Glossary

Searchable glossary containing hundreds of definitions and descriptions of education terms, acronyms and abbreviations used by the LTS online service and in Scottish education.

If there are any others you would like us to include, please send them to us using our feedback form.


Kbps	Kilobits per second. A unit of measurement of the amount of information that can be transmitted in one second. 1000 Kilobits = 1 Megabit
Key worker	A member of staff specifically assigned to work with an individual pupil or groups of pupils.
Kinaesthetic learners	People who learn best by moving their bodies and using their muscles. Often known as hands-on learners, they are able to learn more easily when movement is involved. Frequently labelled as hyperactive as children, these individuals will wiggle, or move around as they sit. They tend to do well in professions which involve physical activity or working with their hands.
Kinaesthetic learning	Learning through hands-on opportunities and movement. This type of learner likes activity-based, practical, investigative learning. Kinaesthetic learners enjoy: moving around when they are studying, practising problems and examples, making models, carrying out experiments and practical activities, practising skills such as arts and crafts, showing other people how something is done.
King's College research	Highly influential metaresearch published in 1998 led by Professor Paul Black and Professor Dylan Wiliam from King’s College in London that has become the stimulus for formative assessment practices. Black and Wiliam argued that teaching and learning is an interactive process, and that teachers must understand their pupils' difficulties and progress. Assessment can result from a range of evidence – from observation and discussion, as well as from written work.
Kolb's Learning style model	A learning styles model that explores the way in which learners take in and then process information. It identifies four types of learners: Concrete/reflective, Abstract/reflective, Abstract/active, Concrete/active.
KWL grids	A technique that helps pupils chart what they know about a subject, then list questions they might want to investigate, and finally what they have learned. (Know/Want/Learn)