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Week 1: Group Work

This week the ECT focused on group/collaborative work.  They explored the benefits and limitations of this and looked at ways in which they can ensure group work is successful within their own classroom.  They considered the challenges of conducting group work with autistic learners and the factors that contribute to inclusive group work. They planned and delivered a group activity and reflected upon this.

Evidence and Research:

The ECT explored the benefits and limitations of group work, some strategies for effective group work and how group work can be challenging for autistic learners.

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Invite them to share their key learning point.  The following questions may help frame your discussion:

  • What are the key benefits of group work?

  • What are the limitations of group work?

  • What barriers potentially exist for autistic learners?

  • What strategies and approaches help ensure effective group work?

  • How can group work be made inclusive? (You may find the diagram below of use)

Screenshot 2024-07-09 at 16.29.24.png

(Sobel & Alston, 2020)

Application and Exploration of Practice and Setting:

Applying their learning, the ECT planned a group activity for one of their lessons.

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Ask them about their planning.  The questions below may support this:

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  • What lesson did you choose to include a group activity in, and why?

  • How did you approach the planning?

  • What elements of your learning did you incorporate?

Reflection and Discussion

The ECT taught the lesson and have undertaken a reflection on this.

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Invite them to share this with you.

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The following questions might help to frame this discussion:

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  • What reflective framework did you choose to utilise for this reflection, and why?

  • Talk me through your reflections using the framework.

  • What targets do you have as a result of undertaking this group activity?

Week 2: Dialogic Teaching

This week the ECT focused on dialogic teaching, otherwise known as classroom talk.  They explored what it is and the benefits of using dialogic teaching in the classroom.  They looked at approaches they can take and the key principles that must be present in dialogic teaching.  They also discussed this topic with a colleague and observed the colleague teach to explore how they use dialogic teaching within their practice.

Evidence and Research:

Invite the ECT to share their learning about dialogic teaching with you.

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The following questions will help frame the discussion:

  • What do you understand dialogic teaching to be?

  • How does dialogic teaching support pupils' learning?

  • How can dialogic teaching be used in the classroom?

  • What is the role of the teacher?

  • What are the key principles of dialogic teaching?

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Application and Exploration of Practice and Setting:

The ECT chose a colleague to discuss dialogic teaching with and then observed this colleague teaching, focusing on how they use dialigic teaching in their classroom.

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Invite the ECT to explore their conversation with you and share their observations.

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They will have completed a pro forma for their observation which you can ask them to share.

Reflection and Discussion

The ECT will have reflected upon their learning, the conversation with a colleague and the observation.

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Use the following to support the ECT to share their reflections with you:

  • Do you use dialogic teaching in your practice?

  • How might you begin to develop dialogic teaching?

  • What subjects or curriculum areas do you think this would work well in?

  • What do you see as the benefits to your practice and to pupil learning?

  • Are there any barriers you perceive? How might you minimise or overcome these?

Week 3: Extrinsic Motivation and the Use of Rewards

This week the ECT focused on extrinsic motivation.  They defined extrinsic motivation before considering what extrinsic motivators they use within their practice.  They explored the 'dark side' of extrinsic motivators and then thought about how they might change their practice and learning environment to reflect upon their learning.

Evidence and Research:

Invite the ECT to share their understand and learning around extrinsic motivation and motivators with you.  You may want to  focus on the two part article they read about the 'dark side of reward and punishment'.  The articles are below should you wish to read them.

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The following questions will help frame the discussion:

  • What do you understand to be extrinsic motivators?

  • What did you learn from reading the articles about 'the dark side of reward and punishment'?

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Screenshot 2024-07-15 at 09.17.42.png
Screenshot 2024-07-15 at 09.17.52.png

Reflection and Discussion

The ECT was asked to reflect (ahead of applying to practice this week) upon their current practice and the extrinsic motivators they use in their own practice. 

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Invite them to share this reflection with you.

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The following questions may frame this discussion:

  • What extrinsic motivators do you use in your practice?

  • Why do you use these?

  • What impact do they have?

  • How has your learning changed your thinking about these?

Application and Exploration of Practice and Setting:

The ECT completed a pro forma that captured their current use of extrinsic motivators and how they planned to change this practice and their environment based upon their learning and included their next steps.

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Invite the ECT to share this document with them and discuss their next steps with them alongside the resources and changes in practice they have considered.

Week 4: Intrinsic Motivation

This week the ECT focused on intrinsic motivation and also compared this to extrinsic motivation.  They considered what constitutes intrinsic motivation and looked at the components of motivation before exploring strategies that can develop intrinsic motivation for pupils.  They observed colleagues and identified where colleagues are using extrinsic motivators and intrinsic motivation strategies and considered how these might be applied to their practice.

Evidence and Research:

Invite the ECT to share their understanding around the differences between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and motivators with you and how intrinsic motivation might be developed within their classroom.

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Use the following questions to aid the discussion:

  • What do you understand intrinsic motivation to be?

  • How is intrinsic motivation different to external motivation?

  • What are the key elements of motivation?

  • What strategies are useful to develop intrinsic motivation within your classroom and with your pupils?

  • What did you learn from watching the Daniel Pink video? (this is below, if you choose to watch it).

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Application and Exploration of Practice and Setting:

The ECT observed a selection of colleagues this week, exploring the external motivators and intrinsic motivation strategies they use.

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Invite them to share their observations with you.

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You might frame this with these two simple questions:

  • What external motivators do staff use?  Are these effective?

  • What evidence did you see of intrinsic motivation strategies being used?  Was there evidence that these were effective?

Reflection and Discussion

Building on their observations invite the ECT to consider their own practice by asking:

  • From your observations what might you take/adapt into your own practice to enhance the intrinsic motivation of your students?

 

This may be a good week to conduct term 1's observation- ensure that there is a focus and discussion around pupil motivation.

Weeks 5 & 6: Reviewing Motivation in Your Class

This week the ECT focused on applying their learning about intrinsic motivation to their practice using an improvement cycle and reflective frameworks.

They worked through this in scaffolded stages across the two weeks which allowed them to practice this cycle before utilising it moving forwards into the other modules for this year.

You may find it useful to look at the video below and access the cycle in order to support your ECT, before we explore your specific role within this process.

The stimulus will be for the ECT to develop intrinsic motivation and they will then identify actions and strategies that they will practice and embed based upon their learning in week 3 and specifically week4.

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Once they have these actions they will spend around a week (week 5) practicing these in their classroom.

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At the end of week 5/early week 6, they will undertake observations and/or conversations with colleagues to draw upon best practice and different approaches.  They may also share their experiences and expertise.

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Tuesday or Wednesday of week 6, you then undertake an observation.  This can be their termly observation and in addition to focusing on the Teachers' Standards it also focuses on the development of intrinsic motivation.

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In the mentor meeting towards the end of the week, the ECT will bring a completed planning and review document with them (see below) which also captures the impact of their established actions that they have been practicing and embedding.  It would be useful for them to share this with you and for you to discuss the evidence they have for their review and evaluation.

For the modules moving forward this will be the approach taken, with the first 2 or 3 weeks being learning in the usual format and the next 3 or 4 weeks being applying this learning using the improvement cycle and reflective frameworks.

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This allows for the ECT to develop research and evidence based reflective practice.

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