The CoL Hypothesis/Agreement; Getting in behind the problem

In this post, I want to discuss the CoL Hypothesis/Agreement and how this fits with Tamaki and Manaiakalani Data and in forming a related Inquiry.

CoL Hypothesis/Agreement

Getting in behind the problem

Language acquisition, development, sustaining & transfer

Learning Design including

• Formative practice
• Progressional understanding
• Effective planning for learning

Focusing on Language acquisition, development, sustaining and transfer will hopefully give us the biggest bang of our buck not only in raising student achievement in writing in the Junior years but across the curriculum. Not only this but it creates wonderings of the effects this will have on students achievement as they progress through their schooling, building on the foundations that have been acquired early on.

Welcome To School: A Study of Conditions of Disadvantage on Entry to School in the Manaiakalani Kahui Ako (2017) shows

"Most children in Tamaki start school at a developmental level of 3-4 years: i.e. without the developmental and communication skills needed to achieve at expected levels. This is reflected in the achievement data for this community from school entry and beyond. The gap between expected and actual achievement expands as children progress throughout school" (Burt & Leversha, 2017)

This is evident in our Junior classrooms as students struggle to communicate their ideas. Students use silence, one, two word utterances, gestures, lack understanding of plurals and prepositions and understanding of syntax and semantics. Sentences are often short and tangled and consist of simple vocabulary.

When trying to verbalise your ideas is difficult, writing can then be even harder.

For me, addressing Achievement Challenge 2: Lifting the achievement for boys' writing Years 1-10, and getting in behind the problem at a Junior Level means focusing my teaching practice intensively on oral language acquisition. If we can raise achievement in this area, transference into writing will not only be seen but also transference across the curriculum where communication is equally important.