Guidance, ideas and examples to support schools in developing their curriculum, pedagogy, enrichment and support for more able learners, within a whole-school context of cognitively challenging learning for all. Includes ideas to support curriculum development, and practical examples, resources and ideas to try in the classroom. Popular topics include: curriculum development, enrichment, independent learning, questioning, oracy, resilience, aspirations, assessment, feedback, metacognition, and critical thinking.
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Posted By Rachel Macfarlane,
09 January 2025
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Do academically strong pupils at your school who are on the Pupil Premium register progress as quickly and attain as highly as academically strong pupils who are not?
Do these students sometimes grasp new concepts quickly and securely in the classroom and show flair and promise in lessons, only to perform less well in exams than their more advantaged peers?
If so, what can be done to close the attainment gap?
In this series of three blog posts, Rachel Macfarlane, Lead Adviser for Underserved Learners at HFL Education, explores the reasons for the attainment gap and offers practical strategies to help close it – focusing in Part 1 on diagnosing the challenges and barriers, and in Part 2 on eliminating economic exclusion. This third instalment explores the importance of a sense of belonging and status.
Our yearning to belong is one of the most fundamental feelings we experience as humans. In psychologist Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the need to experience a sense of connection and belonging sits immediately above the need for basic necessities – food, water, warmth and personal safety.
When we experience belonging, we feel calm and safe. We become more empathetic and our mood improves. In short, as Owen Eastwood explains, belonging is “a necessary condition for human performance” (Belonging, 2021:26).
Learners from less economically advantaged backgrounds than their peers often feel that they don’t fit in and have a low sense of self-worth, regardless of their academic strength. Painfully aware of what they lack compared to others, they can disappear into the shadows, consciously or subconsciously making themselves invisible. They may not volunteer to read or answer questions in class. Or audition for a part in the school play or choir. Or sign up for leadership opportunities.
They may lack the respect, rank and position that is afforded by fitting comfortably into the ‘in group’: identifying with and operating within the dominant culture, possessing the latest designer gear, phone and other material goods, being at the centre of social media groups and activity and connecting effortlessly, through lived experiences and lifestyle, with peers who hold social power and are seen as leaders and role models.
Pupils who are academically strong but who lack status are likely to be fragile and nervous learners, finding it harder to work in teams, to trust others and to accept feedback. Their energy and focus can be sapped by the trauma of navigating social situations, they are prone to feel the weight of external scrutiny and judgement, and all of that will detract from their ability to perform at their best.
The good news is that, as educators, we have amazing powers to convey a sense of belonging and status.
Ten top tips to build learners’ sense of belonging and status
The following simple behaviours convey the message that the educator cares about, is invested in, notices and respects the learner; that they have belief in their potential and want to give their discretionary effort to them.
- Welcome them to the class, ensuring that you make eye contact, address them by name and give them a smile – establishing your positive relationship and helping them feel noticed, valued and safe in the learning environment.
- Go out of your way to find opportunities to give them responsibilities or assign a role to them, making it clear to them the skills and/or knowledge they possess that make(s) them perfect for the job.
- Reserve a place for them at clubs and ensure they are well inducted into enrichment opportunities.
- Arrange groupings for activities to ensure they have supportive peers to work with.
- Invite them to contribute to discussions, to read and to give their opinions. Don’t allow confident learners to dominate the discussion (learners with high status talk more!) and don’t ask for volunteers to read (students with low status are unlikely to volunteer).
- Show respect for their opinions and defer to them for advice. e.g. “So, I’m wondering what might be the best way to go about this. Martha, what do you think?” “That’s a good point, Nitin. I hadn’t thought of that. Thank you!”
- Make a point of telling them you think they should put themselves forward for opportunities (e.g. to go to a football trial, audition for the show, apply to be a prefect) and provide support (e.g. with writing an application or practising a speech).
- Connect them with a champion or mentor (adult or older peer) from a similar background who has achieved success to build their self-belief.
- Secure high-status work experience placements or internships for them.
- Invite inspiring role models with similar lived experience into school or build the stories of such role models into schemes of learning and assemblies.
Finally, it is worth remembering that classism (judging a person negatively based on factors such as their home, income, occupation, speech, dialect or accent, lifestyle, dress sense, leisure activities or name) is rife in many schools, as it is in society. In schools where economically disadvantaged learners thrive and achieve impressive outcomes, classism is treated as seriously as the ‘official’ protected characteristics. In these schools, the taught curriculum and staff unconscious bias, EDI (equality, diversity and inclusion) and language training address classism directly and leaders take impactful action to eliminate any manifestations of it.
More from this series:
Plus: this year's NACE Conference will draw on the latest research (including our own current research programme) and case studies to explore how schools can remove barriers to learning and create opportunities for all young people to flourish. Read more and book your place.
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Posted By Andy Griffith,
04 December 2024
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Schools are tasked by Ofsted to “boost cultural capital” and to “close the disadvantage gap”. In this blog post, Andy Griffith, co-author of The Working Classroom, makes some practical suggestions for schools to adopt.
1. Explore the language around “cultural capital” and “disadvantage”
As educators we know that language is very important, so before we try to boost or close something we should think deeply about terms that are commonly referred to. What are the origins of these terms? What assumptions lie behind them? Ofsted describes cultural capital as “the best that has been thought and said”, but who decides what constitutes the “best”? Notions of best are, by definition, subjective value choices.
The phrase “best that has been thought and said”, originally coined by sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, is worthy of study in itself (see below for reference). Bourdieu described embodied cultural capital as a person’s education (knowledge and intellectual skills) which provides advantage in achieving a higher social status. For Bourdieu the “game” is rigged. The game Bourdieu refers to is, of course, the game of life, of which education is a significant element.
