Friday 25 December 2015

PsychBrief: That's not quite right... Stereotype threat

PsychBrief: That's not quite right... Stereotype threat: Don't you just love being wrong? Of course you don't, no one does. But there is a grim satisfaction in no longer believing something...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Evidence-based practice and some common misconcept...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Evidence-based practice and some common misconcept...: Over the last 12 months I have been lucky enough to have the opportunity to read, reflect and write about evidence-based practice and educa...

Evidence Based EFL: Seeking Nirvana

Evidence Based EFL: Seeking Nirvana: “Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing  because he could do only a little.”  – Edmund Burke How do you know that smoking...

Saturday 19 December 2015

School Data Updates: How I track Ofsted

School Data Updates: How I track Ofsted: This is something I used to do for the LA and often end up doing for HTs when they ask me "what are Ofsted up to? Will we be next?&quot...

Friday 18 December 2015

Shanahan on Literacy: Decoding Dyslexia: A Rose by Any other Name

Shanahan on Literacy: Decoding Dyslexia: A Rose by Any other Name: Teacher Question: As I watch the Dyslexia Awareness movement gain momentum and grassroots organizations such as Decoding Dyslexia spur the...

Thursday 17 December 2015

The Baron: With one week to go till Christmas, I’ve been purg...

The Baron: With one week to go till Christmas, I’ve been purg...: According to my former departmental colleagues in my former school, ‘anyone who votes for the Conservative party is thick’, the British Emp...

Sunday 13 December 2015

My packet of crisps: Cross.com

My packet of crisps: Cross.com: Today I am cross.  I am cross enough to have to leave an email in my drafts until I've calmed down long enough to read it (and possibly ...

Friday 11 December 2015

School Data Updates: LAy and their target setting turkey

School Data Updates: LAy and their target setting turkey: I worry about Local Authorities sometimes. A couple of weeks ago I blogged about LAx and their dreadfully damaging and overly simplistic R...

Tuesday 8 December 2015

Saturday 5 December 2015

To boldly go...: Year 7 lessons #1

To boldly go...: Year 7 lessons #1: I hadn't been feeling well today so was home early and daughter could walk back here from her bus. She started year 7 in September and t...

Wednesday 2 December 2015

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The Seven Alternatives to Evidence-Based Teaching ...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The Seven Alternatives to Evidence-Based Teaching ...: As we approach the end of the autumn term and now that we have entered the month of December, it seems time for a more upbeat and hopefully ...

We shall not cease from exploration...: Rethinking RE

We shall not cease from exploration...: Rethinking RE: Another month, another set of reports! So, a lot has happened over the past month... Another major report has been published (two, if y...

TDRE Boss Blog: Save RE - From Itself? Again?

TDRE Boss Blog: Save RE - From Itself? Again?: Yet again, disagreement features on Save RE. Previous arguments such those of 'the crucifixion jelly hand', 'teaching the Ill...

Thursday 26 November 2015

frenchteacher: The interface problem

frenchteacher: The interface problem: No, it's not the name of a new movie. This is one of those things second language acquisition researchers worry about and which has a si...

TDRE Boss Blog: Humanism and RE

TDRE Boss Blog: Humanism and RE: Yesterday I had a little rant on Facebook about the high courts decision in regard to the BHA case (see <here> ).  Before reading ...

Tuesday 24 November 2015

The Baron: Teachers are doing ISIL's work for them

The Baron: Teachers are doing ISIL's work for them: Just last week I overheard three colleagues discussing the evils of the British empire. ‘I despise it,’ one snarled. ‘Me too! Look at Amrit...

TDRE Boss Blog: #Michaela - Debating Education (21/11/15)

TDRE Boss Blog: #Michaela - Debating Education (21/11/15): Another Saturday, another education event... Am I an edu-geek or an edu-loser? Regardless, it was a chance to meet up with my 'edu-T...

Evidence Based EFL: Review of ELT podcasts part 2

Evidence Based EFL: Review of ELT podcasts part 2: In my previous review of podcasts I wrote "2014 was a great year for EFL podcasts with several sprouting up like veritable fungi&qu...

Wednesday 18 November 2015

School Data Updates: The Value Added Tax

School Data Updates: The Value Added Tax: Remember the community charge, or the poll tax as it became better known? The supposed merit of the system was that it was simple, easy to u...

Wednesday 11 November 2015

TDRE Boss Blog: Catholic Schools & Islam at GCSE

TDRE Boss Blog: Catholic Schools & Islam at GCSE: Schools Week (6/11/15) covered a story on P4 of this week's paper by Sophie Scott . It's worth reading it in full in the print e...

Teaching Science: In a GCSE curriculum change spiral of despair

Teaching Science: In a GCSE curriculum change spiral of despair: I am so pleased that I decided (all three science subjects decided) to stay with the same A-level examination board. There are subtle differ...

Sunday 8 November 2015

Friday 6 November 2015

Evidence Based EFL: Deep, man!

Evidence Based EFL: Deep, man!: 'lightning never strikes twice.' 'What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.' These sentences both sound real...

Thursday 5 November 2015

Wednesday 21 October 2015

Sunday 18 October 2015

The Girl on the Piccadilly Line: Parents' Evening

The Girl on the Piccadilly Line: Parents' Evening: I'll never forget my first parents' evening - by the 28th appointment I was so tired I referred to the child by the wrong name. T...

Thoughts on managing variability: School's own data in the Ofsted inspection data da...

Thoughts on managing variability: School's own data in the Ofsted inspection data da...: Hopefully if you are involved in secondary school data you will already be aware of the publication of the Ofsted "Inspection dashboard...

School Data Updates: What is sufficient progress?

