It was 4:30pm on a Friday afternoon when Matthew Kleiner-Mann, then head teacher at Lavender Primary School and now CEO of Ivy Learning Trust, spotted an NQT with a wheely suitcase.

“Going anywhere nice?” he asked.

“No, unfortunately. This is my marking for the weekend.”

In 2016, Matthew banned teachers from writing in children’s books. A new approach was introduced and immediate, specific and effective verbal feedback was to be provided instead. The outcome?

• Significantly reduced teacher workload
• Improved staff retention
• Better outcomes for pupils

Since then, Fast Feedback has been implemented in schools nationwide, featured in the press and turned into a book, published by Bloomsbury Education.

In this course, in collaboration with Big Education, we will share our story of how we abolished traditional marking and embedded Fast Feedback successfully; creating truly effective, independent learners whilst simultaneously improving staff wellbeing. With support from the current headteacher at Lavender Primary School and a teacher with day-to-day experience of the approach, we will also explore how you could embed something similar in your own context.

What you will gain from this course:

• Insight into the research and pedagogy underpinning the approach and support in creating the right learning culture first
• An honest account of our school’s journey and ideas for implementing change successfully
• Understanding of what a ‘conference’ looks like and practical tips to support children to reflect both independently and collaboratively
• The opportunity to explore how this approach could work in your own setting