AfL - Charlotte Humm

AFL work

Over the last year I have been working on several ways to further embed AFL into my lessons.  I have been predominantly focusing on year 7, but I have found that these techniques do work with other year groups too. Many of these techniques have been taken from ‘Perfect Assessment for Learning’ by Claire Gadsby.

The first technique I have used is called ‘Red Herring’. This is where I have added extra success criteria onto the list of success criteria, this then results in the students having to discuss which one has not been covered. I found that this helped the students track their learning and become more reflective of what they needed to concentrate on next. Furthermore, this can be used as a mini plenary and students can discuss what they need to do meet the extra success criteria.

Another technique that I used was called ‘Random Success Criteria’. This is where the success criteria are jumbled and students have to decide upon the levels/grades for each success criteria. I found that this helped the students as they were able to reflect upon the language used in the success criteria (e.g. describe, evaluate) and decide upon a level/grade. I also found this technique good for differentiation as students could use their current and target grades to help them highlight the correct level/grade onto the success criteria. I also ensured that the students were encouraged to explain why they have chosen the particular level/grade.

I use the role of ‘experts’ in my lessons on a regular basis especially with KS3. This is where one or two students are in charge of explaining certain parts of the lesson to other students. This allows the students to have ownership of their learning and enable them to discuss the learning with other pupils. One class has evaluated the use of experts and many have said that being an expert in the lesson has helped them to improve their own learning.

Finally, I have used ‘Question Cue Cards’. This is where students have to write one or two questions about the topic that they must bring up during the lesson. I have found that this has helped students to become more reflective in their learning.

Charlotte Humm