Thinking Matters Autumn Update

Welcome back! We hope you have all managed to recharge your batteries over the holidays and are raring to go…

Newly Accredited Thinking Schools

Whilst schools have been closed, the Thinking School accreditation team at The University of Exeter have been busy, well…. accrediting. There have been a number of firsts on that front this summer: Stanton Bridge Primary are the first school in the West Midlands to meet Exeter’s requirements, whilst Priory Integrated College are the first post-primary in Northern Ireland to gain the award. Bickley Primary School is likely the first of a number of schools in the Nexus Education Schools Trust to achieve their Level One accreditation. Likewise, Lordswood School is leading the charge within the Griffin Schools Trust. Huge congratulations to all of those schools as well as to Broadhurst Primary, pioneers of the approach in Botswana to receive the University’s award.

Support for accreditation...

We have been listening hard to understand how you feel you could be better supported with the practicalities of applying for and gathering the evidence needed for Exeter’s accreditation. As a result we’ve made some tweaks to our software as well as supporting documents which will hopefully reduce the workload and improve the clarity on what’s required. Drop us a line if you are planning on going down the formal accreditation route. We’ll do everything we can to make it as easy as possible…

The Thinking School Network keeps growing

Talking of the Thinking School Network in Africa, six secondary students from Myrtle Vine Academy, Nigeria, are going to be in the Cambridge (England) area at the end of September-early October. They are keen to spend a day in a Thinking School classroom and see how other settings use thinking tools. If anyone in the vicinity would like to do some international outreach then please get in contact.

Whilst we are on the international theme, it’s exciting to be working with so many new schools from around the world this autumn. Our team has already been surfing the time zones to deliver training in Beijing this summer and we are looking forward to welcoming schools from Belgium, Singapore and Bahrain to the ever expanding list of countries that make up the Thinking School Network.

A visit to two existing Thinking Schools

Closer to home – if you weren’t there, then as part of the Festival of Metacognition (reflections on the conference day here), we visited two very different schools that have adapted the approach to their unique settings. Read on to find out more…

Measuring Impact

Rightly, we are often challenged as to how the Thinking Matters pedagogical approach makes an impact. Of course, there are the obvious measures to look at around academic progress but what about the impact on learners becoming better learners?

We recently wrote on the use of using the Myself as a Learner Scale (MALS) and have since created a resource that enables you to use MALS digitally. It’s designed to help reduce the administrative burden in setting MALS up, to make it easier for pupils to complete the questionnaire and help with the analysis of the data. It’s just one of the new resources available to members of the Thinking Schools Network in our refreshed premium membership offering.

Induction Course for New Teachers and Discounts on September SEN Course

For existing Thinking School Network members – don’t forget to make the most of the FREE Thinking School Induction Course for New Teachers and also the discount that’s available with the SEN course that starts on 19th September.

The passing of a great thinker, Teresa Williams

Our beloved Terry passed away over the summer. For those who worked with her, you will know that she was a fabulous trainer – utterly inspiring, totally passionate and an absolute expert on the teaching of thinking. She was the most wonderful of colleagues and will be sorely missed by us all.