Embedding learning
Teaching vulnerable learners and those
on community orders or probation
Embedding Learning: starter activity
• Why embed learning?
• What learning needs to be embedded?
• What is embedded learning?
• How can teachers embed learning successfully?
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Why embed learning?
Learners prefer learning to be embedded
(Martinez, 2002; Roberts et al, 2005)
They are
• more motivated
• find learning easier in a work or practical context
• feel more confident/less stigmatised
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What needs to be embedded?
•
•
•
•
Literacy and language
Everyday mathematics
Everyday ICT
Study skills to support on-going learning
These are sometimes called the ‘Minimum Core’: all
learning and skills sector teachers are now formally
responsible for supporting minimum core learning
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What is embedded learning?
Vocational /
life skills
and
knowledge
Embedding learning
Embedded
learning
and
teaching
Literacy,
language,
maths, ICT,
and study
skills
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What is embedded learning?
‘Embedded teaching and learning combines the
development of literacy, language and numeracy
with vocational and other skills. The skills acquired
provide learners with the confidence, competence
and motivation necessary for them to succeed in
qualifications, in life and in work.’
A Contextual Guide to Support Success in LLN Provision:
Embedded Learning. DfES (QIA 2008)
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There are three ways to support
embedded learning
1.
2.
3.
Embedding literacy/language, everyday maths
and/or ICT in teaching and learning of the main
subject
Developing your students’ study skills
Using feedback to support embedded learning
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Planning to embed literacy, language,
everyday maths and ICT
• You do not have to be expert to support students’
embedded learning
• Think about your main curriculum: what elements
of the minimum core does it naturally contain?
• Another way of thinking about this: What minimum
core skills do your students need to learn their
main curriculum effectively?
• Remember to build on your students’ existing
skills as far as possible
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Embedding learning in Life and
Employability skills
Minimum core skills might include:
• Confident and clear speaking and listening
• Functional reading skills
• Functional writing skills
• Functional maths
• Functional ICT
• Study skills: planning, organisation, and timekeeping
The appropriate balance of these will be different for each student,
depending on their existing skills and their learning goals
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Planning for embedded learning
There are three approaches you could use:
1.
Teaching some minimum core skills directly: adding specific
elements of the minimum core into your lesson plans,
separately from your main curriculum
2.
Teaching some of these skills at the same time as your
main curriculum
3.
Focussing on these skills as part of feedback on classroom
tasks and activities
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Classroom activities for embedding
learning
• Projects, individual or
collaborative
• Discussions
• Problem solving
• Planning activities
• Budgeting
• Modelling
• Games
• Case studies
• Debating
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Quizzes
Evaluations
Designing
Imagining
Comparing
Demonstrations
Practical experiments
Research tasks
Note-taking, diary writing
Other?
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Starter Activities
You can use starter activities in a number of ways:
• To provide productive activity for students who arrive early or
on-time
• To start the lesson in a lively way that will motivate students
• To give a flavour of what is to come later in the lesson
• To model productive learning behaviour right from the start
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Suggested Starter Activities
• Learners work in pairs list the ways that teaching involves either
Maths, English or ICT skills
• Learners discuss a question in groups of 5 or 6: eg ‘what level of
qualification is necessary to work as a teacher?’
• Learners make group contributions to a blog or wiki page via
mobile phones, laptops, or in writing
• Learners swap homework assignments, and proof-read them for
spelling mistakes, grammatical errors and typos
• Learners organise their notes and hand-outs in a folder
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1. Literacy and language
• An effective way to support literacy and language learning is by
giving constructive feedback on any writing tasks your students
do as part of their learning
• One way of approaching this is to think about their writing at
word, sentence, or text level
• In your feedback you focus on one or other of these levels at a
time, so as not to confuse the learner. Aspects of literacy and
language relating to each level are given on the next slide
• For more on literacy, please refer to the Literacy CPD session
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Level
Writing
Word
Handwriting
Sentence
Word order
Text
Embedding learning
Reading
Speaking and
listening
Presentation
skills
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Level
Writing
Reading
Word
Handwriting
Spelling
Phonics
Pronunciation
Word recognition
Vocabulary
Word comprehension
Sentence Word order
Punctuation
Use of tenses
Understanding tenses
Getting meaning from
context
Text
Text comprehension
Picking up detail
Skimming
Scanning
Paragraphing
Register
Use of
connectives
Ordering
information
Understanding
relevance
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Speaking and
listening
Presentation
skills
Intonation
Use of
vocabulary
Body language
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Reflecting on literacy
• How can we improve our learners’…
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vocabularies?
spelling of key terms?
punctuation?
grammar (sentence level writing)?
reading confidence?
confidence producing written assignments (planning, drafting,
paragraphing, lay-out, proofreading, editing)?
– confidence in speaking clearly?
