The Friyay Mindset - Issue #3

January 22, 2021

Happy Friday! This week in particular, starting as it does with Blue Monday, can be a tough one. Many thanks to all the staff who, despite the difficulties of teaching in these circumstances, have contributed so positively to our training sessions this week.

Last week we shared a series of statements/descriptors you could use to audit a department's provision of 'vision' related support. We wanted to share more, so the focus this week is effort. Again, we've compiled a list of descriptors that could be used to begin a conversation about a culture of effort in classrooms.

It might not be something to use right away, with everyone doing their best to keep things together, but it's one to consider for the future...

Here's something to try...

Where are you up to with supporting effort?

Departments who set high expectations around effort and are clear about what it looks like might be doing some of the following activities:

·      Sharing real data about levels of effort and connection to outcome. “We interviewed last year’s A grade students. Here’s what they said about what it takes to get an A in this subject…”

·      Having a list of subject-specific proactive independent study expectations and keeping them front-and-centre during teaching.

·      Rewarding process not product. “This half term, I’m looking for really high levels of effort and engagement in the classroom. And for everyone who throws themselves in the work, I’ve got a letter ready that will be sent home.”

·      Using positive language around effort and struggle. “I want to set a task that pushes you towards the edge of your ability and encourages what academics call ‘desirable difficulty.’ This should be hard, but will really help you learn.”

·      Being aware of the activation energy necessary to start a big project by chunking when necessary. “Let’s get just the introduction done, that’s about three hundred words. You should be able to finish this in about 45 minutes.” Modelling sprints in class or as part of a homework routine – bursts of strenuous activity conducted with no distraction. Recording sprints completed.

·      Emphasising the importance of environment on effort. “We need to work in ‘indistractable spaces’. Where are you trying to work at the moment? What’s the space like? What are the distractions like?”

·      Keeping the consideration of effort central. Avoiding labels, staying optimistic, showing that change can happen.

Possible Coaching questions for effort...

How many hours a week of independent study do you currently do? How many hours have you studied for this week outside the classroom? Do you think you are working hard enough? How much work would you have to do in order to feel satisfied? What should you be doing… that you know you’re not? When working how do you know you have done enough? Do you work more or less than your friends?

Here's something we've been reading...

If you've never heard of Tim Ferris then we apologise now for introducing him and his work. There's a lot of it, his books are huge, and it's curiously addictive stuff... so watch out! We've been huge fans for a number of years now and he's the Jedi Master when it comes to the processes that underpin success.

There's probably more assembly ideas than you could deliver in a lifetime of teaching in this book.

Ferris has interviewed nearly two hundred world-class performers for his podcast (don't even go there unless you have a spare few days), the book contains the distilled tools, tactics from these interviews. What makes the book different is a relentless focus on actionable details.

Buy Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers 01 by Ferriss, Timothy (ISBN: 9781785041273) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.

Here's our latest offer...

You might have seen our Think, Choose, Act series on twitter. These are going out every school day between now and half-term. We've put them all as downloadable links below in both English and Welsh.

We're getting some lovely feedback on these but we're only human and we've done our best... we know these aren't perfect. Constructive feedback would be super-helpful so if there's anything you'd like to see more or less of in the TCAs, feel free to let us know!

Have a great weekend,

Steve & Martin