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Possible ways to create challenge in the classroom for Advanced Learners (Dr Linda Rush, Director of Teacher Training, GEMS Education)

Plan/do/review This approach encourages independent thinking and requires the use of both creative and critical thinking. With able pupils the first and last stages are particularly important. They should be encouraged to plan systematically and with greater rigour than other children and to give reasons for their planning choices. During the ‘doing’ section they should be encouraged to be as independent as possible. When observing able pupils working in class there is an interesting distinction between those who are encouraged to resolve their own problems and those who are encouraged to seek guidance at the first sign of difficulty. Able pupils need to struggle with difficult ideas because it is often at this point that the real learning occurs. In addition, striving at something in order to succeed is an unfamiliar experience for some able children and failure can be traumatic. They need to learn to work at difficult problems within the secure climate of the classroom. The review aspect of this technique is sometimes of a perfunctory nature in school. What is needed from the more able is high level analytical responses. However, they might not be able to achieve this alone and need help in reorganising what they have learnt and how this could be used on future occasions. Teacher time being at a premium in the classroom, it is worth considering the role of paired evaluation and using particular pieces of work for sample evaluations. Working from difficult text This immediately increases the level of difficulty. Able pupils can work on the same topic or even activity as other children, but make use of a more adult or sophisticated text. The advantages of using more complex text are twofold. A more complex text is likely to have more detailed information and, as it is written for an older age group, may address more complex issues. Using a range of text or information This offers instant opportunities for a range of comparative work. With multimedia information available it is possible to make use of CD-ROMs as well as pictures and videos. Indeed information is so freely available that the tasks set will probably focus on extracting key information or specific data rather than finding out as much as possible. Able pupils should be helped to develop study skills to enable them to sift through a wide variety of material to reach conclusions. Extension tasks may be used to develop such study skills. Setting this type of task has both management and resource implications for schools. Effective comparisons cannot be made without appropriate resource materials and making use of them may involve working in the library or other spaces outside the classroom. Recording in an unusual way The vast majority of the work children do in school is still recorded in a written format. There are a variety of reasons for this, ranging from ease of storage and assessment through to sheer habit. When planning extension work, it is worth thinking about other forms of recording, as writing is disliked by many children (extension work is done in addition to core work needs to be motivating and interesting or pupils will resent doing it). Extension work should aim to develop thinking and be less concerned with how thinking is conveyed. It is also important that extension work does not become dislocated from other class activity and one

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way of doing this is to make use of recording techniques which will involve, be of interest to or supplement the work of others. Examples include presentations using tape recordings and the creation of models. Role play This is simply an easy way to require children to act in a different way or respond to information they would not usually meet. Problem-solving and enquiry tasks Most problem-solving activities require children to engage in higher level thinking. It is a helpful short-cut in extension planning to consider whether the tasks to cover the content or concepts required could be set in such a way as to involve enquiry. Even the most straightforward work can be made more interesting and challenging by presentation through enquiry.

Decision making This is a fast and easy way to ensure that able pupils are required to think. For some able pupils making decisions is quite a problem and is a skill which needs to be developed. For others it is an area of greater expertise and they will give their opinions confidently and with great clarity. Sometimes a task can be set at a more difficult level simply by asking pupils to make decisions about what should be included and what should be left out. No correct answer This is linked to decision-making and requires pupils to make selections and justify their choice. For some able pupils this is not an easy. They like a clear set of instructions and the corresponding ticks for right answers. This kind of able pupil, at whatever age, will seek reassurance on a regular basis. They might ask questions such as, ‘Is this the real answer?’. As if the teacher already has an answer but is unwilling to share it. This kind of pupil needs encouraged to take risks.

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For the majority of able pupils, open-ended tasks which do not have a set answer are a joy. They will explore aspects the teacher had not thought of and feel real satisfaction in finding a justifiable answer. Such tasks usually require pupils to use their critical thinking skills as well as to make use of a wide variety of information. Use one text or artefact When planning extension work it is often assumed that more resources will be needed and that pupils will explore additional aspects which enhance existing classroom provision. This is, of course, one form of extension planning but an equally effective form works in reverse. By limiting the use of material it forces the pupils to consider the material in more depth and can allow pupils to develop a greater understanding. The infant department of a Bristol school, for example, used The Snowman, by Raymond Briggs, as the basis of a month’s work. Good quality books or artefacts are needed to support this type of extension planning, but many of both are freely available. Time-restricted activities Another way to create challenge is to restrict the amount of time available to accomplish the task. What may be a reasonably straightforward task can become much more difficult if limited time is available. Developing metacognition (learning about learning or learnacy!) Thinking skills can be taught in 2 ways: through intellectual games and through the curriculum. Bloom’s higher order thinking If pressed to identify an approach to extension planning which is particularly useful, this is probably the one to choose. It has a clear structure to enable planning and it is easily adapted to a wide variety of subject areas. It is an effective way to extend existing classroom planning. This approach was first developed by Bloom (1956) and has been adapted for use in general classroom planning. The approach identifies the characteristics of high and low level thinking and can be used to focus on ways in which more high level tasks can be included. The hierarchical levels can be used as building blocks. Building Blocks To Think

High level thinking Create Compose Invent Hypothesise What would happen if… Design Be original Combine from several sources

SYNTHESIS - Create

High level thinking Give an opinion Judge Rate – best, worst, etc Choose Recommend What to do differently

EVALUATION - Judge

High level thinking Categorise Compare/contrast

ANALYSIS - Relationships

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Alike/differences Cause effect Relevant/irrelevant Find fallacies Fact/opinion

Middle level thinking Use what you learned in school in another place or situation

APPLICATION - Use

Low level thinking Tell Find Summarise in your own words Locate Name

KNOWLEDGE, COMPREHENSION

Introducing technical language The early introduction of technical language allows able pupils to be more rigorous in explaining ideas. Without appropriate technical language a child is often unable to explain their thinking processes, so making it more difficult for the teacher to recognise both their current level of thinking and also what Vygotsky (1978) calls their ‘zone of proximal development’ (ZPD)

Modelling experts One effective way of creating challenge is to introduce into the classroom an expert with skills which pupils may wish to emulate. This has a number of advantages. Generally, experts are very good at explaining their subject because they have thought about deeply and understand it thoroughly. In the classroom they often talk with great enthusiasm and capture the interest of pupils. Book talk This is Aiden Chambers’ (1993) approach to encouraging useful discussion of fiction books. Structured discussion helps to develop critical analysis and also assists children in understanding why certain books are appealing or unappealing. Summary The creation of challenge in classroom planning should be a logical extension of general planning. It should avoid making able pupils do work in addition to that undertaken by others and be influenced by the principles outlined above. Outcomes for the most able should be clearly linked to the general learning outcomes for the lesson or unit of study, and indeed extension is unlikely to be effective unless the unit has expected learning outcomes. This kind of approach ensures effective continuity and progression and avoids the ‘bolt-on’ approach which characterises so much extension work. It is useful, when planning, to be aware of some of the approaches which are helpful in creating good extension work. Some of these approaches can be used with all pupils, some are only relevant to the most able, and some can be used by pupils of varying abilities if adapted appropriately. There is no single way to create good extension, but teachers need to develop an awareness of possible approaches which are well suited to the subject or age group of the pupils being taught.