Consider this Part 2 of my recent post on the IB Approaches to Teaching (ATT). This time, I am reflecting on how our practices as teachers directly impact student learning. I decided to look to the ATLs for this and wondered if I could map the ATLs against the ATTs. For example, if teaching is based on inquiry, what does the learning look like? What communication, social, self-management, research, and thinking skills do students need to develop as inquirers?
Alongside the ATLs are some suggested classroom strategies and thinking routines that can be used to support skill development. (Note that many of the strategies and routines (and even some of the ATLs) are repeated, and there is of course considerable overlap. I'm also sure there are many more strategies that could be used; this is definitely not an exhaustive list but rather a springboard.) For most seasoned IB teachers, many of these strategies and routines will probably be fairly innate, but new teachers, or teachers transitioning from different systems, will hopefully find this structure easier to put principles into practice!