Chris Watkins | UCL Institute of Education (original) (raw)
Learning by Chris Watkins
This article analyses the sort of classroom talk that leads to effective learning, and some of th... more This article analyses the sort of classroom talk that leads to effective learning, and some of the forces which operate against such practices. It starts with an analysis of the classroom context and the dominant patterns of interaction. These cause processes of learning to be hidden. It then develops by an analysis of effective learning, comprising four headings: active, collaborative, learner-driven and learning-focused. Under each heading important forms of classroom talk are analysed, and principles are offered for developing improved practice.
To appear in Marion Myhill and Rupert Maclean (eds) 2015 International Handbook on Life in School... more To appear in Marion Myhill and Rupert Maclean (eds) 2015
International Handbook on Life in Schools and Classrooms: Past, present and future visions
Springer
This chapter examines the concept of meta-learning – learning about learning – its conceptual dev... more This chapter examines the concept of meta-learning – learning about learning – its conceptual development and its profile in classrooms. Classrooms predominantly have very little meta-learning, and the reasons for this are examined, before analysing what we can learn from thirty years of research. In the light of this, principles and practices are developed, with examples from projects in schools in the United Kingdom. Three core processes, noticing, narrating and navigating, are highlighted.
NSIN Research …, Jan 1, 2002
"This book addresses an important, and too seldom addressed issue: learning. We do not mean teach... more "This book addresses an important, and too seldom addressed issue: learning. We do not mean teaching, we do not mean performance, we do not mean "work". This book really is about learning, what makes learning effective and how it may be promoted in classrooms.
The authors take the context of the classroom seriously, not only because of its effects on teachers and pupils, but because classrooms are notorious as contexts which change little. Rather than providing yet more tips, they offer real thinking and evidence based on what we know about how classrooms change. Four major dimensions of promoting effective learning in classrooms are examined in depth: Active Learning; Collaborative Learning; Learner-driven Learning and Learning about Learning.
Evidence from practising teachers in the form of case studies and examples, and evidence from international research in the form of useful ideas and frameworks is included."
This paper considers the relation between learning in schools and performance in schools, and the... more This paper considers the relation between learning in schools and performance in schools, and then goes on to examine evidence on ways in which performance in school may be enhanced and
improved through learning about learning. The review of evidence is based on a reading of more than 100 classroom-based research studies and a wider literature base
Journal of Maltese Educational Research, 2007
This article examines the area of learning about learning and its role as a key element of effect... more This article examines the area of learning about learning and its role as a key element of effective learning in classrooms. Approaches to facilitating learning about learning in the classroom are discussed in the light of international research evidence, and a particular approach is advanced which involves enriching pupils' narratives about their learning.
NSIN Research Matters, Jan 1, 2001
Understanding pedagogy and its …, Jan 1, 1999
MST’s new series on better classroom practice gets under way as Chris Watkins considers the impor... more MST’s new series on better classroom practice gets
under way as Chris Watkins considers the importance
of active learning
In the third of his series of articles about improving classroom pedagogy, Chris Watkins looks at... more In the third of his series of articles about improving classroom
pedagogy, Chris Watkins looks at collaboration between pupils: why do they enjoy it and how does it work?
Helping students to understand how their own learning works can unlock greater motivation and ama... more Helping students to understand how their own learning works can unlock greater motivation and amazing results, says Chris Watkins in the latest part of his series on leading learning in classrooms
With Ofsted now stressing teaching and learning even more, the danger is that schools will insist... more With Ofsted now stressing teaching and learning even more,
the danger is that schools will insist on ever more formulaic
lesson plans. These often prevent real learning taking
place, argues Chris Watkins, who suggests a more creative
framework
This article analyses the sort of classroom talk that leads to effective learning, and some of th... more This article analyses the sort of classroom talk that leads to effective learning, and some of the forces which operate against such practices. It starts with an analysis of the classroom context and the dominant patterns of interaction. These cause processes of learning to be hidden. It then develops by an analysis of effective learning, comprising four headings: active, collaborative, learner-driven and learning-focused. Under each heading important forms of classroom talk are analysed, and principles are offered for developing improved practice.
To appear in Marion Myhill and Rupert Maclean (eds) 2015 International Handbook on Life in School... more To appear in Marion Myhill and Rupert Maclean (eds) 2015
International Handbook on Life in Schools and Classrooms: Past, present and future visions
Springer
This chapter examines the concept of meta-learning – learning about learning – its conceptual dev... more This chapter examines the concept of meta-learning – learning about learning – its conceptual development and its profile in classrooms. Classrooms predominantly have very little meta-learning, and the reasons for this are examined, before analysing what we can learn from thirty years of research. In the light of this, principles and practices are developed, with examples from projects in schools in the United Kingdom. Three core processes, noticing, narrating and navigating, are highlighted.
