Collaborative Learning in Mathematics stuart.scott@collaborativelearning

1. Collaborative Learning in Mathematics stuart.scott@collaborativelearning.org judith.evans@collaborativelearning.org Links to everything you see today will be on this webpage! www.collaborativelearning.org/rochdale.html

2. Why ?

3. “Learning Floats on a Sea of Talk” Douglas Barnes Collaborative Learning is a teacher network which develops and disseminates curriculum based ‘talk for learning’ teaching activities. It was funded by the Inner London Education Authority from 1983 – 1989 and is now spread worldwide.

4. Oracy: a word invented in Birmingham by Andrew Wilkinson in 1960s“Oracy was never one of the 3 R’s.”Note that there is still a wiggly red line under the word!

5. Brain research • Up to age of 11 brain is 150% more active in acquiring language. • The act of talking and thinking increases the number of connections and cells that build the brain. • Talk fuels brain development. Research summed up in Robin Alexander’s “Towards Dialogic Teaching; Rethinking Classroom Talk”

6. In the last ten years progress in neuroscience has confirmed our earlier guesses that exploratory talk creates synapses and fuels brain development which of course makes you more intelligent …

7. The transformations that take place somewhere between pupils talking through ideas together and then presenting them to others are brain empowering, but need to be scaffolded.. Scaffolding is good for all pupils, but vital for pupils learning English while they are learning.

8. Look at one of these pictures on your table • Talk about it in your group.

9. These pictures are from a resource called Talking Maths Developed and refined by LA Maths teams in Gloucestershire, Bradford, Liverpool and elsewhere. These teams have now reformed and set up Maths Hubs nationwide. There is a Manchester one based in Altrincham which welcomes networking. Available on the TES resources site It is excellent to use collaboratively.

10. I put the image in the centre of an A3 sheet and get children to write in the space.

11. Collaborative Learning evolved in mainstream classrooms in London containing many EAL learners. It helps to produce an EAL friendly classroom. It helps to make teachers language conscious because they listen more to their children and respond appropriately.

12. Research and Practice The Practice came first! Sutton Trust Education Endowment Foundation Learning Without Limits Dialogic Teaching Cambridge Oracy Centre www.collaborativelearning.org/research.html www.collaborativelearning.org/bibliography.html www.collaborativelearning.org/links.html

13. A graphic organiser/key visual representation about Balancing the needs of EAL learners Cognitive Learning needs Language needs Social needs Feeling safe

14. Victoria Murphy: EAL Research Review strong evidence that some EAL pupils can make the most progress and that there is an enormous untapped potential • Increasing quality of verbal interaction • Improving subject specific vocabulary (both words and phrases)

15. Oh, the EAL learners are fine in maths. They don’t need any help.

16. Oh the EAL learners are fine in maths. They don’t need any help.

17. Activity Talk to the people near you. Make a list of words and phrases that cause particular problems in the context of maths learning.

18. Maintenance of First Language enhances Development of Second Language A graphic organiser/key visual representation of the relationship between first and second (or third) languages

19. Parents often feel more confident about helping in maths than other subjects. Build a bridge between home and school. My grandpa works out everything on his fingers – he’s really fast. Don’t use your fingers. ?????

20. Collaborative Classroom Practice • Build on prior knowledge • Move from concrete to abstract • Ensure everyone works with everyone else • Extend social language into curriculum language • Provide motivating ways to go over the same thing more than once • is EAL Friendly

21. Mathematical development through playing games

22. Bell (1978) on Dienes Six different stages of participation in the teaching/learning procedure in mathematics • Free play • Games • Searching for commonalities • Representation • Symbolism • Formalisation

23. Development of reasoning • Prediction • Conjecturing • Generalising • Checking and justifying

24. Why games ? • Development of logical skills and mathematical thinking • Counting skills and understanding • Engenders cooperation, discussion and being collaborative • Strongly motivational • Support for bilingual learners • Opportunities to assess understanding and concept development

25. Bell (1987) Games permit students to experiment with the parameters and the variations within the concept and to begin analysing the mathematical structure of the concept. Various games with different representations of the concept will help students discover the logical and mathematical elements of the concept.

