Evaluation - Scottish Screen

taking responsibility for their own learning by making decisions about what they will do,
when they will do it and with whom. In MIE pupils are required to plan and organise their
own and each other’s learning leading to active and cooperative learning. Moreover, the
metacognitive style exemplified by lead practitioners, in which there are no definitive right or
wrong answers, and that each pupil contribution is pursued and probed until it is taken to the
limits of the class’s knowledge, has been adopted by the majority of teachers, in some cases
literally revitalising their enthusiasm for teaching. In those schools and nurseries where the
headteachers, teachers and practitioners have recognised MIE as providing benefits rather
than being something else that has to be done, both in terms of content and process, then the
Professional Development Programme has had a significant impact on learning and teaching.
The programme has had a greater impact in primary schools, especially those in which the
headteacher was convinced of the efficacy of MIE. Over the course of the evaluation, neither
of the two secondary schools managed to introduce MIE into the curriculum. In one case,
this was attributable to staffing difficulties; the teacher who had taken part in the Professional
Development Programme had been out of school for a considerable amount of time on leave
of absence. In the other school, the member of staff who had initially led the initiative was
out of school on long-term sickness leave but MIE had survived in the school in the form of
an animation club that met once per week and was run by three members of staff.
The experience of MIE in each of the three contexts has also provided information for
consideration of the Professional Development Programme as a model for introducing MIE
into schools and nurseries. Three aspects of the experience in particular contributed to the
success or otherwise of the programme: the lead practitioner, the headteacher and the local
authority.
The lead practitioners
The quality of the lead practitioner is crucial to the success of the programme. In this model,
it is through the lead practitioner that teachers and pupils gain their first experience of MIE. It
is essential, therefore, that from the outset, the relationship between lead practitioners and
teachers is based on collegiality and trust. Throughout the evaluation, teachers commented
on how much they appreciated that lead practitioners understood children, teachers, and how
classrooms functioned. They also commented favourably on the opportunity to observe lead
practitioners working with pupils and the contribution this had made to building their own
confidence and how they had come to teach MIE. This places a considerable responsibility
on the lead practitioners. First, they have to be seen to know what they are about and the
detailed planning each had undertaken in preparation of MIE lessons was impressive and
appreciated by staff. Secondly, there is a delicate judgement to be made regarding when a
teacher has had adequate support and when and how the lead practitioner reduces their role
and increases that of the teacher. As the lead practitioner in cluster A suggested, it might be
helpful for lead practitioners if best practice could be identified and guidelines produced.
The headteachers
In all of the schools and nurseries involved, the attitude and general approach of the
headteacher to MIE played a major role in the progress or otherwise of the programme. In
those schools where the headteacher or other responsible school manager, was an MIE
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