School Data Updates: What is sufficient progress?: In the crazy world of competitive shin kicking, combatants apparently shout "Sufficient!" when they've had enough. I know how...

Shanahan on Literacy: Response to the Joyful Illiterate Kindergartners o...

Shanahan on Literacy: Response to the Joyful Illiterate Kindergartners o...: Reader Question:   The Atlantic Atlantic Article  just published an article about the mistake American educators make by teaching reading ...

Friday 16 October 2015

Thursday 15 October 2015

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Drama in lessons

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Drama in lessons: Before you skip this blog…wait. This isn’t a blog about the benefits of drama in the curriculum. This isn’t a blog crying about how drama ...

kitchen table math, the sequel: Help desk - math HW

kitchen table math, the sequel: Help desk - math HW: What's the story with this little boy's homework? (And how old do you think he is? I'm guessing 2nd grade - ?) If you click on...

Tuesday 13 October 2015

To boldly go...: Integrity

To boldly go...: Integrity: When I came out of assembly on Friday at quarter past three our secretary came to find me looking worried.  She said my daughter had phoned ...

The Introverted Teacher: Dear Reader,How do you feel about feminism?  Hav...

The Introverted Teacher: Dear Reader,

How do you feel about feminism?  Hav...
: Dear Reader, How do you feel about feminism?  Have you ever called yourself a feminist? I had the privilege yesterday of attending (a...

The Baron: How brain-busting jargon dehumanises education

The Baron: How brain-busting jargon dehumanises education: 'Excuse me, sir. Seeing as how the V.P. is such a V.I.P., shouldn't we keep the P.C. on the Q.T.? 'Cause if it leaks to the V.C...

School Data Updates: The Grim Fairy Tale of Teacher Assessment

School Data Updates: The Grim Fairy Tale of Teacher Assessment: It occurred to me recently that if statutory teacher assessment were a fairy tale it would be Cinderella. Loved and cherished in the Early Y...

frenchteacher: Correcting students' errors

frenchteacher: Correcting students' errors: I am currently reading The Handbook of Language Teaching edited by Michael Long and Catherine Doughty. It's an excellent summary of rese...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - Can research help reduc...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - Can research help reduc...: Sometimes on Twitter you read a tweet which cannot be answered by using the Uzi like rapid fire of 140 characters, and which deserves a far ...

ssphonix: Why does phonics teaching appear not to be impacti...

ssphonix: Why does phonics teaching appear not to be impacti...: Recent 'evidence' that the government's emphasis on phonics does not appear to be impacting on reading standards overall, despit...

Teacher's Notes: I am a feminist. I am a teacher. I am Mrs C Spaldi...

Teacher's Notes: I am a feminist. I am a teacher. I am Mrs C Spaldi...: My love affair with feminism started at the age of 16, the moment I read an article in 'The Independent' declaring "Is this w...

TDRE Boss Blog: The Best Of What We Know...

TDRE Boss Blog: The Best Of What We Know...: At any moment in time, that should be our aim. For too long in education we have accepted  'peddled quackery' and '...

Sunday 11 October 2015

To boldly go...: Fraud police-special ops

To boldly go...: Fraud police-special ops: I have been reflecting on the blog post I wrote yesterday and I just want to add a little more.  I thought quite hard first thing this morni...

To boldly go...: Data's inferno

To boldly go...: Data's inferno: Half an hour before getting up time today my stomach tightened into a painful knot.  Improvement adviser visit this morning. I have an exper...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead: Are you a positive devi...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead: Are you a positive devi...: Are you - the School Research Lead - a positive deviant?  If not, you need to become a positive deviant yourself or at least help others to ...

Saturday 10 October 2015

The Girl on the Piccadilly Line: In Teachers We Trust

The Girl on the Piccadilly Line: In Teachers We Trust: I My first three weeks in my new job may not have gained as much press coverage as Jeremy Corbyn's but they have been no less eve...

Evidence Based EFL: Guide to methods part 3: What Richards and Rodgers...

Evidence Based EFL: Guide to methods part 3: What Richards and Rodgers...: I always had something of a soft spot for Suggestopedia  with it's comfy chairs, baroque music and meditation. It always seemed to me ...

Shanahan on Literacy: Does Formative Assessment Improve Reading Achievem...

Shanahan on Literacy: Does Formative Assessment Improve Reading Achievem...:                          Today I was talking to a group of educators from several states. The focus was on adolescent literacy. We were di...

The Introverted Teacher: Dear Reader,Have you ever finished something and...

The Introverted Teacher: Dear Reader,

Have you ever finished something and...
: Dear Reader, Have you ever finished something and had no feedback on it?  Did you enjoy the experience? Call me a perennial teacher&#...

Thursday 8 October 2015

frenchteacher: You say tomato, I say tomato.

frenchteacher: You say tomato, I say tomato.: By following many teachers on Twitter from around the world, I find myself interested in the different perspectives on language teaching and...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - The Evidence Says Its A...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - The Evidence Says Its A...: So you've read the research papers and separated the wheat from the chaff.  You've identified the research papers where it's jus...

frenchteacher: Saving time on planning

frenchteacher: Saving time on planning: I understand that many schools ask teachers to produce a written lesson plan for every lesson on a standard proforma. I would have hated tha...

Tuesday 6 October 2015

School Leadership - A Scottish Perspective: We are not the problem, we are the solution

School Leadership - A Scottish Perspective: We are not the problem, we are the solution: The title of this post comes from a tweet Alma Harris sent in response to Sir Michael Wilshaw's latest pronouncement on education in Eng...

School Leadership - A Scottish Perspective: Relentless incremental improvements or micro-manag...

