Better English and literacy Everyone a writer

Data for 2013: Key Stage 4  33% overall did not achieve grade C or higher for English Language GCSE.  33% overall did not make expected KS2–4 progress in English.  50% CLA/FSM pupils did not achieve grade C or higher for English Language GCSE Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Data for 2013: Key Stage 2-4  69% overall made expected KS2–4 progress in English.  76% of girls made expected KS2-4 progress in English.  Only 63% of boys made expected KS2-4 progress in English.  Only 56% CLA/FSM pupils made expected KS2-4 progress in English Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

In 2012, a National Literacy Trust survey found that:  one in every six adults struggles with literacy, with a literacy level below that expected of an 11-year-old  levels of achievement are often associated with pupils’ levels of deprivation. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

In 2008, employers had concerns over employees’ ability to:  read and understand basic texts – 32%  understand and reply clearly to spoken instructions – 39%  construct properly spelt, grammatically correct writing – 72%. CBI survey (2008) Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

National Literacy Trust/CBI survey in 2011:  40% of employers were dissatisfied with school and college leavers’ literacy skills. These responses suggest that improvement in many school leavers’ literacy skills is painfully slow. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Who really cares? Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

In your school -  are literacy features consistently included in teachers’ instructions? These may include: – appropriate style – sentence construction – key words – spelling.  Who monitors the planning and impact? Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Persistent challenges identified in a government survey include:  the gap between girls’ and boys’ achievement, especially in writing  evidence of lower standards overall in writing  poorer performance in English by pupils eligible for free school meals. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Barriers to success for boys:  poor behaviour  low levels of motivation  low self-esteem and reluctance to risk failure  a reluctance to begin writing Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Try reversing the sequence. Barriers to success for boys include:  reluctance to begin writing (because of…)  low self-esteem and reluctance to risk failure (leading to…)  low levels of motivation (prompting…)  poor behaviour. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Barriers to good writing:  over-directed teaching limiting learners’ independence  ‘practice’ writing rather than meaningful tasks with a clear sense of context, purpose and audience  the lack of whole-school approaches to writing Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Barriers to good writing:  teachers’ lack of confidence  over-dependence on external guidance and off-the-peg schemes  a view that curriculum content leaves too little time for writing and discussion, reflection and consideration of ideas Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Moving English Forward (2012) In less effective lessons:  the teaching of writing was of variable quality  learning was constrained by too narrow a focus on test preparation  too little attention was given to spelling and handwriting. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Teachers and students who write together… …get it right together!

What have surveys shown working?  Teachers and pupils working together as writers  Combining a variety of experiences and approaches  Encouraging pupils to develop their own success criteria Beyond the crossroads: a teachers’ forum (2009) Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

What have surveys shown working?  Encouraging pupils to play with language, free from formal assessment  Using marking to generate genuine dialogue with pupils about their work  Giving pupils choice of text type and topic  Creating opportunities to write on-line Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

‘Teachers demonstrate high standards in their own use of language and they model the processes of reading and writing powerfully to help pupils make real progress in their own work.’ English subject inspection: a mark of outstanding teaching Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

The pupil experience With a partner, choose a picture on the hand-out (and on the next slide).  Briefly agree writing criteria for the following task.  Individually, write the beginning of your story or poem. You have five minutes.  Peer-review with your partner. Be honest! Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

a Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Whole-group discussion  What worked? What could have made it more productive for pupils?  How do you integrate creative writing into your planning and what guidance do you give your department?  What do you know about how well your teachers model and teach writing? Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Further barriers to effective writing:  too few opportunities for pupils to complete extended writing  too little emphasis on creative and imaginative tasks  too little choice for pupils in the topics for writing Moving English forward (2012) Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Look at the examples of Year 7 writing on the hand-out (also on the next slides).  What guidance would you give to a new teacher on how to respond to these pieces?  Next steps?  End of key stage targets? Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Year 7 Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

NC aims include ensuring that all pupils:  acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions  write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting language and style for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

 Despite some effective individual marking of spelling, schools lacked consistency on which mistakes to correct and how.  Marking did not make it clear how pupils should respond to spelling mistakes.  Teachers’ comments on spelling too rarely led to action by pupils. Moving English forward (2012) Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Lack of punctuation can be lethal! im hungry lets eat granny Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Correct punctuation saves the day – and Granny! ‘I’m hungry! Let’s eat, Granny.’ Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Woman without her man is nothing. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Woman without her man is nothing. Woman, without her man, is nothing. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Woman without her man is nothing. Woman, without her man, is nothing. Woman: without her, man is nothing. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Woman without her man is nothing. Woman, without her man, is nothing. Woman: without her, man is nothing. Punctuation makes sense! Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Making choices: modal verbs Imagine you are the English team coach trying to inspire the team. ‘We can win this.’ ‘We should win this.’ ‘We must win this.’ ‘We will win this.’ Consider the impact of verb choice. Is this an approach your teachers might use? Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Making choices: sentence structure  His wife was shrill, languid, handsome and horrible.  His wife was horrible, shrill, languid and handsome. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald What difference does the change of word order make? Is one more effective than the other? Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