NSIN Research …, Jan 1, 2002
"This book addresses an important, and too seldom addressed issue: learning. We do not mean teach... more "This book addresses an important, and too seldom addressed issue: learning. We do not mean teaching, we do not mean performance, we do not mean "work". This book really is about learning, what makes learning effective and how it may be promoted in classrooms.
The authors take the context of the classroom seriously, not only because of its effects on teachers and pupils, but because classrooms are notorious as contexts which change little. Rather than providing yet more tips, they offer real thinking and evidence based on what we know about how classrooms change. Four major dimensions of promoting effective learning in classrooms are examined in depth: Active Learning; Collaborative Learning; Learner-driven Learning and Learning about Learning.
Evidence from practising teachers in the form of case studies and examples, and evidence from international research in the form of useful ideas and frameworks is included."
This paper considers the relation between learning in schools and performance in schools, and the... more This paper considers the relation between learning in schools and performance in schools, and then goes on to examine evidence on ways in which performance in school may be enhanced and
improved through learning about learning. The review of evidence is based on a reading of more than 100 classroom-based research studies and a wider literature base
Journal of Maltese Educational Research, 2007
This article examines the area of learning about learning and its role as a key element of effect... more This article examines the area of learning about learning and its role as a key element of effective learning in classrooms. Approaches to facilitating learning about learning in the classroom are discussed in the light of international research evidence, and a particular approach is advanced which involves enriching pupils' narratives about their learning.
NSIN Research Matters, Jan 1, 2001
Understanding pedagogy and its …, Jan 1, 1999
MST’s new series on better classroom practice gets under way as Chris Watkins considers the impor... more MST’s new series on better classroom practice gets
under way as Chris Watkins considers the importance
of active learning
In the third of his series of articles about improving classroom pedagogy, Chris Watkins looks at... more In the third of his series of articles about improving classroom
pedagogy, Chris Watkins looks at collaboration between pupils: why do they enjoy it and how does it work?
Helping students to understand how their own learning works can unlock greater motivation and ama... more Helping students to understand how their own learning works can unlock greater motivation and amazing results, says Chris Watkins in the latest part of his series on leading learning in classrooms
With Ofsted now stressing teaching and learning even more, the danger is that schools will insist... more With Ofsted now stressing teaching and learning even more,
the danger is that schools will insist on ever more formulaic
lesson plans. These often prevent real learning taking
place, argues Chris Watkins, who suggests a more creative
framework
Watkins, C. (1998). Parliamentary Brief, 5(7), 39-40.
School Leadership Today
An analysis of the culture of fear now affecting our schools and what professionals may do in the... more An analysis of the culture of fear now affecting our schools and what professionals may do in the face of it
Watkins, C. (2002). "Will policy-makers always fail teachers?". Parliamentary Brief, 8(2), 11-12.... more Watkins, C. (2002). "Will policy-makers always fail teachers?". Parliamentary Brief, 8(2), 11-12.
Sadly much of this still applies over a decade later
School Leadership & Management, 1993
The focus of this article is the school‐based mentoring process which supports the initial traini... more The focus of this article is the school‐based mentoring process which supports the initial training of teachers in any of its present routes. We draw as much from practical application and experience of mentoring as from theoretical frameworks.
Pastoral Care in Education, 2005
Hamblin, Douglas H (Ed.), Problems and Practice of Pastoral Care Oxford: Blackwell., 1981
For some sense of "completeness" in this collection, my first publication (in education).
Pastoral Care in Education, Jan 1, 1985
Watkins, C., & Wagner, P. (1988). Pastoral Care in Education, 6(3), 2-9.
Pastoral Care in Education, Jan 1, 1999
Pastoral Care in Education, Jan 1, 2008
An important contribution to the thinking behind this paper came during a recent discussion of go... more An important contribution to the thinking behind this paper came during a recent discussion of government policies called 'personalisation'. When asked 'what is the problem to which personalized learning is a solution?', one delegate at a deputy heads' conference replied 'depersonalised learning'. This simple but powerful point struck a chord and helped me to think further about the way that trends in recent decades have downgraded the focus on human qualities in the field formerly known as education.
Pastoral Care in Education, Jan 1, 1985
includes chapters: Watkins, C. (2000). "Now just compose yourselves" - personal development and ... more includes chapters:
Watkins, C. (2000). "Now just compose yourselves" - personal development and integrity in changing times.
and
Best, R., Watkins, C., & Lodge, C. (2000). From here to integrity.
Taking Issues: Debates …, Jan 1, 1998
This chapter considers guidance as a whole-school feature of British secondary schools. Rationale... more This chapter considers guidance as a whole-school feature of British secondary schools. Rationales for guidance within an overarching whole-school view of students' personal-social development are offered. Arguments for a comprehensive, developmental and distributed approach are emphasised. No single organisational model is offered, although curriculum and coordination concerns are briefly discussed.