When it comes to the term “disadvantaged”, Lee Elliott Major, Professor of Social Mobility at the University of Exeter Professor, suggests that instead we refer to low-income families as “under-resourced”. Schools should be careful not to treat the working class as somehow inferior or as something that needs to be fixed.
Action: Ensure that staff fully understand the term “cultural capital”. Alongside this, explore “social capital” and “disadvantage”. This is best done through discussion and debate. Newspaper articles and even blogs like this one can act as a good stimulus.
2. Create a well-designed cultural curriculum
Does your school have a plan for taking students on a cultural journey? How many trips will your students go on before they leave your school? Could these experiences be incorporated into a passport of sorts?
The cultural experiences you offer will be determined by factors such as your school’s location and budget. A lot of cultural experiences can be delivered in-house in the form of external speakers, films and documentaries, or virtual reality. Others will require excursions. In either case, creating a Cultural Passport helps staff to plan experiences that complement and supplement previous experiences.
Schools should strike a balance between celebrating each community’s history and going beyond the existing community to broaden students’ horizons. Again, language is important. Does your school’s cultural curriculum explore the differences between so-called “high” and “low” culture?
No class is an island. Students of all social backgrounds should experience live theatre, visiting museums, going to art exhibitions, visiting the countryside and encountering people from cultures other than their own. Equally, every school’s cultural curriculum should celebrate working class culture. The working classes have a vibrant history of creating art, music, theatre, literature and so on, which needs to be reflected in the core curriculum.
By looking through the lens of race and gender, most schools have a more diverse offering of writers compared with when I went to school. It is right that more Black voices and more female voices are represented in the school curriculum. This opens new insights for readers, as well as providing Black and female students with more role models.
Similarly, there should be a strong emphasis on the work of working-class artists and autodidacts, no matter the social demographic of the school. Studying working-class writers such as Jimmy McGovern, Kayleigh Lewellyn, and musicians such as Terry Hall and even Dolly Parton can be inspiring. Similarly, learning about autodidacts such as Charles Dickens, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Vincent Van Gogh and Frida Kahlo can teach students that where there is a strong desire to learn, people can find a way.
Action: Ensure your school is “teaching backwards” from rich cultural experiences. Outline the experiences that will be stamped in their Cultural Passport before they leave your school.
3. Explore social capital barriers for students
One of the greatest things we can do as educators is to remove a barrier that is holding a student back. One barrier that is faced by many working-class students is lack of social capital – i.e. the limited range of occupations of their social acquaintances or network.
In 2016 I created the first of a number of Scholars Programmes in Kirkby, Merseyside. I’m proud that as well as making a positive impact on academic results at GCSE, it has raised aspirations. The programme is deliberately designed to build social capital. Over the duration of the programme (from Year 7 to 11), students have opportunities to meet and interview adults who are in careers that they aspire to. As well as work experience, the school organises Zoom interviews for students with people working in the industry that they are interested in joining. Not only do these interviews invigorate students, they create a contact that is there to be emailed for information and advice. Over time, the school has created a database of contacts who are able to offer work placements or are happy to take part in either face-to-face or virtual interviews with students. These people are friends and family members of the staff, and even friends of friends.
It is much, much harder for working class students to enter elite professions such as medicine, law and the media. The arts and the creative industries are also harder to break into. Contacts who are able to help a student to build specific industry knowledge and experience can give them a better chance of future success.
Action: Creatively utilise a database of school contacts to provide information and advice for students. Match students with professionals who can offer career advice and insights.
Reference: P. Bourdieu, Cultural Reproduction and Social Reproduction. In J. Karabel and A. H. Halsey (eds), Power and Ideology in Education (New York: Oxford University Press, 1977), pp. 487–51.
The ideas and strategies in this article are contained within The Working Classroom by Matt Bromley and Andy Griffith (Crown House Publishing). More information about the book and training around its contents can be found here.
NACE members can benefit from a 20% discount on all purchases from the Crown House Publishing website. View our member offers page for details.
Plus... The NACE Conference 2025 will draw on the latest research (including our own current research programme) and case studies to explore how schools can remove barriers to learning and create opportunities for all young people to flourish. Read more and book your place.
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Posted By Kyriacos Papasavva,
26 August 2021
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Kyriacos Papasavva, Head of Religious Studies at St Mary’s and St John’s (SMSJ) CE School, shares three ways in which the school seeks to nurture a love of learning – for students and staff alike.
Education becomes alive when educators and students love what they do. This is, I think, the whole point of teaching: to inspire a love of learning among those we teach. Love, however, is not something that can be forced. Instead, it is ‘caught’.
For such a desire to develop in our pupils, there must be a real freedom in the learning journey. From the teacher’s perspective, this can be a scary prospect, but we must remember that a teacher is a guide only; you cannot force children to learn, but it is genuinely possible to inspire among pupils a love of learning. To enable this, we should ask ourselves: to what extent do we as teaching practitioners allow the lesson to go beyond the bulwark we impose upon any limited, pre-judged ‘acceptable range’? How do we allow students to explore the syllabus in a way that is free and meaningful to the individual? If we can find a way to do this, then learning really becomes magical.
While there is the usual stretch and challenge, meta-questions, challenge reading, and more, the main thrust of our more able provision in the religious studies (RS) department at SMSJ is one which encourages independent research and exploration. Here are several of the more unique ways that we have encouraged and challenged our more able students in RS and across the school, with the aim of developing transferable skills across the curriculum and inspiring a love of learning amongst both students and staff.
1. Papasavitch (our very own made-up language)
We had used activities based on Jangli and Yelrib, made-up languages used at Eton College, to stretch our pupils and give them exciting and unique learning opportunities. These activities were so well received by our pupils; they wanted more. So we developed ‘Papasavitch’, our very own made-up language.
