Dear Mrs Keegan, I wrote to one of your predecessors on several occasion, but this is the first time I have felt moved to write to you since you took over as Secretary of State. For teachers, support staff, admin staff and for everyone else who works in a school, education is a passion. It …
Tag Archives: education
The State of Education 2023
As we move into a new year, it is commonplace to find ourselves in a time of reflection. Frequently this is focussed on ourselves, on what we are proud of, but more often than not on how we have improve, how we can better ourselves and setting goals (however unachievable they maybe, sometimes!). But this …
Trickle Down Edunomics?
What is the currency of education? Is it knowledge? Skills? Values? Respect? The true answer is probably that it should be a mixture of all those things. The balance of those things is different at different times, and probably rightly so – different circumstances lead to different priorities.The problem is, that isn’t what the currency …
Learning to Lead
I’ve been a headteacher for 6 years now. That whole time has been a massive learning process. Every day throws something new at you, and every day you learn something new about yourself, leadership, people and education. Here’s a few thoughts on things I’ve learned about leadership over my time as a head and how …
Here’s Why It Matters
Lots of talk yesterday and today about Johnson, Sunak, fines, law breaking and, around teaching and medical, Fabricant and his scurrilous claims around teachers and nurses popping into the staffroom at the end of the day together for a drink. Many people are trying to sweep under the carpet. We all broke a few rules, …
Dear Mr Zahawi…
Dear Mr Zahawi, I hope this letter finds you well. Unfortunately, it finds me less than well. It finds me exhausted, feeling inadequate and not really knowing which foot to put forward first. I understand 1 in 10 teachers were off school last week. In my school it was higher. In some it will have …
A Defence of the Profession
There is a lot in the media about teachers. Barely a week can go by without an article about what the profession is doing wrong, how it can do better and how we are failing children. It seems there is little to counterbalance that argument. The issue is, there is no right to reply. When …
To School Staff Everywhere…
Dear school staff everywhere, You’ve made it. This has got to have been one of the most brutal and challenging terms in memory. Until recently though, it was hard to put our finger on why. The last few weeks have a significant sense of deja vu when compared to last year, but before that it …
The House of Cards
I spent many a time in my youth trying to build a house of cards. Hour after hour spent delicately balancing just two cards that where so carefully placed that they would support each other. The joy of getting just two to stand was immense. Then I started on the next two and somehow managed …
Things You Need to Hear
Everyone is exhausted. Everyone. It’s been an absolutely manic half term. For some it’s over today, for many of us there is still a week to go. If you’ve made it…well done. I think we all thought this half term might be different. A return to some kind of normal. And to an extent is …
Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It’s Back to School We Go
This week brings the return to school for lots of us. I’m sure, like me, most people are experiencing the the mix of positivity about getting, lamentation for the end of the holiday and nerves over Covid and what the future will bring. There are people who want to get back to normal, people who …
An Apology to School Staff
I am sorry to have to interrupt your school holidays, but thought it important I write to you. I am sure you have seen and read the recent IfG, University of Cambridge and University of London research and reports. They were damning of the Department pointing out numerous failures and areas where we could, and …
You did good
The summer can often be a time for reflection. This might not be a year to want to reflect on. It’s been very, very hard. It seems to have rolled on from the last academic year without much of a break, certainly mentally, anyway. I think it is really important that we do reflect though, …
A Guide to Securing a Job
So, while many people may have secured a job for next year, I am well aware there are people still looking and getting worried about finding a post for next year. Here is my short guide to maximising your chances at suceeding in getting a post, from the start to the end of the process. …
Cracking the Tech Workflow
I’ve been thinking about writing this one for a while now, as I finally feel I’ve got to a place with my tech use where it is becoming helpful in most areas rather than a complication or hindrance. This is something I’ve been chasing for a good length of time, and I’ve tried various different …
A little Maths I learned…
I spent a good chunk of my time teaching maths at primary level, and although, admittedly, mainly at Key Stage 2 level, I like to think I was reasonably successful at it. I love teaching Maths, and I think it can be beautiful in its simplicity, and the patterns that can be found and the …
Ignore the Voice That Screams
Ignore the voice that niggles inside your head. The one that tells you to give it up, the one that tells you you’re fooling no-one. The one that screams ‘imposter’. We all have one. Because no matter how confident we might seem, it is in all of us. That nagging doubt, that tiny voice that …
Treat the Grown Ups Like Grown Ups
Yesterday I put out a tweet about why people fall out of love with teaching being nothing to do with the actual teaching part of the job. It seems to have struck a nerve in what became a quite disheartening thread about the reasons people have left teaching. It filled with stories of how they …
