Teaching Backwards Reviews

The authors have produced a stimulating and thought provoking text for practitioners at all levels.  It is overflowing with excellent strategies and ideas to promote learner participation, enjoyment, learning and understanding.  The emphasis is upon re-thinking the focus and starting point of lessons from a “clear and well defined destination”.  I particularly liked the emphasis on the “Big Four” steps on feedback autonomy, challenge and engagement to ensure that learners achieve to their full potential.  The authors effectively draw the readers’ attention to effective implementation of techniques within a wide range of schools to promote resilience, and potential   the section on feedback enables the learner to focus on their own “personal gap” between their current level of performance and the destination they are working towards.  This is an outstanding book which will promote more effective [in schools, colleges of FE, and higher education.

John T Morris BA(Hons),MEd,MPhil,CertEd, Director JTM Educational Consultants

“Teaching Backwards” has much to offer for all primary and secondary subjects, including Maths, Reading and Study Skills. I am particularly interested in the contribution it could make, as background reading to our CPD course on developing writing skills for learners with dyslexia. Writing for many of them is a chore, which on the whole, they would rather not perform. They are often more reluctant than most to plan, revise and proof read. This is hard enough for considerations of spelling and the technical aspects of writing it is even more so for understanding that goals must be set, plans devised and then both will be revised and changed during the writing process. There is much in “Teaching Backwards” which will support learners with dyslexia to understand that they can write to their potential and to appreciate the benefits this brings them.

Reviewed by Margaret Barr, CPD Tutor, Dyslexia Action