School Leadership - A Scottish Perspective: Relentless incremental improvements or micro-manag...: I saw Mathew Syed on the television this morning. He was talking about his new book 'Black Box Thinking', a follow up to his big sel...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - Getting Better at Analy...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - Getting Better at Analy...: I n previous posts I've written about the need to 'strip, flip and trace' when trying to determine good educational science from...

The Baron: All you left-wing traditionalists: you really shou...

The Baron: All you left-wing traditionalists: you really shou...: I recently read an incredibly thought-provoking article on Labour Teachers by   Greg Ashman , a practising teacher, entitled, 'Do lefti...

School Data Updates: The house that moved: my meeting with Ofsted.

School Data Updates: The house that moved: my meeting with Ofsted.: I had some weird dreams last week. One involved a cottage that slipped its anchor and rolled down a hill, crashing into a farmyard. I emerg...

The Baron: God Help Me!

The Baron: God Help Me!: I've finally taken the plunge. After six years of service, back in May, I reluctantly decided to throw in the towel and move on, hopefu...

TDRE Boss Blog: Pontifex: An Etended Metaphor

TDRE Boss Blog: Pontifex: An Etended Metaphor: Before I decided upon this metaphor for my first year of pastoral leadership, I needed to check with a priest (and canon lawyer) that it...

TDRE Boss Blog: Why can't we talk about intelligence and genetics?...

TDRE Boss Blog: Why can't we talk about intelligence and genetics?...: At ResearchEd 2014, I stumbled into Andrew Sabisky's talk on IQ. It wasn't my intention to go to it, but whatever I had...

Monday 5 October 2015

Sunday 27 September 2015

Teacher's Notes: The five stages of post-results grief

Teacher's Notes: The five stages of post-results grief: Before you read the post, watch this:  https://vimeo.com/46652994   A wise woman once said that there are five stages in the response...

Sunday 20 September 2015

Sunday 6 September 2015

Friday 4 September 2015

The Baron: Educating Cardiff: good intentions are no substitu...

The Baron: Educating Cardiff: good intentions are no substitu...: If you're aged eleven to 16, have a penchant for energy drinks and enjoy the odd puff on a ciggy, Willows High is certainly the school ...

TDRE Boss Blog: ALL the RE Blogs

TDRE Boss Blog: ALL the RE Blogs: Image courtesy of Alice Walker A few months back, after some frustration at some aspects of Twitter and Save RE (on Facebook), I set up...

Wednesday 2 September 2015

Tuesday 1 September 2015

Sunday 30 August 2015

Tuesday 25 August 2015

The Baron: Chinese school triumphs over British system in fou...

The Baron: Chinese school triumphs over British system in fou...: During my last blog , I predicted that - as a consequence of only having four weeks with pupils resistant to unfamiliar teachers, longer da...

frenchteacher: A modern language teacher toolkit

frenchteacher: A modern language teacher toolkit: Gianfranco Conti, who writes the blog The Language Gym, and I have decided to put together a handbook/toolkit for modern language teachers. ...

Saturday 22 August 2015

Musings of a New Deputy: Missing my own class.

Musings of a New Deputy: Missing my own class.: So, in a few weeks I'll be starting my new role as Deputy Headteacher. Currently this will involve some teaching, covering Years 5 and 6...

frenchteacher: Pros and cons of being a native speaker MFL teache...

frenchteacher: Pros and cons of being a native speaker MFL teache...: As the supply of "home grown" language teachers continues to dry up the UK is depending more and more, as in other fields of emplo...

Tuesday 18 August 2015

School Leadership - A Scottish Perspective: Engaging with research

School Leadership - A Scottish Perspective: Engaging with research: Let me state straight away, I think teachers and schools should engage with and use research to inform and develop their practice. To me thi...

Monday 17 August 2015

The Snow Report: Dyslexia Dystopia

The Snow Report: Dyslexia Dystopia: Last weekend I was privileged to hear Professor Julian (Joe) Elliott speak in Melbourne on the topic most strongly associated with his name ...

Wednesday 12 August 2015

Evidence Based EFL: woo watch: ELGazette

Evidence Based EFL: woo watch: ELGazette: ELGazette is a great little publication. It exposes  dodgy goings-on in the ELT world, commissions interesting articles and most importan...

The Baron: Inadequate headteachers are damaging our children

The Baron: Inadequate headteachers are damaging our children: Some years ago, my colleagues and I were forced to endure a professional development session entitled, ‘Are your lessons worth behaving fo...

Re-educating Yorkshire: Technology in the Classroom - Challenges and Oppor...

Re-educating Yorkshire: Technology in the Classroom - Challenges and Oppor...: (Disclaimer: Whilst I try to make my entries academically rigorous, supported by educational research, I have had some difficulty in constr...

Sunday 9 August 2015

The Snow Report: Can we talk about NAPLAN?

The Snow Report: Can we talk about NAPLAN?: I have avoided blogging about NAPLAN* until now, because I know it's a deeply divisive topic, and is one that can elicit some particular...

Saturday 8 August 2015

Bex Trex ...to teaching!: Books, books, books.

Bex Trex ...to teaching!: Books, books, books.: For some reason I decided it was a good idea to pick up all my education books from their various shelves and put them on the floor.  I t...

Thursday 6 August 2015

Wednesday 5 August 2015

Re-educating Yorkshire: We need to talk about: Burnout

Re-educating Yorkshire: We need to talk about: Burnout: You know what? You matter. You really, really matter. No matter who you are or what you do, you are really important - Good job! I think it&...

Re-educating Yorkshire: Teaching blog - Take 2

Re-educating Yorkshire: Teaching blog - Take 2: You may, or may not, be aware that this is the second incarnation of my teaching blog. I found my previous efforts overwhelmed by the pressu...