Teaching is easy, the layman opined…
‘Teaching is easy,’ the layman opined, with a poorly disguised chuckle and a glint in their eye. ‘I don’t get the fuss, or endless tales filled with woe or the mess or stress, but I have to confess that I’d happily give long breaks a go.’ You nod and you smile as you look down …
Leadership, A Little Less Distilled
Following this tweet https://twitter.com/secretHT1/status/1352892060798513154 I’ve fleshed out some of my thoughts on the most important aspects of leadership. 1) Put Your Ego to One Side Yes, we’re in charge of something. Yes, we’ve been given a place of responsibility, but don’t let it get to ours head. There’s still a lot we don’t know about …
You Do Not Go Unseen
What you do does not go unseen. Even if it feels like it, it doesn’t go unseen and you don’t go unseen. The prep, the work, the delivery, the videos, the uploading, the feedback, the video calls, the live lessons, the late nights, the early starts. None of it goes unseen. The children don’t know …
New Year, Old You
As we start a new year we hear so much about resolutions, life changes, altering things about ourselves in the pursuit of better, different, more affirming, more efficient, more effective. Yes, these are all worthwhile goals and, yes, can make huge impacts on your work/life/attitude. Sometimes though, all of it can be a bit much …
Dear Mr Williamson, further to my previous letter.
Dear Mr Williamson, It has been a while since I last wrote to you. In a number of ways many things have changed. We have welcomed back almost all pupils and greeted them with smiles, warm hearts, cheeriness and sensitivity as they have returned to school this term, no doubt anxious about what it would …
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Making the Most of Your Teaching Practice
Soon, trainees everywhere will be making their steps into new schools for new placements. It can be daunting, scary and thrilling all at the same time. All of mine were so different in terms of scope, demographic and age group and they were all excellent learning experiences. These are my top tips for making the …
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Dear Mr Williamson
Let me begin by saying that the last 6 months has been an undoubtedly difficult time. What has occurred has not been seen in 100 years and difficult decisions have had to be made – life changing decisions, unenviable decisions and often impossible decisions. I understand that and very few people would want to be …
Why Do I Trust?
We see a lot of values in schools now. This will always be high on my personal list. It is so powerful and can be an absolute game-changer in so many ways. I’ve already written a blog on how to build trust as a leader, but this will dig a little deeper into why it …
Why Do I Rest?
This one is all about why I feel the need to strike the right work life balance. I am no good to anyone if I’m burned out, exhausted and stressed out. I’m ratty, shorter with people and my family end up bearing the brunt of it. This is the one I particularly feel guilty about. …
Why Do I Teach?
Why do I teach? I’ve never actually asked myself that question. That’s because teaching had been what I wanted to do since I was 11. I’d never really questioned the why of it because it just seemed to be a natural progression for me, decided in my head early on. It wasn’t due to one …
Thriving September
For some, September will feel like it is crashing towards them and with it will come a wave of excitement and nerves. Planning for your first class and first term can be a mix of eagerness and dread – you want the day to come, but perhaps are feeling that imposter syndrome creeping on. Maybe …
Catch Up, Not Patch Up
So much out there about catch up at the moment, and rightly so. Some children have missed everything, some have missed a lot and some have missed most of what they should have covered over the second half of this year. We’ve been asked to prioritise catch up in Reading and Maths and Phonics and …
Guidance On Schools Opening on 1st June
Last updated 25 May 2020 Information for Schools We are asking schools to re-open their doors and welcome back children in nursery, Year R, 1 and 6 from the 1st June 2020. Before moving onto practicalities, let us first thank each and everyone of you for all you have done so far. By making provision …
Leading From the Back
Lead by example! Show the way! Be the figurehead! All very plausible and worthwhile I’m sure but is it always the best way forward? There are times when, as a leader, you need to be front and centre and be making the critical decisions but equally, and maybe more often, front and centre is precisely …
We Must Not Go Back to Normal
It seems a common thread amongst the media, friends and online interactions is related to some of the things that we can’t wait to do when we ‘get back to normal’. Going back to normal would be the worst thing we could do. We should not return to the state we were in before this …
Ask a Headteacher Anything – Part 2
Twitter could ask me anything – and they did! Here are all of the questions I was asked, and my answers. Who do you turn to when you don’t know what to do? I’m fortunate, I have a supportive wife, a great deputy, a cluster group and great governors, so I go to them. Perspective …
Don’t Stress About the Home Schooling
I’ve seen so many different views on this. Daily work, weekly work, home work packs, must log on, don’t have to log on, remote lessons, live lessons, pre recorded lessons, phone calls home, threatening letters to parents, too high expectations, too low expectations, have to do it, don’t have to do it. I’ve seen it …
When the going gets tough, the tough…feel pretty awful.
