My responses to Rosenshine's Principles – Susanna Boyd 'Principles of Instruction: Research-Based Strategies that All Teachers Should Know' from American Educator (Spring 2012, pp.12-19, 39). Strangely enough, Rosenshine's Principles of Instruction had passed me by the first time. I guess it must have been that they were published just at the start of my career, …
What do we mean by ‘curriculum’? by Chris Foster
Without meaning, learning has no purpose. Without a purpose, schools are houses of detention, not attention. Neil Postman, The End of Education (p. 7) How do we choose what we teach our pupils, and why? These questions are central to curriculum theory. Curriculum (what is taught and to whom) is distinct from pedagogy (how the …
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Teaching and Learning Clinics Nov/Dec 2020
Friday 6th November 1.05-1.35pm Making the Most of Lesson Observation: Top T and L tips for observing and being observed (Julie Summers) Observing learning fortnight begins Monday 9th November Friday 13th November 1.05-1.35pm Self-Managed Learning: Tips, ideas and examples for making successful SML videos (Joe Sanders and the T and L team) Thursday 19th November …
Observing Learning Fortnight
Teaching staff at Oakham School are always keen to learn from each other and to share best practice. Over recent years ‘Observing Learning Week’ (now a fortnight) has become a regular feature of the Teaching and Learning calendar and this year is no different. Although we have had to re-think how to observe each others’ …
The pitfalls of Self-Managed Learning, and how videos can help us climb out of them
“Your self-managed learning task was too hard…it took me forever.” This was the tip of the iceberg; my students were right, but they had no idea just how bad my SMLs really were. The reason that they took too long and seemed too difficult was because they only served to comfort me that I was …
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The buzz around blended learning: What does it mean for us?
What is blended learning? It’s a new buzzword in Education, but what exactly does it involve and how does it affect us at Oakham School? In a nutshell blended learning is a continuation of the remote teaching we did for an entire term during the Covid 19 lockdown, but it also refers to the new …
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Blended Learning & the return to the classroom: What do the experts say?
By Julie Summers In my previous post I outlined which blended learning methods have worked well for Oakham School pupils so far. However, in June/July I attended three webinars managed by the CPD organisation OSIRIS which each featured an interview with a different leading figure in educational research. The theme was ‘Build Back Better’ as …
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From the virtual classroom to the physical one – what have we learnt and what can we take forward?
In this post the T and L team continue to reflect upon the developments in their teaching since transferring to remote learning. Although initially daunting, some of the techniques for online teaching that we were once cautious about have now become cornerstones of our daily practice. Likewise, strategies that once seemed alien are now proving …
Remote Teaching: Three teachers reflect upon three things learnt over three weeks
In this post, the Teaching and Learning Team take stock after three weeks of remote teaching, and ponder what they have made of their experiences so far. Routines are more essential now than they have ever been. Julie Summers writes: Every teacher knows that routines are the cornerstone of an effective lesson. At the most …
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One week in to remote T and L – what have we learnt so far?
Like many of you the Teaching and Learning team have found this week in turn challenging and rewarding. Pupil attitude, behaviour and engagement have been high and the quantity of material covered in what is in effect the final week of term has been excellent. It has been fun to experiment with our virtual tools …
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