Teaching and learning MFL
Learning Styles
Papers & recommended reading | Editorial reviews | Tasks for trainees
Focus
Every teacher has a duty to cater for individual needs presented within
the context of relatively large groups of learners; differentiation is the
key process here. Objectives should be to address the following issues:
the provision of a suitable range of tasks, learning materials, assessment
modes, expected outcomes and groupings, and recognising and responding to
differences based on gender, identified Special Needs (SEN), English as
an additional language (EAL), identified exceptional potential and talent,
and the emerging and diverse range of learning styles.
The consequent enhanced awareness of individual needs should translate into
re-evaluation and modification of the student teacher's planning rationale
and method.
Study of this topic has the potential to address aspects of the following very wide range of QTS standards, depending on the trainer’s particular emphases:
| Professional attributes | |
| Relationships with children and young
people |
Q1, Q2 |
| Frameworks |
Q3 (b) |
| Communicating
and working with others |
Q4, Q5, Q6 |
| Personal professional development | Q7, Q8, Q9 |
| Professional knowledge and understanding | |
| Teaching and learning |
Q10 |
| Assessment and monitoring | Q11, Q12, Q13 |
| Subjects and curriculum |
Q14, Q15 |
| Literacy, numeracy and ICT |
Q17 |
| Achievement
and diversity |
Q18, Q19, Q20 |
| Health and well-being | Q21 (a) (b) |
| Professional skills | |
| Planning | Q22, Q23, Q24 |
| Teaching | Q25 (a) (b) (c) (d) |
| Assessing, monitoring and giving feedback | Q26 (a) (b), Q27, Q28 |
| Reviewing teaching and learning | Q29 |
| Learning environment | Q30, Q31 |
| Team work and collaboration | Q32, Q33 |
Tasks for trainees
Group discussion
Discuss the challenges you have faced planning for both mixed-attainment/ability
groupings, and classes grouped by attainment/ability/gender/other reason.
Attempt to make recommendations to each other based on advice offered to
you.
Discuss, based on your experience and observations, which is the most important factor in improving pupil performance in MFL classes: teacher personality, pupil gender, pupil grouping type, or class size? After this discussion, are you able to support your views from recent research evidence? Are there significant ‘gaps’ in research on any of these factors in a MFL secondary context?
Observation focus
Ask the class teacher to select a sample of 3 pupils who span the attainment
range of the class; a low, a middle-ranking and a high attainer. Track their
individual progress through the lesson. To what extent was each able to
fulfil the set objectives? What were the differences in how they achieved
this, or in what they achieved?
Repeat this exercise while observing a class which has some contrasting features to the first class you observed. Set ranking, class size, pupil gender bias are all areas of such contrast. Do the contrasting characteristics of the second observed group significantly affect the extent to which each of the selected pupils was able to fulfil the set objectives?
Check your planning
In any one lesson plan or sequence, identify the CENTRAL objective. Can
you imagine EVERY pupil in that class being able to provide evidence of
achieving against that objective? Consider providing extra or less SUPPORT
in the sequence leading up to the central task; then consider different
versions of the central task which allow access for those with learning
challenges and encourage higher attainers to take an extra step.
Was your plan pro forma up to the job, or does it need some modification?
