Brynllywarch Hall School uses ePace learner profiling to understand how best their pupils learn and to drive up standards
Brynllywarch Hall School in Kerry, Powys is using the new online learner profiling tool, ePace (www.epaceonline.com), to find out how their pupils learn best. Developed in conjunction with cognitive psychologist Professor Rod Nicolson at the University of Sheffield, ePace requires students to participate in a fun and easy-to-complete 45-minute online assessment which delves deep into how they process, retain and recall information.
Latest government proposals require secondary schools to overhaul performance tests to expand the number of measures upon which schools are ranked. Brynllywarch Hall School is leading the field by using a simple and effective way of facilitating an understanding of the complete learning performance of every child.
Helping teachers to tailor lessons to enable every pupil to achieve their potential, ePace evaluates a child’s strengths and weaknesses in 11 critical areas of learning, including auditory memory, visual memory, listening skills, emotional control, decision making, focus, hand/eye coordination, mental speed, timing, literacy and impulsivity. It delves deep into how a child processes, retains and recalls information. Providing a complete toolkit to support teachers in a mixed learning environment, ePace also incorporates a reporting suite, practical resources and strategies to enable more informed engagement with parents and carers.
Gavin Randall, Headteacher, at Brynllywarch Hall School, comments: “The reports produced using ePace provide our teachers with a clear profile of how each child learns, giving them a real opportunity to practise personalised learning in the classroom and reach every pupil. Understanding the learning profile of the whole class, with the facility to organise groups with similar skills accordingly, greatly enhances opportunities to teach effectively. For example, if a high percentage of students in a class have poor auditory memory, the teacher can adapt their teaching style appropriately, or supply handouts to accompany the lesson.”
Mary Blake, ex-teacher of 30 years and co-ordinator of ePace’s development, comments: “Using ePace, Brynllywarch Hall School in Kerry can pinpoint issues in the highest achieving students which, if left unacknowledged, could restrict them from fulfilling their potential. For example, a student could possess fantastic visual, auditory skills and focus, but display poor decision-making skills and low impulse control. In a real test environment, these traits could lead to a student making rushed decisions and could inevitably see them underachieve. By using ePace, teachers can intervene early and implement a strategy for the student to work on and realise their true potential.”
An ePace annual unlimited subscription is available at the cost of £595.00 to £1895.00 (dependent on size of institution).
To find out more about how your school could benefit from ePace, please visit: www.epaceonline.com, tel: 0333 123 1810 or e-mail: info@epaceonline.com.
For press information please contact Hannah Riordan, Livewire Public Relations, on 020 8339 7440 or email: hannah.riordan@livewirepr.com.
About ePace:
ePace is a division of Dynevor CIC, a community interest company that specialises in providing assessment tools and practical intervention programmes to create optimal learning and promote innovation in education.
About Professor Rod Nicolson:
Professor Rod Nicolson is a cognitive psychologist by training, specialising in human and organisational learning. He has extensive experience in analysing and supporting learning in education, and received a national Partnership Award for innovative educational software, a Leverhulme Trust / Royal Society Senior Research Fellowship for his research on dyslexia, and a University of Sheffield Award for Excellence in the Leadership of Learning and Teaching.
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