Sharing criteria with learners
Awareness of criteria
Teachers are aware that in teaching and learning there is the need for a shift from…
'What am I going to teach and what are the pupils going to do?'
towards…
'How am I going to teach this and what are the pupils going to learn?'
Make clear what is to be learned (the learning intention) and how to recognise success (the success criteria).
Learning intention
The learning intention is what teachers hope pupils will know, understand or be able to do by the end of the lesson. By sharing the learning intention, the purpose of the lesson is made known to the pupil and allows the pupil to share much of the responsibility for the learning.
Success criteria
Sharing success criteria with pupils involves them further in their own learning. They are able to make better decisions about how to go about the task if they are absolutely sure of the criteria the teacher will use to judge their work.
Teachers need to make pupils aware of what good-quality work looks like. They need to know why their work is at a specific level and what they need to do to get it to the next level. Tasks allocated to pupils often do not allow them to demonstrate the skills needed to achieve a certain level.
The success criteria must be well linked to the learning intention and the task should enable the learner to demonstrate the skills required to achieve success.
Assessment is for Learning project - Gordon Schools
The sharing of learning intentions and success criteria encourages pupils to become active learners, to take responsibility for, and manage, their own learning. This was the development focus of an AifL project in the Gordon Schools, Aberdeenshire.
Contributions from Gillian Tinning, Belmont Academy; Liz Scott, Scottish CILT; Myra Young, SEED