This is partly what I was referring to earlier: if you find something students enjoy doing, give them a space to explore that love; actively create it. To see if your pupils can crack the language, or have a go yourself, try out this sample Papasavitch activity sheet. 2. The RS SMSJ Essay Writing Competition (open to all schools)
In 2018, SMSJ reached out to a number of academics at various universities to lay the foundations of what has become a national competition. We would like to thank Professor R. Price, Dr E. Burns, Dr G. Simmonds, Dr H. Costigane, Dr S. Ryan and Dr S. Law for their support.
Biannually, we invite students from around the UK (and beyond) to enter the competition, which challenges them to write an essay of up to 1,000 words on any area within RS, to be judged by prestigious academics within the field of philosophy, theology and ethics. While we make this compulsory for our RS A-level pupils, we receive copious entries from students in Years 7-11 at SMSJ, and beyond, owing to the range of possible topics and broad interest from students. Hundreds of students have entered to date, including those from top independent and grammar schools around the UK. (Note: submissions should be in English, and only the top five from each school should be submitted.)
You can learn more about the competition – including past and future judges, essay themes, examples of past entries, and details of how to enter – on the SMSJ website. 3. Collaboration and exploration – across and beyond the school
The role of a Head of Department (HoD), as I see it, is to actively seek opportunities for collaboration and exploration – within the school family and beyond into the wider subject community, as well as among the members of the department. At SMSJ, this ethos is shared by HoDs and other staff alike and expressed in a number of ways.
Regular HoD meetings to discuss and seek opportunities for implementing cross-curricular links are a must, and have proven fruitful in identifying and utilising overlap in the curriculum. Alongside this, we run a Teacher Swaps programme where teachers can study each other’s subjects in a tutorial fashion, naturally creating an awareness and understanding of other subjects.
The Humanities Faculty offers a ‘Read Watch Do’ supplementary learning programme for each year group, which runs alongside regular home learning tasks. The former also supports other departments through improved literacy, building cultural capital and exploration via the independent learning tasks.
Looking beyond the school, our partnerships with the K+ and Oxford Horizons programmes help our sixth-formers prepare for university, while mentoring with Career Ready and the Civil Service supports our students to gain new skills from external providers. Our recent launch of The Spotlight, a newspaper run by students at SMSJ, has heralded a collaboration with a BBC Press Team. Again, this shows other opportunities for cross-curricular overlap, as students are directed to report on different departments’ extracurricular enrichment activities. The possibilities are endless, and limited only by our imagination.
To learn more about any of the initiatives mentioned in this blog post, and/or to share what’s working in your own department/school, please contact communications@nace.co.uk.
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Posted By Chris Yapp,
30 September 2020
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Dr Chris Yapp, NACE Patron
When thinking about the future of any part of the economy and society, most futurists will start by looking back. The reason for this is quite simple. First, it is important to understand the journey to where we are now, or where we think we are. Second, it helps us focus on past predictions about what would happen that did not and why. Finally, it helps understand if the sector being considered has taken full advantage of long-term trends and that trend has run out of steam, or still has a while to go.
Much hype in the tech sector over the last decade and more has been around “big data”. Since the exam chaos of the summer, there has been an increased interest in alternatives to the current systems of assessment and certifications. One topic, learning analytics, has been growing in interest in my email and social media conversations since lockdown. This is the “big data” in education movement in one of its manifestations.
Here, I want to look at the wider issues of data in education by contrasting my school years (the 1960s) with today.
Try this as a little exercise. Think of a year between 1990 and 2015. Now choose a F1 Grand Prix race. Then Google “winner 1997 Monaco Grand Prix” with your chosen years and race substituted for mine. In less than a minute from start to finish you can get the answer.
Now back in the 1960s, maybe some people would have had sports annuals and could look the answer up. Maybe you had a racing nut among your friends who would know the answer. If not, a trip to a local library which may or may not have had a book with the answer, during opening hours. Most people would have given up.
Note: it does not matter whether you are interested or expert in F1; the answer is available on demand.
So, the first question I want to pose to educationalists is this:
“How has what is taught, how it is taught and assessed changed to take advantage of the widespread availability of data on demand?”
This growth of availability also brings new challenges.
First, different cultures have different answers to the same questions. Try asking Siri who invented television. The Americans claim Philo Farnsworth. As you enter Helensburgh in the West Coast of Scotland the welcome sign says, “Birthplace of John Logie Baird, inventor of television”. Who is correct?
Add to this various conspiracy theories around COVID-19, vaccines, 5G and many more issues: the need for information literacy among teachers and pupils is clear if we are to benefit and minimise risk over this vast treasure trove of data.
So, my second question is this:
“Where in the school curriculum is this challenge addressed to ensure our youngsters have the skills to navigate the data landscape?”
If we try a more complex question, the possibilities become apparent. Jane Austen’s garden at Chawton House was laid out last time I visited using only plants that were known in England while she was alive. “What flowers were introduced into the UK during the life of Jane Austen?” would have been a PhD thesis back in the 1960s.
In an area of your own interest, think of a similar question when you have 30 minutes spare and research it online. Having worked in the industry for decades, it is amazing still to be astonished at what is available now – with all the necessary caveats about quality.
It is in this last area – quality of information – that I think support for the most able learners has the most potential. Rather than focus on teaching them against a fixed syllabus, there is potential for giving them learning challenges and developing their research capabilities and skills to discriminate among the contested claims in the information they can discover for themselves.
If interested, spend half an hour looking at the history of flight online. It is an extraordinary tale from ancient times, not just a story of the 20th century and the Wright brothers.
Online learning is not the same as online teaching.
Over 20 years ago I remember a young lad, who was a troubled individual, researching and building a history of boxing project of his own volition. His pride in demonstrating what he had discovered for himself and his desire to articulate and share his story changed his teacher’s perceptions of him.
So, here is my third question – and challenge – for you, dear reader:
“How can schools develop in the 2020s so that all our children have the skills to use the avalanche of data available on demand to stretch their imagination, creativity and learning?”
