TME Guidelines & Policies

In TME we plan learning and teaching with a view to enabling each student to achieve their highest level of personal achievement. To ensure that this happens, we undertake regular monitoring of the actions we have taken, so that we are able to make an accurate judgement about how effective these actions have been.

Our procedures for monitoring and evaluation give us information we use to make future decisions about the development of our schools.

We monitor systematically across a range of activities and across all subjects within our schools. We do this because we believe that effective monitoring:

• Promotes excellent learning and teaching throughout our schools
• Ensures excellent implementation of the TMS curriculums
• Identifies the strengths and needs for professional development of teachers
• Offers an opportunity to celebrate progress and success of students and schools
• Ensures consistency of provision and quality of teaching throughout our schools
• Ensures that every student is appropriately challenged to reach their full potential

What is monitored?

• Students’ progress – day-to-day progress in workbooks in line with marking
• Assessment information
• Coverage and progression through the curriculum
• Use of resources
• Quality of the learning experience
• Students’ in-class activities
• Teachers’ effectiveness in engaging learners in learning
• Classroom organisation
• Teacher-student relationships
• Helping teachers identify their strengths and weaknesses

Evaluation

This is the judgement on the effectiveness of the items having been monitored, based on their impact on the quality of learners’ learning. We make evaluations based on reflections of the following fundamental questions:

• How well are we doing?
• How well should we be doing?
• What more can we focus on achieving?
• What changes and developments must make to raise our achievements?

Quality of Provision

• Planning demonstrates a focus on developing 21st Century skills (communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creative thinking, problem-solving, application of technology) which are being delivered effectively
• Planning is effective, showing clear learning objectives and outcomes, success criteria and assessment
• The teaching reflects the learning outcomes, success criteria and assessment, and this is clearly outlined to learners
• A range of teaching strategies are used which are appropriate to achieving the learning objectives and outcomes. As a result of effective teaching approaches:
  • Challenging tasks are carefully designed to match all students’ learning needs resulting in high levels of engagement throughout the lesson
  • Teachers foster students’ sense of curiosity, creativity and enthusiasm for learning
  • Learners use a range of learning styles throughout lessons and can talk about those approaches that help them learn well
  • Learners are given the opportunity to work independently and collaboratively
  • Learners develop their knowledge, skills and understanding across a range of subjects/content areas
• The teachers have a very good knowledge of their subject(s) and create a conducive climate for learning.
  As a result of this:
  • All students behave well and show respect for the teacher and their peers
  • Students are encouraged to speak and question with confidence and respect
  • Students display commitment, determination to succeed, independence, self-belief and self-confidence
  • Rewards and sanctions to manage behavior are used consistently, fairly and in a timely manner to create and maintain a positive and safe learning environment for all
  • Students are punctual to lessons
• The teachers provide opportunities for learners to develop into independent learners.
  As a result of independent learning strategies:
  • Students are curious, enquiring and willing to learn new things
  • Students are able to take risks and make mistakes in their learning
  • Students can persevere with a task or challenge even when it is perceived as being very challenging
  • Students collaborate and discuss in pairs and groups, developing subject specific knowledge/understandings as well as their speaking and listening skills
  • Students are inspired to undertake homework tasks to develop their subject skills and knowledge to a greater depth
• Suitability and effectiveness of homework (reinforcement activities)
• Teachers have high expectations for learning from all students.
  As a result of high expectations and challenge in lessons:
  • The previous knowledge, skills and understanding of all learners is seen to be extended within the lesson and over the course of the curriculum implementation
  • Students take the initiative for their learning and participate actively in their lessons
  • Pace and depth of learning is maximised for all students through effective monitoring of learning throughout each lesson and is accurately matched to actions taken in response to observations regarding learners’ progress and feedback
  • Questions asked in lessons are targeted and differentiated to extend and challenge all learners
  • Learners ask questions and seek clarification of the teacher and of each other in lessons

Professional Growth and Development

A well-functioning school requires a leader who:

• Maintains and further develops own leadership competence through continuing professional development
• Reflects on, and develops, their own practice as leaders of learning
• Builds professional networks with other Heads in TME

School Management

A well-functioning school requires a leader who:

• Manages human, financial and physical resources and organisational structures and strategies to create and maintain the school as a learning organisation
• Fosters ethical standards of teacher behavior and practice, implements the values of the organization and demonstrates fairnes.
• Maintains a climate of well-being that enables and supports learning, and ensures the safe functioning of the school on a day-to-day basis

Quality of Leadership

TMS schools need competent individuals who can provide direction, guidance and support in their school’s performance in providing quality learning opportunities for all learners.
In this regard, school leadership needs to be a unifying focus for all staff and activities in a school, providing the impetus for sustained, high-quality provision.
Effective TMS school leadership is monitored against key principles about what is required in order to ensure effective teaching and learning in TMS schools. These principles are:

• School heads demonstrate a set of core professional values that include commitment to the professional role, inspiring trust, ensuring care, professional integrity and respect for all
• Having a clear understanding and knowledge of the core work of TME schools, the values, vision and mission of the organization, which forms the foundation for the continuous development of a successful teaching and learning culture in school
• The ability to manage the school environment, structures and resources in ways that enable the development of a successful teaching and learning culture in school
• The ability to distribute leadership responsibilities among staff in order to build leadership capacity and effective teams in school, with a view to sustainability and succession planning
• Demonstrating an understanding that the school head is the lead learner in school, who manages the creation, sharing and review of the strategic vision, ethos and aims of the organisation across the whole of the school provision
• The ability to inspire and create a commitment to constant improvement through modelling and communicating the practice of reflection and self-evaluation

The principles of leadership are further divided into the following key practice elements that should be regularly monitored:

Leading Learning and Teaching

A well-functioning school requires a leader who:

• Creates a culture of professional learning among teachers that fosters continuous improvement in teaching and assessment, and students’ learning, as the core function of the school
• Fosters the development of the full range of teacher professional competences, and works to ensure that teacher professional development provided leads to improved student learning in the school
• Develops a school ethos and sets school-centric goals to realise the holistic potential of each learner
• Develops and implements approaches to leadership which promote professional responsibility and accountability
• Manages the effective implementation of the school curriculums

Leading School Development

A well-functioning school requires a leader who:

• Establishes and communicates the mission and vision for the school and empowers and supports others in the school in the achievement of these
• Engages in a continuous process of whole school self-evaluation and designs and implements a strategic school development plan for improvement
• Builds and maintains relationships with parents and the wider school community
• Promotes communication within the school and effectively manages challenging and complex situations
• Manages and leads change

Building Culture, Capacity and Teams

A well-functioning school requires a leader who:

• Promotes a learning culture that fosters improvement, collaboration, innovation and creativity, and recognises and celebrates teachers’ individual and collective contributions and achievements to the school
• Builds teams and empowers all teachers to take on, and carry out, leadership roles, in order to build leadership capacity within the school
• Facilitates the development of learner voice and learner leadership within the school through clubs and societies, and other bodies, such as a learner council.

