CHIEVELEY
PRIMARY
SCHOOL
TEACHING AND LEARNING POLICY
Vision
Chieveley School is a creative, safe, secure and friendly environment for all
learners. It is a place where we endeavour to nurture and celebrate individual
talents individual talents. We have high expectations of each other, with
respect and tolerance being intrinsic to school life.
Our teaching inspires and challenges, in an atmosphere where everyone is
encouraged to ‘have a go’ and curiosity is fostered. We are all encouraged to
be reflective lifelong learners.
Our aim is for our children to leave our school with a positive self-worth,
confidence and be equipped with the tools to develop their potential in the
wider world.
Professional Culture
Our professional culture at Chieveley Primary School has a shared vision,
with an acceptance of individual journeys to reach our goal.
Our journeys are based on shared values and a professional excellency,
dialogue, accountability and active reflection.
Everyone has a voice and is open to challenge.
Rational
The purpose of this Teaching and Learning Policy is to clearly explain our
thoughts and practice on teaching and learning at Chieveley Primary School:
there is particular emphasis and clarification on the journey we have
undertaken during the past two years to develop both the pedagogical
understanding of the staff and how this has impacted on practice. Change in
the practice of teaching is not always easy to achieve: educational innovation
requires reflection of our own beliefs, accepting new commitments,
developing new skills and adopting relevant new forms of practice.
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Purpose
Our aim is to achieve academic excellence both as a school and for the
individual child. The striving to attain this is underpinned by a belief that the
child’s learning and achievements will be deepened by developing their own
learning and thinking skills.
There is an expectation that all children are provided with high quality learning
experiences that lead to consistently high levels of pupil achievement.
Schools which are developing strategies that develop learning as well as
teaching will, somewhat inevitably, perceive the dichotomy that exists
between a performance orientation and a learning orientation. This need not
be so. If strategies are in place to embed a learning orientation, performance
will undoubtedly rise.
What do we teach and how do we teach it?
Each individual teacher plans that year group’s curriculum paying attention to
breadth of curriculum study and progression.
The what we teach is also driven, to varying degrees, by outside forces eg:
National Curriculum, Foundation Stage Profile, end of Key Stage Tests etc.
Chieveley Primary School teaches a creative curriculum planned by the
teachers of Chieveley Primary School, for the children of Chieveley Primary
School. We have moved away from QCA units, and have, using the expertise
of our own teaching staff, planned a unique curriculum for Chieveley Primary
School which is not reliant on a scheme, commercial doctrine or copy of
another. We develop strategies of teaching and learning, with regard to
current practice and innovation, holding fast to our own beliefs and what
works for our Chieveley children.
The how we teach it is of upmost importance. Here we are building upon the
children developing thinking and learning behaviours which, ultimately, reenforce and embed their understanding. We believe that, not only are we
giving our children the picture, we are helping them join the dots.
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Outcomes
o Standards achieved at Chieveley Primary School are high. This is
reflected in both our end of Key Stage Results and work produced by
the children. The standards achieved at the end of Key Stage are in no
small part due to specific, focussed teaching of class teachers and
careful monitoring so that SEN support is put in place at a relevant time
to achieve maximum impact.
o The high standards which are evident in the children’s work are a
result of the child being inspired by challenging focussed tasks where
each individual class teacher has monitored and marked for maximum
impact. These high standards expected of the child are modelled by
the class teachers and teaching assistants in the standards of display
in the school environment. (See appendix 1 – Display Policy).
o As teachers we model what we value.
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Developing Learning
What is Effective Teaching and Learning at Chieveley Primary School?
Effective Teaching and Learning - equips learners for life in its broadest
sense
We understand that school is more than its curriculum.
o What happens in school needs to connect to the outside world, both by
relating what is happening to events at home and abroad and by
helping them develop the skills, strategies and curiosity the children will
need in an ever expanding world.
o Flexibility of mind – the ability to make connections, transfer skills and
think methodically yet creatively are important skills.
o Collaboration is increasingly important (we shall exemplify this later).
Learning should aim to help individuals and groups develop the
intellectual, personal and social resources that will enable them to
develop as active, adaptable adults. We are aiming to have a school
where children do not just sit together, they think together.
o Attitude is important. If one has shown to have ‘tried’ it implies the
learner was not actually that successful but this is not true. A true
disposition to learn can be developed from foundation stage.
Effective Teaching and Learning – engages with a valued body of
knowledge.
o
Teaching and learning should engage learners with big ideas, key
processes, bodies of knowledge and key questions relating to a
subject. The teacher’s role will vacillate between being a transmitter of
information and skills to a facilitator of opportunities for children to
engage in activities where they will explore the significant.
Effective Teaching – Recognises the Importance of Prior Experience and
Learning.
o All effort must be made to take into account what the child already
knows. This can be a challenge in a class of 25 to 30 pupils but the
importance of differentiation is then paramount.
o Local culture and enthusiasms can be a feature.
o An important point to note here is it up to us, as the current teacher, to
challenge a child’s pre-conceived attitude to their perceived
competence. A child’s self-esteem and engagement with learning is not
fixed.
