[P]rofessor John Hattie, the world-leading education academic renowned for promoting evidence-based research to maximise children’s learning, is venturing up north to the University of Cumbria in Lancaster for a conference this June.
The conference, ‘What the best schools know and do’, is taking place on Thursday 15 June and in his first keynote speech John Hattie will cover ‘Visible Learning’ research and how it transforms school improvement. Visible Learning is what happens when a teacher sees learning through the eyes of the child, and the child becomes their own teacher. In Hattie’s second keynote speech, he will address how collective belief of teaching staff in schools is the number one impetus for children’s learning, and will offer attendees a framework to triple the speed of learning.
The conference is brought jointly by the University of Cumbria’s Institute for Education and Osiris Educational, the UK’s leading independent training provider for teachers. It will give head teachers, school leaders and educationalists in the North West a valuable opportunity to hear from the world’s leading education research academic without the inconvenience of travelling to London.
Pete Boyd, Professor of Professional Learning in the Institute of Education at the University of Cumbria, said: “We are really excited to be working with Osiris Educational to bring John Hattie all the way from Melbourne to our Lancaster campus. Teachers need to become more aware of research evidence and more able to question what it means for the children in their school. Professor Hattie’s work is all about expert teachers making sense of the research evidence to develop powerful learning in their classroom”.
Professor Hattie, who is director of the Research Institute at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, explains: “What the school system needs most is to stop focusing on how to teach and start focusing on how to identify what we already do best and how to scale it up. We now know collective efficacy is the number one factor for school improvement, yet so little research goes into implementation and scalability to support meaningful collaboration.
“But it is tough and is only going to work if we become far more objective in our conversations. They have to be based on impact based on evidence and not subjective preferences. All pupils should make one year’s progress for one year’s input. Can you confidently say that about your school?
“We don’t need to go to Finland, Singapore or Shanghai, best practice is right here in the north west of England.
“I am excited about sharing my experiences from around the world on how great strides can be made for all schools.”
Tickets for the event are on sale now through the Osiris’ website and at a rate of £249 plus VAT using the booking code Jun117, N, VLC, B. The price includes refreshments, lunch, CPD certificate and conference materials.