• There is a clear focus on assessment of/for learning. As a result of this:
• Students are clear about the lesson objectives and how outcomes will be evaluated
• Students can articulate their own short and long term objectives for learning in a lesson and can give examples of how they can effectively work towards them
• Students engage in open, honest and productive dialogue in class about their learning with teachers and peers
• Students use self and peer assessment strategies to reflect on/evaluate their learning against success criteria and make suggestions about how to improve their work
• Students can talk about/demonstrate what they have learned and reflect on what they might need to learn next
• Students can talk about what they do well and what they find difficult
• Students, detailed and accurate written feedback enables all learners to understand how well they are doing and how to improve
• Students respond to written feedback and act on it
• The standards of work in students books reflects progress is being made in relation to their capabilities
• In monitoring and evaluation, there should be scrutiny of students’ work to check that it:
  • reflects teachers’ planning
  • shows evidence of progress through the curriculum
  • clearly illustrates TMS expectations on marking and presentation

During monitoring and evaluation visits, it should be expected that:

• Students follow the agreed school rules/learner code of conduct
• Students participate in extra-curricular activities
• Students work co-operatively and independently in lessons
• Students are polite and demonstrate good manners both in school and when on organised visits and field trips
• Students participate in the life of school, for example, through engagement on the school council, as school representatives etc.

• Audit of curriculum coverage – the subject leads will look at teacher’s planners to check (i) Breadth, balance and relevance of the curriculum (ii) Challenge and progression (iii) Targets relevant to curriculum in the School Development Plan
• Feedback will be formally given to each teacher
• This will follow the pattern of:
  • Analysing the assessments and written work of students
  • Examining the timetable
  • Examining plans for the class over time
  • After the documentation has been examined there should be focused observations based upon issues arising
  • Arising from this audit there should be action points, which should relate to learner needs, curriculum progress, and classroom organisation and this could feed into the school development plan where appropriate

Monitoring and evaluation by the head teacher. The head teacher’s role in monitoring is to:

• Arrange the overall programme and timetable for monitoring each term
  • Ensure planning is effectively monitored
  • Undertake general observations of teaching as well as specific and focused observations of teaching, when required
  • Participate in work scrutiny
  • Discuss successes and areas for improvement
  • Evaluate the implementation of the curriculums and the overall effectiveness of the school

Key aspects of the head teacher’s monitoring and evaluation include:

• The head teacher supports the monitoring of lesson planning across the curriculum
• Lesson observation is carried out regularly to inform the extent of the achievement of targets, assessment judgements regarding learners’ progress and to support school development planning. The purpose of observations by the head teacher is to ascertain the overall quality of teaching in the school and to identify particular strengths in teaching as a whole across the school and areas that require improvement. There are occasions and circumstances in school where additional lesson observations are undertaken by head teachers. These are outlined below:
  • The lesson is inadequate
  • The teacher is facing capability issues
  • The teacher is a new teacher
• • The head teacher meets with coordinator(s) to review lesson plans to ensure that they meet the TME requirements for format and quality.
  • Students’ books are reviewed regularly, where the head teacher focuses on standards of presentation and accurate marking/ assessment. The head teacher undertakes this scrutiny of learners’ work in order to assess standards and the progress learners are making.

As part of this role, subject leads ensure that:

• Areas to be monitored are identified so that a complete ‘picture’ is created across all schools, all teachers and all subjects for each academic year
• The data generated from monitoring and evaluation is collated, analysed and is used to review progress, recognise achievement and inform future planning in the school
• Key information and data (and analyses of what such data and information indicate) is reported to the Director Academics and are able to lead discussion on how such data can be used to best advantage and improve the school
• Student performance data is collected, analysed and used to inform school development planning

• Annual parent questionnaire
• PTM’s
• Formal/Informal meetings and discussions with students

• Classroom Observation:
  Classroom observation by subject leads should take place on a regular basis, defined by Head Office. The purpose of observation is to address identified issues expressed by head teachers and evident from a review of data sources (stated above). The information gathered during observation is given as feedback as soon as possible after the observation. This should be both supportive and developmental.
• Review of teaching planning
  Teacher planning is reviewed before observation. Supportive, developmental feedback is provided as soon as possible after the review
• Review of student’s work
  Student’s work should be reviewed regularly throughout the year on a subject basis. The review is undertaken by curriculum leaders, but can also be undertaken by the school head of school.
• Discussions/ Interviews
  The views of learners and teachers should be collected. This can be done informally but should always be systematically linked to the overall monitoring and evaluation findings.
• Recording
  All monitoring activity should be recorded and must identify any action to be taken as a result of the monitoring.

The purpose of the examination and assessment policy is to ensure the planning and management of examinations and assessment is conducted efficiently and in the best interest of learners by providing clear guidelines for all teachers, administrative staff and learners. It is the responsibility of everyone involved in the examination and assessment processes at TMS to read, understand and implement this policy.

