Review
------
'Making every lesson count' should help new and experienced
teachers to do just that. It offers practical advice on how we
can focus on "simple truths" in order to ensure that great
teaching leads to genuine learning. Drawing on what research
evidence suggests, what they have learnt from inspirational
colleagues and, most importantly, from their own practice as
serving teachers, Shaun and Andy offer a carefully structured
analysis of how teachers and school leaders can create a climate
within which excellence and growth will take root and flourish.
I'd recommend this to anyone who is committed to being their best
within the classroom. --Jill Berry Former head, now education
consultant
Shaun Allison and Andy Tharby have produced a rare thing: a book
on teaching and learning that is useful and accessible for pretty
much every teacher. The book synthesises a plethora of great
ideas and sound evidence from around the educational world and
distils it into usable knowledge for busy teachers. Clearly, it
is a book written by knowledgeable and expert teachers who
understand what their fellow teachers need to develop their
practice and make their lessons count. The readable style is a
rare treat and I gobbled this book up in no time, confident in
the knowledge that I will be revisiting it often. --Alex Quigley,
Director of Learning and Research, Huntington School
This is a great book. I could have done with this at every stage
of my career. It is grounded in common sense, firmly rooted in
the realities of the classroom, triangulated with some great
researchers and thinkers both in education and beyond. From
Socrates, to Berger, Lemov, Dweck, Willingham, Lemov, Heath,
drawing on the expertise of the colleagues they work with and
above all their own experience, it is all here. And it s
beautifully illustrated by Jason Ramasani. What is so impressive
about this text is that it peels back some of the conventional
wisdom , for example on differentiation. In their skilled hands
they show how far this is from preparing different worksheets for
different groups of students. Instead, they show how to
differentiate through questions, precise feedback in the
classroom and above all through showing what excellence looks
like. And they dispose of that superficial notion of
differentiating through lesson objectives being expressed as
most, all, some. Instead, they propose setting expectations high
and response to genuine needs as they arise. You experiment with
the most suitable strategy to hoist each individual child up .
Not easy, but worth it. And they make excellence work visible,
not just in the classroom but around the school. ing work in
frames both celebrates and showcases what is possible. Similarly
they explain how important it is to have medium and long-term
s in which lessons should be considered as building blocks.
Too often, we can become obsessed with the details of individual
lessons, when in fact they are only parts of a greater whole.
Quite right. What is particularly helpful about this book is that
each idea is shown in practice how it might work, often scripted
from examples from their own lessons. Everything from unpacking
hinge questions, solo taxonomy, live modelling, exploring what am
I doing, why am I doing it? Then, there s a great section on
speaking and the place in securing understanding for all
students, but particularly for disadvantaged groups. The
importance of practice, missing things up, appropriate feedback,
how to support students with making their comments kind, specific
and helpful. Too often, in too many classrooms, it stops at the
kind. And finally, that turbo-driving strategy for meaningful
conversations in classrooms: Socratic questioning. Well, well
worth a read. For every teacher in every school. --Mary Myatt,
adviser and inspector http://marymyatt.com
About the Author
----------------
Shaun Allison started teaching science in West Sussex, before
becoming a Head of Science. He is currently Deputy Head Teacher
at Durrington High School. He leads on CPD and is interested in
supporting teachers to grow and develop their classroom practice.
He is also a popular speaker.
Andy Tharby is a practising English teacher with 9 years of
classroom experience at a secondary school in West Sussex. He is
also a research lead, with an interest in helping ordinary
classroom teachers enhance their practice through engagement with
a wider evidence base. He writes a well-regarded blog, Reflecting
English, in which he covers a range of subjects from improving
student writing to finding solutions to the problems and dilemmas
faced by busy teachers.