The idea comes from the criticism that some children could be working at a greater depth or taking their ideas to new levels. This encourages the learner to build empathy with different viewpoints and to consider how a topic looks from alternative perspectives. Try one or two out and then discuss your experiences with a colleague. We sometimes forget that learning is hard work, particularly the thinking part. questioning, 09/02/2023Registration open for the NACE Conference 2023, 06/12/2022First two NACE Challenge Ambassador Schools announced, 07/03/2023FREE WEBINAR: Getting the most from your NACE membership, 10/03/2023Member meetup: Developing challenge for all through the new curriculum for Wales, NACE Horticulture House, Manor Court Didcot OX11 0RN, Sign up for free email updates and sample resources, This website uses cookies to store information on your computer. Ego-driven feedback, focusing on the student rather than the task, and grades rather than comments, leads to a decrease in student progress. or better by Ofsted, lack of challenge for able learners is still typically identified as a weak area. For example, if we take the Roman topic, can a pupil: 1) Identify what the Romans have done for us? The options discussed in this article all have one factor in common: a belief that all students can produce excellent work once they know what it looks like and are given appropriate tools and support to make it happen. As apprentices are progressing through the curriculum, you can set stretch and challenge activities to help them build advanced knowledge. Students respond earnestly and with great interest and enthusiasm. Then through means of support, the lower ability learners are given the opportunity to find their 'flow' and make progress towards the learning intentions. Instant access to millions of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, podcasts and more. Ensure that students engage with academic vocabulary on a regular basis through discussion, word games and vocabulary notebooks to consolidate knowledge. Find out more, and join our mailing list for free updates and free sample resources. The effective use of questions is vital for stretching your highest-attaining learners. If you introduce grading at the right time, it could be a powerful motivator to stretch and challenge learners. teachers and school leaders working in secondary education across the UK. The best performing schools see additional learning opportunities throughout the curriculum to develop advanced knowledge. Stretch and Challenge sounds punitive and confrontational - when it should sound and feel more like 'Encourage and . One way is with OneFilesLearning Hub. Therefore, it is vital that when offering students choices they are held accountable for the work they produce. We want every pupil to go beyond their current understanding and where possible, adopt threshold concepts, the type of thinking that changes the way you view the world forever. To do this, youll need to use the apprentices starting point and create apersonalisedcurriculum that builds on their prior knowledge. In current high stakes education such a thing is dangerous. Ofstedwants to see that all learners have been stretched and challenged to achieve ambitious targets so set them! The effective use of questions is vital for stretching your highest-attaining learners. Stretch and Challenge are concepts which occur with increasing frequency in Ofsted and Estyn reports. Something went wrong while submitting the form. The most able students report, published . Stretch and challenge activities should be offered to all apprentices no matter their background, ability or ambitions. View other students as resources too; group work can prove a nightmare in the classroom if time is not given for students to learn how to operate effectively in a group they wont just be able to work together naturally. It can also be hard to create stretch through this approach, because it is difficult to pitch tasks at exactly the right level. Students may struggle at first with the increased demands placed upon them. ont be repeating work or learning about things they already know, so theyll have more opportunity to progress. All of these resources are available for our members to use across their school. Rather than accepting students first responses, giving students an opportunity to practise their response through oral rehearsal results in much more sophisticated thinking. Studies have shown that teachers tend to use far more closed questions than open ones, even though open-ended questions lead to more challenge because they require higher-order thinking. Thrilled to be joining the team at Ideate Innovation! These types of frameworks enable teachers to design learning experiences that can move classroom thinking into new territories. Youll need to find a way to measure the progression of learning, so you know when theyre ready for that extra push. Since academic vocabulary knowledge is at the heart of being a good speaker, reader and writer, it is important that teachers dedicate enough time to explicitly teaching academic vocabulary in their subject areas to challenge students to express themselves with confidence. The secret to doing this well is to think about it in three areas of teaching practice: Attitudes: The belief and mindsets teachers need to have themselves and inculcate in their students. Based in the north west of Leeds, Benton Park is a large, successful