1. What does an Outstanding lesson look like?
John Keenan

2. Videos
Last year
This year

3. Aiming for Outstanding
John Keenan

4. “We learn by doing. Research shows that active learning is much better recalled, enjoyed and understood. Active methods require us to ‘make our own meaning’, that is, develop our own conceptualisations of what we are learning. During this process we physically make neural connections in our brain, the process we call learning. Passive methods such as listening do not require us to make these connections or conceptualisations.”
(Geoff Petty 2004) 4

5. "Since we cannot know what knowledge will be most needed in the future, it is senseless to try to teach it all in advance. Instead, we should try to turn out people who love learning so much and learn so well that they will be able to learn whatever needs to be learned."
(John Holt)

6. “There is, it seems, more concern about whether children learn the mechanics of reading and writing than grow to love reading and writing; learn about democratic practice rather than have practice in democracy; hear about knowledge … rather than gain experience in personally constructing knowledge; …see the world narrowly, simple and ordered, rather than broad, complex and uncertain.”
(Vito Perrone)

7. There is no model lesson
“The promotion of a particular lesson methodology or teaching style claimed to be modelled on Ofsted’s demands is not endorsed by Ofsted. Inspectors evaluate the quality of teaching over time by considering its impact on learning. They are most interested in the standards achieved by pupils and the progress made. The school inspection handbook states: ‘Inspectors must not advocate a particular method of teaching or show preference towards a specific lesson structure.’”
Paragraph 64, Subsidiary guidance
Paragraph 26, School inspection handbook

8. There is no model learning style
‘Inspectors must not inspect or report in a way that is not stipulated in the framework, handbook or guidance. For example, they should not criticise teacher talk for being overlong or bemoan a lack of opportunity for different activities in lessons unless there is unequivocal evidence that this is slowing learning over time. Do not expect to see ‘independent learning’ in all lessons and do not make the assumption that this is always necessary or desirable. On occasions, too, pupils are rightly passive rather than active recipients of learning. Do not criticise ‘passivity’ as a matter of course and certainly not unless it is evidently stopping pupils from learning new knowledge or gaining skills and understanding.’

9. You do not need a lesson plan
“Inspectors do not expect to see any particular lesson structure. However, they will use the evidence gathered from lesson observations to help judge the overall quality of the school’s teaching and/or curriculum planning.”

10. You do not need to fulfil all of the criteria in your lesson
“The grade descriptors refer to the quality of teaching overall, and need not be applied in their entirety to a single lesson.
School inspection handbook

11. Of the 54 Ofsted reports published so far:
Free schools are performing slightly better than the average for all schools inspected under the same framework, with 67% of those inspected being rated as Good or Outstanding compared to 62% for all schools
Free schools are more than twice as likely to be Outstanding as other schools inspected under the same framework
A higher proportion of Free Schools inspected under the same framework have been found to be Inadequate than other types of school
Evidence also suggests that ‘new providers’ appear to be performing better than existing schools and multi-academy trusts that have set up free schools (Source:

12. Task
With a partner, consider what you believe to constitute an ‘outstanding lesson’.
5 Minutes

13. 5 Minutes

14. 4 Minutes

15. 3 Minutes

16. 2 Minutes

17. 1 Minutes

18. 30 Seconds

19. STOP

20. What is the definition of a “good” lesson?

21. PROGRESS
Most students make good progress in their learning and demonstrate that they have achieved well relative to their ability and starting points. A minority may make outstanding progress.
ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING
Students know the expected outcomes and the progress they are making through informal or formal teacher, self & peer reviews of their learning. This helps them to know how to improve. Directed questioning encourages students to explain their answers.
DIFFERENTIATION AND CHALLENGE
Work is well matched to the needs and abilities of individuals, and most are stretched and challenged. They use independent (of the teacher) learning and thinking skills, with some pair/group work.

22. OTHER ASPECTS OF TEACHING
Teaching actively engages most students in their learning. There is sufficient pace, variety, challenge and adaptability in learning activities to achieve the expected outcomes. Marking clearly supports improvement.
RESOURCES
Time and resources (including ICT) are used effectively Teaching Assistants support learning and progress.
BEHAVIOUR FOR LEARNING
Students’ positive attitudes and behaviour are good overall, as are relationships. Clear routines are followed and students respond quickly to staff expectations . Praise and rewards are positively used.

23. What are the characteristics of an “outstanding” lesson?

24. PROGRESS
All students make good progress in their earning relative to their ability and starting points. For many this is better than might be expected. Some may demonstrate exceptional achievement.
ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING
All students understand the expected and differentiated outcomes. Through informal or formal teacher, self & peer reviews of learning they know the progress they have made, the level/grade they are working at (also relative to their individually challenging targets), and how to improve. Effective and directed questioning encourages them to explain their understanding.
DIFFERENTIATION AND CHALLENGE
Work is matched to all students’ needs and abilities . There are high expectations and challenge in what they can achieve. They are also challenged to demonstrate independent learning and thinking skills in pair/group work, and select their own criteria for success.

