The 5 Minute Marking Plan

The 5 Minute Marking Plan

You are probably by now well aware of the 5 Minute Lesson Plan. It has become widely used in schools up and down the country and is time effective, focused and efficient way to plan your lessons. The 5 Minute series, devised by 'Teacher Toolkit' now has a 5 Minute Marking Plan.

The thinking that underpins the plan:

…seeks to highlight those elements of marking that have greatest impact on learning, namely:

• Sharing the key marking points (you may refer to these as success criteria).  A student is much more likely to be successful if s/he knows where they are going.  This is all part of teacher clarity.
• Giving clear feedback to students about their work, comments only marking, but crucially making sure they respond to your marking by correcting their work or re-doing it, using your comments to guide them to a higher standard.

The time spent on marking students’ work must also help you identify common errors, so you can:

• Require students to correct and improve their work.
• Re-teach elements of the lesson, scheme of work, programme of study or syllabus to help close key gaps in students’ knowledge, understanding or skills.
• Inform future teaching programmes.

‘The 5 Minute Marking Plan’

…found on the TES website, includes the plan; plus an explanation of how to use it and a great PowerPoint containing the full plan and exemplars.

Context: What each section means?

The big picture?  

What is the purpose of marking for this piece of work / project?  Try to be clear right from the beginning how the time you spend marking will improve teaching & learning.

Summative marking:

Grading system: Are you going to use GCSE or A-level grades?  Is it levels or have you started to think about a post-levelling world?  Is it a numerical mark out of 10 or 20?  Does the school, department or phase have an agreed system for teachers to use?

Formative Marking:

Comment System: Do you have an agreed way of giving comments on students work – www (what went well), ebi (even better if), ioti (in order to improve), three stars and a wish?  Have you given thought to numbering / lettering the key marking points, shared with students, so teachers can give comments via numbers / letters instead of  writing out comments in full?  Will you annotate the piece of work by putting the numbers / letters against the corresponding questions / text?

Key marking points to share with students?  

This is absolute critical.  First of all teachers and then learners need to be clear what marks can be gained for.  It’s all about teacher clarity.  Sharing the key marking students with learners before they start the work will really help improve their work.  Don’t forget to include a bit of “spoof assessment” to help learners understand what the key marking points are.  You can give learners two answers of different quality and get them to assess them using the key marking points – can they grade / level the work and give reasons why.  Another approach is to give them the different pieces of work and get learners to rank them and identify the main reasons why one was better than the other – can they give you the key marking points?

Common Errors:

Identifying common errors across a number of learners’ work is an important part of diagnostic assessment and links to other parts of the #5MinPlan– Re-teach; Student response to feedback and What should be changed in activity / SoW (scheme of work).

Re-teach:

…is there an important part of the module, topic, lesson that learners just haven’t got.  Don’t worry it happens to all teachers.  The important thing is to spot the “gap” in learning and then go back and address it again.  Plan the re-teach: What, When, How & Why?

Student Response to Feedback Required?

Once you’ve spent time putting comments on learners’ work they must go back and either correct errors or redo areas of their work that needs improvement.  A good strategy is to give students time to correct / redo the work during the lesson when the work is handed back – this is a key part of them improving and learning.  Think about it, every student has a personalised action plan of ebi / ioti / a wish (or two) to work on.

What should be Changed in Activity / SoW:

Is there a gap between the learning you wanted and what actually happened when you looked at the work submitted by the learners?  Think about the activity or scheme of work – are some tweaks needed or a major rethink?  What do colleagues think who have also taught the activity / SoW?  This is a powerful way to improve the teaching programme whilst things are still fresh in everyone’s mind.

Peer/Self Assessment Opportunities:

Learners need to develop these skills and it’s worth investing time in particularly as part of a whole school / department / phase approach.  Make sure the learners have the key marking points available to them.  Try to get to the point where before you mark a very important learner’s piece of work it has gone “self, peer, self” in terms of assessment & improvement before you look at it.

What should/should not be marked:

This can be a hard one for teachers.  We want to mark everything but quality and quantity can create problems.  Go back to “The Big Picture”.  Why are you marking, what will add most value to the teaching & learning?

Remember, there is no need to complete every box they are there as a guide for you to use.

These examples have been produced by staff at Grieg City Academy who tested an early draft of the plan.

The 5 Minute Marking Plan is available to download from the TES website along with a whole range of excellent resources using the link below.

