Tuesday, 26 April 2022

How Coaching Conversations Can Improve Your Relationships With Students

By Anita Shakya

Beginning with the end in mind is a core component of being efficient, and when we have conversations with any student we always have a destination we want to reach. However, the gap between student understanding and teacher intention can be a tricky thing to navigate. With the time pressures that teachers and students face in a day, how can you have the most effective conversations with a student in such a small space of time? And, what does an effective conversation look like? Many of us may have engaged in conversations with students that have felt one-sided: where teachers have done a lot of the talking and don’t seem to get strong answers to questions such as, “Why do you think we are here?” and “Do you understand what needs to happen now”? oftentimes we leave those conversations with a compliant student but may feel uncertain as to whether the student really understands what their role is with their peers, in the classroom or within the school. Any conversation with a student needs to be valued: it’s an opportunity to teach and it’s an opportunity to listen. Doing both of those things will help build relationships with students that will in the short term and long term make them feel seen and safe, and also help to improve the behaviour for learning across the school.

What is a coaching conversation? Coaching conversations are a shift from telling or giving advice to enabling the student to take responsibility for their own challenges and reach their own conclusions. They can be seen as a guided discussion where your role is to listen and provide questions following the ‘Heart’ (what’s important to them), ‘Head’ (what are their thoughts and observations about the issue) and ‘Step’ (actions they can make) model. Following this model helps a student to realise their own role in a situation before thinking about change. When something is made relevant to them, they are more likely to make changes that stick. How coaching conversations improved my practice: The first thing I stopped doing was asking ‘why’? The word ‘why’ creates a judgemental tone in the conversation and can lead to the student growing defensive instead of open. Why questions can also lack focus and may neglect the structured thinking students sometimes need. Structuring my questions with ‘what’ and ‘how’ meant that the students started doing more of the talking and my contributions to the conversations were minimised. I have adopted a hybrid approach where I do some talking towards the end so that the conversation feels organic. I have also become more comfortable with silences; allowing the student to think about what they would like to say and taking ownership. How can I have a coaching conversation? Every conversation is unique and the main idea is to listen and then respond but here are some examples of WHAT and HOW questions, following the heart, head step model. If you feel a student has understood the value, you can move on to the thinking and when you feel as though the student understands the situation at large, you can move on to the actions. Here are some examples of questions under each step: HEART (Emotive and Intrinsic) What do you want to achieve? What is important to you in regards to ________ I heard you say “_______” what made you feel this way? How are you feeling about ________ (if they are silent) what’s your greatest concern at the moment? HEAD (Analytical and Critical) What were you prioritising at that moment? How do you see yourself progressing at the moment? How do you see yourself in relation to this? I noticed you said _______ earlier, how does that impact ________? What has contributed to your approach/feelings? What does success look like for you? (if they are silent) What are some of the thoughts you’re having? STEP (Action-based) What options do you have available to you? What do you need in order to be successful What could you do differently next time? How can you achieve ________? How can I start?

Perhaps try a hybrid next time: communicate the goal of the conversation; swap ‘why’ with ‘what’ and ‘how’ and do more active listening. By noticing what students say and guiding questions from this students will feel like they’ve been heard and feel like they’ve contributed to the solution.


Bitesize Research: Supporting Revision & Exam Preparation

By Jaya Carrier

I hope everyone’s had a great week so far! As we draw closer to exams, I wanted to get in touch about some recent work from the Education Endowment Foundation about supporting effective revision using the EEF’s evidence-based work on metacognition and self-regulated learning. Objectives: To use evidence-based methods to support student revision and exam preparation. Summary:

  • The EEF propose the explicit teaching of revision strategies as teachers cannot assume that students will be strong independent learners or know how to revise independently.
  • They advocate the use of a seven-step model, as summarised below:
    1. Activating prior knowledge
    2. Explicit strategy instruction
    3. Modelling of learned strategy
    4. Memorisation of strategy
    5. Guided practice
    6. Independent practice
    7. Structured reflection

How does this impact me and my practice?:

Some reflection questions arising from this that might be helpful to consider are:

  • How do I currently support students to improve their metacognition and ability to revise independently?
  • Which parts of the seven-step model do I use already? Which do I need support with to secure them into my practice? What might this support look like?
  • How can I scaffold and support students to prepare for their exams in these final stages? If you would like to discuss this further with me please get in touch! I’d be delighted to hear from you!