and oversubscribed school. . . Take on a different perspective that they are not necessarily comfortable with. Increasingly analytical extended writing won't provide the requisite "high challenge" in maths. They give apprentices the opportunity to take their learning further and get the highest grade they possibly can. If students see there is a choice of how much they will learn in a lesson, then it is too tempting for them to coast along doing the bare minimum.Learning intentions are an integral part of communicating to your students that you expect all of them to think deeply every lesson. In many state schools, the pupil premium agenda skews curriculum access over a rigorous stretch & challenge programme. Negator of Challenge: over simplifying and over scaffolding. You'll receive the newsletter every Tuesday, Designing activities to really stretch pupils, Stretching a learners thinking with the Universal Thinking Framework, Stretch and Challenge activities using visual tools, Using resources such as 'Writers Block' to stretch students comprehension, Learn more about the Universal Thinking Framework, Learn more about the Learning Skills Framework. To do this, youll need to use the apprentices starting point and create a. curriculum that builds on their prior knowledge. Differentiation is the process by which differences between learners are accommodated so that all students in a group have the best possible chance of learning. 'Excellent . Find out what practical measures you can take to make sure everyone is thinking for themselves. Effectively incorporating choice means setting the bar high and expecting all students to produce excellent work but acknowledging the route to producing this work may be different depending on the students needs. They give employers validation that theirapprenticeship levyis being well spent. Some of their recommendations are below. Click here to review the details. The tasks that push pupils vary enormously by subject. Activate your 30 day free trialto continue reading. _(Ofsted 2012) 25.5% A-A* (GCSE); 20% A-A* (A2); 80% success at Oxbridge 2014 SSAT G&T Lead School -North Somerset Aspire G&T Coordinators -Head of Learning -Assistant Head Accelerated Curriculum - ZStage not Age Ofsted. Strategy 1: Avoid the following teaching styles, Strategy 3:Plan lessons that encourage independence, Strategy 5: Get students involved in the learning process, NQT Secondary Adviser at Herts for Learning - supporting NQT induction. term "stretching and challenging" is one which has been recently introduced by Ofsted. There is also an emphasis on ensuring that the curriculum nurtures . Set tasks, including homework, which challenge students and ensure a high level of interest. The chapter first defines and introduces differentiation as a classroom concept which has relevance for educationalists at all levels in providing meaningful and productive engagement with new knowledge and skills for learners. This may seem like a pretty obvious statement to make but often, without recognising it, we set a limit on what we think students can do. To find out more about OneFile and how you can use it to improve your apprenticeship delivery,download our free guide. These could be around grade. Teaching assistants can ensure that they work alongside students to get into the habit of chunking tasks down into clear steps for success, asking metacognitive questions and verbalising their thinking, which will lead to the creation of excellent work. In regards to Stretch & Challenge, what is working for you and your students? High-quality maths: Ofsted findings undermined by MPs call for oracy education to be post-Covid priority. M3 3HN. Schools are still not doing enough to ensure the most able children fulfil their potential, an Ofsted survey has found. If students dont respond to our feedback, then whats the point in marking their work?Another frustration teachers experience is when students hand in work that is just not up to standard due to carelessness or lack of effort. It's the first step towards ditching the wrong kind of differentiation. Most students can be a bystander rather than an active participator. Already I've been cautioned about the fixed mindset language of 'able' and 'gifted and talented' . The Ofsted inspector liked it too! Within our learning skills framework, you will find various scales that outline the type of behaviours associated with these competencies. Thanks for taking the time to complete this form, submit the form to get the tool. Ask any teacher what they want from their students and nearly all of them will say I want them to be more independent. Please view our Terms and Conditions before leaving a comment. One way of embedding a stretch and challenge model is to experiment with different ways of encouraging greater participation in discussion. You can find out more about this technique at www.criticalthinking.org. The strategies below(link for original source) are about empowering students and fostering curiosity without huge amounts of preparation and added work. wants to see that all learners have been stretched and challenged to achieve ambitious targets so set them! Talk happens in all English lessons but it is not always well-structured or taught explicitly. Yet what isnt as well promoted is that feedback can also have a negative impact on students. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); The more that you read, the more things you will know, the more that you learn, the more places youll go. (Dr. Seuss). This however has to be achieved without increasing work load or work sheets. If possible one should stretch daily, focusing on the lower . A simple way to do this is by asking students to argue the opposite position to that which they actually hold, during a class debate. Therefore, it is vital that when offering students choices they are held accountable for the work they produce.FeedbackThere cant be a teacher on this planet who doesnt know by now that feedback has a significant effect on students outcomes. To meet this new need in teaching and learning, Kerboodle launched their Stretch and Challenge worksheets. DEFINITELY AGREE WITH THIS ESPECIALLY; There is no real challenge posed if a student is told to As an early years practitioner, all pupils are given the skills required to set each child up to succeed. Building on this, parents and carers need to be kept well-informed about their child's progress and have a good understanding about how they support their child's learning at home. The awarding bodies were given guidance that 'stretch and challenge' questions should: use a variety of stems in questions - for example analyse, evaluate, discuss, compare - The options discussed in this article all have one factor in common: a belief that all students can produce excellent work once they know what it looks like and are given appropriate tools and support to make it happen.Learning intentionsFirst of all, lets be absolutely clear: differentiated learning outcomes must be removed from all classrooms if a stretch and challenge model is to be embedded into everyday practice. critical thinking This is not just 'more stuff' but new perspectives and ways of using that knowledge to achieve different goals. One way is with. This includes 'Deepen' tips for the guided and independent practice sections, which will help you provide extra stretch and challenge within your lesson, without having to organise additional tasks. Graham Nuthalls research in The Hidden Lives of Learners found that most of the feedback students get is from their peers and that, alarmingly, 80 per cent of it is wrong! How to stretch the more able: go off-piste, dene differentiation and avoid time-wasting marking Conference chair Ian Warwick addresses some of the questions posed by delegates at the 'Stretch and Challenge the More Able' event. If students dont respond to our feedback, then whats the point in marking their work? They give apprentices the opportunity to take their learning further and get the highest grade they possibly can. Our vision is to 'Create a climate of great learning, success . Hand over the randomly sorted strips to a team of students, who then have to re-assemble the essay in the correct order. To find out more about these techniques for creating stretch and challenge, watch Sue Cowley's webinar on this topic (member login required). Prof Wiliam examines the importance of success criteria and pre-flight checklists in Embedding Formative Assessment. Metacognition: Challenge, in-class assessment and Cogito, ergo sum: Where next for critical thinking? Read our, Registered charity no: 1125907 Company no: 06604325, Membership Management Software Powered by, 5 key strategies for stretch and challenge, Registration open for the NACE Conference 2023, First two NACE Challenge Ambassador Schools announced, FREE WEBINAR: Getting the most from your NACE membership, Member meetup: Developing challenge for all through the new curriculum for Wales. In fact, OneFile has everything you need for the new apprenticeship standards thats why its the most used apprenticeship software. Work with the apprentice and employer to set ambitious, yet realistic targets. independent learning Setting up choice can be a tricky one to get right and, if done badly, can be detrimental to stretch and challenge if students choose less cognitively demanding tasks. The thinking and learning actions within our framework have also been used as an assessment method. Stretch and Challenge | CLF Conference. who responded to Ofsted's online questionnaire, Parent View, are overwhelmingly supportive of the school's leaders and what they achieve. This is particularly so where we are asked to argue in favour of a viewpoint that we do not ourselves hold. Normally, it meant an extension task for those who finished their work early; however, the extension work often ended up being more of the same rather than requiring stretching students to think harder. The best group work is when the cognitive demand of the task actually necessitates more than one students input. It isn't a new concept, but rather one which has been renamed. The learning objectives can be seen as a compass (giving the task direction) whilst the challenge activities are carefully mapped out to cater for the broad ability spectrum. The registered office is: 6th Floor, Cornerblock, Stretch and challenge can be described as an agenda or philosophy as opposed to an outright teaching strategy. Here's how not to stretch and challenge: Extra work - It's fair to say that this is a common 'no no' for stretching and challenging learners, purely because it is hard to motivate learners to do more work week in week out. SecEd prides itself on being written by teachers, for teachers and offering a positive and constructive voice for Finally, celebrate and showcase students homework as this will encourage students to keep challenging themselves