I left Rare last year to train as a secondary school teacher at Ark
Academy in the London Borough of Brent � home to one of this
year�s Stars. Swapping client lunches (1) for long days with stroppy
teenagers was no mean feat. I became a teacher in order to
help young people achieve, but stepping into the classroom for
the first time, my initial concern was measuring my own success.
The milestones, though small, felt fantastic: transforming an
empty display board, learning names, getting to grips with
marking. Progress was slow but satisfying.
Once I had nailed the basics, my attention turned to my
students� progress. The language of achievement in schools
today is very different to how I remember it. While GCSEs
and A-Levels still stand, the achievement of students in KS3 is
now routinely measured via a matrix of levels and sub-levels.
Nationally, students are expected to make three sublevels of
progress per year. Ark students are expected to make five.
In schools, we want progress to be visible � Ofsted look for
evidence of it when they come into a classroom, students keenly
compare their results to those of their peers (�I�m 6C in Science
� what are you?�) and teachers plan interventions for those
students not making enough progress.
Measuring progress is complicated by the fact that, across the
board, the curriculum is changing. In my subject, for example,
Speaking & Listening is out, 19th Century Novels and grammar
are in. This means that teachers must constantly re-evaluate
what constitutes success and adapt the ways we help students
to achieve it. Having opened four years ago, my school awaits
its first set of public exam results with a mixture of nerves and
excitement. Grades are important as they are a common
currency � they are the students� first significant step towards the
degree or career of their choice.
However, while the goalposts of academic achievement will
continue to shift, there are other things that we can look for in
and around the classroom to paint a richer picture of students�
achievement.
Last week, Ark academy students participated in �Pyjama
Flashmob� with London Citizens � an alliance of community
organisations � to campaign for more buses on their local
route. The week before, they battled it out on a stage, reciting
the digits of Pi for World Number Day. By taking part in these
events, the pupils demonstrated to me the kind of enthusiasm,
drive and sense of wider purpose that characterises this year�s
Stars. They are traits which will, in addition to their excellent
grades, make them grow into true role models within their
community and bring them success far beyond the classroom.
1 This may sound as though I just used to doss around and eat
loads of free food, which is only partially true.