This week was a tough week. Nothing major, and people, I’m sure, are dealing with much worse. Just a multitude of little things all piling up at once…governor meetings to prep for, lots of staff absence, few niggles here and there, safeguarding and social care issues, a high level of cover needed from me. Coupled …
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What is Great Teaching?
In a world of Ofsted, Learning Walks, Observations, drop-ins (formal or informal), judgement, accountability and everything else teachers have to contend with it is easy to lose what great teaching is. We can fall into the trap of jumping through the hoops and working to what we think people expect to see of great teaching, …
Building Trust as a Leader
For me this is the most important part of leadership. If you don’t get trust and buy in from your team you aren’t going to achieve much. I’ve written in the past about the fact that people will never be completely satisified with what you can deliver. I know for a fact that I had …
How do you know if you’re ready for leadership?
Is there an age limit on when we are ready for leadership positions? Are there factors that mean we are ready or not ready? Do we need a set number of years experience before we put ourselves forward? The flight controllers at NASA that put Apollo 11 on the moon had an average age of …
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10 Things I Wish I’d Known Before I Became A Head
1. You are responsible for more than you could ever imagine. The list is never-ending. My neck is on the line for things I never even knew existed. I am still surprised by things that come at me that I am responsible for even three years on. It’s a constant whirlwind. Most of them won’t …
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Ask a Headteacher Anything
This morning I asked people on Twitter to ask me anything they had every wanted to ask a headteacher. There were some really challenging questions, and I have really reflected on myself and some of the things I do and why. Below are all the questions and my responses in one place, feel free to …
Can’t Please Everyone? Maybe we can.
I know this is an old hat topic, but I heard something new about it which changed my thinking about it. It came from a non educationalist, but it really resonated and is something I am going to try to build more explicitly with my parents over the coming months. This was a new leader …
English Warm Up Games
Following on from the Maths Warm Up ideas, here are some ideas for English too! 1. Adverb Charades Child leaves the room and comes back in acting out an adverb. Others have to guess what it is. One who gets it gets to do the next one. 2. Word Association Game Play with two pupils. …
17 Maths Warm Up Games
Some maths warm up games and ideas that I have used over my time teaching maths to get you started for the new year, hope they are of some use! 1) Shoot the Sheriff Children stand back to back and take five paces. You fire a question, first one to turn and shoot the other …
Mind Consuming?
Of course teaching is time-consuming, but it’s not just that. It mind-consuming too. Yes there is a lot to do during the day, marking, planning, meetings, supporting, helping, guiding, writing, but the one thing that takes up most of my time in the day is thinking. I find this aspect of the job the most …
#edutwoxic?
First of all, this is not a response to #listgate. Enough has been said over that, on both sides of the argument. However, it did inspire me to revisit this blog I’ve been meaning to write. I joined twitter as a teacher in June. I have actually always tried to avoid education in my life …
Paying Lip Service
Pay rises, extra money, Nick Gibb saying he’s looking forward to sorting out education spending, a new Secretary of State for Education who actually has a link to teaching, a new optimism in politics. The future is bright, surely? Except we’ve heard it all before, haven’t we? Every time there is a change in leadership …
Reports – The Honest Truth?
Urgh. I’m sure I’m supposed to say they are a vital part of parent’s feedback and will be treasured and valued. But, actually, are they? However much thought goes into them, are they ever more than a sycophantic snapshot, filled with teacher jargon and obscure adjectival changes to shift meaning for those who can read …
The Secret Headteacher 