NC aims include ensuring that all pupils:  acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions  write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting language and style for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences. Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

The gold standard Pupils’ writing shows a high degree of technical accuracy and they write effectively across a range of genres, frequently showing creativity in their ideas and choice of language. English inspection descriptor for ‘outstanding achievement’ Better English and literacy Everyone a writer Better English & literacy P Metham HMI

Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum ‘To boldly go…’ Exploration Enquiry Imagination A sense of purpose Skills

Key message  The NC sets out non-negotiables in terms of skills and knowledge.  You have the freedom to develop these through an engaging curriculum.  You have the responsibility to promote the learning of all pupils in your school. Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

The ‘Wow!’ approach? Planning choices and priorities? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

The ‘Wow!’ approach? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

The ‘Wow!’ approach? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

The ‘Wow!’ approach? Is the experience purposeful? Is the learning sustained? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

The quality of the curriculum is the strongest indicator of outstanding provision in English. Teaching that is held in check by an inappropriate or dull curriculum will not inspire pupils or generate high standards. Excellence in English (2011) Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Pupils who make limited headway in English frequently speak of the subject as:  a largely passive experience  school-based  academic. Moving English forward (2012) Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Effective schools:  reflect on and adapt their curriculum to meet changing needs  teach literacy in contexts that are relevant and meaningful to their learners  identify learners’ different starting points and needs accurately. Removing barriers to literacy (2011 ) Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Ofsted inspectors must consider:  pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development  how well the school meets the needs of: – disabled pupils and those with special educational needs – pupils eligible for the Pupil Premium. School inspection handbook (2012) Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

A good plan

Elements of a good curriculum plan  Well-planned transition from KS2 to KS3  A coherent, engaging and challenging KS3  Well-planned transition to KS4  Extension and enrichment activities  Links with the ‘real’ world Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Choices!  How long is your KS3?  What are its non-negotiable elements?  How do you balance language and literature?  Are there aspects you plan to change? What and why? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Literacy across the curriculum  How do you plan for key literacy skills to be routinely embedded across subjects?  Who monitors its implementation?  Who evaluates its impact? Share your approach with another school. The Cardinal Hume case study (hand-out) presents one approach, not ‘THE’ approach! Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

From curriculum structure to lesson-planning

Lesson-planning What do we look for in a well-planned lesson?  Consider the Year 9 lesson plan on the next slide.  What advice would you give an inexperienced teacher who brought you this plan for comment? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Starter (for a Year 9 lesson on persuasive writing)  Introduce and discuss objective. (5 min)  Groups to complete card-sort activity. (10 min) Development  Groups to use Question of Sport information and identify stylistic devices on whiteboard. (10 min)  Mini-plenary: look at criteria for Levels 5, 6, 7. (5 min)  Look at examples (L5/6) of persuasive essays on capital punishment, choose the most effective and link to criteria. (5 min)  Pupils produce at least one paragraph for a talk for/against capital punishment. (10 min) Plenary (15 min)  Musical chairs: peer-mark two others’ work, return to own work, check comments.  Washing line: pupils get into position relating to strength of views for/against capital punishment.  What have you learnt today? Q/A.  Final activity: identify techniques on board Better English P Metham HMI

What creates barriers?  Excessive pace  Overloading of activities  Ineffective AfL  Behaviour management  Focus on ‘doing’ not ‘learning’  Poor differentiation  Limited subject knowledge  Teaching to the test Moving English forward, Ofsted, 2012 Moving English Forward, Ofsted, 2012 Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Finally

Challenges?  Balancing skills, knowledge, a sense of discovery, excitement and enjoyment  Developing activities that meet all needs  Ensuring that teachers and TAs have the necessary knowledge and skills  Checking that time and resources are productively deployed Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

What works?  Teachers listening carefully to what pupils say about English, about what they enjoy doing and about how they learn best  Schools giving teachers freedom and flexibility to devise programmes that will engage their pupils Excellence in English, Ofsted, 2011 Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

Review and refresh Using the hand-outs (L&M of speaking and listening, of reading and of writing) if they are helpful, discuss as school groups your:  secure strengths (what and where)  areas for improvements (what and where). Identify at least one action point for each area. Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum Better English P Metham HMI

The gold standard  Imaginative approaches  A wide range of challenging texts  A clear focus on basic literacy skills  A rich curriculum, accessible to all groups Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum

 Questions? Better English and literacy An engaging curriculum