LEARNING SKILLS


Last week, we introduced the ELLI


programme and


its dimensions of learning. Alison Thomas now looks at how one school is using the learning methods in the classroom


who can fight and navigate their way through economic and social barriers to a decent future.” Unfortunately, he doesn’t believe that the current


I


education system is up to the task. Far from inspiring an enduring thirst for learning, the relentless focus on testing and levels inhibits pupils of all abilities. He explained: “Research shows that of those who


gain seven or more good GCSEs at 16, a significant number are not pursuing further qualifications a year later. It’s a pretty damning indictment if even those who play the game successfully see little point in carrying on.” In a bid to turn the tide, the school joined Learning


Futures, a joint initiative of the Innovation Unit and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, which has been exploring new ways of inspiring deep and sustained engagement. Supported by the scheme, Matthew Moss has redesigned the year 7 and 8 curriculum to incorporate a project-based programme called My World, where the content is fluid and the onus is on the students to become agents of their own learning. Underpinning this work is ELLI, the Effective


Lifelong Learning Inventory. The learning profiles which students generate at the start of My World and


Moral support: NCB Giving them the responsibility


It is more important than ever to teach


young people how to manage their money, says Hilary Emery


RESEARCH FROM the Personal Finance Education Group (PFEG) revealed that over half of British teenagers have been in debt by the time they reach 17. Considering that you can’t open a newspaper or turn on the television without hearing about the “current economic climate” – is it not now more important than ever to teach young people how to handle money, the complexities of credit cards, mobile phone contracts, mortgages and pensions? During the past three years, 12 young people


from the NCB have been advising on a national project to improve personal finance education in schools and earlier this month our Young NCB members were in Parliament to give evidence to the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Financial Education for Young People and its inquiry into financial education in schools. They gave evidence with young people from Arun


Youth Council who had written independently to the APPG to request a slot to share their considerable experience and ideas. Their insights into what it is like for young


people as their families were affected by shrinking budgets and higher costs of living were invaluable. They told us that considering the current economic climate, there couldn’t be a better time for enhancing the delivery of lessons about money and how important high quality personal finance education in schools was to them. Giving evidence to MPs in Parliament is no


small task. Nevertheless our Young NCB members approach such daunting tasks with confidence; they


had thoroughly prepared beforehand and presented their arguments with a quiet forceful style. One young person even seized the opportunity to launch PFEG and Young NCB’s online “Get Money Savvy” petition. It helps that MPs are far more used to engaging with children than they used to be, but this is itself a change that has come about largely through the active part many children have played in decision-making. In my last column (Understanding our children,


SecEd 291, September 8, 2011) I wrote about how, in the context of the riots, we shouldn’t be afraid to engage young people in discussing challenging issues, and that we shouldn’t pretend they are insulated from wider social, political or economic changes in the world around them. Young people’s view on money is one such issue. Our Young NCB finance group members, like


many young people, remain concerned about a lack of skills among their peers and in the population as a whole when it comes to understanding how money works and what it means. They are also concerned to remind us that how well or badly we as a nation handle the issue of money now may define aspects of their future: Education Maintenance Allowance, post- 16 education, student loans, and future employment. These young people, who gave their time and


expertise last week to Parliament for free deserve our thanks and our admiration. I am sure we will see the influence of their contributions when the APPG publishes its final report and recommendations in November. At a time when views of young people remain


largely negative in some quarters, it is worth a reminder that when given the responsibility, the opportunity and the support, young people rarely, if ever, fail to exceed our expectations.


• Dr Hilary Emery is chief executive of the National Children’s Bureau, a national charity which works in partnership with a range of educational charities to improve the lives of children. Visit www.ncb.org.uk


Minted: A young person’s guide to managing money is available at from NCB and you can sign the Get Money Savvy petition at www.gopetition. com/petitions/get-money-savvy/sign.html


N THE streets around Matthew Moss High School in Rochdale, there are shops where you can sell second-hand clothes for 35p a kilo. “These are impoverished times,” said


Mark Moorhouse, deputy headteacher of the 11 to 16 comprehensive school. “So the imperative is huge to grow strong learners


