Mini CPD Series

‘The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.’ - Stephen Covey

Part One

Encode

•We need to activate the essential prerequisite knowledge.

•We need to ensure that we follow a clear sequence of learning.

•We need to chunk work so that it is presented in manageable segments.

•We need to scaffold work e.g. provide clear models.

•We need to ask questions to ensure understanding and challenge misconceptions.

Consolidate

•We need to ensure we have a clear plan of when we will revisit knowledge and skills within a topic.

•We need to ensure that key foundational knowledge is constantly repeated.

•We need to retrieve the key concepts, facts and then the understanding.

•We need to ensure that we are constantly connecting to the big picture and our threshold concepts.

•We need to ensure we are then applying the knowledge or skill.

Automate

•We need to ensure that we have a clear plan of when we will revisit knowledge and skills from previous topics.

•We need to have decided what the important transferable knowledge and skills are.

•We need to ensure that we never assume knowledge and skills have been automated.

•We need to break down the knowledge and skills so we retrieve and practise different components.

Mini CPD - Session One.pdf

Part Two

Knowledge Sequencing

Just like curriculum sequencing, knowledge sequencing is so important. There is often a rush to move to the application of knowledge to highlight an old school form of progress before the foundational knowledge is secure. Progress is about depth, not pace. pace often leads to coverage of knowledge rather than retention of knowledge. the research shows that at KS3 this is particularly important. Therefore we constantly need to retrieve all types of knowledge.

So what type of knowledge do we need to retrieve?

Mini CPD - Session Two.pdf

Facts:

Key Terms and Concepts

•Ensure that you focus on all the different composites of your subject.

•This will include keywords, concepts, formula etc..

•Think carefully about the foundational knowledge to avoid the curse of knowledge.

•It is essential these elements are secure to free up working memory.

•Never assume that this knowledge is secure.

Understanding

•You need to carefully consider the why questions.

•Why is this piece of knowledge important?

•What does this piece of knowledge mean?

•Students can articulate why they have arrived at their answers.

Connections

•How does this relate to your previous topics?

•What explicit links can you make with your threshold concepts?

•How does the knowledge or skill relate to the application of knowledge?

•How does this knowledge or skill relate to other subjects?

Application

•What KS3 questions do students need to apply their knowledge to?

•How does the application at KS3 help build towards KS4?

•How does the application of knowledge ensure students are prepared for their GCSEs.

•How does this application help prepare students for their next steps?

Part Three

In order to ensure we build schema, we need to constantly retrieve. Given that students are novices this retrieval needs to incorporate the full range of composites in your subject. It also must continue to cover the full range of composites from foundational knowledge to the application of knowledge.

We need to acknowledge that students will be novices for the greater part of their time in school.

What are the characteristics of a novice?