Impact of the project

The following comments are typical of those made across all the learning teams, giving a snapshot of the impact:

The impact has been:

• More student involvement
• Improved social skills
• The way students see themselves has changed
• Each person’s thinking is valued
• The ability to self-assess, justify and assess others
• Increased ownership of learning
• Forgiveness for being wrong
• More confidence
• Students now open to change
• Receptive to constructive criticism
• Improved learning culture
• More co-teaching with student and teacher
• More teaching styles
• Lasting impact – embedded
• Power of ransom talk partners
• Finally preparing students for the real world
• The power of ‘YET
• Less down time in the classroom
• Switch from isolation and competition to cooperation and community
• Becoming independent learners
• They understand what success is

I believe spending time at the beginning of the project to deliberately develop the learning culture is critical to student success.
Stephanie Harmon, Rockcastle County High School, Kentucky

Increased student motivation and perseverance
Kettle Moraine Middle School, Wisconsin

Better understanding of expectations for both teachers and students
Kentucky

There is more work being done by pupils than teachers
Kettle Moraine, Wisconsin

The classroom culture has shifted to ‘You’re keeping my neurons from connecting’ or ‘You’re disrupting my learning’
The culture has changed to focusing on processes
Students have confidence through the growth mindset culture. They have permission to not know the answers.
Kettle Moraine Middle School, Wisconsin

Students generating their own success criteria has had a huge impact.
Kentucky

The whole staff are reading Carol Dweck’s ‘Mindset’ for discussion.
Wales Elementary School, Wisconsin

Our school is embarking on a school wide project geared towards the development of a growth mindset. We are investigating ways to get our entire faculty to buy in and incorporate students in the planning phases of this project.
Faye Collier, Letcher County Central High School, Kentucky

Teachers who haven’t been part of the project are now learning from good practice in our classrooms, even before any staff meeting time given.
Pupils can talk about everything they have learnt and how to challenge themselves.
Outside observers such as headteachers, other staff, outside agencies, parents are all giving positive feedback about the changes in the children’s learning.
Tunbridge Wells, UK

Mixed ability talk partners has been a ‘revelation’.
Tunbridge Wells, UK

Children have Magpie Books (sorted into word types, such as adjectives, verbs etc.) They are recording words in lessons in their book and taking it home on Fridays to record words from their home books. On Monday the ‘Give one, take one’: they record their favourite word on a post it note and give it to someone else in the class as well as taking another word to record. It has created an excited atmosphere about new words and children are rushing in on a Monday to share their new words and are commenting when they have used it successfully in their writing.
Laura Fisher, Tunbridge Wells, UK

There is improved achievement, confidence, interaction with teachers and peers and students understand what they are learning and why. This has been a great aid to our effectiveness in the classroom.
Kentucky

There has been a shift from teacher responsibility to student responsibility
Kentucky

As a teacher I have put less emphasis on the final product of student work and more work in communicating expectations constantly and making small gradual changes along the way.

Mixed ability

Introducing mixed ability in a mixed Grade 3/ 4 class had led to:

• Social improvement with lower achieving students
• Lower achievers have more confidence and are more willing to tackle more difficult assignments
• Children have more respect for other’s feedback and input
• Some higher achievers getting frustrated at working with lower achievers

Mixed ability in High Schools had led to:

• More communication and cooperation
• Students discussing with each other before asking the teacher
• More interaction with all students in the room, but some don’t want to tlk with their partner
• Less bullying because they are getting to know everyone

It has been fantastic:

• Lower achievers have a better understanding of the content and are not afraid to discuss
• Higher achievers have to focus on being more specific
• Establishing a learning culture helped with mixed ability
• More peer interactions and discussions and not as reliant on the teacher.

Kettle Moraine School District, Wisconsin, USA

Patricia Deklotz | deklotsp@kmsd.edu

Kentucky, USA

Kim Zeidler | kim.zeidler@uky.edu

Tunbridge Wells, Kent, UK

Mel Shackleton | headteacher@st-james-infant.kent.sch.uk