Under this there are many questions that need to be addressed, around curriculum, assessment, resources, inclusion, and importantly professional development.
In my talk at NACE’s upcoming Leadership Conference (16-20 November 2020) I will be developing this and other themes to encourage us all to imagine what schooling needs to be post-pandemic to tackle the challenges we all face as parents, teachers and citizens.
Join the conversation… NACE patron Dr Chris Yapp will lead a session at NACE’s 2020 Leadership Conference exploring how schools can optimise the use of digital technologies to extend, enrich and develop independent pursuit of learning. View the full conference programme.
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Posted By Edmund Walsh,
11 March 2020
Updated: 09 September 2020
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Alongside his workshop on this topic, NACE Associate Ed Walsh shares five ways to refresh your approach to GCSE science for high-attaining students...
1. Think BEYOND the exams
First, let me make clear that I’m not arguing for a dilution of effort with students being prepared for examination. Good GCSE grades are important, providing passports to the next phase. There’s also a risk that if highly able students don’t get top grades in science, they may assume this field is not for them and pursue other avenues.
However, focusing your attention beyond the exams – and encouraging learners to do the same – has two immediately obvious benefits. For many students, seeing the subject in a wider context is in fact exactly what they need to engage them whilst working towards exams. Second, if students see science as more than a “hard slog” driven by GCSE exam preparation, it is more likely they will look favourably on science and other STEM subjects when considering options post-16.
2. Don’t rely on the assertion that “science is everywhere” to convince students they should study it
I often hear words to this effect when interviewing teacher training candidates, and I’m never very impressed. Whilst obviously true, it may not carry much weight with an unconvinced 15-year-old. As the EEF report Improving Secondary Science suggests, there is a difference between students seeing science as generally significant and powerful (which many of them do), and seeing it as personally relevant or “for them”.
There’s scope here for us to rethink the way we “sell” science. While pointing out its prevalence can be useful, we also need to highlight the wide range of skills and ideas it develops – thinking logically, analysing evidence, identifying causal links – which have currency far beyond any narrowly defined scientific context. Being good at science opens far more doors than just the ones that lead to research labs.
3. Provide opportunities for meaningful science experiences…
Recent research suggests that higher rates of science capital correlate with a stronger likelihood of learners pursuing continuing education, training and employment in STEM subjects. Of the four components of science capital – what you know, how you think, what you do and who you know – the formal science curriculum is generally pretty good at developing the first two. However, it’s in everyone’s best interests for science departments to expand their focus on the latter two – what you do and who you know – particularly where learners have few opportunities to develop these outside school.
To address the “what you do” component, seek out and promote opportunities for learners to engage with science and to see science in action – such as science-related news stories and documentaries, local visits and events, and extracurricular hobbies and interests. Where possible, build on learners’ existing interests and activities.
4. … and inspiring encounters
“Who you know” is also key. It can be incredibly powerful for a young person to have someone say to them, as an individual, that they’d be good at being a scientist, studying engineering, going into technology or taking maths to a higher level. Lots of STEM professionals had this experience – a key encounter with someone from their extended family, local community or through an organised activity.
For many young scientists these experiences and encounters don’t necessarily happen through school – but for some if they don’t happen through school they probably won’t at all. Examples I’ve seen recently paying dividends in this area are the Greenpower Challenge and, for A-level students, Nuffield Research Placements. The services of a good STEM Ambassador are a real asset too.
5. Reframe the goals of KS3
During secondary science CPD events, I often ask: “Is your KS3 course doing its job?” This starts as a discussion about the role of key ideas and developing enquiry skills in preparation for GCSE. However, we could also make the case for KS3 being judged on its capacity to inspire and engage. Do learners get to see how science not only changes lives but can be engaging, intriguing and rewarding? Do activities make students not just “GCSE ready”, but confident and capable? As Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re probably right.”
With experience as a secondary head of science, county science adviser and a regional and senior adviser for the Secondary National Strategy, Ed Walsh is an independent consultant in science education. With a proven track record in helping schools improve their science provision, he has published widely in the field, and developed and delivered training for teachers and heads of science, including on behalf of organisations such as ASE and AQA. As a NACE associate, Ed designs and delivers training and resources to support effective teaching and learning for the more able in science.
This blog post was originally published in a longer form at SchoolsImprovement.net
Additional reading and resources
- NACE Essentials: Realising the potential of more able learners in GCSE science
- NACE Essentials: CEIAG for more able learners
- Webinar: Science capital – putting the research into practice
- Webinar: Effective questioning in science
To access these resources, log in to the NACE members’ site.
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Posted By University of Oxford (Oxplore),
06 February 2020
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The University of Oxford’s Oxplore website offers free resources to get students thinking about and debating a diverse range of “Big Questions”. Read on for three ways to get started with the platform, shared by Oxplore’s Sarah Wilkin…
Oxplore is a free, educational website from the University of Oxford. As the “Home of Big Questions”, it aims to engage 11- to 18-year-olds with debates and ideas that go beyond what is covered in the classroom. Big Questions tackle complex ideas across a wide range of subjects and draw on the latest research from Oxford.
Oxplore’s Big Questions reflect the kind of interdisciplinary and critical thinking students undertake at universities like Oxford. Each question is made up of a wide range of resources including: videos, articles, infographics, multiple-choice quizzes, podcasts, glossaries, and suggestions from Oxford faculty members and undergraduates.
Questioning can take many different forms in the classroom and is a skill valued in most subjects. Developing students’ questioning skills can empower them to:
- Critically engage with a topic by breaking it down into its component parts;
- Organise their thinking to achieve certain outcomes;
- Check that they are on track;
- Pursue knowledge that fascinates them.