Thursday, 21 April 2022

Bitesize Research: Sustainability & Climate Change In Secondary Schools

By Jaya Carrier

Welcome back - I hope everyone had a lovely Easter break, and that you’re having a good first week back. 


This week’s bitesize is a little bit different and I’m using it to highlight a really exciting research project that we at WA are taking part in. One of the most pressing global issues facing us and our students is climate change and sustainability. In light of this, we were delighted to be approached by the new Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability at the Institute of Education to take part in their research into how this issue is embedded into schools and education.


For this work, researchers from this centre will be coming into WA for two days in May to speak to our staff, to look at our current approaches to this issue, and to support us with devising future initiatives. 


Objectives:

To examine how climate change and sustainability are approached by schools in the UK currently, and then to devise and disseminate best practices on how to educate about these issues going forward


Summary: 

  • The new Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability is reporting that a significant proportion of teachers feel underprepared to teach about climate change and sustainability.
  • They acknowledge that effective education on this issue may also require a change in values education, careers education as well as better knowledge. They also acknowledge that this work is likely to be cross-disciplinary to be most effective. 
  • They are looking to work with teachers across the UK to develop their work in tandem with teachers.
  • The need for better support for teachers is also acknowledged in the Department for Education’s recent Climate and Sustainability Education draft strategy 


How does this impact me and my practice?:

Some reflection questions arising from this that might be helpful to consider are: 

 

  • What is the value of climate change and sustainability education?
  • What am I currently doing to promote sustainability to my students?
  • What would I like to do to support sustainability and climate change education?

 

If you would like to discuss this further with me or if you’d like to take part in some of this research - please let me know! I’d be delighted to hear from you!


Thoughts From A Visiting Teacher: UConn Student Teachers

By Frank Anile-Santiago & Holly Mason

We are Frank and Holly and we are pre-service teachers from the University of Connecticut that are working towards our Master's degrees in Curriculum and Instruction in our concentration area of secondary social studies. We are studying abroad in London for this semester and will be visiting multiple schools. Recently we had the opportunity to visit Westminster Academy for a week. What did we do during our visit?

During our time here, we observed several classes in history and geography. All of these courses ranged from Y7 to Y13 and covered topics ranging from public health, to Nazi resistance, to South African history. We also participated in meetings after school where teachers exhibited their commitment to continued growth. A PLC met to discuss student-led learning in a workshop which gave teachers the chance to work together to generate ideas to engage students in scenarios where they design their own paths in the classroom. We also observed a Humanities department meeting where the use of different grading methods and the many applications of data were discussed. In addition, one teacher led a presentation on trauma-informed practices. Earlier in the week, a group of teachers visited another school that is further along in the process of incorporating trauma-informed practices. They reported back on steps and tools this other school was using in order to inform and discuss the potential of them at WA. The presentation included both school-wide initiatives that could be implemented and a discussion of the myths of trauma-informed practices. On our last day at WA, we accompanied a group of students to Hyde Park for Holocaust Memorial Day. The Association of Jewish Refugees held a ceremony for their 80 Trees for 80 Years Campaign as it has been 80 years since their founding. Students got to experience the stories of members of AJR and a representative of the Queen. One Y12 student from WA also spoke at the ceremony and students participated in the planting of the tree. What did we learn from our visit?

After spending a few days at Westminster Academy, we were amazed at how the school culture is embedded in every aspect of the school. From the Senior Leadership Team to the student body, the values of thinking, knowledge, caring, open-mindedness, and reflection are fully present in the corridors and classrooms. Diversity is another key highlight of the school both in the population of the school itself, but also within the curriculum through imperative topics that connect to students’ identities and experiences. After engaging in productive conversation with a plethora of teachers and students, it is clear that all are valued and welcomed within WA which we think is the perfect blend of American and British values. Thank you for having us!