Pathway to Progress: Empowering Educators for Today’s Classrooms

Disciplinary Literacy and reading in the KS3 curriculum
This workshop will explore Disciplinary Literacy approaches in the classroom and KS3 curriculum, focusing on reciprocal reading techniques, echo reading and oracy. Explicit teaching of vocabulary is key is exposing students to a wider range of more challenging words, to close the word deficit gap and enable students to tackle more complex texts independently. We will explore whole text reading and the benefits of cold reads, including how intonation, prosody and tone can develop deeper understanding.
Age range: KS3 (11-14)

It is perhaps apposite to remember that authors do not usually write in order for students and teachers to unpack their words. The wonderful writer Claire Keegan articulated this in a recent interview: “I can’t explain my work. I just write stories. I’ve never thought about a theme. I never once have. I just think about the text.” As all English teachers are asked time and time again “but how do we know that’s what the author meant? How do we know that word was chosen on purpose?” Of course these questions are valid but nevertheless our job remains: to deliver lessons that help students to “think about the text” in a clear and focused manner through engaging active reading strategies. We need to take time to encourage the skills needed across the curriculum and for future assessments. This workshop will concentrate on how to enable students to understand explicit and implicit meaning and attitudes, select and evaluate what is relevant to specific purposes and how effects are created through authorial choice (whether intentional or not!).  

Target audience: Secondary English

Experience has shown that while many students and staff welcome a focus on wellbeing, others remain unconvinced of its necessity or relevance. This session will explore research demonstrating how enhanced wellbeing not only boosts exam performance but also improves students' short and long-term quality of life. I will present a range of practical, evidence-based strategies for integrating wellbeing into your teaching and learning practice, rooted in the evidence-based PERMAH model from Positive Psychology. The session will also include opportunities for discussion and questions, offering a collaborative space to explore these ideas further.

At its simplest, dual coding is teaching using words and visuals; using verbal and visual materials at the same time. But what makes it work so well, and in what circumstances and contexts? What is computational efficiency, and how does it relate to learning and building an understanding?


In this session, we’ll examine some of the research underpinning Dual-Coding Theory. We’ll consider some examples from teaching Geography and History that worked beautifully, as well as why some others didn’t, and aim to make sure you leave ready to dual-code in your classroom.

Target audience: Humanities but could work for any subject

In this workshop, we’ll dive into the world of reporting and interviewing for audio storytelling. Podcasts are one of the most popular media formats among young people and offer a creative approach to teaching and learning, from encouraging language learners to engaging hard to reach students. Teachers will practice interviewing for audio while the News Decoder team demonstrates basic audio production techniques to use in the classroom.

S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education offers a unique experience for all learners. S.T.E.M. allows students to explore new ideas, create products to improve everyday life, and reflect on the impact these products have on everyday life. These avenues encourage a thematic approach that serves the whole child. But what if your school does not offer a S.T.E.M. style education? Each day, we ask our students to explore, create, and reflect. As teachers, we must do the same. In this workshop, you will participate in small activities to help you begin or improve S.T.E.M. in your classroom through reflective practice, project- based learning, and content integration.