ELLI in action


again when they finish provide valuable insight into the impact this new way of working has had on their learning power. But it is the quality of the discussions that ensue that really excites Mr Moorhouse. He continued: “We picked ELLI because it centres on the learner, it has the personal pronoun ‘I’. It’s not another external template for how children should turn out in the production model. It is a reflective language of self-development. “Professor Charles Desforges tells us that the biggest


intervention one can ever make in secondary school, the one with the greatest gains, is real assessment for learning. Not, ‘here’s what you must do to get to the next level’, but real conversations about learning.” To achieve this goal, it is vital that everyone fully


understands what the ELLI dimensions represent. If students develop their own iconography, this helps them to take ownership but it also takes time. They might choose footballers or talent show winners; their choices might be good or they might be inappropriate. Challenging them as a group critique is part of the conversation and deep thinking is involved. The time it takes is time well spent. The project-based approach of My World also includes time to fail. As agents of their own learning,


students may lose their way and the skill of the teacher lies in knowing when to intervene and when to leave well alone. An example featured on the Learning Futures blog concerns a group who spent a whole hour discussing, arguing and getting nowhere. The group leader, a poor attender, was clearly frustrated but he dug his heels in and turned things around. My World comes to an end after two years but the


language of ELLI endures as students progress through the school. It is beginning to enter the language used in reports and has been used to good effect on review days. “It is especially useful with those students who


appear to be topping out. Instead of platitudes like ‘keep up the good work’, you’ve actually got something developmental to discuss,” said Mr Moorhouse. He cites the example of a successful learner whose profile revealed that he was not very strong in critical curiosity. Bemused at first, his father was so enthusiastic once he understood the implications that he declared his intention to pursue the theme further at home. Perhaps the last word should lie with the students


themselves, whose observations have been captured in many hours of video and audio. One of the most telling comes from Charlie Diamond, now in year 10, who


Book reviews


Dancing About Architecture: A Little Book of Creativity


By Phil Beadle (Edited by Ian Gilbert) Publisher: Crown House Publishing Price: £8.99 ISBN: 978-184590725-9 Visit: www.crownhousepublishing.com


The aim of this book is to help teachers design and implement creative and unconventional teaching methods in the classroom. Chapters in the book look at how to use the classroom as a


stage, analysing poetry by “dancing” the verbs, and teaching punctuation through kung-fu. The book aims to encourage teachers to take more risks and


includes ideas about how to stop students becoming bored or disengaged in class. Phil Beadle is a award-winning teacher and a Guardian


columnist. The book is edited by Ian Gilbert, an educational speaker and motivator who has also written a number of books on education. The book has also provided inspiration this week for SecEd columnist Ian Whitwham: See page 16, At the chalkface.


A Kit Bag for Promoting Positive Behaviour in the Classroom


By Nicola Morgan and Gillian Ellis Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers Price: £14.99


ISBN: 978-1-84905-213-9 Visit: www.jkp.com


This handbook suggests ways in which teachers can create a positive learning environment


The book looks at strategies to help you tackle students


who display aggressive behaviour or who call out in class. It discusses where the problems may be developing from and offers practical ways to prevent them from re-occurring. Chapters in the book include addressing lateness, dealing with a lack of motivation, and addressing swearing. Nicola Morgan has taught for 15 years in mainstream


and special needs schools and now runs behaviour management projects at challenging schools. Gillian Ellis has run behaviour management projects


with local authorities as well as partnerships between schools and family groups.


in schools and


attempts to encourage teachers to be proactive in the classroom.


Learning to learn: Year 8 students


from Matthew Moss High sit back-to- back to hone their describing skills. Photo: Emille Holba/Learning Futures


believes that Matthew Moss has helped him to “break free from the bubble that kept him safe at primary school”. He said: “The different ways of teaching were at


first odd and bizarre but now that teaching helps me confront more challenges with a different perspective. The ELLI skills implemented in my thinking now let me relax and reflect about what I am doing. Besides the teaching produces students, my peers, who thrive to learn. This makes a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. Even though some students may not know the benefits of the new teaching, the improvements that they make are now natural to them, without knowing they are becoming stronger learners.”


SecEd • Alison Thomas is a freelance education journalist.


Further information Alison Thomas’ introductory article, The seven dimensions, was published on September 15 in SecEd edition 292. It is also available on the SecEd website at www.sec-ed.co.uk (click on features). • ELLI: www.ellionline.co.uk • Learning Futures: www.learningfutures.org


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SecEd • September 22 2011


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