• To provide guidance to teachers and school administration on the collection, analysis and interpretation of information in order to report on the progress of learners
• To illustrate the ways that assessment at TMS should provide evidence of learner performance according to the curriculum learning outcomes
• To support assessment as a means for providing feedback to learners in order to support their learning
• To describe the different forms of assessment such as tests and examinations, projects, oral presentations, performances, investigations, practical work and creative writing that can be used to accommodate different learning style

Principles

In this light, we believe that the following objectives underpin our assessments:

• Assessment monitors the progress of learner learning and achievement through a course of learning
• Assessment produces clear and easy-to-understand feedback for learners, parents, teachers and school management
• It informs curriculum and assessment review

To realise these objectives, we further recognise that learners:

• Have differing learning styles
• Have different learning experiences, expectations and needs
• Perform differently according to the context of learning
• Need to know their achievements and areas for improvement in the learning process
• Should receive feedback that is positive and constructive

Throughout learners’ progress through the curriculum and the teaching of the curriculum, assessment should therefore:

• Provide, as far as is practical, a wide variety of different assessment opportunities and to be relevant and motivating to learners
• Use learning objectives and outcomes
• Be made clear to learners by teachers before assessments begin
• Measure what learners understand, what they can do and what they know
• Be both formative (to assist learners in building understanding, skills and knowledge) and summative (to assess learners’ acquired understanding, skills and knowledge)
• Be on-going and support learners’ reflection on what has been learned and how it has been learned (metacognition)
• Allow learners to evaluate their progress and be involved in setting targets for their improvement
• Allow the school to evaluate the measure of success in meeting specific learning objectives as defined by the curriculum
• Be focused on evaluation of a broad range of concepts, attitudes, understandings and skills
• Be appropriate to an international and increasingly complex world

Assessment and feedback are integral to supporting effective learner learning. Therefore, assessment should be used to guide learning and provides a key tool for judging performance and the level of learner attainment, both to the learner through formative assessment and feedback and to the school and parents through summative assessment. It is essential, therefore, that well thought-out assessment and feedback is a significant tool for influencing learner learning through guiding a learner’s study practices and rewarding the learner for developing the skills, knowledge and abilities valued by TMS.

Principle 2

Effective and efficient assessment and feedback must be central to each curriculum. In order to maximise the benefits to learners, teachers and school management from effective and efficient assessment, the development of assessment and feedback should be a core part of teachers’ lesson planning. Assessment and feedback should relate clearly and directly to course aims and learning outcomes. Assessment tasks should encourage effective learner learning and should require learners to engage with the subject material through spending ‘time and effort’ on challenging learning tasks.
Furthermore, effective assessment results from teachers ensuring that proper consideration is given to assessment across the entirety of a course, ensuring the amount of assessment is consistent with a reliable and valid achievement profile for each learner. It is therefore important that assessments are scheduled carefully during the academic session and the volume of work required does not overload teachers or learners at any time.

Principle 3

Assessment should be valid, reliable and consistent. This principle requires assessment tasks to be chosen carefully to ensure they assess the outcomes specified in the curriculums and for information about assessment tasks to be clear, explicit, accurate and timely.
Valid assessments are ones that measure all or part of the stated outcomes of a course. A valid form of assessment is one which, as far as possible, measures what it is supposed to measure. For example, it does not assess memory, when it is supposed to be assessing problem-solving.
Reliable assessment will produce the same (or very similar) results with a learner if they were re-tested, meaning it is consistent in its methods and criteria. It is recognised by management that absolute reliability and validity is not possible, but that assessments should aim to meet the highest standards possible across all TMS.

Principle 4

Opportunities for feedback and formative assessment should be included in all courses. Wherever possible learners should have opportunities to receive feedback on their progress and have the opportunity to use that feedback to close any gap between actual and expected performance. Formative feedback from teachers can be written, electronic or verbal, and individual or to a group. Specific formative tasks may be developed such as quizzes or short tests, or teachers may incorporate feedback within their teaching activities.
In some cases, it may be appropriate that formative and summative assessment are combined, for example, an interim assessment before a final end of term summative assessment.

Assessment and feedback are integral to supporting effective learner learning. Therefore, assessment should be used to guide learning and provides a key tool for judging performance and the level of learner attainment, both to the learner through formative assessment and feedback and to the school and parents through summative assessment. It is essential, therefore, that well thought-out assessment and feedback is a significant tool for influencing learner learning through guiding a learner’s study practices and rewarding the learner for developing the skills, knowledge and abilities valued by TMS.

Throughout learners’ progress through the curriculum and the teaching of the curriculum, assessment should therefore:

• Provide, as far as is practical, a wide variety of different assessment opportunities and to be relevant and motivating to learners
• Use learning objectives and outcomes
• Be made clear to learners by teachers before assessments begin
• Measure what learners understand, what they can do and what they know
• Be both formative (to assist learners in building understanding, skills and knowledge) and summative (to assess learners’ acquired understanding, skills and knowledge)
• Be on-going and support learners’ reflection on what has been learned and how it has been learned (metacognition)
• Allow learners to evaluate their progress and be involved in setting targets for their improvement
• Allow the school to evaluate the measure of success in meeting specific learning objectives as defined by the curriculum
• Be focused on evaluation of a broad range of concepts, attitudes, understandings and skills
• Be appropriate to an international and increasingly complex world

Principle 5

Feedback should be high quality and timely. High-quality feedback is constructive and encourages learner self-assessment, reflection and learners making their own judgements against criteria or standards of achievement. It also helps learners to self-correct and encourages motivation. In particular, high quality feedback is distinguished by how it helps to clarify what the learner’s current performance is against course goals and learning outcomes, recognises and specifies the existing achievements of the learner, and suggests possible strategies to enable the learner to move forward in achieving the goals in areas where they are weak. Feedback should reflect performance on the specific piece of work of a learner and provide forward-looking support for on-going learner learning.

At TMS we recognise that learners need to learn the skills to assess their own work and therefore teachers should consider how best to provide suitable support for learners to enable them to become more proficient in this area.

Principle 6

Forms and methods of assessment and feedback should be varied and appropriate. Teachers should ensure a range of assessment and feedback methods are applied across the courses they teach for both summative and formative assessment. Through using a variety of assessment tasks, learners should be encouraged to draw upon a range of skills and abilities, in addition to their knowledge of the subject taught, to demonstrate their ability to apply their knowledge and understanding in new settings, both individually and in groups. This allows learners to make specific links with the Millennium Learner Attributes (See Millennium Learner Attributes Policy).
Appropriate assessment is assessment which asks the right level of question (for example, knowledge, application of knowledge, and mastery of topic). A range of assessment methods should be used to ensure learners can demonstrate the mastery of their subject in a variety of ways.

Where new methods of assessment are introduced, such as peer assessment or e-assessments, at TMS we consider it essential that learners are given the opportunity to practice the form of the assessment to ensure any assessment is measuring their subject knowledge and skills rather than their proficiency in the assessment method.

Principle 7

Schools will provide the appropriate environment and resources to ensure teachers and learners are supported adequately in assessment. This will take the form of school management ensuring that both teachers and learners have access to clear information about their assessment and feedback.

