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Points of interest:

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Welcome Back!

* Welcome address * New PD website * PD registration * Mentoring /Coaching * Awards

Inside this issue: Key features of PD programme

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Importance of differentiation

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PD registration procedure

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CIE certificate for teachers

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Coaching / Mentoring

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Best practice awards

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PD calendar for September

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On behalf of the Senior Leadership Team, I’d like to welcome staff back to Winchester. New staff, it’s the start of a new journey, and I’m sure your experience at Winchester will be fruitful and positive.

the next few months. We have an internal PD calendar of professional development events and

Examples of PD activities in the internal and external calendar include, PD meetings, attending conferences and courses, coaching and mentoring, peer support, lesson observations and feedback.

The aim of this newsletter is to update staff about issues and events related to professional development on a monthly basis.

In addition to this, Winchester is aiming to enroll at least 10% of its staff on the CIE Certificate Programme for Teachers in 2011-12.

Education is changing and evolving at a rapid pace. In the last ten years alone, numerous advances have been made in The field of teaching and learning. If we as teachers don’t keep up, then pretty soon, we will find ourselves left far behind.

It is important for us as teachers to be clear, that the ultimate goal of PD is to improve classroom practice and raise standards of pupil achievement.

Teachers are lifelong learners and ongoing education is an integral part of working in the teaching field. One of the perks of working at Winchester and being part of the GEMS network of schools is the wonderful opportunities for Professional Development that will come your way over

an external GEMS calendar of events. According to the Teaching and Development Agency for Schools in the UK, Professional development consists of reflective activity designed to improve a teacher’s attributes, knowledge, understanding and skills. It supports the teacher’s needs and improves professional practice.

Winchester PD Website The Winchester School has a new website dedicated to staff professional development. The site contains information and resources on assessment for Learning, starters, plenaries, differentiation, mind maps, encouraging creativity, objectives and outcomes, multiple intelligences, Bloom’s Taxonomy.

There are links to and information about the National Curriculum. It also has numerous resources that are an essential part of the teacher’s toolkit. Please visit:

www.sites.google.com/site/ winchestercpd

I look forward to working with all Winchester staff this coming year and hope you have a successful year. Please feel free to contact me by phone or email if you have any queries or doubts about your professional development. Rohan Roberts (Senior Leader, Head of PD)

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Key Features of the Winchester PD Programme * Training to be led by Rohan Roberts, Glenda Clark and good/outstanding teachers. * Middle Leaders to cascade training information to their staff using resources provided. * Learning coaches to lead a few training sessions. * Teachers will be given the opportunities to sign up for PDs of their choice. * Quality assurance through SLT monitoring and feedback sheets. * Resources to be uploaded on the Winchester PD website. * ICT innovation group to meet once a month. One teacher from each department to be nominated by HOD. * Middle Leaders to compile evidence of impact of PD through lesson observations. * Certificates of Appreciation to be handed out at the end of the year for contributions to the PD programme. * 10% of staff to complete the CIE Teachers’ Certificate programme in 2011-12

The importance of Differentiation “Differentiation is about catering to the different needs, different intelligences, and different learning styles in the classroom.”

"Differentiation is the practice of making lessons different to accommodate the different students in a single classroom."

“Differentiation is the right of each pupil to be taught in a way specifically tailored to their individual learning needs. The process of differentiation, consequently, is the adjustment of the teaching process to meet the differing learning needs of the pupils, and it involves every teacher having sufficient appropriate knowledge of the pupils, plus the ability to plan and deliver suitable lessons effectively, so as to help all

PD registration procedure GEMS and Winchester PD calendars available on PD website

It is essential that we have one central person who keeps track of PD events and registration procedures.

GEMS-related PD session or any other session delivered by an external provider, please email me: [email protected]

Consequently, all registrations for external courses, conferences, training etc. must be done through me, Rohan Roberts, Head of Professional Development.

Please also forward any PD-related emails to me.

If you would like to attend either a

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If there are any CIE related workshops in Dubai, I will liaise with the relevant middle leader and complete the registration procedures.

pupils individually to maximise their learning, whatever their individual situation.”