Here are three ways Oxplore’s materials can be used to foster questioning and related skills…
1. Investigate what makes a question BIG
A useful starting point can be to get students thinking about what makes a question BIG. This can be done by displaying the Oxplore homepage and encouraging students to create their own definitions of a Big Question:
- Ask what unites these questions in the way we might approach them and the kinds of responses they would attract.
- Ask why questions such as “What do you prefer to spread on your toast: jam or marmite?” are not included.
- Share different types of questions like the range shown below and ask students to categorise them in different ways (e.g. calculable, personal opinion, experimental, low importance, etc.). This could be a quick-fire discussion or a more developed card-sort activity depending on what works best with your students.
2. Answer a Big Question
You could then set students the challenge of answering a Big Question in groups, adopting a research-inspired approach (see image below) whereby they consider:
- The different viewpoints people could have;
- How different subjects would offer different ideas;
- The sources and experts they could ask for help;
- The sub-questions that would follow;
- Their group’s opinion.
If you have access to computers, students could use the resources on the Oxplore website to inform their understanding of their assigned Big Question. Alternatively, download and print out a set of our prompt cards, offering facts, statistics, images and definitions taken from the Oxplore site:
Additional resources:
This activity usually encourages a lot of lively debate so you might want to give students the opportunity to report their ideas to the class. One reporter per group, speaking for one minute, can help focus the discussion.
3. Create your own Big Questions
We’ve found that no matter the age group, students love the opportunity to try thinking up their own Big Questions. The chance to be creative and reflect on what truly fascinates them has the appeal factor! Again, you might want to give students the chance to explore the Oxplore site first, to gain some inspiration. Additionally, you could provide word clouds and suggested question formats for those who might need the extra support:
To encourage students to think carefully and evaluate the scope of their Big Question, you could present them with a checklist like the one below:
Extension activities could include:
- Students pitching their Big Question to small groups or the class (Why does it interest them? What subjects could it include? etc);
- This could feed into a class competition for the most thought-provoking Big Question;
- Students could conduct a mini research project into their Big Question, which they then compile as a homework report or present to the class at a later stage.
Take it further: join a Big Question debate
Each term the Oxplore team leads an Oxplore LIVE event. Teachers can tune in with their classes to watch a panel of Oxford academics debating one of the Big Questions. During the event, students have opportunities to send in their own questions for the panel to discuss, plus there are competitions, interactive activities and polls. Engaging with Oxplore LIVE gives students the chance to observe the kinds of thinking, knowledge and questions that academics draw upon when approaching complex topics, and they get to feel part of something beyond the classroom.
The next Oxplore LIVE event is on Thursday 13 February at 2.00-2:45pm and will focus on our latest Big Question: Is knowledge dangerous? If you and your students would like to take part, simply register here. You can also join the Oxplore mailing list to receive updates on new Big Questions and upcoming events.
Any questions? Contact the Oxplore team.
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Posted By NACE team,
08 January 2020
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Our summer term member meetup in Cardiff and autumn term meetup in Oxford both focused on curriculum enrichment for the more able – bringing NACE members together to share their schools’ approaches to extending and enriching provision within the classroom, across school and beyond.
For an overview of key ideas discussed at the events:
1. Maths masterclasses
At Chelmsford County High School, five off-timetable days are spread throughout the year, offering opportunities to participate in excursions and activities such as Model United Nations events, newspaper production and themed days. The programme incorporates subject-specific “masterclasses”, including a GCSE Maths Masterclass comprising a morning of off-site lectures, followed by an afternoon of tailored workshops.
This initiative gives all students the opportunity to extend their learning and experience new styles of teaching, says Jo Cross, Faculty Leader for Mathematics, Computing and Economics. She adds that it has been particularly effective in supporting highly able learners, with the bespoke workshops allowing for extension beyond the curriculum.
Top tips for implementation: “Positivity! Surprisingly, a day of maths is not everybody’s favourite activity… We balance this by segmenting the lectures with (maths-related) video clips and keeping the lectures relevant, to the point and easy to access for all, with differentiated questions in the workbooks.”
2. Peer mentoring
Sticking with maths, at Ormiston Sandwell Community Academy, a successful peer-to-peer maths mentoring programme is now being extended to other subject areas, including science and modern foreign languages. More Able Coordinator Alexia Binard says the scheme has challenged students to take ownership of their learning, stretching mentors to plan and deliver “lessons” to peers. She adds that participants on both sides have made good progress as a result, developing a range of additional skills alongside growing expertise in the area being covered.
Similarly, The Cotswold School’s Abigail Newby has been running a peer coaching scheme for several years, in which more able learners in Years 10 and 12 have the chance to academically coach a peer in Years 8 or 10 respectively. The impact on learners has been very positive, she says: “They report rises in confidence, ability to cope better in lessons, and the high ability pupils say it has deepened their own knowledge through having to explain something to a pupil who finds it difficult.”
Top tips for implementation: “Plan in advance how the scheme will be run. Decide which year groups will mentor others – for example, Year 10s mentoring Year 9s.” – Alexia Binard. “Have a dedicated venue, time and member of staff. Keep it distinct from more pastoral mentoring schemes (which we also have in school) – this is purely academic.” – Abigail Newby.
3. KS2-3 collaboration
Amy Clark, Assistant Headteacher at The Bromfords School and Sixth Form College, highlights collaboration between primary and secondary schools as key to extending learning and maintaining a high level of challenge throughout KS2-3 transition. Members of the school’s English and maths departments worked alongside primary school colleagues to plan and deliver a scheme of work which started in Year 6 and continued into Year 7, maintaining high expectations throughout. The initiative has resulted in higher standards and more effective provision on both sides, Amy says. “We were able to set students more quickly and efficiently, while Year 6 teachers were able to start to deliver skills needed for KS3.”
Top tips for implementation: “Get as many primary feeder schools involved as possible and plan ‘summer holiday’ work for learners at primary schools which don’t engage. Get other secondary schools in the catchment area involved.”