Principle 8

Roles and responsibilities for both teachers and learners should be communicated clearly. For assessment and feedback to work effectively both teachers and learners must have clear roles and responsibilities to play and these will be clearly displayed or documented before any assessment or displayed outside examination rooms.

The roles and responsibilities should be reinforced by teachers when briefing learners on assessment whether in class or through documentation.

• Teachers are responsible for monitoring and carefully managing the workload of learners in conjunction with the TMS annual academic calendar
• Assessments must be moderated to ensure quality and accuracy of standards
• Timely notifying of parents in cases of learners’ under-performing is essential
• Each teacher is required to keep evidence of assessments

The expectation is that all learners will:

• Have transparent and clear information about what is being assessed, how they will be assessed and how the information from assessment will be used
• Be assessed formatively and summatively, in a range of ways that supports their learning across the full spectrum of learning outcomes associated with their courses
• Receive timely and useful feedback for all assessments (including examinations) that feeds forward into improvement of performance

A key benchmark we set for ourselves at TMS is the on-going monitoring of our professional attributes as teachers. To this end, we have developed a list of five ‘Teacher Attributes’ which describe the effective characteristics and behaviours expected of a professional educator working in TMS. These five attributes are reflected upon in annual appraisals.

Our expectation is that all TMS teachers should exhibit these professional attributes in all their teaching and interactions throughout the life of the school in which they work. In this way we aim to set the highest standards of teaching in our schools, so that we can be viewed as a role model of excellent provision. These attributes reflect our understanding that we see the work of school Heads and teachers as central to achieving these high standards and excellent provision.

We see these professional attributes not as something to be simply achieved, but as forming a framework for reflection and action towards providing the best education experience for our students.

Students’ language proficiency is a valued component of TMS. We understand that students’ language (linguistic competence) and communication skills serve as a foundation to their cognitive, emotional and social development in school, and also are essential areas for preparing them for future learning and life. Good language skills are the basis for later academic achievement. Furthermore, having good language skills enable students to discuss their needs, experiences, ideas and feelings about their learning.

TMS is committed to supporting multilingualism as a fundamental part of increasing intercultural understanding and global citizenship.

With these principles in mind, TMS has written this language and speech policy to provide a framework that will ensure that the school’s values and aims in relation to access and multilingualism are reflected in every school’s activities.
With this language and speech policy we define the ways in which we provide support to our schools and teachers for the implementation of its foreign languages provision. It defines four levels of support: two for working languages (English and Urdu) and two for foreign languages (Chinese and German).

By instituting this policy, TMS aims to achieve a common understanding of language learning and communication across all levels of the school. In so doing, this policy provides support and focus for planning, teaching, assessing and curriculum development with respect to languages and communication in all areas of the school.

In terms of languages and communication, TMS aims:

• To develop students’ communication skills that lay the foundation for future language learning
• To develop linguistic competence in English and Urdu, extend their knowledge of how language works and explore differences and similarities between languages
• To enhance students’ awareness of the multilingual and multicultural world and introduce an international dimension to students’ learning, giving them an insight into their own culture and those of others
• To provide a medium for cross-curricular links and for reinforcement of knowledge, skills and understanding developed in other subjects
• To foster positive attitudes towards foreign language learning
• To form a sound basis for further study of languages

English

• English (in both written and spoken forms) is the medium of instruction throughout TMS
• All students study English, including those students who require extra English language learning support
• All students learn language scope and sequence in line with the Cambridge Primary and Secondary English courses, as well as the IB where this is offered, which are all based on recognised standards. These courses aim to develop the skills of reading, writing, listening, speaking, language foundations, and media literacy through engaging students in learning tasks using authentic contexts and assessments
• Cambridge IGCSE, English as a Second Language is offered
• A formative assessment of English language proficiency should be used to determine if a student’s use of English is below the expected level for the grade they are in, or entering. Additional support may be offered by the school to support a student to adjust to the school culture and achieve their grade level expectations for English
• Progress in the acquisition of English should be regularly reported to parents

Urdu

• Urdu is taught as a separate subject in schools
• All teachers should ensure that students have access to developing Urdu proficiency in reading and writing
• It is important that all students are provided with opportunities to develop confidence and competence with speaking and writing Urdu

Foreign Languages

• Chinese and German are curriculum additions at TMS
• Students have regular forty minute lessons of Chinese and German each week, in order to ensure progression and skills development. These lessons are taught by specialist German teachers and native Chinese speakers, supplied by an outside agency (CRI).

The curriculum

• German and Chinese are the modern foreign languages taught in our school.
  The curriculum that is followed ensures that students are taught to know and understand how to:
• Ask and answer questions
• Use correct pronunciation and intonation
• Remember key vocabulary
• Interpret meaning
• Understand basic grammar
• Work in pairs and groups, and communicate effectively in the foreign language
• Look at life in another culture
• During foreign language lessons, students are given the opportunity to work as a class, as individuals and as part of a group. The choice of class organisation is determined by the learning task set by the language teacher. By its nature, foreign language learning should involve a great deal of interaction with visual, auditory and kinesthetic prompts provided by the teacher

Teaching and Learning Styles

Throughout their studies at TMS, students have developed a solid grounding in the knowledge of English, including grammatical awareness and knowledge of some grammatical terms. The teaching of Chinese and German takes account of this and consolidates and builds on this work where appropriate. Students should be encouraged to increase their knowledge of how foreign language work and to explore differences and similarities between the languages they are learning and English or Urdu.

Students learn in many ways and to accommodate this, a variety of teaching approaches should be used including songs and rhymes, games, pictures, video and audio material, ICT resources etc.

We should also encourage students to share their experiences of other languages and cultures, and find things out for themselves.
Students should work individually, in pairs, small groups and in whole class situations according to the activity designed by the teacher. Work is mainly oral in the lower grade levels, but an increasing number of reading and writing tasks are included as students progress through the grade levels.

On occasion, teachers should consider having students recorded on audio and video to playback for reinforcement and reflection.
TMS language teachers are expected to use multi-modal approaches for teaching (i.e. visual, auditory, reading and kinaesthetic approaches). Teachers should consider using a physical element in their teaching by adding games, rhymes and songs as these serve to reinforce memory.

For developing communicative competence in foreign languages, teachers must make lessons as enjoyable as possible so that students develop a positive attitude to the learning of the foreign languages.

Planning

The curriculums for Chinese and German are designed to ensure continuity, progression and differentiation.