Tuesday 4 August 2015

NQT (New - and Quietly Terrified!): Supportive schools - they do exist!

NQT (New - and Quietly Terrified!): Supportive schools - they do exist!: Whenever I read a blog post about NQTs and how to support them in your school, it seems to usually be followed by a barrage of comments from...

School Data Updates: Assessment Commission report: my top 5 points

School Data Updates: Assessment Commission report: my top 5 points: The cat is out of the bag. This week the frustratingly overdue report from the Assessment Commission into assessment without levels was leak...

Sunday 2 August 2015

Monkey Learns...: *That* interview with Nicky Morgan

Monkey Learns...: *That* interview with Nicky Morgan: I suppose I ought to keep some trace of it on here! I am grateful to the person who thought of me and asked me to host the first chat. The...

Friday 31 July 2015

frenchteacher: How the exam boards cocked a snook at ALCAB

frenchteacher: How the exam boards cocked a snook at ALCAB: Readers of my blog may recall that I got unusually hot under the collar when ALCAB (the Russell Group led advisory panel on MFL A-levels, s...

Wednesday 29 July 2015

frenchteacher: Primary to secondary transition

frenchteacher: Primary to secondary transition: A problematic area for language teachers is how to handle the transition between primary and secondary school. As a head of department I onc...

NQT (New - and Quietly Terrified!): Not so new - but still quietly terrified

NQT (New - and Quietly Terrified!): Not so new - but still quietly terrified: Just over a year ago I wrote my very first blog post entitled "New - and Quietly Terrified!" ( http://www.newandquietlyterrified.c...

Monday 27 July 2015

Outside In: Teacher Workload: a Question of Meaning?

Outside In: Teacher Workload: a Question of Meaning?: One thing the holidays brings to bear is the extent to which the intensity of our job can turn us into Jekyll and Hyde characters, with our...

School Data Updates: The Progress Paradox

School Data Updates: The Progress Paradox: There is a radical concept in urban design known as shared space. It involves the removal of kerbs, street furniture, and painted lines in o...

Sunday 26 July 2015

PsychBrief: How biased are you? The role of intelligence in pr...

PsychBrief: How biased are you? The role of intelligence in pr...: People generally like to believe they are rational (Greenberg, 2015 ). Unfortunately, this isn't usually the case (Tversky & Kahnema...

frenchteacher: Five blogs I like

frenchteacher: Five blogs I like: On frenchteacher.net I have a long list of French teacher blog links, but I don't have the time to visit them all, apart from checking t...

The Baron: It’s vital that our children study Dead White Men

The Baron: It’s vital that our children study Dead White Men: According to  a recent survey , a clear majority of teachers view the new knowledge-rich National Curriculum introduced last year as overtl...

Calamity Teacher: There will be a story there.

Calamity Teacher: There will be a story there.: I have always assumed that the birth of a school followed a secular immaculate conception. That schools just sprang up, or had always been t...

Friday 24 July 2015

Wednesday 22 July 2015

frenchteacher: Reciting letters and numbers

frenchteacher: Reciting letters and numbers: I don't recall learning to say the alphabet in French at school. When I began teaching French in 1980 I didn't teach the alphabet ei...

Sunday 19 July 2015

School Data Updates: The Gift

School Data Updates: The Gift: We're all knackered. You've all been teaching forever and I've visited approximately 1000 schools a week since I become self-emp...

frenchteacher: Comparing the new draft A-level specifications (2)...

frenchteacher: Comparing the new draft A-level specifications (2)...: In this blog I am going to look at the assessment regimes of the four exam boards as they appear in the drafts. Usual caveat: this may chang...

Friday 17 July 2015

frenchteacher: Co-teaching new AS and A-levels

frenchteacher: Co-teaching new AS and A-levels: You'll be aware by now that the new AS-Level for first teaching in September 2016 is a so-called "stand-alone" or "decoup...

Mrs Halford's Blog: Secondary vs Primary... Building trust

Mrs Halford's Blog: Secondary vs Primary... Building trust: Today I  had a meeting at our secondary school to discuss how we can all work together to ensure that progress made in primary schools can b...

Thursday 16 July 2015

frenchteacher: Comparing the new draft A-level French specificati...

frenchteacher: Comparing the new draft A-level French specificati...: Ofqual and the exam boards are on a tight schedule ( merci Monsieur Gove) . The new draft specs for A-level are now published for first tea...

Mrs Halford's Blog: Teacher recruitment and retention...Where do we go...

Mrs Halford's Blog: Teacher recruitment and retention...Where do we go...: I was lucky to be able to attend the recent ASE Professional Learning conference at the University of Hertfordshire. An incredible line up...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Developing Great Teachers - Lessons from the evide...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Developing Great Teachers - Lessons from the evide...: Recently we saw the publication of the Teacher Development Trust’s report Developing Great Teachers: Lessons from the international reviews...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: The Force is strong in you – I can see it from the...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: The Force is strong in you – I can see it from the...: The point where I lost interest in Star Wars was when they tried to rationalise the Jedi powers. As soon as a character mentioned that stu...

A Constant Education: Gently does it...

A Constant Education: Gently does it...: There are many things to be learned from leadership courses, but in general I am not well suited to them. I have an exceptionally low tole...

Monday 13 July 2015

@beazeley: Time to put a cap on workload

@beazeley: Time to put a cap on workload: As a profession, teachers are expected to work for too many hours. Not formally expected - in line with the mythical 1256 (directed) hours -...

