Editor @tes - an award-winning news, analysis, and research magazine for the education sector
Portsmouth
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It is shocking that it is not shocking that the news of schools going back to full face to face teaching on 8 March has been leaked late on a Sunday night at the end of half term ahead of an announcement tomorrow. Schools and those who work in them deserve better than this.
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Whatever you think of the Greenwich situation, to be a headteacher in that area right now must be horrendous. At the end of the toughest, longest term of their career, they have now been put in the middle of a political scrap with the country watching. Thoughts with all of them.
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Seeing my kids' school's staff car park half empty this morning was a strangely useful indication of just how desperate things are getting in schools as more and more staff are having to self-isolate. Schools performing miracles to keep classrooms running.
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Parents being able to report schools to Ofsted on remote learning... pitting parents against schools, and vice versa, at the moment does not seem the most productive of moves.
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There's been a disastrous loss of experienced teachers from the profession and not enough people are aware of it, or talking about it.
Even more worrying, not enough is being done to stop the over-50s leaving.
@heymrshallahan deep dives into the data
tes.com/magazine/analysis/ge…
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Just chatting to my mum who taught primary for 40 years and she said 'the trouble is Jon, so many people expect kids to think and act like adults and they simply don't' - true that.
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"We’ve failed to look after our headteachers. We’ve failed to give them anywhere near what they need to do their jobs effectively. We’ve heaped more and more on them regardless. And then we’ve sent in inspectors to pick them apart"
Today's @tes briefing⬇️
tes.com/magazine/analysis/ge…
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The growth in Andrew Tate-related issues in schools has been really worrying to see, and some of the detail in this @mr_englishteach piece is so sad to read.
Some really practical advice from Mark and those interviewed to try and tackle the issue.
tes.com/magazine/teaching-le…
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I guess schools are used to being largely ignored when it comes to covid, but it has gone to another level being silent on them altogether in light of the other measures and the scientific findings announced in this press conference.
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The tone from the DfE is definitely shifting as the unions reject the offer in turn. One DfE source quoted as saying: "You expect this sort of rhetoric from the NEU, not NAHT"
NEW: A third education union has REJECTED the govt pay offer & indicated strong support for industrial action. @NAHTnews said that govt must “come back to the table” and that to do otherwise would be to “stick two fingers up” to teachers
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"I’ve accepted the fact I’ve not made anybody happy over the past 12 months. Whatever decision I had to take, somebody was going to disagree. And it has been traumatic."
Outstandingly honest piece from @vicgoddard in our special issue of @tes this week
tes.com/magazine/article/cov…
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So two huge pieces of news this morning:
@NEUnion to advise members to refuse face-to-face teaching on H&S grounds tes.com/news/national-teache…
And @NAHTnews begins a legal challenge against the government tes.com/news/exclusive-heads…
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Do people still play rounders in primary school? Not at the moment, obviously, it's bloody awful out. But in general?
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I have been thinking a lot recently about the fact certain names always pop up when people cite research in education and - as lovely as these people are - it always seems odd because they are usually not the leading person in their field and they are almost always... men. So...
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"To put it bluntly, the sector is knackered. Yet all the talk is of ramping things up so pupils can “catch up”. Those in schools would be forgiven for looking at each other and wondering: how much more can we give?"
My leader this week.
tes.com/magazine/article/pre…
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Increasingly hearing parents say they are going to pull kids out of school in last weeks of term to avoid them being pinged by Test and Trace and missing holidays that have been booked.
What is already a chaotic situation may become even more chaotic.
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Here's a question: considering the amount of time Year R kids will have missed being in Year R, will we need to see a more Year R style approach in Year 1, at least for the first few months? (I know many schools do play-based Y1 already, but not all....)
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"Schools characteristically scramble to deliver content. However, in this scramble to serve our students academically, we’re in danger of forgetting them socially. It’s not so much content that’s required now, it’s connection, companionship and conversation." - in @tes Friday
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Hugely important investigation by the @tes news team today.
