The ACT FRAME: Excellence in Every Classroom

At ACT Multi Academy Trust, great teaching is our craft, our commitment, and our shared language. Every classroom is a place of possibility, where knowledge is built, curiosity is encouraged, and every pupil is supported to achieve their best.

Our Teaching and Learning Framework — known as The ACT FRAME — defines what excellence looks like in practice. It is built from research, refined by teachers, and shaped by the belief that learning should be ambitious, inclusive, and enduring.

Why Teaching and Learning Matter

Great teaching changes lives. It is the single most powerful factor in raising attainment and narrowing gaps. At ACT, we invest in our teachers because we know that when teaching improves, everything improves — outcomes, confidence, opportunity, and joy in learning.

 

We believe in:

• Clarity and Purpose: Lessons are planned with precision, connecting new ideas to prior knowledge so that learning sticks.

• Ambition and Challenge: All pupils are stretched to think deeply, reason clearly, and take pride in their work.

• Inclusion and Adaptation: Every pupil can access the curriculum through adaptive teaching, scaffolding, and effective use of resources and technology.

• Language and Thinking: Talk is purposeful, vocabulary is taught, and every subject develops the habits of thought unique to its discipline.

• Calm, Focused Environments: Pupils feel safe, respected, and ready to learn. Classrooms are places of curiosity, effort, and belonging.

What the ACT FRAME Does

The FRAME translates research into daily practice. It helps teachers reflect, plan, and collaborate using a shared professional language across all schools. It shapes professional development, coaching, and curriculum design — ensuring that great teaching is not left to chance, but is deliberately designed and continually refined.

We use the FRAME to:

1. Support professional development for teachers at every career stage.

2. Drive consistency while celebrating each school’s individuality.

3. Evaluate and improve teaching through Academy Improvement Visits.

4. Empower leaders to sustain excellence over time.

Our Promise to Pupils

You will learn in classrooms where teaching is thoughtful, purposeful, and inclusive.
You will be taught by adults who know how learning happens and who care deeply about helping you succeed.
You will be challenged, supported, and inspired to achieve more than you thought possible.

Our Commitment to Staff

Every teacher deserves the tools, time, and trust to thrive. The ACT FRAME is not a checklist, but a professional compass — guiding teaching, not prescribing it. Through collaboration, coaching, and shared learning, we grow together as reflective practitioners who never stop improving.

The Impact We Seek

When teaching is strong, pupils remember more, understand more, and do more. They develop the confidence to think critically, the language to express themselves, and the resilience to persevere. They become independent learners ready to contribute to the world with knowledge, empathy, and curiosity.

At ACT, we teach for life: knowledge that endures, curiosity that deepens, and character that lasts.