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Dulwich Hamlet Junior School
Learning conversations through joint lesson planning and lesson review
Dulwich Hamlet Junior School is an oversubscribed three form entry junior school in Southwark.
What do they do?
The school requires all teachers to plan their lessons together, seeing this as an opportunity for learning conversations.
How does it happen?
Directed time each week includes one twilight session (with food!) where the three teachers in each year group work together to plan the following week’s teaching. In some year groups, one teacher will take responsibility for teaching a particular session or subject across all three classes, but the session is planned with the teachers from all classes so they can learn from the person who is most confident. In other year groups, the team leader will write up the notes of the group onto the weekly planner.
What’s been the result?
The teachers at Dulwich Hamlets talk about these planning sessions as one of the most helpful forms of professional development they have had. One teacher gives as an example: “You say to one of the others ‘have you tried that activity? It was a nightmare’ and if they say ‘it worked really well for me’ then you have to ask yourself what it was about the way you did the activity that made it go less well. You really reflect on your teaching.” The teachers talk about the power of accessing the experience of 3 people rather than just one before making a decision, and the range of areas they discuss – the curriculum, organisational approaches such as ability grouping, children’s different learning styles.
Some team leaders model this reflection explicitly – one new teacher talked about the way that their team leader comes back sometimes the day after the planning meeting and says, “I’ve been thinking about [some activity] and I don’t think it will work like that. How about…?”. This shows that planning isn’t a one-off, get-it-right-first-time activity, but part of a process.
Other teachers talk about the motivation which comes from these conversations. ‘Somebody will be excited by something and that rubs off on the rest of us.’
- Are opportunities taken to learn from each other through lesson planning and review in your school?
- Are there other parts of routine practice which give opportunities you could take for professional development?