Assessment

In-class assessments are ongoing and continuous and inform future planning by the course teacher. It will follow the guidelines established in the TMS Assessment and Examination Policy.
Teachers should assess students’ progress informally during lessons, evaluating the progress of each student against the following themes, in this sequence of priority:

• Proficiency with listening and responding
• Speaking
• Reading and Responding
• Writing

Comments on their progress in Chinese and German should be made in reports to parents

Teachers’ command of the subject

An essential starting point is that teachers’ expertise in their subject is at least at, but ideally beyond, the level required for the courses they teach. A lack of subject knowledge and a deficiency in subject pedagogy are likely to have a negative impact on what students learn and achieve. Teachers also need a good command of the assessment requirements of the awarding body in subjects and courses that are examined or otherwise externally assessed.

Teachers’ knowledge is also demonstrated in the way they:

• explain concepts and ideas in easy-to-understand ways that students can understand, and answer their questions accurately
• make the subjects they teach relevant to students by drawing on first-hand experience from a variety of contexts including the world of work and links with other subjects, and supporting students’ capacity to apply what they learn in different situations
• provide additional challenge for more able students and offer appropriate and useful support for students who need additional support
• choose and use the most relevant resources to interest and challenge students, and which provide opportunities for students to study independently

Teachers plan lessons with clear learning objectives and relevant and appropriate teaching strategies

Effective lesson plans should reflect the teachers’ understanding of what needs to be learned, and how they will teach it to their students. A teacher’s lesson planning should indicate that thought has been given to how knowledge, understanding and skills are acquired by students. Consequently, it will be judged by how well it supports learning rather than its format or structure.

The learning objectives that a teacher writes should:

• be clear
• build on what has gone before
• be easily understood by students
• support flexibility in achieving them
• take account of students’ differing needs

NOTE: Teachers should consider making sure their objectives are S.M.A.R.T.

Planned activities in a lesson should be:

• aligned to meet the objectives of the lesson
• intentional, meaningfuland useful.
• Focused on ensuring Student development and advancement
• activities that build on previous activities and avoid being repetitive, enabling students to engage with, and develop, their skills, knowledge and understandings in different ways.
• active, constructive, intentional, authentic, and support students working in cooperative ways.

Effective teachers interest, encourage and engage students

Teachers’ abilities to engage students is seen in students’ attentiveness, how well they engage in activities throughout a lesson, the extent to which they persist with trying to solve problems, and how eager they are to ask and answer questions throughout a lesson. Students’ interest is also evident in the care they show in their written work. A teachers’ own enthusiasm for the subject they teach will strongly influence students’ perceptions regarding it, and their level of interest in the subject. A good teacher will lead imaginative lessons that motivate Students.

A good teacher therefore:

• manages and motivates reluctant Students
• relates well to all Students in a class
• encourages students to try out new tasks and work independently
• values what students know and say
• Teaching which does not stimulate interest, encourage or engage is evident where students are easily distracted or spend time off-task in a lesson, or where students see little relevance in what they are doing.

Effective teachers challenge students

Effective teachers have high expectations which extend students intellectually and creatively. Teachers show high expectations by:

• teaching in ways that match students’ learning needs and help them attain the curriculum targets
• using higher order questioning that provides challenge and extends students’ thinking
• modelling subject specific thinking
• using materials and learning resources creatively and effectively

There is a lack of appropriate challenge in teaching when students are asked to engage in mundane tasks or unnecessary routines and where there is indiscriminate praise or acceptance of work that is not of a good enough. This is evident in students’ work that is always marked right and is too easy.

Teachers use methods and resources that enable students to learn effectively

Methods, resources and organisation of a lesson should result in high standards of work and behaviour. An effective range of methods and resources include:

• ways of teaching and resources that excite, inspire and motivate students to contribute and develop their ideas
• multi-modal teaching strategies
• good explanation, demonstration and questioning that informs deep learning and probes understanding
• practical work, investigations and problem-solving activities that develop students’ skills and creativity
• careful grouping of students enabling collaboration
• good quality materials that help students learn
• opportunities for students to apply what they learn
• thoughtful and useful integration of ICT to support learning

Where methods and resources are not being used effectively, they are either over-directed or being used indiscriminately.

Teachers make effective use of time and insist on high standards of behaviour

Good teaching establishes a productive climate for learning so that the focus in a lesson is on learning rather than controlling behaviour in a classroom, and where students’ contributions are valued. A productive climate is one where:

• a prompt and stimulating start to the lesson;
• clear and efficient organisation of activities and groups;
• fair and clear exercise of authority;
• effective support for students by the teacher or other adults;
• mutual respect and properly established work habits;
• relevant activities that engage the interest of the students;
• an emphasis on self-discipline and mature behaviour;
• consistent and effective implementation of behaviour management policy

Teachers use homework effectively to reinforce and extend what is learned in class

Homework should always complement work in class, extend students’ learning and support students’ achievement. Homework should:

• provide challenge
• be helpful and interesting
• make reasonable assumptions about students access to resources at home

Learning is the outcome of effective teaching combined with students’ ability to persist with learning and their attitudes to school.

Students acquire new knowledge or skills, develop ideas and increase their understanding

There will be times in lessons when teaching will be focused on consolidation of learning (revision), but in most lessons there should be new learning if students are to make progress and achieve. From a series of lessons designed by a teacher, there should also be appropriate coverage of the scheme of work.

Students should:

• be able to explain confidently and clearly what they have learned in a lesson
• be creative and show initiative when asked to apply what they have learned to new situations
• understand how current learning relates to previous work and what might come next
• ask questions that show a desire to continue to learn

Students show engagement, application, concentration and work productively

Students show interest and understanding when teaching is stimulating. Effective teaching relates new learning to what has already been learned, encourages Students to connect ideas and to think imaginatively and critically. In such circumstances, students will work intently and will consistently produce work of a good standard. Good teaching also encourages students to manage their time well and to complete work in the time available.

Students develop wider skillsets, including communication, critical thinking, collaboration and cooperation, creativity and problem-solving   

Good teaching supports learning as follows:

• Students are helped to be more self-reliant
• Students work collaboratively on tasks and share responsibility for completing them
• Students are encouraged to use their time and make the most of the choices they are given
• Students are encouraged to plan their time to complete activities, including homework, to prescribed deadlines
• Students are enabled to select and use the most appropriate tools and equipment for their learning
• Students are supported to focus on the task and are productive when working independently

Teachers assess students’ work thoroughly and constructively

In support of effective teaching, assessment should be used as an informed and planned component of teaching. It should support teachers in understanding students’ strengths and helping teachers to support students in recognising and overcoming their difficulties with learning.

