Opinion

‘Can I fail Ofsted if a child I teach goes to fight in Syria?’

Despite Ofsted’s changes to the framework, we are already doing what we can – and how is this new...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

Let’s give Ofsted’s short inspections two cheers (for now)

The lighter-touch regime is a welcome move, but why is the chief inspector still obsessing over pupils being well...

Colin Richards
Colin Richards
Opinion

Would you teach differently if there was a gun at your head?

Do our current teaching methods always achieve the goals we hope for – and if not, why not? It’s...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

‘Schools Week hasn’t done the maths on commas’

It isn’t unreasonable to expect an 11-year-old to use a comma as a thousands separator – this is a...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

‘Talking down the job of a headteacher stops people doing it’

Being a headteacher is a tough job: but it is also a brilliant one. Let’s talk up the positives...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

Top tips for dealing with criticism as an education leader

Education leaders in the limelight often attract criticism and negative attention. How do they stand it? And what techniques...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

‘How you can make teachers stop worrying about research – and learn to love it instead’

Teachers who use research to inform their teaching can often be evangelical about its benefits, but not all staff...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

Teachers won’t welcome an ‘apprenticeship’ route into the classroom

Last week we had a poke at Nicky Morgan for being in slow-motion. Slo-Mo, we nicknamed her, and said...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips
Opinion

‘Health care asks patients to design its services, why don’t we ask pupils?’

Disengaged pupils can be reconnected to their learning by teachers will to take innovative approaches already seen in the...

Nicky Phillips
Nicky Phillips