Friday 10 July 2015

Education Advisers Blog: EXPLAINING THE INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE

Education Advisers Blog: EXPLAINING THE INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE: The International Baccalaureate is an international qualification now offered by around 3500 IB schools worldwide. It is overseen by The In...

Thursday 9 July 2015

TDRE Boss Blog: RE: Radicalism and Extremism

TDRE Boss Blog: RE: Radicalism and Extremism: Image courtesy of 5 Pillars After the attacks that killed many British holiday makers in Tunisia, David Cameron said that the fight ag...

Wednesday 8 July 2015

Calamity Teacher: It's all in the name

Calamity Teacher: It's all in the name: I am an 'Outstanding' teacher, in an 'Outstanding' school, and I am being bullied, day after day, by a group of year seven s...

Tuesday 7 July 2015

Monday 6 July 2015

frenchteacher: Opinions

frenchteacher: Opinions: Since GCSE began mark schemes have always rewarded pupils' ability to express opinions. I never really got this. It is easy to teach pup...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Leading the Use of Research and Evidence in School...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Leading the Use of Research and Evidence in School...: So what does a school research lead do?  Over recent months I have blogged about the actions a school research lead can take to support coll...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: It’s all about the books, about the books, about t...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: It’s all about the books, about the books, about t...: Things have changed. There wasn’t a sudden announcement, but the emphasis in observations has dramatically changed over the last four...

To boldly go...: Leading learning by example

To boldly go...: Leading learning by example: Leadership.  It's a long game right?  But politics demands it's short term.  What to do?  I spoke to a really good friend on the pho...

Saturday 4 July 2015

Friday 3 July 2015

Thursday 2 July 2015

School Data Updates: Running to stand still

School Data Updates: Running to stand still: Yesterday I re-read this:  https://sway.com/aD_OzZBFhHqlrM4C from @edudatalab and, following an enlightening discussion with @meenaparam, I ...

Teaching Science: Do the DfE care?

Teaching Science: Do the DfE care?: After the department for education posted ANOTHER dreadful version of the GCSE science subject content I am left feeling even more bereft th...

Wednesday 1 July 2015

TDRE Boss Blog: RS Reform Briefing: CREDO HEI Day at St Mary’s Uni...

TDRE Boss Blog: RS Reform Briefing: CREDO HEI Day at St Mary’s Uni...: I was there as the teacher... as Peter Ward of NBRIA gave his outline of key changes, Phillip Robinson of the CES explained some of the...

FE Culture: Professional Status

FE Culture: Professional Status: I'd forgotten about this: Thanks to Shane for including me. https://set.et-foundation.co.uk/publications/ifl-publications-archi...

Tuesday 30 June 2015

Saturday 27 June 2015

My packet of crisps: Language Day - A level Curriculum and beyond

My packet of crisps: Language Day - A level Curriculum and beyond: So, a very interesting day at Uni on Friday attending a language day event.  Lots of things to think about.  Here's a potted summary if ...

The Baron: In many schools, racism has become acceptable

The Baron: In many schools, racism has become acceptable: Several years ago, an Asian colleague left my school unexpectedly. In the weeks that preceded his mysterious disappearance, he was subjected...

Teacher tips: Grit, character and well being

Teacher tips: Grit, character and well being: I had never been to The Festival of Education but quickly realised that my one ticket needed planning. At times during the day I wished I we...

Thursday 25 June 2015

School Data Updates: Tracked by the Insecurity Services

School Data Updates: Tracked by the Insecurity Services: Last night @LizzieP131 tweeted this: Which was followed by this: In the past week I've been told by headteachers using one particular sy...

Read Write Reach: Cambridge IGCSE English Paper 2 - An Examiner's Vi...

Read Write Reach: Cambridge IGCSE English Paper 2 - An Examiner's Vi...: cartoon   I'm marking, marking, marking at the moment which was a bloody marvellous idea when the bairn slept for four or five bl...

Wednesday 24 June 2015

Calamity Teacher: Out of order

Calamity Teacher: Out of order: I've been hearing this phrase a lot recently: That's well out of order and it's been grating on me. I hear it a lot from stu...

Tuesday 23 June 2015

Friday 19 June 2015

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead and 'Disciplined Inquiry'...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead and 'Disciplined Inquiry'...: At researchED 2014 Dylan Wiliam  said:  ' All teachers should be seeking to improve their practice through a process of ‘disciplined inq...

frenchteacher: Should all pupils do MFL at GCSE?

frenchteacher: Should all pupils do MFL at GCSE?: With the government's confirmation of their manifesto commitment to make the Ebacc compulsory for all pupils, it may be time to return t...

nikki able: Just a little thought... About collective capacity...

nikki able: Just a little thought... About collective capacity...: I have spent the last four days at two very different educational events. The first was the Inspiring Leadership Conference in Birmingham, t...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Notes on a scandal. I mean: Notes on a new GCSE sp...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Notes on a scandal. I mean: Notes on a new GCSE sp...: In my head, everybody is working on their new GCSE specifications. I am sure my local butcher is busy working on it. And, the car mechanic. ...

Why I've Stayed In Teaching: Addressing The Balance

Why I've Stayed In Teaching: Addressing The Balance: I was marking books during my lunch break when a colleague approached me asking for advice on work/life balance. She'd been sent to me...

Wednesday 17 June 2015

TDRE Boss Blog: Periscope at HertsSecNATRE

TDRE Boss Blog: Periscope at HertsSecNATRE: I was very honored to key note the inaugural meeting of the Herts Secondary NATRE Local Group. It was organised off the back of The Lon...