25. OTHER ASPECTS OF TEACHING
Teaching fully engages all students, who enjoy their learning. Pace variety, challenge and adaptability in learning activities enables them all to sustain their engagement throughout the lesson and achieve the expected outcomes. Marking is very effective in helping students to improve.
RESOURCES
No time is wasted and resources (including ICT) are used very effectively. Teaching Assistants are well deployed and clearly promote better learning and progress.
BEHAVIOUR FOR LEARNING
Good relationships and high expectations help promote the excellent attitudes and behaviour shown by students, who are very supportive of each other. Clear routines and frequent use of praise/reward add to the positive ethos.

26. ’good’
‘outstanding’
Teacher as all-knowing oracle.
Teacher as organiser, and but one source of information.
Learning is teacher-centred, didactic, with carefully-guided activities to support learning.
Learning processes are student-centred and involve group and individual activities.
Teacher generated questions are used to elicit understanding.
Students construct their own learning questions.
Lesson-design rests with the teacher and correct conclusions mark success.
Students are co-designers of the learning episode and the attendant success criteria.

27. ’good’
‘outstanding’
Learning consists of stimulus –response relationship, and is passive in nature.
Learning is an active process.
Learning involves ‘filling empty vessels’ and ensuring retention.
Learning is a process of ‘fire-lighting’ and connection- and sense-making.
Effective learning stems from efficient transfers of information.
Effective learning arises from open-ended, challenging problem-solving exercises.
Intelligence is fixed.
Intelligence is created.

28. Risk

29. Techniques for Outstanding Teaching.
1. Start with a hook
2. Individualise the learning
3. Teach the whole brain
4. Model the learning process
5. Vary the pace and activity
6. Question for depth of understanding not coverage
7. Go multisensory
8. Include elements of creative enquiry
9. Involve metacognitive processes
10. Conclude with a review

30. 2: Hook the pupils

31. What does the picture tell me?
What does it not tell me?

32. 2: Individualise
the Learning.

33. Individualised Learning
How would they have liked to be taught ?

34. An ‘outstanding’ award requires students to be working above their level.
Students of a similar level are seated together
For peer group teaching, students of differing levels could be seated together.

35. Challenge Wall
A wall area of the classroom is set aside for tasks of varying levels (e. g. hard, medium difficulty and easy). .

36. 3: Teach the
Whole Brain.

37. https://youtu.be/S1f_o7xgvl8

38. The Pink Hat calls for information known or needed
The Pink Hat calls for information known or needed. "The facts, just the facts."
The Purple Hat symbolizes brightness and optimism. Under this hat you explore the positives and probe for value and benefit.
The Silver Hat is judgment - the devil's advocate or why something may not work. Spot the difficulties and dangers; where things might go wrong. Probably the most powerful and useful of the Hats but a problem if overused.
The Blue Hat signifies feelings, hunches and intuition. When using this hat you can express emotions and feelings and share fears, likes, dislikes, loves, and hates.
The Green Hat focuses on creativity; the possibilities, alternatives, and new ideas. It's an opportunity to express new concepts and new perceptions.
The Gold Hat is used to manage the thinking process. It's the control mechanism that ensures the Six Thinking Hats guidelines are observed.

39. Wearing your hat Plan a lesson on Romeo and Juliet together

40. What is emotion?
Cognitive
Biological

41. Salovey and Mayer (1990) define emotional intelligence as the ability to monitor one’s own emotions, discriminate between positive and negative emotions, and use emotional knowledge to guide thought and action. They suggest that emotional intelligence incorporates perception, assimilation, understanding, and management of emotions.
Adult Learning in the Workplace: Emotion Work or Emotion Learning?
Laura L. Bierema

42. Further reading
Descarte’s Error Antonio Damasio
Walter Freeman How the Brain Makes Up its Mind
Jonah Lehrer The Decisive Moment

43. 1. Global common denominator
2. Emotional contagion

45. 3. Judgement simplifying device
4. Mood congruent memory
5. Attentioning

46. fear; anger; love; happiness; sadness; surprise; disgust7
fear; anger; love; happiness; sadness; surprise; disgust

47. Voice prosody
Face
Silence
Winning
Music
Humour
Happy Noises

48. 4: Model Learning
Processes Yourself.

49. ‘My Best Teacher’ column in TES:
‘My Best Teacher’ column in TES:
Why do people remember these teachers?
Why did they have such influence?

50. Share these with students !
As a teacher, do I demonstrate ……
Persistence, self-reliance and self-efficacy?
A preparedness to be different?
Risk-taking behaviours – trying the unknown?
An ability to reframe ‘failure’ as a learning outcome? (WD40 Factor)
A preparedness to receive and act on feedback about my teaching?
An openness about my learning weaknesses and ways around these?
Share these with students !

51. 5: Vary the Pace and activity

52. Outstanding Groups Other Groups Positive Interdependence
No Interdependence
Heterogeneous membership
Homogenous membership
Shared leadership
One appointed leader
Task and relationships
Task
Social skills taught
Social skills assumed or ignored
Individual accountability to group
Individual accountability to self
Teacher monitors group
Teacher monitors individuals
Group processing and review
Individual processing
Cooperative vs Traditional Learning Groups

53. “Ask Three Before Me”
Teach pupils to ask their partners and then their team-mates before you
This strategy helps pupils become more responsible for their own learning and behaviour
It also gives you more time to teach, since the responsibility for answering questions is shared by everyone in the classroom
It is really useful for helping those children who always have an excuse not to start their work, e. g. need a ruler, don’t know what to do, don’t know the date etc.

