lucy Sayce - Browne, (RBC Mathematics Adviser), provided Maths teachers with a very useful overview of what will students will know when they arrive at secondary school and how they will have been assessed. ‘Assessment without levels’ was also a theme of the keynote and workshop from Kevin Rogers, (Hampshire County Music Service) . Alan Parkinson was able to share his work on assessment with Geography teachers and Nick Lapthorn from Nick Lapthorn the Field Studies Council provided them with ideas for local field work projects. Local History was a theme discussed by the History teachers who were able to draw upon the expertise of a cura- tor from Reading Museum to help them appreciate the resources available to help them deliver local history. 2 Serge Tasic from the National Numeracy organisation provided workshops on how to support numeracy across the curriculum, while Graham Tyrer from the National Literacy Trust, provided his ‘Literacy Leader’s Toolkit’ to English teachers and Librarians. Arran Reader, from the University of Reading, was able to share his research into biopsychology to help teachers prepare for the demands of teaching the new exam specification on Psychology. Serge Tasic Ruth Newman Drawing on research conducted in the Centre for Research in Writing at the University of Exeter, Dr Ruth Newman’s workshop explored the way talk can be used to open up students’ understanding of the writing process, and enable them to talk about their own writing and about published texts with confidence and insight. The English teachers also had direct input into the process of writing from authors Meg Rosoff, Sita Brahmachari and Julia Golding. Dr Jess Hamer was able to present findings from a project, funded by the Drayson Foundation which seeks to employ a variety of approaches to increasing the number of girls choosing to study physics at A-level. Kim Wells (Head of Teaching and Learning at Caterham School) provided Meg Rosoff Jess Harmer inspiring workshops with ideas on how to engage MFL learners. Emotional Literacy Emotional literacy and mental health were major themes of the day for a number of conferences. Joe Wells, a young comedian, provided Senior Leaders with an insight into being a teenager suffering with OCD. His presentation was followed by Dr Cornelius Ani who was able to explain the extent and causes of the mental health issues that are Joe Wells experienced by an increasing number of teenagers, and how to provide effective support systems to promote good mental health in schools. Wokingham Educational Psychology Service providing three excellent workshops for SENCOs and Teaching Assistants: Attachment, Trauma and Loss How to support anxious children and young people in school How LSAs can promote independence in the classroom Both the Maths and Science Conferences had workshops on positive behavioural management, provided by Dominic Geraghty. Science teachers also had, much acclaimed sessions, on how to support their own wellbeing by creating a work-life balance and staying healthy. This was provided by Susie Ferguson, (HoD Drama from The Holt School). 3 Practical Workshops: Many subjects had a number of practical workshops. The art teachers took part in a lino printmaking workshop led by local artist, Mark Andrew Webber. Lino is ideal for engaging boys and raising their achievement because they love the physical aspect of cutting, the layering design process and the fact that there is lots of room for experimenting with colour. Some girls really like the medium because of the attention to detail that can be achieved. The Careers Leads worked together on writing their Annual Careers Plan using the Cegnet template. Lynda Parker put together a comprehensively wide range of practical workshops for Design Technology teachers that catered for all the different disciplines. These included workshops in chocolate and bread making, creating jewellery with precious metal, creating lampshades using e-textiles, 3D CAD/CAM and 2D Masterclasses. We are particularly grateful to Techsoft or their support. One teacher emailed to say that this was the best CPD she had received in sixteen years of teaching! The Drama teachers had a very productive practical day, working with Tara Ellie on Creative adaptation for exams and production. Tara provided new approaches to devising work with KS 4 & KS5. 4 The English teachers had another opportunity for ‘writing together’ with Simon Wrigley. Simon gave teachers the chance to write, and to reflect on the writing process, considering how to motivate their students by working alongside them. The History and Religious Studies teachers had an interactive workshop on Philosophy for Children, (P4C), with Sapere. This encouraged teachers to take on the role of a facilitator to support children in their thinking, reasoning and questioning. There were many opportunities for practical work for ICT teachers because they were able to experiment with new resources for teaching programming and computer science with Professor Peter Millican from University of Oxford, work with UoR students on how to use Lego NXT and discover how introduce Linux and raspberry pi with Adam Hamflett. The Maths teachers were pleased to have an opportunity to do maths. They played maths games with Netty Glatter, (maths AST from the Forest School), and Sian Felton, (HoD maths from Southfield School), plus they worked on Statistics with Cath Moore and Mechanics with Jeff Trim, (both from the Further Maths Support Team). 5 Dr Rebecca Berkley, (Secondary Music PGCE Subject leader at the University of Reading), provided two practical workshops on singing and rhythm for the music teachers, which were described as inspirational by those who participated. Physical Education teachers greatly appreciated the opportunity to participate in two practical workshops, Volley- ball provided by Spikeopaths and Lacrosse by English Lacrosse. Religious Education teachers had another practical workshop from Soulscape, who aim to give pupils the opportunity to explore issues and ask questions on areas such as divorce, suffering, faith encounters, euthanasia, abortion and homosexuality, by using drama, media and personal testimony. The scientists had a number of practical workshops, including a demonstration of Southampton University’s inflatable Astrodome with an interactive guided tour of the night sky. They were able to participate in the popular workshops on maths for scientists provided by Judith Weaver. Judith is a science teacher at the Holt school and she has provided these workshops on every single INSET day and they are always very highly rated.

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