From the Principal
Bonjour à tous. While last week started comfortably enough, it very quickly picked up the pace. There is rarely a dull moment. With Year 12 completion at the end of this term, I’m sure our focus will be getting the best result for the students and the school.
Tim and Andrew are working with all the Year 12’s to ensure they have success plans in place. The timeline for Year 12’s to reach their goals is drawing near. Please continue to talk with your students and support them to reach the goals necessary. It is probably worthwhile checking your own targets to see what support you may need to help the students to get their best result. Please just ask if you need resourcing to assist. For example, to assist the students who had interruptions in Physics earlier this year we put in a number of different interventions to support these students get the grade they deserve. The same can be done for other groups should you see a need. Please talk with your PC. Important milestones for the Year 12 students and the measurement of school success are
- Present
- Passed OLNA
- Enough “C” grades
- Highest ATAR possible (>80)
- Certificate completion
The REO has been very insistent in reminding me to submit our “Remote Learning Plan”. I have been a little behind in leading the creation of this but finally a draft is out and your PC will be discussing this with you. Although I need to submit a version of this soon, I’m sure that it will continue to be a work in progress for us. It is really a way to capture the things that we have done previously and the things that we need to think about developing for future occasions should we need to deliver curriculum remotely.
En Avant
Mike Sinagra
Principal
Questioning and feedback
Cold Calling
The obvious place to start with questioning and feedback is the simplest form of questioning. The Cold Call. As in Ferris Bueller’s Day off.
The Cold Call’s purpose is to get everyone thinking. If you allow hands up or calling out you only get responses from volunteers. Cold call allows you choose who answers and keeps students involved especially if it is teamed with “no opt out”.
Ask the question.
Ask a questioned that is aimed at the whole class. Tell them that you will be choosing someone to answer; they don’t need to raise their hand.
Give think time
As it sounds. Allow between 5 - 30 seconds depending on the complexity of the response required. Use this time to scan the room.
Select someone to respond
Using your knowledge of the students select someone to respond. Use names and invite students to give their ideas.
Respond to the answers
Turn each answer into a short exchange. At this stage you could insert the Say it again better until you get the correct answer.