Fundamental English and Mathematics Proficiencies

English Matrix

Speaking, listening and communicating are fundamental to a teacher’s role. Teachers should use Standard English grammar, clear pronunciation and vocabulary relevant to the situation to convert instructions, questions, information, concepts and ideas with clarity. Teachers should read fluently and with good understanding.

Writing by teachers will be seen by colleagues, pupils and parents and, as such, it is important that a teachers writing reflects the high standards of accuracy their professional role demands. They should write clearly, accurately, legibly and coherently using correct spelling and punctuation.

Speaking, Listening and Communicating:Example
Identify key information and main points from discussion or presentations.Summarise a training session when feeding back to colleagues, or draw out key points from pupils explanation.
Demonstrate effective listening skills and the ability to follow a line of thought.Evaluate understanding in pupil responses and paraphrase, restate, illustrate or simplify information accordingly.
Use a range of questions appropriate to purpose and context.Use open questions to elicit longer responses when asking pupils to explain their understanding, ideas and actions.
Communicate information and ideas clearly, adding appropriate detail.Include anecdotes, examples and facts to engage the listener
Speak with standard English grammar and clear pronunciation, using vocabulary relevant to the situation.Give pupil feedback about how to improve their work; discuss with an adult how they can support that improvement.
Manage Discussions effectively.Recognise when a discussion is becoming unfocused or irrelevant and use tactful techniques to address this.
Reading:Example
Extract key points and more specific information from texts.Summarise the main points made in educational research paper and locate specific quotes.
Recognise that different texts convey information, opinions and ideas in different ways.Compare several written accounts of an incident, identify possible reasons for differences and use this knowledge to draw conclusions.
Accurately comprehend meanings in texts.Read a letter from a parent and understand implied messages before responding.
Use dictionaries, glossaries, internet searches and other reference materials in your own work.Show pupils how to use subheadings to identify relevant sections of text, or how to use internet searches effectively to locate relevant information.
Be able to identify different points of view from reading material and distinguish fact from opinion.Understand how language can be used to influence the reader or give weight to one side of an argument over another when reading educational research material.
Writing:Example
Demonstrate a range of sentence constructions punctuation in written work.Identify punctuation errors made by pupils and support pupils in correcting them.
Use standard English grammar in written work.Ensure there is no ambiguity when writing a report about a behaviour incident.
Spell everyday words that a professional would be expected to know.Spell words correctly in resources prepared for pupils and proofread documents effectively.
Ensure written work conveys meaning clearly, coherently and effectively using appropriate detail and length.Give a brief written feedback to a pupil to address a misconception or write texts of greater complexity to share learning from a professional development with colleagues.
Use a range of organisational devices in written work, ensuring the text is coherent and cohesive.Use paragraphing, tables, bullet points and graphs to add clarity and structure for reader.
Use Legible and clear writing appropriate to the situation and audience.Ensure that writing shared with pupil’s models high expectations.

Mathematics Matrix

Teachers should use data and graphs to interpret information, identify patterns and trends and draw appropriate conclusions. They need to interpret pupil data and understand statistics and graphs in the news, academic reports and relevant papers.

Teachers should be able to complete mathematical calculations fluently with whole numbers, fractions, decimals and percentages. They should be able to problem solve mathematical problems using a variety of methods and approaches including estimation and routing, sense checking answers, breaking down problems into simpler steps and explaining and justifying answers using appropriate language.

Data and graphs:Example
Describe simple mathematical relationships between two variables.Make connections and comparisons between pupil results on different assessments.
Analyse data in a table and draw conclusions from the information provided.Discuss the progress of a target group.
Make sense of statistics and graphs in the news, in academic reports and relevant papers.Interpret graphs and tables in newspaper articles relevant to a curriculum area.
Identify and interpret anomalies and outliners in data tables or on graphics.Spot an error in a pupil’s data.
Mathematical Calculations:Example
Calculate using whole and decimal numbers.Identify the most economical way to buy resources for everyday class.
Make changes to an existing mathematical formula to carry out calculations.Calculate the cost of an order of multiple resources, including delivery.
Work out percentages of amounts, express one amount as a percentage of another and calculate percentage change.Calculate and compare a pupils scores from two tests with different numbers of marks.
Order, approximate and compare decimals, fractions and percentages.Choose between offers such as ‘25% reduction’ or 1/3 off’ when purchasing resources in a sale.
Understand and calculate using ratios, direct proportion and inverse proportion.Plan number of adults required to supervise pupils on an educational visit.
Carry out simple budgeting by calculating amounts of money, percentage increases, decreases and discounts.Calculate the additional cost of a trip per pupil when a coach company increases its prices.
Solve Mathematical Problems:Example
Solve mathematical problems by breaking them down into a series of simpler steps and selecting appropriate operations.Identify the information needed, and operations to use, to calculate the profits of the pupils tuck shop.
Make the general estimates of calculations to be able to judge the reasonableness of an answer.Estimate the number of counters needed for a class game.
Know how to use a variety of strategies when counting, measuring or estimating.Round to the nearest pound for money calculations or measure between two fence posts to estimate the full length of the fence.
Calculate using units of time.Know what time to commence different activities of varying length so that they can be completed over the course of an afternoon.

How to Apply