5 Minute Marking Plan

Making Marking Count

Here is a great blog written by Headguruteacher. There are some interesting ideas on how to devise approaches to marking that deliver maximum impact for all to see – that ‘progress over time’ issue.  The blog also questions 'What does marking look like when it is clearly securing improvement and progress in learning?

This is well worth reading and the blog will open up to you a whole world of debates and issues faced by schools, teachers and students.

Making Feedback Count-Close the Gap

Literacy Resources

Really Useful Literacy Resources

There is an abundance of amazing online resources to support literacy development in the classroom. As we continue to address literacy accross the curriculum, the blog will become a central hub for us all to share ideas and resources with each other. Here are a ideas that can be used in any subject to explore language and vocabulary. One of my favourites is WORDLE which allows you to create visual 'word clouds' on any topic/theme/combination of words. It makes a fantastic activity/homework/display tool that encourages thought and exploration of language: Here is the link and some examples:

Wordle

Examples of sentence starters to use when analysing language/presentational devices.

The Five Minute Lesson Plan

The 5 Minute Lesson Plan

Context:

…This context was originally posted by @SparkyTeaching as a result of them wanting to promote a Primary School version. Teacher Toolkit used their content and edited slightly to help the thousands of teachers (all over the world) asking about what each heading means…

- The big picture : How does the lesson  fit into your scheme of work / topic? What knowledge are pupils coming to the lesson with already? What links have you made / can you make? Describe the lesson in 30 seconds!
- Objectives : Your objectives for the current lesson. The arrow is just a visual reminder that your lesson is building on what’s gone before. I’d always try to incorporate at least 2 different leveled objectives – perhaps allowing students to choose their own.
- Engagement : What’s the hook? How will you gain student attention at the start and throughout the lesson that is exciting and meaningful (without you working to hard!) that you’ll be using to lure pupils into learning? it’s not needed every lesson….but a good story often is enough!
- ‘Stickability’ : What will stick in pupils’ minds as they leave your lesson? What key point(s) do you want them to remember and bring back to the next lesson?
- AfL : How will you assess where your learners are at during the lesson, so as to know how to take them where you want to go? What AfL strategies are you going to use? What key questions will help you to lure pupils into learning? Plan for various (AfL) Assessment for Learning strategies to allow students to see progress. Use a Targeted-Question grid to help frame higher-order questions. Where possible, use the Pose Pause Pounce Bounce AfL strategy to stimulate discussion.
- Key words : Literacy has never had such a high-profile as it has at the moment. Encourage students to read lesson objectives out. Pick out keywords and extrapolate their meanings. Use techniques to break down the phonics of each word and encourage visual recognition to reinforce. Plan what key-word you want students to learn. This promotes high levels of literacy which is an Ofsted focus. YOU COULD ALSO ADD NUMERACY TO THIS SECTION. Every lesson should involve some mathematical reference of link.
- Differentiation / Groupings : Plan – at a glance – what activities you will provide for gifted and talented students; students with SEN/D and EAL. What sort of groupings are needed, what are they doing and when? Do you have this mapped to a seating plan with current levels of progress?
- Learning episodes : What is going to happen in the lesson from start to finish? Identify as many opportunities for pupil-led learning as possible. The four boxes do NOT denote a four-part lesson. Just fill them up with what needs to happen.

Here's Ross Morrison McGill, the creator of Teacher Toolkit explaining how to use the 5 Minute Lesson Plan.

20 Really useful ways to improve professional learning

20 Really useful ways to improve professional learning

‘The teachers who get "burned out" are not the ones who are constantly learning, which can be exhilarating, but those who feel they must stay in control and ahead of the students at all times.'

Frank Smith 

Below is a collection of 20 really useful suggestions for improving professional learning in schools today.

1. Keep a professional learning journal. This is for your eyes only and will be invaluable in supporting you through your career-long professional learning. Focus on being reflective and reflexive. Our little black teaching and learning books are a great way to do this. I'm on my third and regularly look back through ideas, scribbles and reflections.

2. Join Twitter. There is so much high-quality discussion about education on Twitter! This is a great source of free CPD, advice, information, guidance and virtual support. Hashtags (#) are an effective way of focusing your time on Twitter. For example, do a search for #ukedchat, #edchat and #education and you are likely to see current, relevant discussion 

3. Consider blogging - or at least following blogs by educators. There are many bloggers out there, so it's worth spending some time searching for one with a philosophy that suits you. Blogging is a good way of developing skills of reflection - and possibly of helping others too. 

That's the purpose of Failsworth Learning Zone!