4. The Scholars Programme
Like a number of NACE members, Ysgol Gyfun Garth Olwg participates in The Brilliant Club’s Scholars Programme. Open to students from Years 5 to 12, the programme offers the opportunity to participate in a university-style scheme of learning, including small-group tutorials led by a PhD tutor, support to work on and submit an extended project, and events at partner universities.
“There is no doubt that the programme widens pupils’ horizons,” say the school’s Nia Griffiths and Carys Amos. “They visit two universities and participate in very challenging tutorials. They discuss subjects they wouldn’t have considered, and it promotes their oral skills while enhancing their vocabulary. It also raises aspirations, including for learners from disadvantaged backgrounds or whose parents didn’t go to university.”
Top tips for implementation: “Take care when scheduling. The scheme involves writing an extended assignment, which is quite time-consuming. It’s therefore best to avoid busy revision periods.”
5. Community Skills Week
At Pencoed Primary School, an annual Community Skills Week offers a range of enrichment activities linked to the world of work, delivered by parents, other family members and experts from the community. Deputy Headteacher Adam Raymond says the initiative has led to “improved knowledge and understanding of careers and the world of work, improved engagement and enjoyment of the curriculum as a whole, and the development of an ambitious attitude to lifelong learning.” In particular, he says, the scheme has supported more able learners’ development as “ambitious, capable learners”.
Top tips for implementation: “Align your community skills with your content curriculum offer. Delve into the expertise within your local community to support and extend the curriculum diet and ensure the logistical planning is tight – give as many different pupils as many different opportunities as possible.”
6. External speakers
The Hertfordshire and Essex High School runs a series of talks on areas outside of the curriculum, bringing in external speakers to give students access to a breadth of knowledge and experience. “Students are interested in attending the talks and it is easy for them to do so,” says Challenge Coordinator Peter Clayton. He adds, “Speakers will often come for free, which means it is manageable to run.”
Top tips for implementation: “Allowing students the change to discuss the talks afterwards might be beneficial. Perseverance in getting external speakers is worth it. Local universities will often help.”
7. Big Board Games Day
Last but not least, a special event originally run to raise money for the NSPCC has become an annual occurrence at St Francis RC Primary School. The school’s Big Board Games Day is a school-wide event, with more able learners assigned as board game “gurus” who move around the school teaching and playing games with pupils of all ages. They are also tasked with ensuring everyone has a group to play with.
MAT Coordinator David Boyd says the initiative has resulted in “improved self-esteem; improved organisational skills; developing thinking skills in a new way – to teach the game rather than just play it; developing social skills with peers and younger pupils; and a range of problem-solving skills in the games being played.”
Top tips for implementation: “Train ‘gurus’ beforehand (we do this in our weekly after-school Board Games Club). Set clear rules for all pupils to follow – no sore losers, no gloating, treat games and others with respect, and so on. Contact game publishers and distributors for donations to help start a school games collection.”
How does your school enrich the curriculum? Share your experience in the comments below, or get in touch to request additional information about the initiatives detailed above.
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Posted By Matthew Williams,
15 April 2019
Updated: 07 August 2019
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What are Oxbridge admissions tutors really trying to assess during the famously gruelling interview process? Dr Matt Williams, Access Fellow at Jesus College Oxford, shares “four Cs” used to gauge candidates’ suitability for a much sought-after place.
Oxbridge interviews have taken on near-mythic status as painful reckonings. The way they are sometimes described, a trial by ordeal sounds more appealing.
I used to think as much, before I became an interviewer at Oxford. I’ve worked on politics admissions for several colleges for years now. And “work” truly is the verb here. Admissions tutors and officers at Oxford and Cambridge work very hard over months to ensure they choose the best applicants, and do so fairly. It’s honestly heartening to see how committed tutors are.
It is not even remotely in our interests to put candidates under emotional strain. So a mythic sense of interviews as tests of psychological resilience is nonsense. At Oxford and Cambridge we invite prospective students to come and stay in our colleges, eat in our dining halls and chat with our students and staff. As you’d hope from any professional job interview, the process is friendly, transparent and focused on encouraging the best performances from candidates. Below I’ve outlined a few concrete ideas as to what we are looking for, and how students can prepare.
In the interviews we tend to scribble down notes as the candidate is talking. But what exactly are we recording? What makes for good, mediocre and bad performances at interview? I record lots of data during interviews, which can be collated under four Cs. These help us gauge, accurately, a candidate’s academic ability and potential. This ultimately, is all we are testing at interview…
1. Communication
Candidates do not need to be self-confident and comfortable in expressing their ideas. Our successful candidates are mostly just normal people, with the sort of self-effacing humility you’d expect from a randomly selected stranger. As such, candidates should not be put off by cock-of-the-walk types who seem instantly at ease in our ancient surroundings.
We are not judging candidates by their ease of manner, but we do judge candidates by their ability to communicate. Meaning that candidates need to be able and willing to share their thinking as clearly as possible. Even if a candidate nervously glances at the floor and speaks softly, provided they answer our questions and help us understand their views they will be performing well.
More specifically, we are seeking answers to the questions we pose. There may not be a single answer, but it is not terribly helpful if students try to wriggle out of responding to us. As an example, the following question doesn’t have one correct (or even any correct) response:
“Can animals be said to have rights?”
Candidates need to avoid the temptation of saying either that the question is unanswerable, or sitting on the fence. Such responses are, to be blunt, intellectually lazy. We commonly have candidates “challenging the terms of the question” and thereby not answering the question at all. That is easy. Anyone can do that. Far harder is sticking your neck out and offering a solution, however tentative, to a very complex puzzle.