School safeguarding referrals are at their highest since 2014, but @tes has discovered the majority result in 'no further action' labels, leaving schools unsupported and pupils at risk
tes.com/magazine/news/genera…
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Congratulations to @UKLabour and the new education team who will now run the DfE.
Most in education are hopeful for change but it is likely the profession will need to be patient and expectations may need to be managed.
We need the right solutions, not the quickest.
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Got a back-to-school cold? It does not mean your Covid precautions are not working. Excellent piece from @DrShetalAO tes.com/news/why-your-cold-t…
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Potty training our two-year old twins: tried direct instruction, child-led discovery, rewards (not punishments), play-based approaches, lecture style teacher talk (that's right, I explained biology to two year olds, because i was tired) - and still there is wee on the floor.
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What even is a knowledge-rich, powerful curriculum?
Professor Michael Young's work has been widely cited as a key reference for it, but he's not so sure it should be - and he <is> sure the current curric focus is wrong-headed.
Fascinating interview.
tes.com/magazine/teaching-le…
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On 5 September 2017, @tes launched a new podcast to connect research to teaching practice. We had no long-term plan, no guests lined up beyond the first two and, as host, I had no experience with podcasts. What could go wrong?
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Here it is! Your comprehensive guide to what the research says works for revision, courtesy of Prof John Dunlosky and the latest Tes Podagogy podcast: rereading, highlighters, retrieval practice, spaced practice, motivation all covered tes.com/news/gcse-revision-g…
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We need more primary teacher writers for @tes - keen to hear from anyone with an interest in research, but also anyone keen to write on other topics, too. #PrimaryRocks
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➡️Sir Kevan Collins: "We did nothing. We gave up. It was pathetic"
In 2021, Collins was hired to fix education post-Covid.
For the first time, he details what happened in those 4 months, why Sunak/Johnson dumped his plan, and the legacy of that decision
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Exciting news time - the next three issues of @tes will form a special curriculum series: the 17 May looks at curriculum theory; 24 May looks at turning theory into practice; 31 May showcases schools that are doing interesting things with their curriculum (1/4)
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As schools empty of increasing numbers of children (and teachers) for self-isolation, the topic of focus from the DfE swings, as it frequently has done during the pandemic, to mobile phones.
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I know of a head who has resigned today from a challenging school because the stress of filling in for the disappearance of support services has got too much. Unanswered calls, removed interventions, failed kids, teachers left in dangerous situations unsupported.
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If Labour wins the election, having Sir Kevan Collins advising - as was leaked yesterday (story below) - is a v shrewd appointment.
He knows how gov works, he knows how local authorities work and he knows how schools work. Any Labour plan...(1/2)
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Today in @tes - @johncmorgan3 has done a huge piece of work looking at the science behind school closures and reopenings. It's such an important piece for our readership and wider public that we have decided to put it in front of the paywall. Here it is: tes.com/magazine/article/cor…
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Here's a big list of all the tech and resources that has been made free in the past few weeks tes.com/news/coronavirus-fre… - excellent work @heymrshallahan
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"schools are sticking with children, working with families, building strong relationships and being a central part of their local community. But, too often, such support happens despite central government, not because of it."
@annelongfield for @tes
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This is a very, very interesting piece for UK teachers: what's life like in Denmark's reopened schools?
tes.com/news/what-it-denmark…
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This one will prompt some debate: guided play found in a new study to be better for teaching early maths, and as good at teaching most other things, compared with traditional teaching methods.
New analysis from @Cambridge_Uni
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That's quite a claim considering there is no robust evidence for methodology of teaching during a pandemic-related lockdown lasting for months at a time....
Live teaching is the best way of delivering remote teaching, says Gavin Williamson, adding “We encourage schools to put as much live provision on as possible” and says DfE is supporting schools in this and that "we’re seeing “substantial gains” #eduQs
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If masks are required in classrooms from 8 March, why weren't they required at any other time in the past 11 months? The science on masks has not changed markedly in that period.
