Contact us and get involved in creating the first 'Learning Village'. Visible Learning in Action - a Not for Profit Independent School, Teacher Training and Research Centre in Queensland Australia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFxgnFGtG7c Emma Hartnell-Baker BEd Hons. MA Special Educational Needs www.wiringbrains.com

1. Seeking Vision Partners.
Help us to set up an Independent Primary School
(Not for Profit) in Queensland.
Vision: Visible Learning Primary School, Teacher Training
and Research Centre.
The Learning Village. Schools Building Our Future.
Australia and New Zealand languish at the bottom of English-speaking nations according to the 2011
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)
Australia not only has some of the worst literacy results in the world but an education system that is
failing to foster emotional health and to value the learning journey more than academic outcomes.
Impact of poor literacy: http://abclifeliteracy.ca/files/Effects.pdf
According to the ABS almost HALF of adults in Australia cannot read or write properly, and many of
their children are following in their footsteps. The report by the Australian Bureau of Statistics for
2011-2012 shows half of all Australians aged 15 to 74 are functionally illiterate, and more than half
are functionally innumerate—meaning they don’t have the skills needed to get by in the modern
world, like filling out forms, or reading the instructions on their prescription.
We NEED reform, but we cannot change behaviours without offering an alternative- and the BEST
way to do this is when teachers can come and SEE that alternative in action, and where that
alternative is set up to mentor and support with a long term vision. We will also offer Distance
Education that schools in remote areas can access to enhance their own schools.
We need a school as a ‘model’ for the future. A place where every child thrives academically AND

2. emotionally, and is able to become a better person and to positively contribute to our society and
economy . Schools here in Australia do not focus on developing personal strengths with regards to
teachers or students. We offer the opposite here in AU to Finland, the best literacy and numeracy in
the world. http://www.thedailyriff.com/articles/the-finland-phenomenon-inside-the-worlds-most-
surprising-school-system-588.php
We NEED reform, but we cannot change behaviours without offering an alternative, and the BEST
way to do this is when teachers can come and SEE that alternative in action, and where that
alternative is set up to mentor and support with a long term vision. This overcomes ideological
issues that prevent many teachers from embracing change, evidence or not.
I launched SSP officially in 2014, and throughout the year we invited teachers to come and see ‘SSP’
in action at a local school I was supporting, and were overwhelmed with the response. Every teacher
who visited will use SSP in 2015, and many were not previously fans of ‘fast code mapping’ – a term
we call phonics to put the old reading wars behind us. It isn’t simply to re-phrase something that has
become a dirty word for many, but also as phonics taught in the traditional sense does not go far
enough.
Using SSP students can ‘map’ EVERY word in the English language other than ‘one’ and ‘once’.
Mapping (coding) is the links between speech sounds and their representations on paper using
letters or letter strings. Using this Spelling Cloud keyring students can spell ANY word as they can
MAP all speech sounds with their representations in print.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW3uU27oGxk

3. It’s a world first, but also ground breaking for ‘visible learning’, as TEACHERS become aware of the
power of ‘mapping’ (phonics) and takes phonics to a whole new level. No words need to be taught
as sight words. Phonics has been seen as limiting because ‘not all words can be ‘sounded out’ but we
have changed that. Now they can, through Fast Mapping.
So we move the ‘whole language’ approach even further out of the building.....
This also leads us to shift an understanding of reading assessment tools – PM Benchmarking is an
institution here, but ineffective. As seen when we analyse expected ‘reading levels’.
Students using SSP are independent readers within 4 – 6 terms. Two case studies in 2014 blew open
huge issues with PM Benchmarking.
The case study Prep class used SSP for 3 terms, and were tested at an average of PM 20.8. This is
supposedly the reading level of Grade 4 students. How? Using SSP Fast Code Mapping ‘readers’ that
are designed to build reading speed at their code level, alongside comprehension and higher order
thinking.
Within the Year 2 case study class we had a focus on one child who was struggling with reading and
spelling. According to PM Benchmarking and Probe assessments the child moved up around 5
academic years in 4 terms. She was ‘Code Mapping’ with fluency, expression and understanding at