That said, we’re not expecting candidates to alight on their preferred solution immediately. So candidates should “show their working” and talk through their ideas as they coalesce into a solution. They can challenge aspects of the question and enquire about the wording. It may take the whole interview to come up with an answer, but at least an answer of sorts is being proposed.
2. Critical thinking
The question as to whether animals have rights is contestable. We will challenge any answer a candidate offers to see how they can defend their position. We are not expecting the candidate to drop their resolve and agree with us, but nor should they cohere rigidly to their position if it is clearly flawed. The important point is that candidates are open-minded to the possibility of other, perhaps better, solutions to the puzzle at hand, and a willingness to critique their own thinking.
Often candidates feel that they have done badly when they face critical questioning. Far from it. This is normal and reflects the fact that they have answered the question and given us (the interviewers) something to explore further.
3 and 4. Coherence and Creativity in argumentation
When posing critical questions we may encourage the candidate to identify incoherences in their case. Let’s say they argue that dogs have rights, but racing hounds do not. This could be a category error and we might ask whether they meant to say that all dogs except racing hounds have rights, or if they have made a critical misstep in the case.
Again, having a point of incoherence identified is not a bad sign. What matters is how the candidate responds. If they fail to recognise or resolve a true incoherence, that could suggest an inability to self-critically evaluate an argument.
Creativity, meanwhile, is something of an X-factor. We’re not expecting utterly original thinking in response to our intractable intellectual puzzles. But we do appreciate a willingness not to simply parrot ideas from A-level, or from the press. We appreciate a nascent (but not fully formed) capacity in a candidate to stand on their own intellectual feet.
This is where candidates can (but don’t have to) draw on wider reading or other academic experiences they have had. A lot of candidates are keen to show off what they know, but we’re testing how they think. So, we don’t want long quotes from highfalutin sources, per se; we want the candidates to come up with their own ideas, even if those ideas are half-formed and tentatively expressed.
The bottom line is that we are not looking for perfection, or else there would be little point in seeking to educate the candidates. We’re looking for potential, and it is often raw potential. Therefore willingness, motivation and enthusiasm all play a big part in the four Cs as well.
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Posted By Gemma Quinn,
12 February 2019
Updated: 23 December 2020
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In December 2018, Chesterfield High School was accredited with the NACE Challenge Award, in recognition of school-wide high-quality provision for more able learners within a context of challenge for all. Gemma Quinn, Director of Learning for MFL and Challenge Lead, explains why the school decided to focus on raising aspirations, and key steps taken in achieving this.
At Chesterfield High School, our students and staff have wholeheartedly benefited from using the NACE Challenge Framework and from NACE visits to school. We fully understand that the majority of a learner’s time in school is spent in the classroom, and therefore it is essential that our provision provides all learners with opportunities for challenge.
However, we identified an area beyond the classroom as a key area for development. We wanted to ensure learners go outside their comfort zone, build resilience and take intellectual risks to fully prepare them for life after school. We carried out pupil voice, analysed our data, and we determined that not only did we want students to be inspired to learn in school, but we also wanted to raise aspirations to enable greater transition into the sixth form and beyond.
Using the six key elements of the NACE Challenge Framework, we identified three areas – curriculum, teaching and support; communication and partnership; and monitoring and evaluation – as key to developing our provision for, and raising the aspirations of, our learners.
For other schools seeking to raise aspirations, we would recommend the following steps:
1. Listen to learners
We collected pupil voice through anonymous questionnaires and pupil interviews. This highlighted some great strengths, such as our ability to listen and take account of the views of our more able learners within a wider context and our ability to increase parental responsibility in supporting their child’s learning outside of school.
We are passionate about celebrating all learners’ achievements and strengths in an environment where both staff and learners have high expectations of themselves and of one another. However, by listening to learner feedback we recognised that we needed to provide our learners with greater opportunities to experience the world beyond the classroom to support further success.
2. Embed a whole-school approach
We set actions in place to develop our curriculum to offer breadth, depth and flexibility. We increased our enrichment resources and wider learning opportunities for all, with a focus on raising the aspirations of our learners.
In working towards the NACE Challenge Award, our fundamental aim was to ensure that the school’s vision and ethos are at the heart of everything that happens – to ensure “for everyone the best”. To ensure this was implemented across the school, we identified a Challenge Lead Representative. It was envisaged that the Challenge initiative would strengthen the school community’s drive to promote, actively witness and celebrate the progress and achievement of more able learners. As a result, highly able pupils (HAPs) will be motivated to succeed and to participate in all learning opportunities that will positively nurture their academic and personal growth.
3. Involve staff at faculty level
We also identified a HAP Representative in each faculty area, who reported to the whole-school Challenge Lead Representative. The key objectives of the HAP Representatives are to ensure that the achievement and progress of HAPs are consistently monitored and celebrated within their faculty area. Representatives also help to develop their faculty’s approach to HAP teaching and learning in line with whole-school teaching and learning initiatives, thus leading to improved progress and attainment.
We created a subject attributes document which included three key strands for each individual subject area. These included characteristics of a HAP, activities that HAPs should do, and how parents can support HAPs.*
4. Provide inspiring examples and role models
We invited an ex-student who is now studying at Cambridge University into school. She was able to give staff a greater understanding of her school experience and how we guided and prepared her for university life. Through discussions, she inspired current learners to think beyond their original choices and to aim for Russell Group universities and Oxbridge. She was also open to keeping in touch with students to mentor and address any questions they had.
In addition, we allocated learners with an aspirations mentor who was able to advise them on the application process and subject choices at A-level to maximise their chances of getting a university place. Learners also took part in mock interviews with volunteers in the community in their chosen field of work or study, which increased their confidence and helped to develop their oracy skills.
Visits out to universities, including trips to open days’ and residential trips were promoted through our Challenge Lead Representative. Students visited universities around the country and applied for the prestigious Cambridge Shadowing Scheme.
