High-quality teaching, a well-planned curriculum and excellent pastoral support are three of the pillars that support successful learning. A fourth, equally important pillar is the attitude that students bring to the classroom and to their studying at home. ‘Attitude to Learning’ is the term we use at Icknield to describe the motivation, behaviours and habits that students need for their learning and attainment to be adequately supported, and for their outcomes to be the best.
Where students do not develop appropriate motivation, behaviours and learning habits – no matter how effective the teaching, planned curriculum and pastoral support – their learning can never be secure.
Our aim is to provide students and parents with useful information about students' attitudes, and to provide it frequently. We want students to be able to look at the information they receive and immediately understand how to take meaningful steps forward. And we want them to be rewarded quickly for making positive changes.
We describe students' attitude to learning using eight-point scale. Each scale point has (a) a number, (b) a colour, (c) a ‘headline’, and (d) three words or very short phrases, describing the student’s presentation in class, her/his/their motivation, and her/his/their relationships with teachers and peers. In creating the ‘headlines’, we have tried to use words that are memorable and recognisable. We want students and parents to read them and say “I recognise that kind of attitude” even before looking at the additional descriptive words.
Attitude to Learning judgements in each timetabled subject are communicated to students and parents five times a year, at the start of Terms 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. The full table of possible grades is as follows:
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| Attitude to Learning Guide for Parents and Carers |