Sunday 14 June 2015

Teacher's Notes: ‘Santa isn’t real…

Teacher's Notes: ‘Santa isn’t real…: …and George kills Lennie.’ Or, ‘How to ruin literary texts for your students.’ We’ve all had it: on the index page of ‘Of Mice and ...

Tuesday 9 June 2015

Sunday 7 June 2015

Saturday 6 June 2015

TDRE Boss Blog: The Future of RE - #TFREConference

TDRE Boss Blog: The Future of RE - #TFREConference: Image courtesy of Buckaroobay What are the challenges that will face RE in the next 5 years? How can we recruit enough RE teachers?...

TDRE Boss Blog: BlogSyncRE: Religious Literacy

TDRE Boss Blog: BlogSyncRE: Religious Literacy: Image courtesy Catholic Diocese of Ballarat BlogSynRE: What is religious literacy and how can it be improved in RE classrooms? Th...

Friday 5 June 2015

School Data Updates: The Hitchhiker's Guide to Assessment

School Data Updates: The Hitchhiker's Guide to Assessment: One of my favourite scenes from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy involves the Golgafrinchans who, having been tricked off their own ...

Wednesday 3 June 2015

Calamity Teacher: Teaching With Epilepsy

Calamity Teacher: Teaching With Epilepsy: One day, about three years ago, someone said something very strange to me. It was quite a simple statement and, oddly, I cannot quite reme...

Tuesday 2 June 2015

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Why CATs (Critically Appraised Topics) are the Evi...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Why CATs (Critically Appraised Topics) are the Evi...: How many times have you heard : ' There's just no way I have the time to engage in research'.      The development of CATS are i...

nikki able: CPD: the road ahead...

nikki able: CPD: the road ahead...: I have spent the last term working on a CPD structure that aims to deliver 3 things to the staff in my school. I want it to enable staff to ...

Saturday 30 May 2015

My packet of crisps: How do you deal with the guilt?

My packet of crisps: How do you deal with the guilt?: I have just one question this half term.  How do you control the guilt? I confess have struggled with this one this holiday.  My body hasn...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Big system, little system – put them in a cardboar...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Big system, little system – put them in a cardboar...: In a rare moment of escapism, I visited a city this week. On the journey there, I purchased a coffee from a vendor at a train station. It ...

Learning to Teach: The end is just a new beginning.

Learning to Teach: The end is just a new beginning.: Four years ago today I was sat revising for my A Level exams. Three years ago today I was setting up cups of tea for students who were about...

New School Finance: 'Coasting', MATs and sponsorship

New School Finance: 'Coasting', MATs and sponsorship: A look at some of the reports and comment that provide some interesting context around the impact of 'coasting' on sponsors and MATs...

Friday 29 May 2015

Bex Trex ...to teaching!: Keeping up the momentum? Starting the new academi...

Bex Trex ...to teaching!: Keeping up the momentum? Starting the new academi...: On Monday, most students and teachers in the UK will return for the last 7 weeks of the school year.  We won't though, we're startin...

Teaching Science: Considering the Practicalities

Teaching Science: Considering the Practicalities: I have had aspirational blog posts come under my nose recently and they have made me think, not about what if... but how? How do we really...

frenchteacher: Why do girls do better than boys at language learn...

frenchteacher: Why do girls do better than boys at language learn...: At my school over the years the top set was usually predominantly male and the lower sets were predominantly male. Boys often did very well,...

Thursday 28 May 2015

School Data Updates: The Rise of the Assessbots: do systems influence a...

School Data Updates: The Rise of the Assessbots: do systems influence a...: " And we would go on as though nothing was wrong " Joy Division, Transmission I recently got into a discussion on Twitter about th...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Do all good ideas need to be researched? - A resp...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: Do all good ideas need to be researched? - A resp...: Recently  David Didau  posed the question : do all good ideas need to be researched?  In doing so, Didau suggested that rather than research...

kitchen table math, the sequel: How to Google stuff when you don't know anything

kitchen table math, the sequel: How to Google stuff when you don't know anything: I've been joking with some of my friends about how exactly you would Google stuff when you don't know anything about the subject you...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Planning for the UK’s exit from the …. Controlled ...

Learning from my mistakes: an English teacher's blog: Planning for the UK’s exit from the …. Controlled ...: Like most people, I am planning my contingency plan for when the UK leaves the EU. I am thinking of how it will affect the classroom. You ...

kitchen table math, the sequel: Another year, another school board election

kitchen table math, the sequel: Another year, another school board election: Needless to say, I cannot resist a school board election. Letter to the editor: At the September 23, 2013 meeting of the Board of Educat...

Bex Trex ...to teaching!: NQT- Not Quite There - but only 7 weeks to go!

Bex Trex ...to teaching!: NQT- Not Quite There - but only 7 weeks to go!: I can't quite believe I'm already at the point in the year where the end of my induction is in my sights.  The finish line is so clo...

Wednesday 27 May 2015

TDRE Boss Blog: #BlogSyncRE - www.BlogSyncRE.org.uk

TDRE Boss Blog: #BlogSyncRE - www.BlogSyncRE.org.uk: Image courtesy of  MyWritingBlog After many months of thinking and planning, I was prompted into action by recent events on Save RE. ...

Tuesday 26 May 2015

frenchteacher: Where did all the A-level linguists go?

frenchteacher: Where did all the A-level linguists go?: All the figures below are from http://www.bstubbs.co.uk/a-lev.htm  . Brian gets his figures from JCQ. In 1993 29886 students did A-level Fre...

educationtoday: Thrown in at the deep end: support for teachers’ f...

educationtoday: Thrown in at the deep end: support for teachers’ f...: by Katarzyna Kubacka Analyst, Directorate for Education and Skills The first day at work can be stressful for anyone. But what if that d...