as their efforts wont have gone unnoticed.ConclusionWhatever approach you take, embedding a stretch and challenge model in your classroom takes time. Challenge is the key. So how do you know when apprentices are ready for that extra push? Third Space Learning. Its often the last thing we think about after weve planned our lessons. Identifying what we can do for 'High Potential Pupils' (HPPs) needs to start with looking at what we shouldn't be doing and why our efforts may be misguided or faulty. The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) Teaching and Learning Toolkit informs us that homework in secondary school can have a significant impact on student outcomes. In each case the students will then have the remaining time to improve or add to their work. Once students have attempted a piece of work, teach students how to use pre-flight checklists which ask students to check their own or a peers work against the criteria and highlight areas for development before handing in their very best effort. For each area of a subject, consider what you can add to create depth. You are signalling to students that youve made a decision that only a few can reach the top. <br><br>My academic and professional career has spanned Higher Education . 2010 2013 last Ofsted reports. This cycle is repeated several times with different students. One parent wrote, 'I love . Information for universities, Terms Sometimes they will teach themselves new skills without any direct teacher input for instance using YouTube to learn a language that is not on offer at school. And its not just NQTs. Learning intentions are an integral part of communicating to your students that you expect all of them to think deeply every lesson. Professor John Hattie, alongside Gregory Yates, in Visible Learning and the Science of How We Learn, explore the difference between teachers as activators as opposed to teachers as facilitators. Using visuals to accompany the word as a memory cue helps students to remember the work. This course outlines how to develop teaching and curriculum design to stretch and challenges pupils in science. Stretch and challenging is an effective ways to get even more out of your learners, and to encourage deeper levels of thinking. Instead of just providing additional learning materials for those who have finished the task, the framework enables children to deepen their learning experiences by changing perspectives and looking at topics from different angles. This webinar will provide you with advice and practical guidance on incorporating stretch and challenge into the RE curriculum, thereby ensuring that it sets high standards and ambitious aims for all pupils, aligned with government expectations. That increases the risk for joint pain, strains, and muscle damage. Using visuals to accompany the word as a memory cue helps students to remember the work. The more strips there are, the greater the challenge. Combining these two techniques, the teachers expectations of the students is that a student has not finished until their response is 100 per cent accurate and they have developed their thinking using academic vocabulary and a range of examples. 3. In this approach, the childs thinking is developed through the use of a serve and return conversation in which open-ended questions are asked to build understanding. Much classroom discussion centres upon the teacher initiating discussion by asking a question, choosing a student to answer and then acknowledging whether the answer is correct. Your 2021 New Year's Stretch Challenge is here! This approach has meant that classrooms can take on adopt an 'access and challenge' agenda. In that undoubtedly privileged context, teachers developed habits around high challenge, high trust and high intellectual demand that were fully embedded in the culture. This practical planning and delivery tool enable educators to design challenge teaching strategies that really gets everyone thinking. From understanding pronouns, appropriate language and providing practical tips to drive change to using visual cues and creating safe spaces for students, the . To go one step further, the graphic organisers included in the membership are an engaging tool for adding shape to your pupils thinking. 2. The SlideShare family just got bigger. This can range from simple things like answering a 6 mark question in 4 minutes instead of 5. Encourage your son or daughter to talk to the older generation at home about their perspective on events in the past and how views and opinions have altered. 5) Imagine what life would be like without the Roman occupation of Britain? This influences everything else. When apprentices are progressing nicely through theirprogramme, let them know about the different grades they could achieve atEPA pass, merit, distinction. Robert Marzano and Debra Pickerings book, Building Academic Vocabulary, shares a structured approach to teaching academic vocabulary. Asking students to elaborate in different ways about the curriculum content can be equally as impactful. We know that talk can extend thinking and that's why, in recent years, Oracy has begun to get the attention it deserves. Well, its all down to the individual learner. The UTF actions can be carefully ordered into an engaging assessment methodology that gradually increases with cognitive complexity. We sometimes forget that learning is hard work, particularly the thinking part. If you would like to talk anything