Presented through spoken word at TEDxNorrköping
We remember our teachers. Those teachers that have stuck in our minds are remembered for their passion in teaching or maybe for seeing something in you that you did not see yourself. Teaching as a profession that holds expectations not seen in many careers, that teachers should be outstanding from year one.
What are the influences on achievement in schools?
This data has been collected from 25,000,000 students. It shows the ‘structure of schools or classes’ does not have an impact on achievement. This is a common misconception as most would assume things such as summer schools, ability grouping, and school calendars have an positive influence on student achievement. ‘Attributes of students’ for example; personality, sleep, diet, gender, diversity of students, parental employment also has no effect on achievement. An additional element is ‘Technology’. The use of computers in science, maths, in small groups or web-based learning is not proven to increase the achievement of students. Therefore it is shown, that these ‘Politics of distraction’ in the forms of; home life, class size, learning styles, programs, repeating classes are attributes we associate with achievement, they in-fact display no impact.
Some of the elements that have positive influence on achievement are as follows. Teachers working together as a collective expertise, they must understand what impact teachers have on the students. Staff must understand what the students already know in order to build to an explicit success criteria. This means showing the students what success looks like when they begin, giving them a clear aim. Mistakes and errors must be seen as opportunities to learn. Difficulty is important, following ‘the Goldilocks principals of challenge’ will positively influence achievement.
As a teacher you must constantly ask what impact you are giving.
Rose Kerbyson 