26. We strongly recommend that you plan collaborative activities collaboratively!

27. You are going to receive a card with some information. • Read it and memorise the main points. Rehearse them to yourself under your breath without looking at your card. • Find ONE OTHER PERSON in the room with EXACTLY THE SAME COLOUR CARD as you. • In turn, introduce the topic on your card to the other person. If you get stuck, glance at your card but try not to just read it. Try to present your main points without looking at the card all the time. • When you have both done this go to find the other two people in the room with EXACTLY THE SAME COLOUR CARDS as you. • Now pairs take turns to introduce EACH OTHER’S TOPIC to the other pair.

28. Let Me Introduce How does it work? • Pupils read a role card and try to become card independent by memorising some information. • Pupils find one person with the same colour card. • Each one introduces themselves “I am…..” • The pair then finds another pair – now they introduce their partner so it is no longer “I am” but has become “This is …… they….” in pupils’ own words.

29. Let Me Introduce How could you use his technique?

30. Let Me Introduce Why does it work? • Opportunities to deliver curriculum content • Practice in reading >. • Process of listen>understand/think> construct speech in own words. • Communication and interaction is integral. • Opportunity to work with many others. • Possible application across many topics/subjects at all ages from Y1 up.

31. Sorting Cards onto a Graphic Organiser • Opportunities to explore vocabulary. • Practice in explaining concepts. • Opportunities to expand mental models. • Visual organisers structure thinking. • You can reinforce the organisers with games. • Simple eg.s Venn diagrams

32. Connect 4 • Why does it work? • Opportunities to deliver curriculum content • Practice in reading > reading aloud. • Need for language of reasoning, justifying, explaining. • Communication and interaction is integral. • Reinforces classification and sorting. • Possible application across many topics/subjects.

33. Joint Problem Solving Working together to solve a puzzle or problem. Can be brilliant. Can be painful and frustrating. Worth persevering because it offers ideal transformational interaction.

34. Activity Properties of Number Use the cut up squares to re-create a grid where all numbers are placed and both the labels linked to their square apply. What did you learn? How did you talk?

35. Joint Problem Solving How could you use this technique?

36. Barrier Games • Barrier games are games where one person (or pair) has half the information and the other person (or pair) has the other half. • Complete information sets can be obtained by asking questions or by passing on information. Familiar informal examples would be battleships. The deduction game “20 questions” is also related.

37. Barrier Games Why do they work? • Opportunities to deliver curriculum content • Practice in reading or interpreting data. • Practice in questioning. • Communication and interaction is integral. • All must participate • Possible application across many topics/subjects.

39. Hope you had a nice dinner

40. Odd one out a potentially useful activity • Which is the odd one out and why? circle triangle hexagon

41. For different reasons they all can be! Curriculum content syllables spelling prior experience

42. How are activities planned? • What do we want the children to know? • What kinds of thinking do we hope they will practice? • What kinds of language do they need? Necessary language and potential language? • What key visuals best produce the thinking and the language? • Can we make our activity sociable?

43. Making an EAL(and talk) Friendly Activity • Provide pictures and labels. • Provide a sorting grid to organise ideas. • Add in a game element to re-inforce and practice. • Connect 4 • Snap • Bingo • Track games • Collection games

44. A list of different kinds of thinking demands Classifying-Comparing-Contrasting-Defining-Describing-Estimating-Evaluating-Explaining-Formulating hypotheses-Generalising-Inferring-Interpreting data-Judging-Justifying opinions-Labelling-Measuring-Noting a process-Ordering chronologically-Ordering spatially-Predicting-Problem solving-Rank ordering-Recommending-Testing hypotheses-Understanding and applying cause and effect-Understanding and applying rules and strategies Too many to help planning but they can be reduced to…….

45. Reduced to six key thinking skills. Classifying Justifying an opinion Reasoning Describing Decision making Sequencing Planning on this grid can ensure that your lessons include different kinds of thinking and consequently a range of language structures.

46. Everything you will see today can be found on this dedicated webpage. www.collaborativelearning.org/rochdale.html