Glossary
AFL (Assessment for learning)
The process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by learners and their teachers to decide where the learners are in their learning, where they need to go and how best to get there.
Assessment Reform Group 2002
AFs (Assessment focuses)
Assessment focuses, developed by QCA, are the basis of the mark scheme for the KS3 tests. They identify particular aspects of reading and writing. AFs for speaking and listening are currently being developed.
AOs (Assessment objectives)
Assessment objectives, issued by QCA, are the basis for assessment in all GCSE specifications. They identify the aspects of speaking and listening, and reading and writing which need to be taught because they are assessed through coursework and/or examination.
APP
Assessing Pupils' Progress is a joint QCA/Strategy initiative to improve the rigour and accuracy of teacher assessment in reading and writing. Grids of assessment focuses provide detailed criteria for judging ongoing work in relation to national curriculum levels. APP for Speaking and Listening is due to appear in Autumn 2007.
Activating prior knowledge
Activation of prior knowledge can develop pupils' understanding by helping them see links between what they already know and new information they are encountering and thus making teaching more effective. There are many ways of encouraging pupils to bring to the forefront of their minds, knowledge that relates to the text or subject they are about to consider:
- Word association chain around key word in title or in the text.
- Ask for memories around key word in title or an artefact (This reminds me of ... It makes me think of).
- Filling in a mind-mapping, concept mapping or other grids/proforma (e.g. the first column of a KWL grid).
The use of such strategies is based on insights from schema theory, which explores how we build and access knowledge.
Back channel
Words, phrases and non-verbal utterances used by a listener to give feedback to a speaker that the message is being followed and understood.
Bloom's Taxonomy
Benjamin Bloom established a hierarchy of educational objectives, which is generally referred to as Bloom's Taxonomy, and which attempts to divide cognitive objectives into subdivisions ranging from the simplest to the most complex. The original hierarchy was: Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis and Evaluation.
Closed questions
Those where the answer is already known by the questioner or require minimum responses.
Cumulative talk
Where speakers build positively but uncritically on what the other has said. It is characterised by repetitions, confirmations and elaborations.
Curricular and layered targets
Curricular targets
Are the areas of English identified from data and other information, in which whole classes, groups or individual pupils need to make progress if they are to achieve the level targeted for them? The scope of a curricular target is similar to that of an assessment focus or a Framework key objective. Once identified, teachers need to focus their teaching to these curricular targets and pupils' progress needs to be explicitly tracked to ensure they are confidently and independently applying the skills taught.
Layered targets
Are the small incremental steps towards a curricular target which build pupils' skills and confidence. As with all targets, these need to be shared with pupils so that as well as feedback on their progress from their teacher, they are given regular opportunities for self-assessment.
Example:
Curricular target - Adapt and vary structures and vocabulary according to purpose
Layered targets - identify the structure, techniques and purposes for a range of persuasive talk events giving reasons and evidence - show how structure and technique contribute to effect giving an explanation and examples.
Deixis
Words such as 'this', 'that', 'here', 'there' which refer backwards or forwards or outside a text - a sort of verbal pointing.
Dialect
Feature of grammar and/or vocabulary that identifies the regional or social background of the speaker.
Dialogic talk
Sustained stretches of talk which enable speakers and listeners to explore and build on their own and others' ideas to develop coherent thinking.
Five principles (from Alexander R, 2003)which bring together the essential features of dialogic teaching in the classroom:
- Collective: teachers and children address learning tasks together, as a group or as a class, rather than in isolation
- Reciprocal: teachers and children listen to each other, share ideas and consider alternative viewpoints
- Supportive: children articulate their ideas freely, without fear of embarrassment over 'wrong' answers and they help each other to reach common understandings
- Cumulative: teachers and children build on their own and each others' ideas and chain them into coherent lines of thinking and enquiry
- Purposeful: teachers plan and facilitate dialogic teaching with particular educational goals in view
Discourse marker
Linguistic signposts - signals for shifts in talk e.g. 'first', 'so anyway', 'now'.
Empathising
This means identifying with another: a character in a story, or an historical figure; the ability to see situations from the other's point of view.
Exploratory talk
Talk in which partners engage critically but constructively with each other's ideas. Relevant information is offered for joint consideration. Proposals may be challenged and counter-challenged, but if so reasons are given and alternatives offered. Agreement is sought as a basis for progress. Knowledge is made publicly accountable and reasoning is visible in the talk. (Mercer 2000)
Formal/informal talk
Level of formality is usually determined by the relationship of the speakers and the context in which an exchange occurs. Formal language is likely to be standard English, characterised by more complete utterances, less ellipsis and more regular and formal turn taking and is likely to occur in situations where the speakers are unfamiliar to each other.
Formative assessment
Formative assessment supports teaching and learning by providing feedback to pupils and teachers; it is often referred to as 'assessment for learning'. It is undertaken by both teachers and pupils and becomes formative when it is used to plan the next steps in learning to meet their needs.
