Infusing and Assessing Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities

Infusing and Assessing Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities through teaching schemes and lesson plans

Course Aims Aim • To identify, incorporate and assess TS&PCs using teaching and learning activities. Objectives • Identify TS&PC relevant to subject specific learning • Develop learning intentions that include a skills focus • Revise teaching and learning activities ensuring they facilitate the development of identified TS&PC • Plan a rubric to support assessment of progression • Engage in collaborative sharing of practice • Take risks for learning

Background

Why Teach TS&PCs ? Amongst the various benefits cited in research perhaps the most compelling is that: “Teaching TS&PCs will help pupils to progress in your subject” (Swartz and Mc. Guinness, 2014).

Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities Framework Key Stage 3 Thinking, Problem-Solving & Decision-Making Managing Information Working with Others Being Creative & Self-Management

Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities Framework The KS 3 TS&PC Framework p 3 -7 Developing Thinking Classrooms: Collaborative Learning in Shared Practice

The Infusion Approach

How are the TS&PCs taught in subjects? An Infusion Approach • TS&PC taught/developed alongside subject knowledge and understanding. • Should be included in learning intentions and used in success criteria (CCEA guidance on teaching TS&PC p. 9 see also Swartz and Mc. Guinness 2014)

Infusion “to infuse means – to add one thing to another thing, which gives it added vigour and a new significance. ”

Developing Skills and Capabilities To develop skills and capabilities pupils need to: • Be thoroughly engaged in their own learning • Know what skills they are developing • Be given opportunities to practice their skills • Reflect on their achievements • Recognise their strengths and weaknesses http: //www. nicurriculum. org. uk/curriculum_microsite/TSPC/thinking_classroom/index. asp

Planning for Teaching TS&PC What will an Infusion Approach Look Like in my Subject? Evident and Observable in your Practice • TS&PCs valued, an integral part of, and made visible through teaching and learning • Planning and teaching subject knowledge and understanding alongside specific components of TS&PC strands • Using Learning intentions for subject knowledge and understanding and specific components of TS&PC strands • Using a range of teaching and learning strategies that provide opportunities to develop subject knowledge and TS&PC

The Infusion ‘Make-over’

Activity 1 Identifying TS&PC • Choose a sample subject specific activity, or use one of your own • Review the activity and if necessary, write a short description of the activity in the centre of your teacher log book (p 2) • Review the sets of TS&PC cards • Select the specific skills that pupils could develop during this activity • Arrange them around the activity • What do you notice?

Learning Points • There are multiple skills that could be developed through the activity; • All five colour sets may be present, meaning that skills from all five strands could be developed through this activity, • Some skills from different strands are very similar. This is because the boundaries between skill sets overlap. • When you pick one skill as a focus, other skills will be developed alongside it.

Activity 2 a Learning Intentions Review your subject activity diagram • Consider the following questions: (p 3) – What knowledge and understanding do I want pupils to acquire? – Which TS & PCs should be the skills focus? – What learning activities could be used to develop TS & PCs? – Will pupils work individually or in groups? • Select one skill or capability bullet point as a focus

Why Are Learning Intentions and Success Criteria so Important? ‘If learners are to take more responsibility for their own learning, then they need to know what they are going to learn, how they will recognise when they have succeeded and why they should learn it in the first place. ’ – (An Intro to Af. L, Learning Unlimited, 2004) Learning Intentions ‘What’ and ‘Why’ Success Criteria ‘How to recognise success’

Defining the Learning Intention Activity: What are we doing? • Writing a description of our best friend Learning Intention: What are we learning? • How to write an effective characterisation Context: Vehicle for the learning • Friendship

‘Blue Peter’ version

Activity 2 b Learning Intentions • Write Learning Intentions and Success Criteria that will reflect what you want the pupils to; • Know and understand (subject content) • be able to do (skill or capability) (p 4) Key Question • Do the current teaching and learning activities allow pupils to develop the skills and capabilities identified?

The ‘Launch, Activity, Debrief’ Model to support infusion

Launch, Activity, Debrief Model Lesson stage Examples of Strategies for infusion Launch • Reframe tasks as a challenge Set up the learning as a challenge for • Share the learning intentions and expectations pupils and engage their interest Activity • Have pupils plan and organise work • Have pupils think-pair-share ideas and opinions • Use effective questioning • Have pupils work in groups Debrief • Conduct a well-planned plenary that includes a review of the skills and capabilities used • connect learning to other contexts Engage pupils in an activity or challenge where they develop a particular skill or capability Reflect on what has been learned, and how

Encouraging Pupils to Think When Planning How am I going to do it? While Working Do I understand it so far? When Evaluating How did I do it? What worked? Is it similar to anything Do I need to ask a I’ve done before? question? What did I learn? Is it one of those? Did my plan work out? Am I on the right track? Am I still on task? Is there a better way? Can I learn from my mistakes? What can I do better next time?

Teaching Using Metacognition will support pupils' progress if you: • use effective questions to check understanding • don't assume that pupils will think reflectively without prompting • take time to explicitly teach o how to plan o how to evaluate o how to manage time on a task

Launch phase

Activity phase

Debrief phase

Activity 3 Reviewing the activity structure - Launch, Activity, Debrief Model Individually of with a partner (p 4 -6) • Use the Launch, Activity, Debrief Model template for planning/revising the activity/lesson(s). • You should include Learning Intentions and Success Criteria for subject Knowledge and understanding and TS&PC. • Share your plan with another group/partner. • Ask them to provide feedback

Assessment using a Rubric

Next Steps • Obtaining evidence • Monitoring progression • Assessment Rubrics

Introduction to Rubrics A rubric is a table that specifies what should be included in a piece of work and what counts as success. Success in each requirement is described in a three or four part sequence, describing progression. Rubrics can be used as a form of marking scheme and can speed up assessment decisions.

