MFLE
Glossary
Keyword search
| Fair questioning | A wide, open and inclusive approach to receiving responses to questions. In one sense this might mean allowing everyone in a group the opportunity to answer or respond to a question, and not accepting answers from only 'star' pupils or those who insist on answering before others. In another it can mean questioning which takes appropriate account of pupils' experience, including school work and social and cultural background; or that which does not aim to 'trick' them into providing answers based on ignorance of the topic. |
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| FE (Further Education) | Post-school, mainly vocational education, offered through 46 FE colleges, which are grant-aided, directly or indirectly, by the Scottish Government. The funding agency set up by the Scottish Government for this purpose is known as the Scottish Further Education Funding Council. |
| Feedback | The process of providing a structured response, with information about work in terms of strengths and aspects for improvement. Feedback can be written or oral. However, the aim is to bridge the gap between present performance and desired goal, and is instrumental in moving towards next steps in learning. Feedback will only be effective in moving learning forward if it provides constructive advice and learners are allowed the opportunity to read it and act on it. |
| Fibre-optic cable/Fibre | A way of transmitting data or voice signals that uses glass or plastic fibres rather than copper wire. The signal is generated by pulses from a laser or light emitting diode. Fibre-optic cable has a much greater bandwidth than copper. |
| firewall | A security system designed to prevent unauthorised access to a computer network. Not only can it stop hackers getting in, it can also be used to restrict what you see on the internet and what kinds of files you receive. |
| Focus group | Generally, a small group of participants, usually no more than 12, invited to examine and provide feedback on an issue in the presence of a moderator. A school might work with focus groups of staff, pupils or parents to identify school improvement issues. In teaching, the phrase might refer to small group tutorials focusing on an identified area of weakness or a particular skill or aspect of knowledge. |
| FOI (Freedom of Information) | A term used to refer to the rights of the individual to obtain recorded information from public bodies either under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. |
| FOISA (Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002) | This Act was introduced by the Scottish Parliament to ensure that people have the right to access information held by Scottish public authorities. The Act states that any person can receive information that they request from a public authority, subject to certain exemptions such as protection of personal data, commercial confidentiality or national security. It came into force on 1 January 2005. |
| Formative assessment | Assessment which focuses on the gap between present performance and desired goal. To be formative, the information gathered must be used to adapt the teaching or the learning to meet the needs of the learner. In the 5-14 national assessment guidance, this type of activity is called 'assessment as part of teaching'. In the AifL - Assessment is for learning programme, it is called 'assessment for learning'. |
| Formative use of summative assessment | Summative assessments, such as end-of-unit tests, used formatively with an emphasis on using the information gathered to support the learner in future learning, for example in identifying next steps in learning revealed in the test. |
| Freeware | Software that can be downloaded from the internet free of charge. |
| FTP File transfer protocol | File transfer protocol is the simplest way to exchange files between computers on an intranet or the internet. It is commonly used to download programs and other files from a server to a computer. |
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