Ground rules
The conventions which are associated with particular kinds of conversations and talk events. For example, a debate and a discussion are similar but have different conventions and it is helpful for the teacher with the pupils to explore and identify these conventions as ground rules before pupils practise the activity.
Group work
This can operate for speaking and listening, reading or writing or a combination of all three. It can be, for instance, when a group of pupils discuss the opening scenes of a film together in class, without the direct involvement of the teacher.
Guided work
This can operate for speaking and listening, reading or writing or a combination of all three. It is a classroom activity in which pupils are taught in groups, usually according to their speaking and listening, reading or writing ability. The teacher works with each group on an aspect of English that the whole class is focused on but which has been differentiated to offer an appropriate level of challenge to the group.
Individual work
Speaking and listening, often talk, done by an individual, in or outside the classroom, for example interviewing an adult outside school or giving a presentation.
IRF (Initiates-Responds-Feedback)
The teacher Initiates a speech event (through question or statement), a pupil Responds and the teacher gives Feedback.
Key objectives banks
The KS3 Strategy English team identified key objectives within the KS3 English Framework and produced suggestions for addressing these objectives effectively in the classroom. They are all available via the DfES standards website.
KWL grids
Diagrammatic recording of what a reader Knows, Wants to find out and Learns from an investigation.
Learning objectives
A learning objective identifies the skill development or knowledge acquisition anticipated as the result of effectively-designed learning.
Learning outcomes
The work produced (orally or in writing) by pupils as the result of planned learning.
Long, medium and short-term planning
Long-term planning gives an overview of curriculum coverage across a year or key stage. Medium-term planning usually covers a unit or sequence of lessons to support consistency across a department. Short-term planning specifies objectives and activities for particular lessons and should reflect the needs of the pupils involved.
Literacy Progress Units (LPUs)
Six units of lessons designed for use with small groups of pupils who are on level 3 but have the potential to reach level 5. It was envisaged that they would usually be taught by teaching assistants and they are scripted accordingly.
Metacognition
A learner's ability to reflect on and understand their own learning; knowing that we know and that there is more we do not know.
Modelled speaking and listening
This refers to demonstration of an element of speaking and listening by an expert for learners.
Non-verbal features
Related to body language - gesture, facial expressions and other non-verbal elements (such as laughter) to add meaning to the speaker's message beyond the words being spoken. Also includes prosodic features - a subset concerned with the use of voice - pitch, volume, intonation, etc.
Open questions
Questions that invite genuine speculation where the answer is either unknown or not pre-determined.
Recitation
The pattern is similar to IRF, the main difference being that with 'recitation' after the teacher question and brief pupil response the teacher rarely encourages the pupil to elaborate, the purpose being mainly to 'test' pupils' understanding.
Register
The particular style of language clearly recognisable as being associated with an activity or work in role - might be concerned with structure and/or vocabulary.
Repairs
An alteration that is made or suggested by a speaker in order to correct or clarify a previous utterance.
Schema theory
Identifies prior knowledge as vital to the creation of new learning, and helps to explain the relationship between established understanding and new understanding.
Self-evaluation
The pupil taking part in the evaluation of his or her progress in learning in relation to agreed criteria.
Shared reading
In shared reading the teacher, as an expert reader, models the reading process by reading the text to the learners. The teacher demonstrates use of cues and strategies which support interpretation and evaluation. Learners have opportunities to join in with the reading, and thereby become confident in using these strategies independently.
Socratic discussion
The layout of the classroom is crucial to the success of this approach and requires a central group of tables for the discussion group with the remainder of the class, observers, seated around the room. Each pupil observing is assigned a particular pupil or aspect of discussion for the focus of their observations. In this way each pupil in the discussion group will have several 'observers' during the discussion. The observers are provided with guidance for their observations. At the end of the discussion, the teacher leads an evaluation where the observers are invited to comment.
Stance
Refers to the relationship between speakers which could be concerned with social position/gender/class/status.
Standard English
The variety of English that does not show any of the variations that are considered to be ungrammatical in regional dialects of English.
Summative assessment
Summarises the points that pupils have reached in their learning. It gives a measure of a specific level of achievement at a given time. In the medium and longer term, this helps teachers make judgements about standards of achievement and can also help with identifying pupils' future learning needs.
Tag question
Added to the end of a declarative sentence to turn it into a question e.g. It's a bit expensive, isn't it?
Teaching objectives
At KS3 this usually means objectives drawn from the KS3 English Framework for teaching English. The objectives were created to make the National Curriculum more tangible and therefore more teachable.
Turn taking
A time during which a single participant speaks, within a typical orderly arrangement in which participants speak with minimal overlap and gap between them.
Vague language
Statements which sound imprecise, unassertive or soften meaning 'whatever', 'and so on'.
Voiced pauses or fillers
E.g. 'er', 'um', 'ah' - used to give thinking time, or hold a turn in conversation.
Waiting time
Involves the teacher waiting about three seconds both before a pupil answers a question and after they have answered to allow the pupil thinking time before answering and also time to reflect on their response and to add to or qualify it.