Secondary students will be required to wear masks in classrooms as well as in the corridor and communal spaces when they return @educationgovuk has announced tes.com/news/back-school-mas…
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Really interesting piece from principal Jennie Divine, whose school has been in lockdown in Milan for three weeks - useful points to prep for in UK schools if they end up being closed. tes.com/news/coronavirus-5-l…
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One of the greatest achievements of my son's school is that he absolutely loves being there. That's actually not the easiest thing to achieve, yet it is so crucial to underpinning everything else that happens in the classroom.
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Very useful guide on working memory from @EnserMark tes.com/news/5-ways-support-…
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“If children are ready to write and read, then by all means start that process. The problem is when we are trying to teach a child phonics and to write a sentence when they cannot actually articulate a sentence yet." @louisejkay on this week's Podagogy tes.com/news/what-you-need-k…
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"We might offer this as an explicit deal: a grade or two worse in each GSCE in exchange for more residentials, more group work in class, more opportunities to socially interact during lessons."
A fascinating thought-piece from @jon_hutchinson_
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If we were to do a special issue on timetabling - literally anything to do with how a school day is structured - what would you want to know?
Why is a lesson around an hour? What happens if we break the year into four week terms.... you get the picture.
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On this date two years ago, the majority of children began learning from home. Today on @tes we celebrate the huge achievements of schools since then and we detail how much harder the pandemic was made because of the incompetence of others. (1/6)
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I have interviewed Carol Dweck many times and edited articles about her and Growth Mindset even more regularly - she has always come across as a reflective and interesting academic and this interview I think is no exception.. (1/3)
tes.com/news/carol-dweck-whe…
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"The truth is: schools cannot, on their own, overcome the disadvantages that arise from poverty. But those who express this view are often dismissed as defeatist"
A thought-provoking challenge to the 'schools fix-all' narrative.
tes.com/magazine/analysis/se…
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... here are a few female researchers who really should be talked about more in education. There are loads more, please add to the thread!
Literacy: @ReadOxford @annecastles @Kathy_Rastle Jane Oakhill @ricketts_lara @lilacCourt Maggie Snowling, Sarah McGeown (and loads more!)
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"teaching is, above all, a human endeavour. We employ people for their knowledge but also for their care, their humour and their empathy. Let’s try not to script that out of the classroom."
Fantastic, balanced piece from @greeborunner
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It is @tes Podagogy time! Thoroughly enjoyed this chat with Professor Jane Oakhill about how we should teach comprehension - why knowledge is not enough, why you have to start early, and why vocab lists are largely ineffective tes.com/news/inference-why-c…
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Six year old son, while having a wee before bed.
"Hello my voice. Hello MY VOICE.... Hello my v... Erm... Daddy. Am I talking to my voice or is my voice talking to me?
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Low-level disruption is often cited as the biggest challenge faced by classroom teachers - so what are we doing about it?
Great piece from @KateParkerTes talking to @tombennett71 @Strickomaster @suzanneMSc15 @Tamsin_J_Ford and others on that question.
tes.com/magazine/teaching-le…
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"There are some methods of assessment that I believe are never worth it; continuous assessment is one of them."
This interview with @dylanwiliam is the one thing you need to read today. Sensible, informed and provocative (in the right way).
tes.com/magazine/teaching-le…
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Chatting to a primary leader today worried more for the kids currently in school than out of it. Experiencing school as a very different thing, with no consistency on staff due to rotation, mixed age teaching, and staff fearful for their health. Thinks home for most more stable.
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What we know about the teenage brain is expanding rapidly, and what we are finding out could drastically change the way schools look at behaviour, mobile phones, curriculum, mental health and more.
Here's what @sjblakemore would put in her TEDtalk today
tes.com/magazine/teaching-le…
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Remote learning is obviously essential, but government has to be realistic about how much can actually be done (particularly in primary) when parents and carers are working, and that should be reflected in what is being asked of schools in 'enforcing' remote learning...