4. the expected level of a 12 year old. (she was 6 when she started the year)
All assessments (and the sessions themselves, to SHOW teachers how these results were achieved)
can be seen on youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKnWknpY_3Y
SSP also dramatically impacted on numeracy because of the working memory, critical thinking
elements – and of course they could read the maths word problems.
We take Visible Learning to a whole new level by actually videoing real teaching. It also means that
those teachers are able to more effectively analyse their own work. Students also watch their own
learning, and become involved in peer support. The Year 2 class shown here actually assessed the
Prep class used in the Case study, as teachers would have been less effective.
Students assessing other students according to Code Level (mapping ability/
phonics) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMH_MowUF8o
We also plan to offer Distance Education from the Learning Village so that schools in remote areas
can access to enhance their own schools. Many who home school are already using SSP.
It will be a ‘Visible school’ that is not only a place where every child thrives academically but also
emotionally. Schools here do not focus on developing personal strengths. We offer the opposite
here in AU to Finland – the best literacy and numeracy in the world.
I am a former UK Inspector of Education and was SHOCKED when I moved to Australia. This poor
literacy impacts on the whole economy, and emotional intelligence here is poor – this starts from
school. Millions of dollars have been, and are to be, spent on change and yet the people who have
been managing the money do not know how to do this.
The overall message of Visible Learning is the importance of “visible teaching” and “visible
learning”. This new physical school will offer that, to a whole new level.
We want to bring this to Australia as all that we do SHOWS what Hattie’s research reinforces. So the
school would be a teacher training centre, and Research Centre.
Visible Learning at the Learning Village. See the vision here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFxgnFGtG7c
Even those wanting to make a difference by training to be a teacher are being failed. We will offer a
place where teachers in training can come and SEE best practice, and learn by doing, even while
Universities change their offerings. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-
affairs/education/teacher-training-fails-on-literacy/story-fn59nlz9-1227174319349

5. If you watch this short clip of intensive phonics in Prep using the Speech Sound Pics (SSP) Code
Mapping poster you will see why our average after 3 terms in Prep is PM 21. SSP only launched
properly this year and every teacher has had their best results ever, and happier students. The
student poster (one A3 laminated sheet) replaces all phonics workbooks- a 2/3 year program such as
Jolly Phonics is covered in less than 4 terms in Prep.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVB2oag-XDc See the poster, and then see Prep students after
only 3 weeks – using the poster. And why the average was PM 20.8 after 3 TERMS.
SSP is different. Teacher training is EMBEDDED within the program so that teachers learn as they
follow the routines with the students. They do not need to understand phonics, as they learn how to
teach phonics and see the instant impact on their students.
Their writing is also years above ‘expected levels’ even according to the new National Curriculum.
Students taught using SSP can spell ALL words in the English language (over a million) just by having
the SSP Spelling Cloud keyring and because of the focus on ‘what looks right’ and investigating words
in real reading and writing activities. No other phonics program in the world does this, with most still
teaching high frequency words as whole words.
SSP is based on neuroscience and endorsed by leading neuroscientists, and speech therapists (it also
overcomes speech and language difficulties, and phonemic awareness issues) It rewires dyslexic
brains. Dyslexic Doctor software launching later this year.
If interesting in supporting us and being involved with this brand new school as a Vision Partner,
please contact us in confidence.
We are only in the stages of forming the board, but the site has been found, the owners want us to
use it in this way, and the council are already on board.
As I said in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFxgnFGtG7c good teachers will read
Hattie’s Visible Learning and say ‘well, yes, that’s common sense- I could have saved him a lot of
time by telling him this myself!  ’.
But many making decisions are not effective teachers and don’t ‘get’ what is needed. I know of
school leaders here in AU who are using Visible Learning to support their own vision that involves
teaching from scripts, and removing inquiry/ child centred learning found in Piagetian based
approaches.
They need to SEE exceptional teaching, and will be drawn in as they can see outstanding results. We
see that as the product of an outstanding teaching and learning cycle, but they will only really ‘see’

6. what leads to this when they can see the ‘results’ as this is their primary driving force. At the
moment they are in a self-defeating cycle ie chasing academic results (end product), not focusing on
the journey.
And I can provide that. It was what I was put on this earth to do.
Do you give a d/u/ck enough to become a Vision Partner?
Miss Emma
Emma Hartnell-Baker BEd Hons. MA Special Educational Needs.
’The Reading Whisperer’
www.WiringBrains.com

7. Show your support. Give a D/u/ck !
The Learning Village. Visible Learning in Action.