• You will find some ideas on the next slides
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…vocabularies
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Encourage (or require) students to keep A-to-Z vocabulary
note books of key terms and definitions
Have regular quizzes (oral or written, teacher or student led) of
the meaning of key terms
Get students to make posters of key terms and their
definitions and post these around the classroom
Encourage students to read as much as possible and to report
back and recommend books
Have a weekly or fortnightly slot where students quiz each
other on new words they have found
Widen your own use of vocabulary in your teaching and
resources
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…spelling of key terms
1. Encourage or require students to keep spelling
books where they record and practice the spelling
of key terms (and have quizzes/create games to
practice these)
2. Have regular (if short) spelling strategies
sessions where develop students’ repertoire of
strategies
3. Display these key terms around the classroom,
getting students to make the displays if possible
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…punctuation
1. Make/get posters about the use of each
punctuation mark and display
2. Circle/code these as punctuation errors, but get
learners to correct themselves- or peer correct
3. Look at students’ work and use punctuation
difficulties as the basis for group punctuation
workshops
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…grammar (sentence level writing)
1. Teach the term ‘Standard English’ and the potential
differences between Standard English and other
dialects of English
2. Circle /code grammar errors, but get learners to
correct themselves- or peer correct
3. Look at students’ work and use Standard English
grammar difficulties as the basis for group
workshops
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…speaking and listening
1. Realistic role plays: job interviews, making a
complaint to a bank, call centre work
2. Imaginative role plays: media interviews with
people in the news, celebrities, etc
3. Debates: get students to choose topics
4. Drama: plays and poetry reading – build in
performance evaluation by students
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Activity: literacy and language
•
See Activity sheet, small group discussions on
literacy and language
•
Note, there are similar discussions on maths, ICT
and Study Skills suggested below
•
Select what is most important to your group and
you can fit in to the available time for this session.
If necessary, plan this for future discussions
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2. Everyday maths
• Planning practical activities,
eg timetables, fares,
currency, baggage weight,
shopping, bargain offers,
comparing prices
• Budgeting, eg rent, gas,
electricity, water, council tax,
Christmas
• Wages and PAYE
• Sports statistics, league
tables
• Statistics and numbers eg in
the news
Embedding learning
• Measurements, proportions,
enlargement, symmetry
• Angles, directions,
orientation, maps
• Scale and ratios
• Using estimates
• Timelines – history
• Averages and percentages
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Everyday maths examples
• Choose topics relevant to students, that they have
reported as giving them difficulties. These could be:
– Estimating: eg amount of wood needed to make a cupboard
– Scaling: doubling the quantities in recipes
– Discounts and price comparisons: how much do you really
save?
– Sharing out café or restaurant bills
– Calculating calories
– Betting odds: how much will you win or lose?
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Activity: everyday maths
•
See Activity sheet, small group discussions on
everyday maths
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3. Everyday ICT
• Searching the web
• Storing and accessing
favourite sites
• Using DVDs and CDs
• Using BBC iplayer
• Using Youtube
• Using Facebook
• Using Twitter
• Word-processing
• Sending emails
• Reading and writing blogs
• Using smartphones
Embedding learning
• Attaching files to emails
• Inserting pictures and video
clips into documents
• Organising contacts in Outlook
• Using Skype
 Organise classroom
discussions about which of
these are most important
and the most useful
 Build on existing skills
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Activity 3
•
See Activity sheet for small group discussions
on everyday ICT
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4. Study skills
•
•
•
•
Reading and using written materials
Producing written assignments
Note-taking (from classes or from writing)
Folder/work organisation
How can we develop these study skills?
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Activity 4
•
See Activity sheet, small group discussions on
study skills
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Reading and using written materials
1. Get students to think as widely as possible about
what reading is or involves, perhaps making
posters
2. Encourage students to identify own strengths and
areas for development; create personal action
plans to address these
3. Teach and review the terms skimming, scanning,
close reading, summarising and note-taking and
practice these using subject specific materials
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Producing written assignments
1.
Be explicit about the requirements of each written
assignment
2.
Explore or teach steps to producing a piece of written work,
emphasising that drafting, outlining, proofreading are important
3.
Encourage writing ‘buddies’ or other forms of collaborative
pairings for peer support
4.
Look at examples of successful pieces of writing and explore
what makes these successful
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Note-taking
1. Teach examples of different styles of note-taking
(sentences, key words, diagrammatical...)
2. Give examples of notes taken and ask students to
evaluate the strengths and challenges of each
3. Encourage students to experiment with different
coloured pens, pencils, highlighters and ICT to
‘repackage’ their notes
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Folder or work organisation
1. Show examples/models of organised folders
2. Give direct instruction of how to organise work
3. Discuss folder/work organisation in tutorials
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Activity 5
• Feedback activity – see Activity sheet. You will need
to prepare for this before the session by bringing in
some of your students’ work.
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Guidelines for effective written feedback

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Be selective: prioritise, don’t highlight everything
Be specific: make precise points using examples
Include both strengths and areas for development
Think about word, sentence and text levels
Using a marking code if appropriate
Be developmental: link to future work
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Activity 6
• Please refer to Activity 6 – planning a teaching
session
• Alternatively, this could be a follow-on activity in your
next CPD session
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Activity 7: Evaluation & Plenary –
rounding up the session
• Please note the three most important points you have
learned from this session, and how it will make a
difference to your teaching in the future
• Identify and share specific areas of your own skills
and knowledge that you want to develop, in relation
to embedding the minimum core in your teaching
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Materials in this CPD were devised by the following members of the
Institute of Education:
Brian Creese (numeracy),
Jay Derrick (assessment and embedding),
Jane Hurry (motivation and exit strategies),
Maria Kambouri (ICT),
Irene Schwab (literacy) and
John Vorhaus (continuing professional development and learner
contexts)
Helpful suggestions and comments were made by Joe Shamash and
Olivia Varley-Winter at City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development.
If you would like to contact us please email
Jane Hurry at j.hurry@ioe.ac.uk
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The CPD Framework
An outline of the sessions
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