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Effective Teaching and Learning – Recognises the Importance of
Scaffolding.
As primary teachers we are indebted to Lev Vygotsky and his work on The
Zone of Proximal Development.
The zone of proximal development (ZPD) has been defined as
"the distance between the actual developmental level as determined by
independent problem solving and the level of potential development as
determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration
with more capable peers" (Vygotsky, 1978,)
Although Vygotsky himself never used the term scaffolding (it was D.Wood
who clarified its application.) it can be explained as thus; once the student,
with the benefit of scaffolding, masters the task, the scaffolding can then be
removed and the student will then be able to complete the task again on his
own.
Wood et al. (1976,) offer the following definition of scaffolding:
'Those elements of the task that are initially beyond the learner’s capacity,
thus permitting him to concentrate upon and complete only those elements
that are within his range of competence'.
It is important to note that the terms cooperative learning, scaffolding and
guided learning all have the same meaning within the literature.
Practical application will be for example evident in the crafting of longer writing
tasks with the child concentrating on specifics, the structure being given.
Eventually the structure will be removed.
A question to consider, especially when planning for differentiation, is
who needs a scaffold in this task and who does not?
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Teaching and learning uses assessment effectively.
Chieveley Primary School uses summative assessments and formative
assessments. Summative assessments are undertaken, as a whole school, at
three points during the school year. SATS tests, optional SATs tests, NFER
tests, formal teacher assessments are amongst the tools used. Information
gained from this process is used to plot progress, identify targets and highlight
issues and difficulties. The head teacher, SENCO and class teacher have a
termly meeting to review this data.
Formative assessment and AFL strategies are an on-going tool which will be
used to continually assess learning in the classroom.
AfL practices make clear what is being learned, why, and how success will be
measured. Pupils who understand their own goals and their role in learning
are more independent in managing their learning; they know what to do, how
they have to work and take more responsibility for their own learning and
assessment. Assessment for Learning helps cultivate these valuable skills by
giving pupils a role in determining these components of the learning as well as
experience in providing feedback and assessing themselves and their peers.
The learning is no longer something they receive; it becomes something they
pursue and have a hand in shaping.
AfL promotes the concepts of
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
setting open-ended challenges;
making thinking important;
making thinking and learning explicit;
effective questioning;
enabling collaborative learning;
promoting independent learning;
making connections.
AfL involves the following key actions:
o
o
o
o
o
sharing learning intentions;
sharing and negotiating success criteria;
giving feedback to pupils;
effective questioning;
encouraging pupils to assess and evaluate their own and others’ work.
Our marking policy exemplifies our more formal approach to formative
assessment and is written to meet the needs of both key stages. Formative
feedback points pupils towards ways to realise the improvement and reach
the goal. To be truly formative, it must help plan the next steps in learning.
Formative feedback: is timely; relates to the focus of the learning (learning
intention); identifies where success has occurred; identifies where and how
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improvement can take place; allows time for improvement; and is accessible
to the pupil in terms of meaning/vocabulary.
It is important that children are given time to react to and improve upon
formative assessment given.
Effective Teaching Depends on Purposeful Questioning
Teachers at Chieveley Primary School make every effort to engage in
purposeful questioning. In order to develop open questioning techniques a
focus on Blooms Taxonomy of Questioning is appropriate.
Levels of Questions
Recall (Cognitive Memory, Factual, Input)
Questions used to determine students’ knowledge about factual information. Use to
reinforce learning and check on student retention.
Name 3 states of water in the water cycle.
How many times did you visit the ocean station?
What is (the definition of) transpiration?
Comprehension (Convergent, Analysis, Interpretation, Process)
Questions used to determine students’ understanding of a subject.
What processes occur when water molecules move from the ocean to plants?
Compare your journey with another person’s journey.
Explain why your journey was different than your partner’s.
Analysis (Divergent, Hypothesis/Prediction, Output)
Questions that require students to take their knowledge and apply it to new
situations. Use to determine whether students are making generalizations.
What might be affected in the water cycle if there was a source of pollution
next to the river?
Create a story about what you experienced during your journey.
If the average temperature of the earth increased by 5 degrees Celsius, where
might activity in the water cycle change, and why?
Evaluation (Evaluative, Critical Analysis, Opinion)
Questions used to give students an opportunity to make a value judgment, express
opinions, provide criticisms, or raise their own questions. There are no right or wrong
answers. Use to get a feel for what students are thinking, how they are balancing
their new learning with prior beliefs and values.
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Effective Teaching and Learning Promotes the Active Engagement of
the Learner
A curriculum which promotes the active engagement of the learner is effective
when the children are consulted and their views treated with respect. They are
more likely to be engaged in their learning. Inquiry based approaches,
possibly initiated by the child are encouraged. A variety of approaches such
as Topic Hooks, Mantle of the Expert, first hand experiences and drama
strategies can be used to explore with your class.
