Teaching & Learning
At Godolphin, we are committed to providing each of our pupils with the best possible learning experience. We aim to achieve a balance of activities for teaching and learning, which can include both digital and offline activities. This balance will vary between subjects and over time. Effective use of digital technologies for teaching and learning is an essential part of this strategy.
Teachers use their professional judgement to choose the most suitable activities to support learning of any topic.
Are 1:1 devices used in all lessons?
1:1 devices are one of many tools available for use in all lessons. Teachers use their professional judgement to choose the most suitable activities, offline or online, to support effective learning of each topic. We continue to value the importance of handwriting, speaking, and listening, and offline collaborative and practical work. Sometimes 1:1 devices are used simply to record the outcomes of offline work, such as using photos, video, or audio recordings.
How does the 1:1 program impact on the use of textbooks?
Teachers are increasingly making use of high-quality online resources, subscription resources and digital textbooks. However, we still see a clear role for paper-based textbooks in the future and have no current plans to stop using them.
How does the 1:1 program equip pupils with suitable skills for further study and employment?
Digital literacy is critical for School leavers. The core of our digital strategy is the Office 365 suite of software, with particular use of Teams and OneNote. This software is widely used in universities and employment. The skills developed using the Office 365 suite are easily transferable to other common software platforms, such as the G-suite.
How does the 1:1 program impact on learning activities?
The choice of device which includes tablet functionality - and an active stylus - enables a very wide range of online learning activities to supplement offline activities. Benefits include:
Audio recording by pupils and teachers:
- Supports better feedback, pupil voice, and assessment
Video recording by pupils and teachers:
- Traditional tasks can be reimagined in a more immersive and collaborative manner, engaging pupils more directly
- Supports richer feedback, pupil voice, assessment, and demonstrations
Stop motion animations:
- Encourages clarity in the expression of ideas
- Develops understanding and sequencing of ideas
- Increases awareness of structure
Digital inking:
- Annotation of first-hand photos and wider online resources to document learning
- Ability to annotate digital resources such as PowerPoints and worksheets
- Drawing graphs and diagrams, including as part of dual coding
Collaborative mind maps:
- Whiteboard apps for group work
- Develop knowledge and understanding collaboratively and maintain a record for revision
Dual coding – combining text, images, animations, and videos:
- Without adding cognitive load, pupils can learn more quickly and deeply.
Collaboration:
- Peer feedback in discussion groups
- Sharing good practice
- Templates, scaffolds, peer assessment
- Sharing workload amongst a group
- Developing teamwork
- Sharing online resources, video clips, apps, websites, and activities
Data recording, processing, and presentation:
- Consistent, easy to access real world tools for data processing
Assessment:
- Summative and formative assessment is automatically recorded, giving pupils more information on strengths and weaknesses
- Seamless access to online platforms used for assessment when revising
Accessibility:
- Text-to-speech and speech-to-text are hugely beneficial to pupils with learning support needs and those who have English as an additional language and for those that want to approach their learning in a different way.
Handwriting is still important. How is this impacted by the 1:1 program?
Most exams remain paper-based, and all pupils need to maintain their handwriting ability. For success in exams, pupils need to be ‘handwriting fit’. They need to be able to write clearly and at a reasonable speed.
Handwriting remains a priority. The quantity and frequency of handwriting will vary according to the needs of individual subjects, but we have a clear focus on integrating handwritten work into the curriculum. This work is either photographed and embedded in - or referenced from - your child’s OneNote Class Notebook. This acts as the single central point of reference for each subject. Most internal exams will continue to be paper based. In addition, the active stylus is frequently used. This exercises and trains the same muscles that are used for handwriting.
How important is typing speed?
Developing accurate typing at a reasonable speed is an important life skill. We recommend that your child works through an online typing tutor to practice this skill over time, much like learning to play a musical instrument. We do not teach typing in School as it would take a significant amount of curriculum time which is best devoted to other learning.
We recommend typing.com (free) or EnglishType (paid).