TDRE Boss Blog: Edexcel GCSE Religion & Media

TDRE Boss Blog: Edexcel GCSE Religion & Media: Image courtesy of The Guardian Firstly, I think religion and the media is fascinating. I always do some really good work on Islamopho...

frenchteacher: Challenges of new MFL A-levels

frenchteacher: Challenges of new MFL A-levels: Until the election result we did not know for sure if the new A-levels, with their decoupled AS level, would become a reality. Now we know. ...

TDRE Boss Blog: Freedom in RE

TDRE Boss Blog: Freedom in RE: Image courtesy of 2 Oceans Vibs Last night on the Facebook group of RE teachers called 'Save RE' a row escalated after a NQTs...

ssphonix: IFERI

ssphonix: IFERI: Anyone interested in reading the thoughts on this blog is strongly recommend to keep a regular eye on the website of IFERI (www.iferi.org ...

Saturday 23 May 2015

frenchteacher: How much teacher talk?

frenchteacher: How much teacher talk?: I recommend to you Barry Smith's blog about language teaching. Barry is a full-on, skill-building, cognitive code, teach-em-from-the-fro...

Wednesday 20 May 2015

educationtoday: Tough choices in school choice

educationtoday: Tough choices in school choice: by Marilyn Achiron Editor, Directorate for Education and Skills For those parents who have the opportunity to do so, choosing a school ...

Tuesday 19 May 2015

History Lecturer : Wall displays in a history class-room

History Lecturer : Wall displays in a history class-room: Yesterday there was a tweet asking for ideas for what to put on a history teacher's class-room wall. So this seems a good...

TDRE Boss Blog: Pay Me My Money Down

TDRE Boss Blog: Pay Me My Money Down: Image courtesy of Wikimedia Questions to NOT to ask at dinner parties: Who do you vote for? Are you religious? How much do you get...

Monday 18 May 2015

Read Write Reach: Why Being a Teacher is A Bit Like Being a Royal

Read Write Reach: Why Being a Teacher is A Bit Like Being a Royal: It must be tough naming a baby if you're a Royal. After all, the range of monikers you can realistically bestow on your baby without som...

Sunday 17 May 2015

frenchteacher: So what about that Conservative Ebacc commitment?

frenchteacher: So what about that Conservative Ebacc commitment?: We will require secondary school pupils to take GCSEs in English, maths, science, a language and history or geography, with Ofsted unable to...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - Evidence-Informed Pract...

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead - Evidence-Informed Pract...: The motivation to write this post arose from a desire to help school research leads avoid the trap of telling colleagues -  'what the ev...

TDRE Boss Blog: Poor Old PowerPoint

TDRE Boss Blog: Poor Old PowerPoint: Image courtesy of Microsoft Like so many things on Twitter, the use of PowerPoint has become a little polarised of late. Is it the wor...

Saturday 16 May 2015

Wednesday 13 May 2015

frenchteacher: Two implications of the election result for MFL

frenchteacher: Two implications of the election result for MFL: So the nation has voted and totally confounded the pollsters. Like many teachers I am bitterly disappointed and can foresee some messy polit...

Tuesday 12 May 2015

To boldly go...: Another dot on the Raiseonline

To boldly go...: Another dot on the Raiseonline: Some may remember the last blog post I wrote about statutory testing for 11 year olds and the effects on pupils. Especially the most vulnera...

TDRE Boss Blog: Faith Schools [RC] #GE2015

TDRE Boss Blog: Faith Schools [RC] #GE2015: Image courtesy of BHA The Bishops of England and Wales wrote to the Catholic population in February. The two key questions that it as...

Adam Twyman's Blog: Understanding Assessment without Levels

Adam Twyman's Blog: Understanding Assessment without Levels: In the first of my series about developing a new assessment system in our 2 form entry primary school in suburban south London, I will try ...

Adam Twyman's Blog: Understanding Assessment without Levels

Adam Twyman's Blog: Understanding Assessment without Levels: In the first of my series about developing a new assessment system in our 2 form entry primary school in suburban south London, I will try ...

frenchteacher: Challenges of the new MFL GCSE

frenchteacher: Challenges of the new MFL GCSE: Controlled assessment will be gone, good riddance, but many language teachers will be wary of a new GCSE syllabus they will have to teach fr...

Thursday 7 May 2015

Monday 4 May 2015

The Snow Report: Why not everyone is enthusiastic about the Arrows...

The Snow Report: Why not everyone is enthusiastic about the Arrows...: Recent media reports such as this one in The Age have again drawn attention to the Canadian-based Arrowsmith Program for addressing the ne...

Steps in teaching and learning: Going for interview - Square pegs in round holes

Steps in teaching and learning: Going for interview - Square pegs in round holes: This isn't a blog about getting your first teaching post, this is really about that next step up the ladder, the leadership post. I...

Adam Twyman's Blog: Developing A New Assessment System

Adam Twyman's Blog: Developing A New Assessment System:    It was no surprise to me, in October 2014, when my head teacher placed at the top of my new performance management form the requirem...

Read Write Reach: Interview Questions

Read Write Reach: Interview Questions: Chickens As a twenty one year old NQT wannabe, I rocked up at Leeds University to be interviewed for the PGCE Secondary English cou...

Sunday 3 May 2015

The London RE Hub: Where Next? [2015]

The London RE Hub: Where Next? [2015]: The TLREH Team at the Ismaili Centre, March 2015 The London RE Hub’s inaugural conference was attended by over 100 London teachers and...

Friday 1 May 2015

frenchteacher: How can we increase uptake in languages?

frenchteacher: How can we increase uptake in languages?: Readers will be familiar with the crisis in recruitment to language courses in the UK, whether it be GCSE, A-level or university. At GCSE th...

