Overrated and Underrated
Well hello there, and welcome to update #196!
Overrated: Racing through schemes of work.
Underrated: Staying with one idea until pupils genuinely understand it.
I watched a Year 7 RE lesson recently where the teacher did something unusual. She stayed with the concept of covenant in Judaism for three lessons.
Not because pupils were struggling. Because they were thinking.
By the third lesson, pupils were noticing things they had missed on day one. The weight of mutual obligation. The difference between a contract and a covenant and the signifance for different communities today.
They were using words like “sacred,” “binding,” and “unconditional” with precision.
This is what depth looks like. Not slower. Richer.
But our schemes of work often work against this. They are built around coverage: move on, tick off, get through. The pressure to finish the unit becomes the pressure to leave understanding behind.
When we rush, pupils receive a message: the content matters more than your thinking about it.
When we stay, they receive a different message: your understanding is worth the time.
Coverage is not rigour, depth is.
What would change if your schemes of work gave teachers permission to stay longer with the ideas that matter most?
This is one of the central themes in KS3: The Ambitious Years which I hope you find helpful.
Until next time
Mary