Some ways of differentiating in the classroom: * By task * By outcome * By resources * By support. * By catering to multiple intelligences * By providing for VAK learning styles

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Cambridge International Certificate for Teachers .

continuing professional development, relevant to all teaching and learning contexts. There is only one assignment, which is organized around three activities: 1. Developing a new teaching approach 2. Facilitating active learning 3. Reflecting on practice The Winchester School is in now an accredited centre for the Cambridge International Certificate for Teacher. and I, Rohan Roberts, am the accredited programme leader. This is a practice-based qualification for

The Certificate, which is internationally recognized, involves approximately 90 hours of preparation, including formal professional development activities, individual and group study and preparation of the assignment.

This is an excellent certificate for teachers to have. I have no doubt that at the end of this course, candidates will have seen tremendous development in their approach to teaching and learning. We are looking to take this forward in two stages. The first stage involves selected Middle Leaders from primary and secondary. This will go on from September to December 2011. The second phase will be open to all staff to sign up. This will be from January to March 2012.

“Teachers teach more by what they are than by what they say.” — Anon.

“If a child can't learn the way we teach,

If there are too many names, SLT will use its discretion to decide which candidates will be enrolled this year.

maybe we should teach the way they learn.” — Ignacio Estrada

Difference between coaching and mentoring

“More important than the curriculum

Coaching

Mentoring

Ongoing relationship that can last for a long period of time

Relationship generally has a set duration

is the question of the methods of

spirit in which the

Can be more informal and meetings can take place as and when the mentee needs some advice, guidance or support

Generally more structured in nature and meetings are scheduled on a regular basis

More long-term and takes a broader view of the person

Short-term (sometimes time-bounded) and focused on specific development areas/issues

Focus is on career and personal development Agenda is set by the mentee, with the mentor providing support and guidance to prepare them for future roles

teaching and the

Focus is generally on development/issues at work The agenda is focused on achieving specific, immediate goals

Awards up for grabs this year! To be a successful teacher it is essential for Nominations will be made by the Heads us to adapt to the learning needs of our of Department towards the end of the students. academic year. In an endeavour to encourage good practice Teachers are encouraged to compile and greater innovation in the classroom, the evidence of their achievements to merit Winchester school will be awarding “Best a nomination. Practice” certificates in the following areas: Awards and certificates will be handed 1. Differentiation out at the end of year staff lunch. 2. Use of ICT in education For more details, please email me: 3. Use of Promethean board 4. Catering to Multiple Intelligences [email protected]

teaching is given” — Bertrand Russell

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The Winchester School Jebel Ali Gardens P O Box 38058 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Tel: +9714 8820444 Fax: +9714 8820440 Email : [email protected]

Editor: Rohan Roberts, (Senior Leader, Head of Professional Development) Email: [email protected] Website: www.sites.google.com/site/winchestercpd

Every Child Matters

GEMS PD events for September Train the trainers

Senior Leader Programme

Learning coach network meeting

Manchester Metropolitan University Cohort 2

Facilitator Training

For more details please see the GEMS PD calendar on the Winchester PD website.

PD Leaders network meeting

Winchester PD events for September 2011 3 Sept. Child Protection Staff policy on staff conduct Non negotiables Three-part lesson Behaviour for Learning 4-7 Sept. Interactive Whiteboard for intermediates and beginners FISH (Behaviour Management) Effective Questioning Activities for Active Learning 5 Sept. Introduction to National Curriculum Prog. of study and cross marking using levels 6 Sept. Introduction to National Curriculum Prog. of study and cross marking using levels

14 Sept. Teacher’s Craft - 1 3-part lesson (Starters and Plenaries) G&T 21 Sept. Sec. HODs and Prim. HOYs to cascade Teacher’s Craft: Learning Theories. 28 Sept. Modeling good lessons – 1 (Teachers as students) Some sessions are exclusively for middle leaders, who will then cascade the information to the rest of their teams. Other sessions are sign ups: teachers have the option of choosing which training session will be of most use to

them. For details about audience and venues, check the PD calendar on the website: www.sites.google.com/site/ winchestercpd