54. Reflection / Organisation and Relaxation in the classroom:
“There should be brief intervals of time for quiet reflection – used to organise what has been gained in periods of activity.”
(John Dewey)
“Creative inspiration often strikes when the mind is in a state of playful relaxation.”
(Guy Claxton)

55. 6: Question for Depth
of Understanding, not for Coverage.

56. Question for depth of understanding not coverage
“Coverage is the
enemy
of understanding.”
(Jerome Bruner)

57. AfL QUICK & EASY True/False Thumbometer
Learning Grids : ”What I know”, “What I need to know”, “What I have learnt”.
Verbal Tennis (Teacher’s Toolkit)

58. The class sits round in one large circle and every student is given a clue card. The teacher explains the rules: “You have to keep your own card – you can’t give or show your card to anyone; only one person in the group is allowed to write; you can’t leave your places. When, as a group, you think you have all six answers, let me know and I’ll tell you how many you’ve got right and wrong, not which ones. If you don’t get them all right within fifteen minutes, I win!” From this point on the teacher doesn’t intervene, no matter how badly the group does, unless violence is about to be committed! The teacher acts merely as timekeeper and gives the students a reminder halfway through.

59. Who was murdered?
Who committed the murder?
When?
Where?
What was the weapon?
Why?

60. The answers Victim: Jamil Murderer: Andrew Scott When: 12.30 a.m.
Where: Andrew Scott’s house
Weapon: Knife
Why: It seems as though Jamil interfered in a relationship between his sister and Andrew
Scott. Presumably they did him in so they could carry on undisturbed. (This question, by its very nature, cannot be answered with the same degree of certainty as the others.)

61. Research has shown that pupils whose teachers use a ‘thinking skills’ approach can receive an intellectual boost equal on average to over half a year’s schooling!
QUESTIONING CHANGES
Teacher’s role: move from presentation to exploration of students’ ideas, involving them in the exploration and spend more time and effort framing questions to explore issues critical to development of students’ understanding
Student’s role: more active, realising that learning depends on readiness to express and discuss, not on spotting right answers

62. Inference Grids
Divide the class into groups of 4, 2 more able and 2 less able, based on KS2/3 average points score or other means.
Divide your whiteboard/page into 3 areas
What we know
What we can infer
Questions we have
Adapt these to suit the purpose
What we know
Questions we have
What we have learnt
Plus
Minus
Interesting i.e.
(Questions)

63. Control Mechanisms Intelligent interruptions
Students are only allowed to interrupt the lesson if they are asking a good/difficult question!
Find good/difficult questions to ask
Reward the individual / group that asks the best question during a lesson.
Thoughtboards
If a student wants to make a comment ask them to write it on a post-it note rather than interrupt. These can be referred to later and kept for revision.

64. “If I ran a school, I’d give all the average grades to the ones who gave me the right answers, for being good parrots. I’d give the top grades to those who made lots of mistakes and told me about them and then told me what they had learned from them.”
(Buckminster Fuller, Inventor)

65. 7: Go Multisensory.
Stimulate and excite.

66. Smell
Touch
Sight
Hear
See

67. The Tapestry of Teaching
Lecture
Enquiry
Activity-based
Research
Independent Study
Resource-based learning
Co-operative learning

68. 8: Involve Metacognitive
Processes.

69. “Nobody ever learned anything from experience.
It was the reflection on the experience that taught him something.”
(Neville West)

70. ! What kind of thinking have you been doing?
Did anyone say/do something that changed your thinking?
What personal contribution to your group’s thinking are you most pleased about?
What did you like/dislike, find easy/difficult about this task?
What skills supported the completion of this task?
What would help your group do such a task even better next time?

71. 9: Include Elements
of Creative Enquiry.

72. Use Different Teaching Styles
Individuals learn in many ways, like seeing, hearing, and experiencing things first hand.
Why is this important? It has been observed that students perform better on tests if they use study habits that fit their own learning styles.
For example, visual-learning students will sometimes struggle during essay exams, because they can’t recall test material that was “heard” in a lecture.
However, if the visual learner uses a visual aid when studying, like multimedia tools or pictorial quizzes, they may retain more information. For this type of learner, visual tools improve the ability to recall information.

73. The Mind is like a parachute it works best when opened?
(Frank Zappa)

74. 10: Conclude With
a Review.

75. Referring to learning objectives clarifies learning
Conscious and active reflection on the thinking processes that have been involved helps embed learning and create independent learners.
Reviewing the learning forces the learning to be clarified
For both teacher and students the realisation that ‘the answer’ does not lie in the teacher’s head can come as a shock!
May take teachers into territory where they feel uncomfortable.

76. “Excellence is an art won by training and habituation.
We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence then is not an act but a habit.”
(Aristotle)