Introduction to Rubrics Usually the table has four or more items to be rated down the left hand column … Item/Criteria: Preparation and maintenance of equipment Execution of mowing Disposal of clippings Tidying up

Introduction to Rubrics … and then a row that describes how work is ranked, ranging from beginning to exemplary. Item: Beginning Developing A typical rubric looks like this: Satisfactory Exemplary

Mowing the Lawn: Analytic Rubric Item: Beginning Preparation and maintenance of equipment Mower runs out of fuel halfway through job Execution of mowing Job is left half completed. Disposal of clippings Clippings left in mower hopper Tidying up Mower left outside Developing Accomplished Exemplary Mower used without refuelling, but the job is completed to a rudimentary standard Some grass cut, several areas missed. No edges trimmed. No stripes in the lawn. Some clippings put on compost heap, some left in mower hopper Mower refuelled at start, job completed start and at end Engine oil checked Job completed neatly Mower put away in the wrong place Mower put away in the correct place Most grass cut, one or two areas missed Some edges trimmed Stripes intermittent Clippings emptied onto compost heap, no shredded woody material included All grass cut Edges trimmed Stripes straight Clippings put onto compost heap interspersed with shredded woody material Machine cleaned and put away in the correct place

Mowing the Lawn: Holistic Rubric Rating 4 3 2 1 Description Mower refuelled at start and at end, engine oil checked Job completed neatly with edges trimmed and stripes straight Grass clippings put onto compost heap interspersed with shredded woody material Mower cleaned and put away in correct place Mower refuelled at start and job completed Most grass cut, one or two areas missed Some edges trimmed, stripes intermittent Grass clippings emptied onto compost heap, but no shredded woody material included Machine put away in correct place Mower used without refuelling, but the job is completed to a rudimentary standard Some grass cut, but several areas missed No edges trimmed and no stripes in lawn Some clippings put on compost heap, some left in mower hopper Mower put away in wrong place Mower runs out of fuel halfway through job Job left half done Cuttings left in mower hopper Mower left outside

Single Point Rubric Concerns Areas that need work Criteria Standards for this performance Equipment: Mower refuelled at start Job completed Execution: Most grass cut, one or two areas missed Some edges trimmed Stripes intermittent Disposal: Grass cuttings emptied onto compost heap, but no shredded woody material included. Tidy up: Mower put away in correct place Advanced Evidence for exceeding standards

Advantages of using a rubric • supports assessing what you want to assess; • communicates expectations; • drives improvement in quality of performances; • provides informative feedback; • promotes thinking and learning; • sets a standard of fairness.

Disadvantages of using a rubric • Designing a rubric that works takes time. Ø Writing them is difficult at first. • Pupils won’t necessarily read and understand it. Ø Consider pupil language. • Shares with any assessment the limitation that the rubric samples only part of the learning about which you want pupils to know. Ø Target what you want to sample.

Marking Using a Rubric Item: Beginning Preparation and maintenance of equipment Mower runs out of fuel halfway through job Execution of mowing Job left half done Disposal of clipping Clippings left in mower hopper Tidying up Mower left outside Developing Satisfactory Exemplary Mower used without refuelling, but the job is completed to a rudimentary standard Some grass cut, several areas missed No edges trimmed No stripes in the lawn Some clippings put on compost heap, some left in mower hopper Mower refuelled at start Job completed Mower refuelled at start and end of job Engine oil checked Job completed neatly Most grass cut, one or two areas missed Some edges trimmed Stripes intermittent Grass clippings emptied onto compost heap, but no shredded woody material included Mower put away in correct place All grass cut Edges trimmed Stripes straight Mower put away in wrong place Grass clippings put on to compost heap Interspersed with shredded woody material Mower cleaned and put away in correct place

Designing a rubric

Designing a Rubric (p 8) – Step 1 • Revisit the learning intentions for the task. • Clarify exactly what you want pupils to learn from the activity. • Match the items to be included in the rubric with your learning intentions and success criteria.

Designing a Rubric – Step 2 • Decide on what you want to see in the work. • What will your pupils demonstrate that they can do in their product, process, or performance? • Check that the activity will allow them the opportunity to develop what you have identified to assess. • Be specific about the characteristics, skills, or behaviours that you will be looking for when you assess the completed work.

Designing a Rubric – Step 3 • Consider where the emphasis will be: – topic content learning; – specific skills development; – presentation, spelling, punctuation and grammar; – completeness, thoroughness, accuracy, minimal errors etc. . . – limit the number of items in the list of criteria you will be assessing to a maximum of 4 things.

Designing a Rubric – Step 4 • Write a short description of beginner, developing, accomplished, and exemplary performance for each observable item identified from steps 2 and 3. • Remember you can use what ever descriptor you wish to categorise the range of pupil performances.

Designing a Rubric – Step 5 • Use consistent language to describe progression i. e. don't jump from language, to communication, to writing to what's been written. • Don't use qualifiers like more detailed. • Instead say what will count as more detailed. • Descriptors should be specific, observable and unequivocal, leaving no room for interpretation or doubt about what will be seen in the work.

Exemplar Rubric – Establishing Ground Rules

Activity 4: Draft a Rubric Now it’s your turn! (p 7, 8 & 9)