The effective teacher uses assessment strategies as an encouragement for students to comment on and assess their own work, and understand and use the criteria that are being used to assess their work.

Teachers use assessment to inform their planning to meet the learning and development needs of students

Teachers should use assessment to guide their lesson planning through:

• analysing students’ oral and written responses to questions in order to adjust the pace and methods of teaching
• review of students’ progress in knowledge and understanding, including whether learning outcomes are being achieved at the end of each chapter/ unit of work, to inform teaching

Teachers should use assessments as opportunities to regularly review and refine the pacing and the instructional methods they are using. For example:

• Information about students’ progress gathered through assessment should be used as a foundation for checking students’ progress as well as for deciding changes to teaching practice
• Teachers always follow-through on Student assessments in order to provide the maximum support to students
• Teachers use assessment as a reliable means for responding to students underachievement

Students understand how well they are doing and how they can improve

For deep learning, students:

• know that making mistakes always happen and they can be used for improved learning
• understand that work that is always marked as correct may not be challenging enough for them, and ask for more challenging work
• have an honest perception of how they are doing in different subjects which is consistent with that of their teachers and what they need to do to improve

The attributes of the TMS learner define the type of learner that TMS hopes will emerge by studying in our schools, a learner who continues to learn well after leaving school. The TMS learner attributes form the common ground on which all TMS schools stand, and contains the essence of what they are about.

The aims of this policy are to:

• Promote the education of the whole person, emphasising intellectual, personal, emotional and social growth through all domains of knowledge.
• Focus attention on the dynamic combination of knowledge, skills, independent critical thinking and creative thought as underlying principles of educating the whole person
• Place the TMS learner attributes at the centre of all we do in our schools
• Describe a map of a learning journey for all TMS students, focusing attention on the processes and the outcomes of learning
• To provide a clear and explicit statement of what is expected of students as outcomes of learning

The TMS learner attributes are the TMS values and mission statements translated into a set of five descriptions for the 21st Century learner. These attributes should infuse all elements of the education, as well as the culture, provided in all of our schools.

In this light, the policy provides a vision of education. It is a set of ideals of the TMS student that is intended to inspire, motivate and focus the work of school Heads and teachers, with the aim to offer international-standard education. By referring to this policy, it is intended that teachers will be able to draw on a consistent structure of aims and values and an overarching concept of ‘our students’.

The TME learner attributes are important therefore, and lie at the heart of what all schools do, as a clear and concise statement of the aims and values of the education we provide at TMS.

Classroom practices

• Is it possible to create more experiences and opportunities in the classroom that support students to be active and independent learners?
• How much attention do we pay to how students interact with other students in group-work activities?
• Could we give more time to helping students work effectively as part of a team?
• Could we create more opportunities to discuss the ethical issues that arise in the subject(s) we teach in our curriculum?
• How well do we model empathy, compassion and respect for others in our classrooms and around the school?

Assessment

• Informative assessment tasks, do we provide students with enough opportunities to take intellectual risks, and then support them in taking such risks?
• To what extent does the range of assessment strategies we use meet the diverse needs of students and encourage creative and critical thinking?
• Can we provide time for students to reflect on an assessment task and what they have learnt from it?
• What aspects of student development are we reporting on?

Management and Leadership

• Do all our teachers see themselves as responsible for the nurturing of lifelong learners?
• What is the quality of interaction between students and teachers?
• Does the structure of the school day and the timetable facilitate the development of the learner as a 21st Century learner?
• Are support structures in place to oversee the personal, social and emotional welfare of students, as well as their academic development?
• Are students empowered to take responsibility for their own learning?
• Are we investing appropriately in on-going professional development for our teachers?

Sharing practice

All TMS teachers should be willing to explore and share ideas and practices. In this way, we aim to support our teachers as innovative and creative teachers able to play a significant role in developing learner attributes.

To facilitate the sharing of practices and experiences in the realisation of Learner Attributes, school Heads should provide opportunities for teachers to:

• Observe each other’s teaching
• Reflect on, and discuss classroom experiences
• Read and discuss texts and research on education
• Experiment with elements of practice
• Innovate in teaching

Inventories

Learner inventories provide students with on-going opportunities to reflect on, and talk about, themselves as learners. These opportunities help students to develop their self-knowledge, vocabulary about learning and confidence. They should be used at the beginning of the school year, but they must also be used throughout the students’ courses of study; the frequency of this should be decided by the school Head and the subject teachers, based on local contexts.

Each new chapter of study provides a useful opportunity to explore individual attributes. For example, at the beginning of a new chapter in chemistry, ask students to reflect on, and then order, the following choices about how they will approach their learning of the topics in the chapter:

Profiling Learner Attributes

Schools should use observation and/or assessment information to help identify each student’s developmental level and particular challenges in meeting the expectation we set with the Learner Attributes.

School Heads should consider using a profiling approach (any format – table or other can be used).

At TMS school development planning efforts are focused on action. The school development plan (SDP) ensures that there is cohesion and guidance for the actions that are to be taken. Every school Head is required to seek continuous improvement in the school and account for the school’s performance by undertaking self-assessment followed by planning for improvement, and then reporting on performance and progress.

School self-assessment is vital for the TMS school development plan. The self-assessment enables schools:

• To direct improvements in the quality of provision within the specific context of the school
• To recognise and value, and also build on what is working well in the school
• To identify areas for development in the school and to strategise actions to bring about improvements in those areas
• To report to the executive leadership and also the school community about the strengths in the work of the school and its priorities for improvement and development

This policy provides a framework for planning continuous school improvement that is focused on:

• Developing teaching and learning which cultivates a high level of student responsibility for their own learning, so that students are motivated, confident and achieving in their studies
• Providing a school culture where opportunities for deepening students’ learning and supporting students’ all-round development are embedded in school operations
• Providing effective support for students’ skill development that impact upon their progression and attainment

Ensuring that all staff liaise and interact effectively with stakeholders and communities to:

• develop an effective understanding of the quality of learning throughout the school
• raise the profile of TMS within the communities that the schools serve
• Supporting school leadership to set high expectations and standards within the school

• We use the following guiding principles to provide a framework for school development planning:

The five guiding principles provide the focus for self-assessment and action-planning.

