A taxing taxonomy?

Not, perhaps the most original of titles...

However, something that has concerned a large portion of my waking thoughts has been linked to year 11 revision! As I mentioned in an earlier blogpost I think as teachers we may be more stressed about exams than some of the students. Something that then got me thinking was the implicit assumptions I am perhaps guilty of making. The things I take for granted. This led me to looking at Solo Taxonomy and the way I can apply it to my teaching and student learning.

That is not to dismiss Bloom's Taxonomy at all, and I think that the hierarchy of skills does successfully represent different levels of thinking. What I think is that often we can take for granted that while students may be able to meet some of the higher order thinking skills this does not mean they do not need support in linking some of the elements of the earlier thinking levels. This is one of the things I quite like about the Solo Taxonomy is that students are focusing on seeing and developing connections between elements. The 'levels' or 'steps' of the model, this is not to limit it to being a step-by-step unit.

• The first stage is seen as the pre-structural stage, where a student may not understand a task or be able to identify any relevant knowledge.
• The uni-lateral stage is where the student is focusing on one area of detail, they may feel that they can only identify one area of information.
• The next step sees students beginning to include more detail but they see the details as being distinct or separate, this is the multi-structural stage.
• The penultimate stage, the relational stage sees the student making connections between the identified detail or knowledge.
• The final stage, extended abstract sees the student conceptualising the content/detail/knowledge at a higher level. The student is now beginning to see where this connected (relational) model fits into wider topics. For example: a student being able to see how the Scientific Revolution impacted upon wider society, media/art, religion or politics.

I can see how this model can be applied to support student progress and development in that it encourages students to focus on connections and the impact of events/actions/people upon the wider world. One way of demonstrating is through the use of hexagonal models, the interlinked models that get produced show how events cause other events and the way in which the consequences and relationships spiral beyond the opening concept or piece of detail. If you are using Solo Taxonomy or hexagonal models and have thoughts or ideas please do share!

Peer-assessment

Such a great and beneficial tool in the classroom. Not only does it give students the chance to review and engage with different ideas and their peers it enables them to apply the success criteria. By applying the success criteria critically to someone else's work it helps, in my opinion, the student to see what and how the teacher is reviewing their work. It also helps provide a realistic model for the task.

Something I am conscious of is that finding the time to do peer-assessment is not difficult, it is something that can be built in easily to a successful plenary. Finding the time to do peer-assessment in depth, successfully and with the students fully aware of what and why they are doing this is much harder. I think in the past I have been guilty of thinking that students will be able to review someone else's work and comment on it, as if that was an easy thing. I have been reviewing my approach to peer-assessment and am contemplating trying some new things:

• creating target and achievement statements
• making sure I use the statement banks regularly both in class and in book feedback
• providing different opportunities for peer-assessment, rather than just the usual swap with a neighbour

I think that I will be creating A5 laminated statement banks that can be left on tables next to student work, enabling students to rotate around the room and find a new and different book to mark. Alternatively I can collect books and hand them out randomly, but I think they may take up unnecessary time and create more confusion. I also propose to try the statement banks as a means of providing extension material for students, enabling them to review their work with a better level of focus.

Anyway, I'll check back in on this in a couple of weeks. Hopefully with good news. Will welcome any comments and thoughts from others about peer-assessment and what has worked well!

Learning to teacher in the secondary school

I've been revisiting some reading material that I bought years ago when training to be a teacher at university: Learning to Teach in the Secondary School A companion to School Experience Edited by Susan Capel, Marilyn Leask and Tony Turner.

I've been dipping back into it to review my use of assessment, marking and feedback. It is amazing how refreshing it was to do this, to take the time to go back to something that opened my eyes in such a way the first time.

I'm currently reading the chapter about assessment and a few basic things struck me; the checklist for understanding (Holt:1964: 176) is brilliant. So clear and concise and yet it makes so much sense in terms of identifying for both student and teacher how to measure accurately if students understand something. I am considering creating a checklist for my wall for students to use as part of plenary and revision activities. To help them identify what they need to be able to do in order to say that they 'understand' a topic or study area.

Marking and Feedback

So, this is an area of particular interest for me as a teacher. As a newly qualified teacher I found myself worrying about how much I should mark, what I should say and what parents expected to see. As I have gained both confidence and experience as a teacher I have spent much time looking for ways to improve my marking, in particular to ensure that students learn from it rather than simply seeing it.
One of the most common reactions to handing back a piece of work, particularly if it was a test or assessment, is the rush amongst students to find out their grade and then to compare it with their peers. Whilst this can be a positive experience and can boost confidence as well as showing progress or act as a means to motivate, does it actually engage students in the learning process?
The next challenge then is the role of comments at the end, and during, assessments and work:

• ensuring you have the time to do this justice
• ensuring the comment has meaning and not simply 'well done'
• making sure the comment identifies to students whether they have made progress
• identifying where students are in terms of their targets
• rewarding effort and praise
• enabling the student to respond to comments and concerns
• clearly showing the required next steps

As the list shows there are a number of things that would be useful and/or beneficial to see in marking feedback. This was my starting point. I am currently working on a traffic light centred system. The purpose of which being;

• identifying quickly for students through red,amber, green whether they are on track for their target grades
• providing a tick list of four effort options; ranging from off-target and no/minimal effort to excellent effort and engagement both in written and oral contributions.
• teacher comment and feedback: a small box for written comments and next steps
• a response box for students
• the ability to add an overall grade if required

I feared at first that this might become too time-consuming, but so far it is working well and providing quick, visible and obvious feedback for students. The next step will now be to get feedback from students about what I am doing.