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Wouldn't it be nice to hear a big idea that actually addresses the most acute problems facing schools and holding kids back: collapsing mental health and social services, a dysfunctional send system, huge recruitment problems, and big covid-shaped holes in attainment.
As predicted in the recent Tes column from @Samfr the Prime Minister will today announce plans for every pupil to study maths until the age of 18
tes.com/magazine/news/genera…
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Well, this is ridiculously helpful from @heymrshallahan -thanks to all the teachers who shared their tips!
tes.com/news/schools-online-…
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Retrieval, cognitive load and metacognition: where is the sweet spot between research and practice?
@mikehobbiss uses these three areas to make some really important points about how the profession engages with research.
Fascinating read!
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"Good schools are human places: exploiting every moment, warm in every crevice and celebrating learning for every person."
@steve_munby Mick Waters and @realdcameron explain why Sir Tim Brighouse should be the model we all follow in education
tes.com/magazine/leadership/…
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"While the £2,400 is a pleasant welcome to teaching on top of a starting salary of £30,000 and even better golden hellos for teachers of shortage subjects, it leaves quite a desert of expectation beyond for the 'forgotten middle' teachers"
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Finalising plans for @tes for september - new faces, new writers and a new approach that i think you will like.
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A v good appointment of @BeckyFrancis7 to lead the much-anticipated curriculum and assessment review - the sector can be confident it will be balanced and rigorous.
Announcing before teacher pay deal is slightly clumsy in terms of priority signalling.
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Really pleased @sjblakemore agreed to be interviewed for @tes Podagogy - here is the end result, a fantastic chat about how we need a more sympathetic view of teens and how expecting them to make rational decisions is often asking too much tes.com/news/what-teachers-n…
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That the words 'lower ability pupils' are still being used at all, but particularly in Ofsted reports, is worrying.
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This is a very powerful piece from a former teacher of Shamima Begum tes.com/news/what-shamima-be…
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Real pleasure to have @ClareSealy writing regularly for @tes - here is her first column
tes.com/news/three-ways-teac…
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"The profession, without which all other professions are impossible, remains the worst paid of all"
A letter to @tes on 18 September, 1919.
Today is one part of a long narrative for the profession (1/3)
@NEUnion #TeacherStrike #strikes
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No one really talks about Hampshire beaches - East Sussex and Dorset get all the plaudits around these parts - but the one near my house is all I need.
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"a watershed moment” says @PaulWhiteman6 as unions call for Ofsted to pause inspections.
Dissatisfaction with Ofsted during pandemic, with the new framework and with comms issues has culminated in this moment - difficult to predict what happens next.
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The amount of Year 6 leavers stuff my eldest's school has done that signals 'you belong' , 'you are valued' , 'school is a special place' - it's just so important and, I'll say it bluntly, bloody lovely.
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"Some of the worst fears about the impact [of the pandemic] on education are beginning to wane," Amanda Spielman is expected to say today in a speech.
There will be teachers - particularly in KS1 - who will very much disagree.
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.@BeckyFrancis7 writes exclusively for @tes detailing what she and her panel will - and will not - be looking at in the curriculum and assessment review
This is commendable transparency and a very useful outline from Becky.
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If the date of 8 March does hold, much of the talk will shift again to 'catch up' - the trouble with the phrase is that you cannot set an expectation that every child will 'catch up' to a level imagined if the pandemic had not happened. Many won't catch up....
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How worried should teachers (and their pupils) be worried about Long Covid? I have spent the past month looking at what Long Covid is, how prevalent it is, whether it is similar to other post viral illnesses and more tes.com/news/long-covid-what…
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Some of the information from this new @EducEndowFoundn report came to light last week and just those glimpses started a debate on what it might mean for schools. Now the full report is out, it asks some interesting questions…
An EEF review of the application of cognitive science in the classroom warns teachers that more research is needed into its effectiveness
tes.com/news/can-cognitive-s…
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This week's @OakNational and @tes assembly features an iconic footballer who epitomises resilience - Stuart Pearce. He delivers an amazing talk about coming back from multiple failures - including his 1990 penalty miss - to become an iconic footballer. It is an amazing lesson.
