JL Dutaut | Schools Week

How to ensure looked-after children get a look in on the NTP

The first wave of NTP had to make in-flight changes to accommodate looked-after children. The second wave must pre-empt remaining challenges, writes Simon Barnes When the national tutoring programme launched last November, the criteria for student inclusion was registration on a school roll. In theory, this made sense; every child in the country should be […]

Collaboration between trusts can win the Covid recovery

The post-Covid recovery calls for collaboration over competition and our MAT-to-MAT peer review pilot shows what can be achieved, write Helen Rowland and Andy Yarrow We know school-to-school collaboration and peer review are effective in supporting school improvement, but this sort of work is far less common between multi-academy trusts. Yet our recent experience of […]

A charter won’t fix the teacher wellbeing crisis

The DfE’s new initiative is welcome, writes Mary Bousted, but this charter can’t be used to paper over the cracks of a broken accountability system The DfE and Ofsted recently launched a staff wellbeing charter to “protect, promote and enhance” staff wellbeing. The NEU supports this initiative because a commitment to improve access to mental […]

Retrieval Practice Resource Guide by Kate Jones

Emma Cate Stokes finds this book a treasure trove of useful techniques and materials, but wishes it paid more attention to the primary classroom In its simplest form, ‘retrieval practice’ is a pedagogical method that is all about moving knowledge from short-term to long-term memory, and Kate Jones is rapidly becoming the go-to person for […]

Melissa Jane’s blogs of the week, 17 May 2021

Melissa Jane’s top blogs cover accessibility, sensory storytelling, the power of gardening and the extra load of living with racism Thinking Out of the Box @eyecantalk As we begin to take tentative steps out of lockdown and back to (dare I say it?) normality, it’s worth remembering that the “normal” we had before didn’t […]

Research: What really inspires teachers?

Teachers’ responses to our recent survey confirm some steroptypes of what inspires about the profession – but they also reveal some interesting insights about retention, writes Eve Debbage Needless to say, the past year has been a challenging time for teachers. A quick glance at social media confirms it still is. Based on that, it […]

Research: Who benefits from inclusion?

New research suggests the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs has positive effects that could be further improved upon, writes Rob Webster The enduring debate about the inclusion of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) can be as polarising as it is emotive. Some argue inclusion is a human […]

Exam boards don’t deserve the criticism they’re getting

Criticism of exam boards fails to take in all their work behind the scenes, says Philip Wright. So here’s a little of what they’re doing to earn their fees With no exams happening this summer for the second year running, and with teachers working flat out to deliver grades for their students, it’s not surprising […]

Veiled needs pose a hidden risk to post-Covid catch-up

A growing number of young people report keeping their suffering to themselves. Simon Walker explains the evidence and how to support them It used to be that most pupils with challenging emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) were difficult to miss. Challenging needs almost always meant challenging behaviours. But not anymore. The majority of pupils facing […]