Teaching and Learning

School development planning needs, first and foremost, to be reflective of the desire and intention to set for ourselves the highest standards of teaching in order to realise our expectation for exceptional levels of student learning. Using these principles, school Heads should focus evaluation and reflection on:

• The achievement of learner outcomes (attainment of subject and curriculum objectives)
• The students’ experiences of learning in the school which includes reflecting on aspects of the learning environment, students engagement in learning and the extent to which TMS students have ‘learned to learn’
• Teachers’ practices (preparation for teaching, teaching approaches, management of students and assessment)

We expect our schools to be places where young people are nurtured and challenged, so a self-assessment of a school should include a reflection on the extent to which:

• The school is open, honest and a place where active communication occurs (teachers and students, teachers and parents, school and community, etc.) Interactions between teachers/staff and students are caring, responsive, supportive, and respectful
• Teachers and staff are collegial. They support and work collaboratively around the achievement and success of the students
• Parents and teachers are partners in the life and work of the school. Teachers/ staff, students and families feel that they are contributing to the success of the school
• Decisions are made with the participation of teachers and school staff
• Teachers and staff are open to suggestions (from students, families, community)
• Students trust teachers and staff
• Morale is high among teachers and staff
• Teachers, students and families demonstrate school pride and the school is respected and valued by teachers, staff, students, families and the community
• Families and community members perceive the school as warm, inviting and helpful

The guiding principle of ‘community’ requires schools to focus on the extent to which different groups associated with the school see themselves as partners with the school.

Students

• Awareness of community
• Commitment to community service
• Understanding of course content
• Involvement with community
• Self-awareness

Teachers

• Motivation and attraction to community work
• Professional development
• Impact/influence on teaching
• Awareness of community
• Barriers and facilitators to working with school communities
• Satisfaction with experience

Community

• Satisfaction of partners
• Sustainability of partnerships
• Impacts on resources
• Utilisation and development of funding and income

The guiding principle of school leadership is founded on what is required of school leaders to ensure effective teaching and learning in schools. These requirements that need to be self-assessed are:

• School Heads having a set of core professional values including commitment (to excellence), care (for others), (professional) integrity and respect for all
• The extent to which a successful teaching and learning culture in school is developed
• The effectiveness of the management of the school environment and resources to support teaching and learning
• The extent to which leadership in the school is distributed as part of a long-term strategy to build leadership capacity for sustainability and succession planning
• Recognition of the school Head as lead learner who manages the creation, sharing and review of the strategic vision, ethos and aims of TMS
• The extent to which a commitment to constant improvement is created
• The extent and effectiveness of self-evaluation and reflection by the school Head

The school uses policy documents to drive continuous improvement within school.  These documents drive implementation and revisions in our procedures and practices.

Head teachers MUST be fully aware of each policy document and the content and intent of each policy, in order to successfully complete their annual SDP.

Effective school leadership enables continuously high standards of teaching and high attainments in student achievement. Consequently, school Heads who focus on teachers’ practice can expect the greatest impact on student achievements. By encouraging teachers to operate collaboratively and share their skills and understandings, good school Heads develop and expand quality teaching in the school.

How school Heads allocate school resources also enables student achievement.

As part of the self-assessment process, these aspects of leadership should be measured by the extent to which actions and resources are targeted to maximise student achievement.

• Head teachers are accountable to the Director (Academics), Director (Community and Outreach), and the Chief Teaching and Learning Officer for the performance of their school and teachers are accountable to the school Head for the progress of their students.
• School Heads, in collaboration with teachers, are required to undertake self-assessment of the school that results in judgements about the standards of student achievement and the effectiveness of school processes in maximising student achievement.
• School Heads, in collaboration with teachers, are required to undertake school planning processes that include the development of an annual School Plan, which informs operational planning and classroom planning.
• School Heads, in collaboration with teachers, are required to write annually a School Report that describes the school’s performance.

Assessment

• School Heads should reflect on their performance each year, and evaluate the quality of their provision of teaching. From this, they should plan for improvement and strategise actions to realise those improvements. This means that school Heads must self-assess in ways that are based in evidential judgements about student achievement. School Heads should also expect to make such assessments continuously through an academic year, making it a comprehensive process for the school.
• School Heads, in collaboration with teachers, are required to undertake self-assessment that results in judgements about the standards of student achievement and the effectiveness of school processes in maximising student achievement. For this purpose, school Heads, in collaboration with teachers:
• Should critically assess data (e.g. report cards) and other evidence related to student achievement and school operations, as a basis for decisions about the actions required to maximise student achievement in the future
• Should establish a regular and ongoing self-assessment process that provides verifiable judgments about student achievement and school operations
• Should make student achievement, both academic and non-academic, the central focus of school self-assessment.

Asking the Following Key Questions

School Heads should start the self-assessment process by asking key questions about teaching and learning. These might include the following:

• How well are we doing?
• How do we know? What evidence do we have?
• What are our students achieving (both academic and non-academic)?
• Are these achievements good enough (given the context)?
• How can we find out more?
• What are our strengths?
• What are our areas for improvement?
• How can we improve?
• How will we know if we have been effective in improving student achievement?

To ensure high standards of student achievement, the school Head must ensure that the learning environment is safe and nurturing. Therefore, it is the responsibility not only of school Heads, but also coordinators and teachers, to ensure that thee learning environment in the school is perceived to be safe; this requires good management of student behaviour, and a focus of teacher on actions which support student well-being. Furthermore, attendance, retention and student engagement must be a priority focus for school Heads. This means that student and staff attendance and behaviour statistics are important indicators of the ‘health’ of the school.

PlanningSchool Heads plan by making decisions about the actions required to maximise student achievement. School Heads should consider:

• What could be done to address the identified need?
• What does education research and good practice tell us about effective ways of addressing the identified need?
• Which strategies can be realistically implemented in our school context?
• How are we responding to student and community needs and addressing policy requirements?