We are proud…
Using the Challenge Framework helped us to identify our strengths and areas for development in more able provision. Through the action plan created as part of our work with the framework, we highlighted actions and the intended impact of these on target groups of learners. We are extremely proud of the steps we have taken to ensure our more able provision allows all our learners to have the best possible life chances.
Gemma Quinn is the Director of Learning for MFL and the Challenge Lead at Chesterfield High School. She is an experienced teacher of French and Spanish to KS5 and a skilled coach and mentor. Gemma enjoys working with various subject leaders across the school to improve learner outcomes and looks forward to continuing to support them in the future.
*To view Chesterfield High School's HAPs subject attributes document, log in to our members' resource library and go to the "Identification & transition" section.
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Posted By Jess Wade,
05 September 2018
Updated: 08 April 2019
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Physicist Dr Jess Wade made headlines this summer for her campaign to get a copy of Angela Saini’s book Inferior into every UK school. The campaign aims to help schools break down gender stereotypes, challenging and supporting all young people to develop their abilities in all fields and to choose from a full breadth of career options. In this blog post for the NACE community, Dr Wade explains what motivated her to launch the campaign, and suggests six steps all schools can take to reduce gender bias.
This is a big year: 2018 marks 100 years since (some) women got the vote and 70 years since women could graduate from the University of Cambridge. For completeness: it is almost 200 years since the majority of men could vote and 809 years since they could graduate from Cambridge.
In many ways, we have come a long way since Charles Darwin wrote “the average of mental power in a man must be above that of a woman” in The Descent of Man (1881). But gender bias and stereotypes still impact young people’s self-confidence and subject choices, which is limiting their career opportunities and damaging the UK economy.
Despite boys and girls doing equally well at physics GCSE, girls only make up 22% of the physics A-level cohort (and this is the highest it has been for almost 10 years). The Institute of Physics (IOP) has been researching this for decades. In 2012 it found that more half of state-maintained secondary schools had no girls in their physics A-level classes and in 2013 that schools which had the fewest girls in physics A-level also had the fewest boys in psychology.
The Opening Doors report, published in 2015 by the IOP and the Government Equalities Office, offers teachers guidance and support in their efforts toward gender equality. In 2016, the Improving Gender Balance project recommended whole-school interventions to stop gender inequities in A-level choice, recognising that a school-wide approach is needed to make a difference.
The Inferior campaign
Last year Angela Saini published Inferior: The True Power of Women and the Science that Shows It. The book is a powerful collection of evidence that challenges the notion of differences between men and women. From parallel parking to an innate ability in maths, the science behind stereotypes is often dodgy and experiments are rarely reproducible.
Reading Inferior changed my life. It armed me with the facts to take on even the fiercest of naysayers and inspired me to speak up and fight harder. I’ve been taking it with me ever since – to every conference and every new research lab – and when I see someone impressive speak I give them a copy. Inferior has been so well received by the scientific community that last year Saini did a tour of UK universities, filling lecture theatres with passionate students and academics.
In mid-July I realised we should get Inferior into schools, so I set up a crowdfunding campaign with my friend Dr Claire Murray, hoping to get it into every all-girls state school in the country. We reached that goal in less than 24 hours, so raised the bar even higher: every state school in Britain.
Thanks to Saini’s epic publishers (4th Estate), who agreed to match any funds we raised and manage distribution, it took less than 12 days for 800 people to donate enough money. At some stage over the next academic year, Inferior will be finding its way to your school library. Instead of just telling young people about stereotypes, we want them to read about the science, history, individuals and societies behind such stereotypes for themselves. I want them to get as excited as I am about challenging bias, and as motivated as I am for a fairer future.
6 changes all schools can make now
When you receive your copy of Inferior, I hope you use it as the stimulus for discussion with young people, and to plan activities within and beyond the classroom. A bunch of people who donated to the campaign didn’t want to just stop there; together we are creating a set of resources to help teachers make effective use of Inferior (sign up to help out here).
In the meantime, here are six changes you can make straight away:
1. Stop using sexist and gendered language
Whether it is “we need a couple of strong boys” or “you girls will be good at this creative part”, such sentences stick around in young people’s consciousness and affect their perception of themselves and others.
2. Collect data
Compare your school to national averages and identify areas for concern – then act on them.
3. Build careers guidance into lessons
Make sure it is up-to-date and gender neutral. If you’re keen on using “role models”, plan this carefully; try to make their relationship with the school more long-term and invite parents along. A lot of early-career scientists and engineers hang out on Twitter – find us there!
4. Stop saying subjects are “hard”
Some people find art impossible and some can’t add up the tab at a bar – and that’s ok. Teachers are incredibly influential and their biases can have a profound impact on young people’s perceptions. Instead of characterising certain fields as inherently difficult or referring to natural talent, talk about each individual working to the best of his/her ability.
5. Acknowledge unconscious bias
Teachers need to be aware of how they might inadvertently send gendered views to their students. Schools can support this through formal training, by signposting resources such as online tests designed to highlight unconscious bias, and by establishing a norm of acknowledging and discussing these issues.
6. Don’t try and do it all by yourselves
Get students and parents involved too. Discuss gendered aspirations at parents’ evenings. Get students to read Inferior and discuss ways to change school culture so that it is more equal for everyone.
For a more comprehensive list, read the IOP’s Opening Doors report.
Finally, remember you are NOT alone. 800 people raised £22,000 in less than two weeks to get Inferior into your classrooms. Read, share, discuss, and make a difference!
Dr Jess Wade is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Physics and Centre for Plastic Electronics at Imperial College London. She is a member of the WISE Young Women’s Board and the WES Council, founder of Women in Physics at Imperial, and has worked with teachers across the country through the Stimulating Physics Network. Her significant work in public engagement and school outreach has been widely recognised, recently through the Daphne Jackson Medal and Prize. She tweets @jesswade.
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