However, when we make mistakes or get things wrong, we don’t want to feel like a muppet!

Pupils themselves say they enjoy doing demanding work, so we can draw on this to help them step up and stretch themselves.

Mary draws on the research to show that confidence comes before competence, that effort is worth it, and that low stakes testing has multiple benefits, not least in supporting high challenge and low threat in the classroom.

Questions

• How can I create a classroom culture where intellectual challenge feels safe, exciting, and achievable for all pupils?
• In what ways can I design tasks that stretch pupils’ thinking without overwhelming their confidence or sense of safety?
• What language and routines can I use to signal high expectations while reducing anxiety and fear of failure?
• How can I ensure that all pupils, including those with SEND or who are disadvantaged, experience high-challenge learning that respects their starting points?
• For school leaders: How am I supporting teachers to embed a high-challenge, low-threat culture across classrooms, and how do our systems reflect this ethos?

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