School Heads, in collaboration with teachers, should:

• Develop and make available before the beginning of a new academic year, a School Development Plan for the academic year in question, that provides a succinct, strategic direction for the operation of the school
• Include whole school objectives, priorities for teaching and resource acquisition, improvement targets regarding student performance and resources needed in the SDP
• Make clear reference to, and take account of, TME policies and directions in the development of their SDP
• Be consistent and realistic in the application of evaluation measures and suitable timeframes
• Take time to conduct an annual review to inform the SDP
• Ensure that the SDP details how the School Development Plan will be implemented in each school year

School Heads are expected to operationalise their School Development Plan in ways that best suit the school’s context.

Reporting

School Heads, in collaboration with teachers, should:

• Publish an annual school report in a form best suited to parents and the local community and submit the document for electronic publication on the TMS website
• Reporting Format:
• Operational information (e.g. school name, reporting year, student numbers etc.)
• Teaching and Learning structured around areas of learning (subject strengths and areas for improvement)
• Cross-curricular skills (see above)
• The learning environment (physical environment, implementation of school values etc.)
• The role of school leadership in leading development

Annual Review

School Heads should:

• Present to the TMS Directors and Chief Teaching and Learning Officer evidence, analysis and judgements about the standards of student achievement and school operations
• Respond constructively to feedback resulting from the review
• Enact any recommendations arising from the review of the annual report

Schools act by executing their SDP. School Heads are accountable for ensuring that plans are implemented and then evaluated for their effectiveness in terms of student achievement. It is not sufficient for school Heads to report that a planned strategy was implemented. A process of reflection, review and evaluation is expected so that the schools administration can judge the effectiveness of the implementation strategies.

At TMS, we recognise that some strategies for improvement may take longer to show improved student achievement than the typical school planning cycle. In such cases, the strategy should continue to be monitored for its effect on student achievement. To do this, school Heads should develop specific milestones that provide interim evidence that the strategy is on course and should be continued.

The standards of student achievement, both academic and non-academic, are the central focus of school development planning. School Heads are expected to seek continuous improvement of student achievement and are accountable for their effectiveness in doing so.
While school Heads cannot be held accountable for contextual factors that are outside their control, they are expected to demonstrate that every effort has been made to overcome contextual factors so that students receive the highest quality educational experience.

In reviewing school performance, school Heads must review school operations and practices in relation to their positive or negative effect on student achievement. Data on students’ academic achievement comes from two sources – teacher judgements (evaluations) and systemic testing. It is expected that schools will use both. For teacher judgements to be used with confidence, it is important that school Heads check that these judgements are consistent with test grades.

• Extra-curricular and enrichment activities which play an essential part in enhancing the educational experience of all our students as well as supporting the development of non-cognitive skills and health and well-being
• How we integrate enrichment activities into our schools to reflect the value we place, not just on academic achievement, but student involvement, enthusiasm and personal development
• Our intention to provide and expand the provision of:
• Cultural enrichment e.g. music, drama, art
• Physical enrichment e.g. sports
• Intellectual enrichment through various other activities, such as learning an additional language and science activities
• Community Enrichment e.g. work experience, young enterprise
• This over-riding aims are:
• To develop student character and qualities in line with the TMS Learner Attributes Profile (See TMS Learner Attributes Policy)
• To provide teachers and students with a clear understanding of the role of enrichment within the TMS curriculum and how it can be used to provide opportunities to develop TMS Learner Attributes
• To broaden the educational experience of all TMS students
• To provide opportunities to raise student self-esteem
• To encourage a positive perception by students of school life
• To raise aspirations and motivation of students
• This over-riding aims are:
• To develop learner character and qualities in line with the TME Learner Attributes Profile (See TME Learner Attributes Policy)
• To provide teachers and learners with a clear understanding of the role of enrichment within the TME curriculum and how it can be used to provide opportunities to develop TME Learner Attributes
• To broaden the educational experience of all TME learners
• To provide opportunities to raise learner self-esteem
• To encourage a positive perception by learners of school life
• To raise aspirations and motivation of learners

Enrichment Activity Guidelines

General Guidelines

• Enrichment activities should provide support to the formal curriculum
• As wide a range of enrichment activities should be provided during the lunchtimes, during school (where these do not detract from implementation of the curriculum), after school and during school holidays
• Enrichment activities should provide opportunities which support students’ achievement at each grade level
• The range of activities on offer should provide opportunities for students of all ages, abilities and genders
• School enrichment activities should be made known to students through notices and publications
• All students should be encouraged to participate in enrichment activities
• No student should be prevented from taking part in an enrichment activity

Teachers and Enrichment Activities

TME enrichment activities are dynamic. Therefore, there should always be opportunities for all teachers to contribute ideas for new sessions in every school. Each half term, all teachers should be asked by the school Head what they would like to run or participate in, during the following half term. Activities should be offered to specific grade levels or student groups across the whole age range within a school.

Teachers leading activities must provide the following information regarding their enrichment activities:

• Overall aims and objectives of the activity
• A week by week description of what students will do
• Any costs involved and whether there will be a student contribution
• Staffing and rooms or other areas in the school required

All students should be encouraged to be involved in the wide range of activities that can be made available.

Students may be catered for within the school by:

• Ability groupings within classes
• Providing students with opportunities to participate in enrichment activities within curricular and extra-curricular activities
• Teacher involvement in the development of enrichment activities to extend learning from the classroom and setting high expectations for achievement

Curriculum Enrichment

Curriculum enrichment at TMS is focused on raising achievement by enabling students to:

• Build on work done in class and give a real purpose for follow up work within the classroom
• Work, learn and develop individually
• Develop good study strategies
• Support and work cooperatively with others
• Take part in activities unavailable during the normal school day
• Develop self-esteem
• Enjoy a broader range of direct experiences of activities, people and places
• Develop communication skills in English

Curriculum enrichment at TMS is focused on raising achievement by enabling students to:

• Build on work done in class and give a real purpose for follow up work within the classroom
• Work, learn and develop individually
• Develop good study strategies
• Support and work cooperatively with others
• Take part in activities unavailable during the normal school day
• Develop self-esteem
• Enjoy a broader range of direct experiences of activities, people and places
• Develop communication skills in English

Curriculum Enrichment activities at TMS should offer students:

• Access to the most up to date equipment
• Teachers to guide, help and support
• Opportunities to learn new skills through the frequent and progressive use of facilities out of the classroom
• A range of activities that broaden and strengthen our curriculum
• Experiential learning through visits and visitors and use of outside spaces in a variety of settings and community spaces
• Learning for and with creativity
• Study skills development, especially thinking skills, research skills and problem-solving skills
• An opportunity to develop and celebrate new skills