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The SEND Review has to go beyond the mechanics of diagnoses and EHCPs, and understand that SEND has complex emotional and social impacts that need recognition and require support. In my leader this week I urge ministers to take a broader view. tes.com/magazine/article/sen…
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"The number of low-attaining pupils in reading in Year 2 has more than tripled compared with pre-pandemic levels"
This is genuinely shocking. The knock-on impact of this has to be recognised as a long-term impact on accountability measurements.
tes.com/magazine/news/primar…
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Here's a special #WorldBookDay week treat - @ReadOxford @annecastles and @Kathy_Rastle article on what every teacher needs to know about the research on teaching reading is... in front of the paywall tes.com/magazine/article/cea…
A must read!
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"Instructions given by teachers are amazingly powerful at saving huge amounts of time and effort, saving you from having to learn by trial and error forever."
A fascinating neuroscience argument for explicit instruction from Uta and Chris Frith.
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For all those that asked for @tes writing guidelines, here they are... tes.com/news/writing-tes-int…
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"Most of the public never come into contact with the day-to-day experience of a school, so education can become something being done, not being felt; reduced to objectives and outcomes, not serendipity and progress; stripped of its complexity and detail."
tes.com/magazine/article/nad…
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Here's @amymayforrester arguing against whole-school post-pandemic pastoral interventions tes.com/news/coronavirus-why…
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I had a rare and exclusive sit down with @NickGibbUK in which he talked about:
▶️ his war on 'progressivism'
▶️ his mistakes and regrets
▶️ what drives his ideology
▶️ who he trusts
And much more. You can drive straight in, but a quick thread (1/6)
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I am not a huge fan of the reading record and so I nodded along to so much of this article.
If you want a different approach to tracking home reading, this is ace.
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It's a testament to the staff that without that indication, you would have been hard pushed to know anything was wrong as a parent. Remarkable really.
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"A pupil may be quiet, not misbehaving and not causing any trouble. But they may actually understand almost nothing of what is being said to them"
Prof Charles Hulme on why language development remains a critical issue impacting pupil outcomes
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Our cover feature this week looks at the urgent issue of Staff Burnout. We felt it was so important to get the message out that we have put the article in front of the paywall for the week. Please do read as it is essential these issues are addressed.
tes.com/magazine/article/are…
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That big list of free resources from @heymrshallahan now has 74 entries!
tes.com/news/coronavirus-fre…
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£10m for behaviour interventions but SEND chronically underfunded - maybe the latter is something to do with the need for the former...
DfE adviser @tombennett71 gives the lowdown on the government's £10m initiative to tackle bad behaviour in schools
bit.ly/2Wm8rrx
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“When children were described as having a ‘reading difficulty’, teachers were more likely to believe they could help the child. When children were labelled as having dyslexia, teachers were less likely to think they could make a difference." - from forthcoming 21 Feb issue @tes
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"Researchers found the language used by parents/caregivers during shared reading is "more sophisticated" in terms of "vocabulary diversity and syntactic complexity" than in other instances of parent-child talk."
Latest @AlexJQuigley column live on @tes
tes.com/magazine/teaching-le…
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Today marks 10 years at @tes for me.
Still v grateful to @gerardkelly33 for taking a punt on me and @AnnMroz for mentoring me.
I've been editor now for 15 months and it is every bit as rewarding but knackering as they said it would be.
To celebrate, I am now off for a week.
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In @tes tomorrow the cover feature focuses on a really important topic for schools: supporting kids who have experienced trauma. But are ACEs a good indicator of outcomes? Is trauma-aware practice effective, or useful? Are teachers qualified to diagnose, or intervene? We find out
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"We need to think about the extra hours not only for learning, but for children to be together, to play, to engage in competitive sport, for music, for drama because these are critical areas which have been missed in their development"
tes.com/news/catch-tsar-want…
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Want to set meaningful homework that does not need to be marked? @TLPMsF is here to tell you how tes.com/news/school-homework…
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