Why do we mark children’s work? More to the point why do they think we mark their work?

Research has shown that: Children believe that the purpose of marking is for the teacher to find out what they have got right or wrong, rather than for their own benefit Children are rarely given time to read marking comments Children are rarely given time to make any improvement on their work Marking still often consists of comments regarding quantity, presentation, and encouragement We need to think about how ‘targets’ work alongside feedback and whether it is worth writing an improvement comment unless you give the pupil time to do anything with it …

Research has shown that feedback comments are often: non-specific “good work, well done, that’s much better “ or focus on: presentation “neat work,” “use a ruler” quantity “you have completed a lot of calculations,” “not enough work “ surface features “make sure number ‘9’ is the right way round,” “check your spellings” effort “you have worked hard today” Feedback needs to focus on what you want the children to learn (the objectives for the lesson) Focus for Feedback

Marking and Feedback Marking and feedback should tell the pupil what they have done well and what they need to do in order to improve The pupil needs time to respond to the marking and feedback Not every piece of work but perhaps one piece of focused marking per week.

The dangers of marking quickly. The teacher has missed the major issue here. Can you spot what the child is doing wrong? Just shows how children can get the right answer (in 1, 2, 3 and 7, for the wrong reason!

Quality marking. - Note the dialogue between teacher and pupil.

Marking against learning intentions, involving 3 types of prompt, from the same task. A.Example - for the child who has not achieved the learning objective. B.Scaffolded - for the child who has achieved some of the learning objective or is inconsistent. C.Developmental - for the child who has achieved the learning objective.

Well tried. But remember that the order of the numbers in subtraction makes a difference to the answer. Have a go at filling in the gaps on this family of number sentences = __ = 15 __ - 7 = 8 __ - __ = __ Type A: Example prompt… I can write three other related number sentences for = 9 Learning Outcome I know that addition and subtraction 'undo' each other

Good try. Remember that subtraction is the opposite of addition so, = – 7 = 8 and 15 – 8 = 7. Now, have a go at writing two subtraction sentences for = 17. Type B: Scaffold prompt… I can write three other related number sentences for = 9 Learning Outcome I know that addition and subtraction 'undo' each other

Well done. You understand that subtraction is the inverse of addition and can use this to find families of number sentences. Now, how many sentences with larger numbers can you work out from = 15? (e.g = 150) Type C – Developmental prompt… Learning Outcome I know that addition and subtraction 'undo' each other I can write three other related number sentences for = 9

Green Dot marked by the teacher indicates a problem Child’s initials to show that the teacher’s comments have been read Child’s improvements on a post-it note General comment by teacher and targets for improvement. Child has initialled each section

Effective marking should: relate comments to learning objective, targets or success criteria encourage a dialogue with pupils provide scaffolded, closing the gap comments and suggestions for improvement move forward children’s learning be timely. Providing only end-point feedback may be too late.

Collecting evidence: Goldilocks-not too much, not too little-just right Key moments -where progress is made Quality marking –with issues/positives highlighted

In planning, think about ways that you can collect good evidence easily. Use other adults to collect evidence by pre warning them and so focus their questioning or observations. Use pre-printed guided sheets linked to assessment focuses (see ACCAC OAMs for examples.) Use all possible opportunities e.g. other curriculum areas, homework etc. Plenaries are a good source of U & A evidence. Photocopy or even take pictures when you spot good evidence or key learning moments.

You can make subtle but significant changes by using a range of approaches to encourage reflection. These include: allowing ‘wait time’ after asking questions and after questions have been answered; using processing strategies, for example ‘Take two minutes to write three things you remember about...’; discouraging ‘hands up’ (since this can distract thinking); promoting ‘think-pair-share’ time; offering prompts to initiate reflection (plus, minus, interesting); building in time to reflect before, during and after learning; displaying pupils’ learning targets; encouraging the use of a learning log or diary; having an end-of-week review; and using A4L strategies such as ‘thumbs-up’, traffic lights, 3 stars or smiley faces. More to think about

Moving forward…. Aspire Audit Adapt Action

Initiation Stage – Let’s have a go It makes a lot of sense to begin by trying out strategies in one AfL element of practice rather than all of them at once - a focus on the learning, effective questioning, formative feedback, scaffolding reflection. Don’t be in too much of a hurry! Consolidation Stage – It’s actually starting to make sense At this stage, teachers identify benefits to pupil learning and might move on to another element of AfL practice or increase the frequency of use. Embedding Stage – It’s just the way we do things here At the embedding stage, decision-making about which strategies work best in different contexts becomes second nature, and clear improvements are associated with the practice.