1. I stand at the edge of the fertile soil
Poem- I am a gardener
Place the poem face down in front of participants. Ask participants to individually read the poem in front of them- consider initial thoughts. This section asks for participants to make connections between what is in the poem and what they will be considering. They need to consider the current reform process and where schools are within this process. It also asks them to consider possible ways and problems they may face.
Share your thoughts with the person next to you- what are your thoughts? Connect your learning- what are the key messages?
Before feedback to the whole group- show the video from Sir Ken Robinson. This is hyperlinked- the link is here in case it has been lost-
Pose the question of how does this add to your thoughts.
Then ask for sharing from the group.
The aim of this is to model the sessions that could be used with practitioners through the use of good learning and teaching- in this activity- practitioners are ‘hooked’ into the learning process through the poem. Literacy is built in and practitioners are asked to make connections, activate prior knowledge and make inferences. The individual to pair/share then whole class, interconnected with digital elements shows how AfL is highly integrated and visual literacy can challenge practitioners to think deeper, whilst make connections

2. So where do we start?
‘The great challenge for teaching is not just to know your discipline but to know your students and to know the pedagogical relationship that will make them flourish and be the best thing they can be’
This is a quote from the clip from Sir Ken Robison and can be explored with practitioners- making connections between the initial task and feeding forward into the learning process. Why is this important? Why does pedagogy lie at the heart of what we do in the classroom?
This is a suggested use to generate discussion and debate. Choose to use it how you think.

3. Highly effective pedagogical approaches leads to……..
Creating the climate
I stand at the edge of the fertile soil
Which lies fallow and empty in parts
But tomorrow seed packages will open
And my job of planting will start
Pedagogy is ………………
Highly effective pedagogical approaches leads to……..
The first stanza of the poem asks practitioners to consider where the system is currently. What does each of these sentences mean and refer to in the context of curriculum reform?
Pedagogy has been referred to constantly for the last 2 years- it is the subject of Chapter 5 of Successful Futures but do practitioners have a common understanding?
As such, this is a task to draw out its meaning in your context.
In pairs, define ‘pedagogy’- discuss what it is and what it leads to
A starting point for you and your teams? Building the language for learning and teaching in your school. Own practice first- dialogue and discuss.
You could draw together peoples thoughts and put a ‘school’ shared definition which will support your curriculum reform process going forward.

4. This is just to give to practitioners to write their thoughts and definitions

5. Creating a climate and culture
How should I arrange my plants this year?
The traditional rows work well
Current almanacs suggest groupings
In planter boxes, inclusive for all.
This section of the poem asks practitioners to consider research and inquiry as it refers to the current debate around mixed ability v setting. You may wish to explore this with the group- how have people come to their conclusions? This could allow an exploration of how you know what research to trust- what makes it more reliable?
Link this to the new professional standards- this is for two reasons. Some practitioners may not have realised about the new standards- this is an opportunity to become familiar with them. The standards are also outlined, showing the expectation for professional learning to include wider reading and networks.
To support this, you could consider giving some research papers such as
Section from Successful Futures; Coe- What makes great teaching? P9-10 and summary and NCL summary section
What makes great pedagogy- nine claims from research
Or referring to and then reading books such as
Books- Making every lesson count? Teaching Backwards
This is to help schools to consider how research informed are you and your school? How engaged with and in research are your practitioners? This is a start to the professionalization of teachers, taking their learning to a different level. Please use any resources from the Research and Inquiry toolkit on hwb. If you find any research, please send it to use to include in the toolkit.

6. Discussing pedagogy
‘Sound pedagogy will be an integral part of the successful implementation of the Review’s proposals on curriculum and assessment. It means much more than the implementation of a pre-determined repertoire of methods and requires high-quality teachers with a sound understanding of the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of teaching as well as the ‘what’.
This is an extract from the Successful Futures review document. It can instigate discussion

7. Discussing pedagogy What does it mean? What do I change/revise/review?
Verbalise
Contextualise
Emphasise
Analyse
Visualise
Revise
What does it mean?
What do I change/revise/review?
What does it look like in my context?
What could it look like?
In order to consider pedagogy, this is a method by which you can start to explore in small internal groups such as pairs or triads. It is designed to create a dialogue around the pedagogical principles in Chapter 5 of Successful Futures and to move towards creating a language for learning within the context of the school. It is designed to create some dialogue prior to moving into a research/inquiry process. You can also link this into the Professional Standards.
Your internal systems need to be in place to allow such dialogue, and then inquiry to take place. This is not a one off but will take place over time and as a school, you need to decide on the area of focus or how you are going to explore the principles. To aid you in your internal systems, you may wish to refer to the Schools as a Learning Organisation. You need to consider how you are giving your staff the time and space to be able to explore pedagogy in the classroom. If you have technology such as IRIS, you can put this to effective use for your practitioners to engage in reflective practice or more action research based inquiry.
It maybe useful to consider the strengths within the school linked to the pedagogical approaches so that you can aim to improve practice- you can do this individually or collectively. You may wish also to be able to exemplify practice across the different stages/ages and subjects- start to consider which pedagogical principles are more effective? Where does subject content pedagogy sit in all of this?
This gives you a process of exploration. You should utilise inquiry methodology to aid you in the inquiry stages. And remember, this isn’t a linear process.
Why is it important?
What is my/our current practice? Strengths/ Improvements

8. Try it!
Good teaching and learning challenges all learners by encouraging them to recognise the importance of sustained effort in meeting expectations that are high but achievable for them
Verbalise
Contextualise
Emphasise
Analyse
What does it mean?
What does it look like in my context?
Why is it important?
What is my/our current practice? Strengths/ Improvements
Use print outs of Chapter 5- encourage discussion. Get the Leads to try it- possibly have some A3 sheets for this discussion
When it comes to using this in school, you may not necessarily use this slide. Depends on the stage your staff are at.

9. I stand at the edge First step is preparation
For I desire a very fine yield
I’ll till the ground and ready my tools
And timetable my work in the field
This just ends the session in terms of the group now having something to take back.
Further support for inquiry can be found in the Research and Inquiry toolkit on hwb. The links for this are on the ‘Activities schools can do’ sheet.