4. Much professional learning is actually hybrid learning: a blend of taught sessions and self-directed learning. The internet is a rich source of high-quality professional learning opportunities that you can access at your own pace, in your own time. For starters, take a look at these ‘learning for free' sites: YoungMinds in Schools;Times Educational Supplement; Open Yale Courses; How Stuff Works; TED Talks; and Open Learn from the Open University. 

5. Use peer coaching. We have a fantastic co-coaching system set up at Failsworth School. We can learn much from our peers and, invariably, helping others is also a great way to learn. Great peer coaching involves all of the following at least some of the time: instructing; observing; analysing; feeding back; advising; facilitating; motivating; and supporting. 

6. Develop your critical thinking skills... constantly! Being able to critically appraise research and other learning opportunities, as well as your work with pupils, will greatly enhance your professional learning. Critical thinking supports all other aspects of life too, as it helps us to make better choices and can help to facilitate an enhanced sense of wellbeing. 

7. Focus on your creativity and your creative insights. This involves making sure that you feel safe to take risks with your professional learning and to get things wrong if need be. If you feel judged or penalised for taking risks, creativity is necessarily stifled. Look for answers - second right answers, third right answers and beyond! Allow time for your slow-thinking, dreamy, playful mind to present you with new ideas. 

8. Aim to personalise your professional learning. This will mean taking a broad look at all the professional learning you do, and identifying what helps you to contextualise your learning, and what helps you to move towards independence in professional learning. 

9. Take care of your wellbeing and work-life balance. Without that, you won't be the best you can be as an educator. Discuss the inherent tensions between your development needs and the needs of the school, and make sure that your goals for professional learning are well paced. 

10. Boost your effectiveness as a professional learner, by working collaboratively with colleagues. Work on building mutually acceptable shared goals and values and a team mentality. Teaching and Learning Communities are a great way in which to develop this.

11. There is so much great professional learning to be derived from colleagues, but fears of public speaking can impact on staff willingness to present to others. On one level this is surprising - we might expect school staff to be able to do this with ease - but there is a big difference between speaking to pupils and speaking to groups of colleagues. Brushing up on public speaking skills, so that you can get your points across most effectively, will enhance professional learning all round. 

12. Harness your ambitions. What do you really want to go for? Identify clear goals and a path to follow in order to achieve them. Most importantly, identify who can help you to get there. Your ambitions should ideally help to shape the pattern of professional learning that you undertake. 

13. Plan strategically. Do your own research about what professional learning you might like to access and when. Build a support network - who can help you to achieve your goals and improve your practice? Think of colleagues, other professionals in your locality, professionals in national networks and international contacts. 

14. Contextualise your professional learning. The training opportunities that you access are likely to be more generic than specific to your particular situation and needs, so your ability to contextualise learning is all-important. This also helps to nurture the mindset that something can be learned from every situation at work. 

15. Do an audit of the professional learning opportunities available to you. This isn't just about paid-for courses and conferences, but also about any professional learning that you can access at school or outside. Identify breadth and depth, and draw on this scope in your own learning. 

16. Remember your calling. Why did you enter the profession in the first place? What were your original enthusiasms? Can you reconnect with your underlying goals and desires? Can you still identify your motivations for wanting to make a difference in the classroom and in the lives of young people? If you feel different now, what is it about your current experience that has distanced you from those original enthusiasms. 

17. Understand what motivates you. Determine the differences between your intrinsic and extrinsic motivations and use them to further professional learning. Being motivated is likely to inspire others too. This links in with coaching and mentoring skills. 

18. Explore sustainable approaches to professional learning. Being overambitious is likely to lead to disillusionment, but there is much that can be achieved through, for example, discussion groups between school clusters, use of social networks, use of ICT (such as videoconferencing and Skype), and the contextual intelligence in your school. If your plans for professional learning involve big budgets, then you may need to explore more sustainable approaches. 

19. Celebrate and share professional learning. There is little point in learning taking place, if it doesn't get shared. This is how areas of expertise build up, and sharing new learning is an effective way of consolidating it. Celebrating achievement in professional learning is important too, not just for the attainment of recognised qualifications such as Masters degrees. 

20. Evaluate any professional learning you undertake. Remember, though, that great learning is not always evident immediately after undertaking training and development activities. Some will have a slow-burn effect, so evaluations are best done when consolidation time has passed. Also, don't evaluate without contextualising! 

TED Talks

Ken Robinson speaks at TED on 'Creativity'. 

Sir Ken Robinson - Changing Education Paradigms RSA Animate