Glossary

Assessment:
Finding out what pupils have learned and using this knowledge to help you plan the next step in their learning. You can use TESSA materials as assessment activities.
Formative assessment is finding out whether pupils are learning the knowledge and skills you want them to by asking questions as you go along and showing pupils how they can improve.
Summative assessment is usually done in the form of tests and marks and gives a pupil a grade at the end of a unit of work.
Attitudes:
How a person or group of people thinks about an issue. Attitudes can be positive or negative.
Classroom management:
Organising and running your classroom to support the learning of all the pupils in your class.
Community:
People who live, work or study together. Your school community includes the pupils, teachers, head teacher and parents. Everyone who uses TESSA materials is another community.
Curriculum:
The knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes that you teach your pupils. TESSA materials help you to teach this curriculum to your pupils.
Facilitating learning:
Good teachers facilitate or guide the learning of their pupils and build their understanding. Good teachers are not limited to passing on information. A teacher would help pupils to actively participate in class, they might do this by moving around and assisting groups of pupils rather than standing at the front of the classroom.
Feedback:
You give pupils feedback by telling them what they have done well or how to improve. Pupils can give you feedback on a lesson.
Grade level:
The educational level of a pupil or group of pupils.
Group work:
Organising pupils into smaller groups ( from 3–12 pupils) to work together on a task.
Knowledge:
What is known about a particular topic – the facts and information.
Learner profile:
The characteristics that describe what a pupil is like, knowing your pupils’ profiles can help you adapt TESSA materials for your class.
Learning outcomes:
These say what skills and knowledge a learner (pupil or teacher) is expected to learn at the end of a lesson or set of activities.
Local context:
The circumstances of your school – the type of area (rural, urban) and culture of the local community.
Mediating learning:
This is improving your pupils’ learning by constructing the activities and situations which are relevant to them and their interests and needs. Making it easier for a pupil to learn by presenting information in a way that they can understand.
Reflection:
Thinking about your experience of teaching; which lessons and activities have gone well or badly? This helps you improve future lessons.
Reinforcing learning:
Improving your pupils’ learning by using several different sorts of activities all on the same topic. Helping a pupil to learn and remember something by using incentives to encourage them.
Resources:
The equipment and materials you need for your lessons – this might include TESSA materials, books, pens, other people and local materials such as boxes, newspapers and food containers. You can use resources to help you teach and your pupils learn.

Teaching and learning methods