Feb 10
Visiting one of my favourite state schools in Edinburgh on Thursday, I came into the school reception to find the Headteacher rushing out past me. ‘With you in a minute!’, she gasped energetically, with only a hint of a sigh in her voice, ‘I’ve been told there is a poo in the playground …’. I …
Sep 30
Over the past few weeks, I have had the privilege of listening to and talking with Early Years teachers in 4 different schools, spread across 3 different countries, on 2 different continents, and the experience has been absolutely energising. Long gone should be the days when Early Years is seen as a nice cosy little …
May 23
Escaping (literally) from the turmoil of Brexit and the political machinations of the UK can appear a particularly attractive option at the moment. Although I have written in the past about why teaching abroad can be enormously beneficial, both personally and professionally, I thought it was an apt moment to recall why this is the …
Mar 29
Nothing replaces a great teacher: this is the premise which stands behind the recent comments by Dr John Vallance, Head of Sydney Grammar School, that computers in schools are a waste of money and have done nothing to improve grades. Teaching, he says, is about “interaction between people, about discussion, about conversation … If you’re …
Feb 10
Statistics released in a UK Government National Audit Office today reveal that in 2014, the recorded rate of vacancies and temporarily filled vacancies in schools in England and Wales rose to 1.2% – that means over 5,000 unfilled posts in England alone. This is because the birth rate is rising – the school population is …
Jun 23
Richmond, Virginia, USA is beautiful at this time of the year. Warm, green, relaxed … and, currently, host to several hundred passionate educators of girls who are attending the annual conference of the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, the theme of which this year is ‘From STEM to STEAM: Girls’ Schools Leading the Way’. A …
Jun 19
Sir Michael Wilshaw is rarely uncontroversial, and at times his talk on teacher recruitment at the Wellington College Festival of Education, true to form, ruffled more than a few feathers. However, it was hard to argue with his key message, namely that we need to recruit more great teachers, and we need to think creatively …
Jul 30
A short article on page 4 of Thursday’s Times sent me scurrying to find out the truth behind the words. The article claimed that tens of thousands of parents have blocked their children’s access to suicide and self-harm websites on home computers, using TalkTalk’s relatively new HomeSafe service, which requires all new users to set …