Laura-Jane Devanny, Senior Lecturer in Education, University of Northampton, UK In this reflection, I discuss Myhill et al.’s (2016) research paper ‘Writing conversations: Fostering metalinguistic discussion about writing’ and how I have utilised it to facilitate application of research to practice within initial teacher training (ITT). This research was employed within an ITT setting when […]
Kirstin Mulholland and Carl Luke, Lecturers in Education, Northumbria University, UK Sophie Meller, David Nichol, Arlene Anderson and Deborah Herridge, Senior Lecturers in Education, Northumbria University, UK William Gray, Teacher, The Grove Primary School, UK When educating future teachers in higher education contexts, there is often a perceived divide between theoretical and professional knowledge (McGarr […]
Douglas Fairfield, Education Advisor, Education Development Trust, UK Gillian Acott, Curriculum Design Manager, Teach First, UK ‘I understand that you learned to do this during your training and it’s probably more up to date with the latest pedagogy, but I’ve been doing this long enough to know that pupils find grades motivating.’ This is real […]
Nicola Percy, Director of STEM, Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls, UK There is much debate in education discussing the use of cognitive science to inform teaching practice. From cognitive load theory to embodied cognition, teachers are researching ways in which to embed cognitive science in their lessons. There is a plethora of advice on how […]
Henry Sauntson, SCITT Director, Teach East, UK New teachers enter the profession having been taught a curriculum built on certain concepts and statements, many of which can be viewed through the lens of cognitive science. However, those mentoring and developing them in placement settings may not be fully versed in the language or roots of […]
Imogen Fletcher-Blackburn, Assistant Principal for teaching and learning at Trinity Academy, London There is strong evidence to suggest that instructional coaching can improve teacher instruction, the quality of teacher–child interactions, pupil behaviour, motivation and attainment (Kraft et al., 2018; Basma and Savage, 2018; Allen et al., 2011, 2015). I was first introduced to instructional coaching […]
Adewale Magaji, Centre for Thinking and Learning, Institute for Lifecourse Development, FEHHS, University of Greenwich, UK Theoretically framing the literature This article reports a section from a large study on trainee teachers’ classroom assessment pedagogy and its impact on the learning and progress of students. Developing and promoting cognitive learning requires experience in the various […]
Amy Lloyd, Assistant Headteacher, Haybridge High School, part of the Four Stones Multi Academy Trust, UK Haybridge High School and Sixth Form is an 11–18 academy located in Worcestershire. This academic year we have focused on improving our continuous professional learning (CPL) offer for staff. We have been – and continue to be – on […]
Bethan Coles, Teacher Education, University of Bedfordshire, UK Introduction ‘When students are aware of what they know and don’t know, learning is more successful in the classroom and studying is more successful outside of the classroom.’ (Agarwal and Bain, 2019 p. 125) Cognitive scientists call this metacognition. The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) define metacognition as […]
Dawn Forshaw, Sharon Harrison and Balli Dail, Phase and regional leads, STAR SCITT, UK The metacognition and self-regulated learning guidance report from the Education Endowment Foundation (Quigley and Muijs, 2018) consists of an evidence review indicating that metacognition: potentially has a significant positive impact on pupil outcomes (+7 months) and represents an important element of […]
Laura A Outhwaite, Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, UK Erica Ranzato, Psychology and Human Development, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, UK Jo Van Herwegen, Psychology and Human Development and Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, UK […]
Catherine Gripton, University of Nottingham, UK Helen J Williams, Freelance Education Consultant, UK Early mathematics pedagogy is about exploration, apprenticeship and sense-making. Exploration: Children and adults enjoy exploring mathematical ideas mentally and physically. Apprenticeship: Children learn through being mathematical with adults, learning mathematical words, ideas and behaviours from them Sense-making: Children make sense of their […]
John Rodgers, Assistant Principal, Mounts Bay Academy, UK; Director, Cornwall Associate Research School, UK Since September, a priority at Mounts Bay Academy, an 11–16 mixed school in Penzance, has been high-quality disciplinary vocabulary instruction. I aim to show how and why we implemented practice change across all faculties to improve the teaching of disciplinary vocabulary. […]
Sharon Leftwich-Lloyd, FCCT, Lead Practitioner and Progress Coordinator for Drama and Theatre, The Polesworth School, UK Over 22 years of teaching, I have observed that my students are mostly driven by a love of practical rather than theoretical work when they opt for drama; this preference creates a motivation gap between practical and theoretical achievement. […]
Christopher Tay, Headteacher, Longden CE Primary School and Nursery, Shropshire, UK; Visiting Lecturer in ITE, University of Chester, UK Embodied cognition (EC) includes a range of ideas, commonly bound by the understanding that the thinking cycle – perception/interpretation – occurs across the brain, body and environment. The role of gesture and movement in enhancing instruction […]
Dr Thomas Perry, Assistant Professor, University of Warwick To get the benefits from cognitive science we need to talk about what we don’t know. Our current knowledge I am really excited about the possibilities of cognitive science. In the EEF review of Cognitive Science in the Classroom (Perry et al., 2021), after locating and reviewing […]
Louise Bailey (CTeach), Secondary Teacher of English, Saffron Walden County High School, UK When asked to decide on a topic of interest for my recent place on the Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice with the Chartered College, I had no doubts that I wanted to discuss cognitive science. My aim was to compare the older research […]
Margaret Lee, Director of Organizational Development, Frederick County Public Schools, Maryland, USA Glenn Whitman, Executive Director, Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning, St Andrew’s, Maryland, USA Dr Ian Kelleher, CTTL Dreyfuss Family Faculty Chair for Research, Maryland, USA There is no greater opportunity yet no greater challenge than being a teacher or school leader today. […]
Daniel Langley, Assistant Principal, Teaching and Learning at Milton Keynes Academy and EdD Candidate at IOE, UCL The promise of research-informed classroom practice is clear: benefit from the ‘best bets’ for improving student attainment, navigate the whims of political opinion and bolster teacher professionalism (Goldacre, 2013). The pursuit of this tempting state of affairs was […]
Clare Owen, Hollyfield School, UK We often view curriculum as the beating heart of a school’s contribution to its community. While finding a definition that suits everyone is near impossible, in whatever form we conceptualise it, it is the engine room of education, the driver of our intent. For that driving force to be as […]