British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, Jan 1, 1994
Professional School Counseling, Jan 1, 2001
Pastoral Care and Personal-Social Education: …, Jan 1, 1995
British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, Jan 1, 1999
Watkins, C., & Wagner, P. (2004) In J. Wearmouth, R. C. Richmond & T. Glynn (Eds.), Addressing Pu... more Watkins, C., & Wagner, P. (2004) In J. Wearmouth, R. C. Richmond & T. Glynn (Eds.), Addressing Pupils' Behaviour: Responses at district, school and individual levels (pp. 219-259). London: David Fulton.
Watkins C and Wagner P (2000) Improving School Behaviour, London: Paul Chapman Publishers 9780761... more Watkins C and Wagner P (2000) Improving School Behaviour, London: Paul Chapman Publishers 9780761963363.
This is a version of the 1997 "Managing Classroom Behaviour: a bit like air traffic control" publ... more This is a version of the 1997 "Managing Classroom Behaviour: a bit like air traffic control" published by ATL - but with all the research references
ESRC Violence Research Programme: Research Findings). Available online at: http://www1\. rhbnc. ac. uk/sociopolitical‐science/vrp/Findings/rfhewitt. PDF (http://www1\. rhbnc. ac. uk/sociopolitical-science/vrp/Findings/rfhewitt. PDF)(accessed 14 February 2005), 2002
Abstract: This comparative study addressed a school's resiliency to violence through an exam... more Abstract: This comparative study addressed a school's resiliency to violence through an examination of the level of violence in its environment. By examining the amount of criminal violence in the neighborhoods of each school, the intent was to identify the most and the least violence resilient schools. Data was gathered on six London secondary schools from 1996 through 1998. Neighborhood violence related data was obtained by the Metropolitan Police from the Performance Information Bureau. In addition, interviews were conducted ...
British Educational Research Journal, Jan 1, 2007
This article highlights one strand of a study which investigated the concept of the violenceresil... more This article highlights one strand of a study which investigated the concept of the violenceresilient school. In six inner-city secondary schools, data on violent incidents in school and violent crime in the neighbourhood were gathered, and compared with school practices to minimise violence, accessed through interviews. Some degree of association between the patterns of behaviour and school practices was found: schools with a wider range of wellconnected practices seemed to have less difficult behaviour. Interviews also showed that the different schools had different organisational discourses for construing school violence, its possible causes and the possible solutions. Differences in practices are best understood in connection with differences in these discourses. Some of the features of school discourses are outlined, including their range, their core metaphor and their silences. We suggest that organisational discourse is an important concept in explaining school effects and school differences, and that improvement attempts could have clearer regard to this concept.
British Educational …, Jan 1, 2007
Pastoral Care in Education, 1988
Educational Psychology in Practice, Jan 1, 2000
Educational Psychology in Practice, 2000
In this article, we describe some of our purposes and processes when introducing consultation as ... more In this article, we describe some of our purposes and processes when introducing consultation as a comprehensive model of service delivery to course members in their programme of initial professional education. We also note some of the impacts from this model, both in the course modules and the placement experiences. While it is written from the perspective of course tutors, we hope that this account may trigger useful thoughts for readersÐ about their own initial training, about their current model of practice, about their current professional development or even their current contribution to initial training.
Watkins, C. (2008). interview. In E. Carnell, J. MacDonald, B. McCallum & M. Scott (Eds.), Passio... more Watkins, C. (2008). interview. In E. Carnell, J. MacDonald, B. McCallum & M. Scott (Eds.), Passion and Politics: Academics reflect on writing for publication (pp. 205-211). London: Institute of Education.
Teacher: Yeah, not homophobic. I would say that the policies on homophobia, that is an issue as w... more Teacher: Yeah, not homophobic. I would say that the policies on homophobia, that is an issue as welL homophobia as a cause of violence. I mean, quite often violence may start because of homophobic insults between boys. The school's policy on acceptance of people's sexuality, not discriminating against people, understanding. Quite honestly, I mean, that's not an issue that you make a lot of noise about in schools ever since the Tories. You know, you would be criticised, possibly. Maybe even the head teacher as well would be ...
Social justice, education, and identity, 2003
Teacher: Yeah, not homophobic. I would say that the policies on homophobia, that is an issue as w... more Teacher: Yeah, not homophobic. I would say that the policies on homophobia, that is an issue as welL homophobia as a cause of violence. I mean, quite often violence may start because of homophobic insults between boys. The school's policy on acceptance of people's sexuality, not discriminating against people, understanding. Quite honestly, I mean, that's not an issue that you make a lot of noise about in schools ever since the Tories. You know, you would be criticised, possibly. Maybe even the head teacher as well would be ...
Pastoral Care in Education, 1987
Pastoral Care in Education, 1990
British Journal of Educational Studies, 1996
Tomorrow's schools: towards …, 2000
Management in Education, 1991