Effective Teaching and Learning fosters both individual and social
processes and outcomes.
Learning is a social activity. It demands interaction with others. Research
shows that children who work effectively in groups do far better in individual
exams than those who do not. Intelligence is social: intelligence is distributed.
Children will make gains in their inferential thinking and in their higher
cognitive understanding. Group work also improves social interaction between
pupil and pupil and pupil and teacher.
We emphasis the importance again of children thinking and problem solving
together not just sitting together.
The Primary National strategy archived document, Speaking, Listening,
Learning: working with children in Key Stages 1 and 2 has excellent strategies
to support collaborative learning through especially drama techniques. You
will exemplification of Think - Pair -Share, Jigsaw, Rainbowing, Information
Gap, Statement Game, Envoying, Snowballing.
http://www.swanseagfl.gov.uk/literacy/res/Oracy/S_L_Drama_leaflets_DFES.pdf
Analysis of behaviours which are exhibited in group situations with children who are
undertaking collaborative group work will make that work more effective. The group
should have an awareness of how they behave in a group and how they contribute to
the team.
These could be, depending on the needs of your class and the task,
o practice active listening
o help and encourage each other
o everyone participates or has a role
o explain your ideas and tell why
o complete task
The children will need to be taught the roles of, for example: leader, scribe, recorder,
observer and have a shared understanding of these roles.
Collaborative learning has a place across the curriculum.
Effective Teaching and Learning Recognises the Significance of
Informal Learning.
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Chieveley Primary School recognises the enormous impact parental
engagement has on the leaning of the child.
A range of activities take place which involve interacting with parents: parents
evenings, exhibition evenings, curriculum dissemination, new parents events
and homework.
The place of homework is specifically addressed in the Chieveley School
Homework Policy. To précis homework at Chieveley School will be, for
example, a combination of practice tasks, sharing of reading, investigative
tasks, problem solving tasks, research activities, art/craft based activities etc.
Effective Teaching and Learning Depends Upon Teachers Learning.
Having a professional culture where staff are open to research, reflect and
then develop practice is paramount. Giving support to staff to initiate and trial
new ideas and practices is important; as is giving staff time to reflect on
outcomes.
Teachers need support and frameworks to support implementation of new
ideas and Chieveley School actively promotes an atmosphere of rigour and
intellectual challenge. This is evident in both staff meetings and the focus of
training days. We have a variety of current educational literature available for
consultation and loan in the mezzanine area.
High importance is given to staff development, both individually and as a
whole.
Effective Teaching and Learning Demands a Curriculum with a Shared
Vision.
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At Chieveley Primary School time has been given to us, as a staff, to develop
our own shared vision and philosophy. Whist having strong regard for the high
academic standards we aim for at Chieveley – included in this is our clear
emphasis on basic skills, intervention when appropriate, pride in work
achieved, quality presentation required, both from the children and staff – the
values we hold, our belief in a learning and thinking culture enable our
children to develop attitudes and engagement with their work which goes
beyond a narrow range of performance indicators.
As already stated our curriculum is planned by Chieveley teachers for
Chieveley children. As we have moved away from a reliance on QCA units,
we made a decision not to ‘buy in’ a commercial scheme, for example IPC,
but to devise our own. Here core basic skills are balanced with knowledge of
key concepts and developing an ability to apply a learning skills
independently.
Moving forward: Developing Our Approach to Learning at Chieveley
Primary School
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Our belief is that our function is to develop the learner. Therefore everything
we do must be based on learning. Therefore teachers must be learners too.
We have a professional responsibility to go on learning about learning. We
must reflect upon it, discuss it, un-pick it, try to deepen our understanding of it.
The better we understand it , the better able we are to facilitate it in others.
Reflect
Do
Revise
To conclude, in order to improve learning we are aiming to focus on
o reflection
o interaction
o intervention
Good teachers engage, we shall endeavour to,
o entice
o excite
o enthral
To do this let us focus on,
o curiosity
o challenge
o confusion
o creativity
If our philosophy is thus, this policy will be, to a certain extent, out of
date as soon as we receive it. That is our exciting challenge!
The Role of the Head teacher and Governing Body
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The Governing Body of Chieveley Primary School will
o Support the use of appropriate teaching strategies by allocating
resources effectively.
o Ensure that the school and it’s buildings are best used to support
successful learning.
o Monitor the impact of teaching and learning strategies in raising
attainment
o Ensure that staff development and performance management policies
promote good quality teaching.
The Role of the Head teacher and the Deputy Headteacher
o This teaching and learning policy has been written to support the
continued development of teaching and learning at Chieveley Primary
School. Ensure that it does so.
o The impact of this policy will be evaluated by,
 Classroom observation
 Sampling of work and book scrutinies
 Sharing of pupils work and whole class discussion
 Discussion with pupils
 Discussion within staff meetings
Caroline Hayward
Deputy Headteacher Summer 2013
The policy will be reviewed May 2014 by the Senior Leadership Team.
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