through, please do get in touch for an informal conversation. Stretch & Challenge! First, only a handful of students are forced to participate those that are chosen by the teacher. With OneFile, you canpersonalisestretch and challenge activities easily. Try to focus on progress for learners across time and not just pushing every learner in every lesson. It might seem that in some of your classrooms learners will do everything they can to finish as quick as possible and bypass any opportunities for an additional level of challenge. Create a Place for stretching (I used to have a fluffy rug in front of a mirror with my stick figure stretch routine where I . ILR, Explore With the Learning Hub, apprentices can evaluate their learning and rate their understanding as they progress giving you the insight you need to set stretch and challenge tasks. If students are producing a piece of homework over a sustained period of time, make sure they are provided with clear structure and steps to success so they can self-regulate. John is a trained Ofsted inspector and a teacher with over 20 years experience . Tap here to review the details. depth If an apprentice is fluctuating between grades, it could encourage their employer to offer a little more support and help them achieve the higher grade. Using these type of accessible resources causes the learner to really think about how all of the parts fit together, a gateway to critical thinking. Required fields are marked *. Free access to premium services like Tuneln, Mubi and more. This webinar will provide you with advice and practical guidance on incorporating stretch and challenge into the RE curriculum, thereby ensuring that it sets high standards and ambitious aims for all pupils, aligned with government expectations. Like a GPS, teachers are prone to denying students responsibility for their own path-finding . and challenge, and high expectations. A classroom where stretch and challenge is embedded is one where students know the standard they are aiming for, actively seek out feedback to reach that standard, and have the tools to move their own learning forward by using this feedback to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding. Hold your stretch. However, getting homework right makes such a difference to the challenge culture. Students are notoriously bad at acting upon the feedback given to them by their teachers. - Ideas to support the effective use of Challenge in lessons by Verity Holman | This newsletter was created with Smore, an online tool for creating beautiful newsletters for educators, nonprofits, businesses and more. Use Title Questions. Stretch and challenge evaluation 1 Executive Summary Claims that A-levels do not stretch the brightest students1 have dogged the education system in England in recent years. Ofsted report View Ofsted report (opens in new tab) School website St Antony's Roman Catholic School, a Voluntary Academy website (opens in new tab) A classroom where stretch and challenge is embedded is one where students know the standard they are aiming for, actively seek out feedback to reach that standard, and have the tools to move their own learning forward by using this feedback to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding. Explicitly teach students how to construct different types of questions to generate engaging discussion.Tasks, resources and groupingsFor many years, stretch and challenge was seen as something for the gifted and talented group. UX Research Programme A complex question can really provoke deep thinking. Now customize the name of a clipboard to store your clips. Ofsted defines high-achievers as those achieving a Level 5 in both English and maths in national curriculum tests, commonly known as Sats taken in the final year of primary school. Begin by providing a description of the word before asking students to create their own description and example in their own words. For me, the key to stretch and challenge is to pitch the learning at the higher ability learners. In time, our members have also used attitudinal challenges. Routines/Habits: The things you do all the time, in every lesson. The highest-attaining students often have a great deal of knowledge about a diverse range of subjects typically those areas of learning that fascinate them. Calls for Secondary Schools to "improve the quality of teaching and the curriculum to increase opportunities for pupils to work independently, make links with other subjects and tackle more challenging tasks." . Explicitly teach students how to construct different types of questions to generate engaging discussion. Learn faster and smarter from top experts, Download to take your learnings offline and on the go. Introduction. This chapter introduces and discusses individual learning plans (ILPs) and their use, particularly regarding the setting of learner targets. The teacher can use the framework to document wider knowledge and skills progression. Challenge varies by subject. The teaching assistants role needs to be clearly defined. I recently read on twitter that a teacher's lesson had been graded as needs improvement by Ofsted because the children appeared to be able to do the work they had been given. Stretch and Challenge. Posted on October 30, 2015. A key frustration for high attainers is the feeling that they are being taught things in school that they already know. Work with the apprentice and employer to set ambitious, yet realistic targets.