In many classrooms I visit, the children are constantly looking to the teacher for instruction. 

They ask, repeatedly, what it is that they are expected to do and how it will be measured. 

In creating such an environment, it seems that we are becoming successful at producing children who can pass tests. 

Quick read: 7 tips for improving your questioning

Quick listen: What teachers need to know about the teenage brain

Want to know more? How can teachers promote skills transfer?

But are we creating young people who are positive about teaching and learning and can think critically and creatively? 

Consider your classroom environment. How often and how effectively are you employing strategies that develop children’s thinking skills and their self-esteem as learners?

Spotlight self-esteem

One of the most significant factors that impacts children’s engagement and achievement in the classroom is their self-esteem. In this context, self-esteem can be viewed to be the difference between how they perceive themselves as a learner and what they consider to be the ideal learner. 

Your aim must be to raise children’s self-esteem. To do this, you have to demonstrate that effort - not ability - leads to success. Your language and interactions in the classroom, therefore, have to be aspirational; show children that if they persist with something, they will achieve.

Be precise with praise

When you are praising children, are you are making explicit links to their learning and/or development? Doing so will enable them to build their understanding of the factors that are supporting them in their learning. 

Often when we feed back to children, we fall into the trap of simply saying “well done” or even just “good”. But are the children aware of what they did well or what was good about their answer? Be explicit in your explanations about what the child has done well and where that links to prior learning.

Taper teacher feedback

It’s easy to feel that, as the teacher, you have to provide feedback to every child’s response. But this can limit children’s thinking. Encourage the young people in your class to engage in learning conversations with each other. Give them as many opportunities as possible to build on the responses of others. 

Facilitate chains of dialogue by inviting children to feed back to each other. The teacher’s role here becomes about facilitating this dialogue and selecting who will offer feedback to others. It may also mean that you do not need to respond at all to a child’s answer.

Tell them what you’re thinking

We cannot expect children to develop critical thinking skills if we aren’t modelling those same skills for them. Share your creativity, imagination and thinking with the children and you will nurture creative, imaginative critical thinkers. 

Model the language you want your students to use. Share what you feel about the learning activities your children are participating in, as well as the thinking you are engaging in. Your own thinking and learning will add to the discussions in the classroom, and encourage children to share their thinking.

Make time for metacognitive questioning

Consider the extent to which your questioning encourages children to think about their thinking, and therefore learn about learning. Through asking metacognitive questions, you will enable your students to have a better understanding of the learning process, as well as their self-reflection as learners.

 Example questions may include:

• Why did you choose to do it that way?
• When you find something tricky, what helps you?
• How do you know when you have really learned something?

Kulvarn Atwal is executive headteacher of two large primary schools in the London Borough of Redbridge. His first book, The Thinking School: developing a dynamic learning community, is out now