Expert Contributor | Schools Week

6 ways trusts can boost teacher retention

Crunching the data from seven years of School Workforce Census let us identify the best ways that trusts can support career progression, says David Carter Does the answer to the recruitment and retention crisis lie in workforce development? The research suggests that it’s a strong place for trust chief executives to start. At the Ambition […]

Phasing Out Private Schools

Everybody’s changing, sang chubby-cheeked rockers Keane in 2004. Ain’t that the truth. There are more protestors outside the Commons these days than there are members of parliament bothering to go inside. People are falling over themselves to say how much money further education should get. And on Wednesday your sketchwriter found himself listening to the […]

Jon Hutchinson’s top blogs of the week June 2019

Motivation and mastery: what’s the deal? Christopher Such @suchmo83 Primary teacher Christopher Such’s biggest reflection of working with lower attaining pupils is one that will chime with anyone who has worked with children: “People hate failing at things, especially compared to their peers.” He argues that the “false gods of pace and curriculum coverage” too […]

The Wellbeing Toolkit

I really wanted to love The Wellbeing Toolkit. Its foreword is by one of my heroines, the magnificent Jill Berry, and I recognise Andrew Cowley as a (much-needed) voice of support for wellbeing strategies in education on social media. Indeed, the book does have a lot right with it. The section in which Cowley emphasises […]

Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children need support from schools

Pupils from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller backgrounds have the lowest school attainment of all ethnic groups, says Patricia Stapleton. School leaders can help to change that June is Gypsy, Roma and Traveller history month, which celebrates the culture and heritage of GRT communities and is therefore a timely moment to highlight the needs of children […]

Valuing the curriculum in its own right

If the only reason to study a subject is a passing grade, it’s no wonder that many pupils do not want to play the game, says Ben Newmark Politicians and other key decision-makers have become overly preoccupied in recent years with viewing education through the lens of what happens because of it, rather than as […]

It’s time to take a long view on the recruitment crisis

The government’s latest boost for new maths and physics teachers may not solve much, apart from attracting staff to good schools in the pilot areas, says Mark Boylan The government’s latest approach to sorting out the shortage of maths and physics staff is to offer new teachers of these subjects a £4,000 boost paid in […]

Can networks close the research practice gap in the classroom?

Networks are powerful. Look at Barack Obama’s election based on community networks through the “snowflake model’ to see the potential of an informed, enthused, and mobilised community. While networks are already central to disseminating good practice among medical professionals, in education there appears to be a disconnect between best practice and actual practice, known as […]

Debra Kidd top blogs of the week beginning 3 June 2019

A few things to think about for schools holding interviews Jill Berry @jillberry102 Jill Berry is always a calm and positive influence on Twitter and her advice on leadership is well regarded by many. Here she writes a thoughtful response to someone who unsuccessfully applied for three deputy headships and failed to receive any feedback. […]