Thursday 30 April 2015

Using research in education: Working memory in the classroom

Using research in education: Working memory in the classroom: Working memory is the memory system we use during everyday activities. Imagine, for example, attempting to multiply two numbers without ...

ManYana Ltd: Why do I need a teacher?

ManYana Ltd: Why do I need a teacher?: Walking the dogs through the glorious Welsh landscape is brilliant thinking time. Today they were particularly well behaved. I could walk...

TDRE Boss Blog: Religious Literacy [RC]

TDRE Boss Blog: Religious Literacy [RC]: Image from The Way textbook from TERE Religious literacy is the knowledge of, and ability to understand, religion. (source <here&g...

TDRE Boss Blog: Resourcing NEW GCSE / A-Level RS

TDRE Boss Blog: Resourcing NEW GCSE / A-Level RS: Image courtesy of Geograph From 2016 there will be a new GCSE and a new A-Level in Religious Studies. Both will look dramatically diff...

Wednesday 29 April 2015

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead and Cognitive Biases

Evidence Based Educational Leadership: The School Research Lead and Cognitive Biases: Acknowledging the influence and impact of cognitive biases on evidence-informed practice is essential for the School Research Lead. Why...

Mrs P Teach: Dear NQT Mentors...

Mrs P Teach: Dear NQT Mentors...: I've heard most of you are amazing.  Like my own NQT mentor, you inspire, encourage, support and advise.  You invite new teachers to wa...

kitchen table math, the sequel: Barry's book is out!!

kitchen table math, the sequel: Barry's book is out!!: Teaching Math in the 21st Century I got my copy in the mail this week, opened it up to a random page, and instantly found a paragraph to p...

Saturday 25 April 2015

Mrs P Teach: I Wish My Teacher Knew...

Mrs P Teach: I Wish My Teacher Knew...: This idea has been doing the rounds on social media for the last few weeks.  A simple search on Twitter for the hashtag #IWishMyTeacherKnew...

The Baron: Nicky Morgan needs to denounce the Left's shameful...

The Baron: Nicky Morgan needs to denounce the Left's shameful...: Let's make no bones about it; the Left's unrepentant fingerprints are all over the scarred, lifeless body. It lies face down, rive...

frenchteacher: How highly should we value pronunciation?

frenchteacher: How highly should we value pronunciation?: When I was reviewing the Speaking mark schemes for the new GCSE MFL exams beginning in 2018 (first teaching 2016) I picked up the fact that ...

frenchteacher: How highly should we value pronunciation?

frenchteacher: How highly should we value pronunciation?: When I was reviewing the Speaking mark schemes for the new GCSE MFL exams beginning in 2018 (first teaching 2016) I picked up the fact that ...

Read Write Reach: Impossible and Irresponsible: 'Sacrifice-Everythin...

Read Write Reach: Impossible and Irresponsible: 'Sacrifice-Everythin...: I recently read Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman , an American mom and self-confessed neurotic who found herself in Paris bringing up ...

frenchteacher: Comparing draft GCSE MFL specifications (4)

frenchteacher: Comparing draft GCSE MFL specifications (4): This is the fourth post about the draft MFL GCSE specifications, the first looked at the AQA specification in some detail, whilst the second...

Thursday 23 April 2015

frenchteacher: Comparing draft GCSE MFL specification mark scheme...

frenchteacher: Comparing draft GCSE MFL specification mark scheme...: In my previous post about the new draft GCSE MFL mark schemes I focused on the Foundation Speaking Conversation grids. remember that it is r...

TDRE Boss Blog: Outlaw RE [Think Bomb]

TDRE Boss Blog: Outlaw RE [Think Bomb]: I attended an RE Thinking Day organised by Culham St Gabriel' s and I was asked by Mark Chater to plan a 'Thought Bomb' whi...

Saturday 18 April 2015

Digital Glue: All things must pass

Digital Glue: All things must pass: I stopped teaching before Christmas 2013 and resigned in April 2014. I have a decent teaching pension but it's a bit hand-to-mouth. ...

Friday 17 April 2015

To infinity... and beyond: First a Ratio Robbery, now a Jewel Heist...

To infinity... and beyond: First a Ratio Robbery, now a Jewel Heist...: Recently, I tweeted about my distaste at teachers being given the opportunity to sell resources on TES. I've gained a lot of good resour...

TDRE Boss Blog: Assessment Without Levels: Catholic RE AWOL

TDRE Boss Blog: Assessment Without Levels: Catholic RE AWOL: What do you do when your school is moving over to a whole new system of assessing Key Stage 3 students but the directive from the Bisho...

Thursday 16 April 2015

Identity crisis? No, I'm a primary school teacher!: Assessment without levels ... a successful trial!

Identity crisis? No, I'm a primary school teacher!: Assessment without levels ... a successful trial!: I didn't go out of my way to start an 'assessment without levels' trial. It just seemed to be the only sensible way forward. M...

frenchteacher: Comparing draft GCSE MFL specifications

frenchteacher: Comparing draft GCSE MFL specifications: In a recent blog I looked in a little detail at the AQA draft MFL specification. All the awarding bodies, or exam boards, as teachers usuall...

frenchteacher: Easy Languages video parallel listening

frenchteacher: Easy Languages video parallel listening: http://www.easy-languages.org/about/ I just came across this free site which has a decent archive of video interviews recorded on t...

Educating MrMattock: Hats off to the Welsh...

Educating MrMattock: Hats off to the Welsh...: With no disrespect intended at all; in recent times with all of the adverse media attention, the word "Wales" has not exactly bee...