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teaching
Lessons that misfire. Good intentions + bad theory = poor results.
I am in the privileged position of having been able to observe a lot of lessons taught across a range of subjects in different contexts. I’ve also taught thousands of lessons myself – and I know how it feels for things to work well and not so well. Where lessons could be improved there are … Continue reading
Great Teaching. The Power of Diets
In so many discussions about the elements of effective practice in teaching, I feel it’s important to move away from thinking in absolute terms about whether certain approaches are more effective than others towards considering what the optimum combination of approaches with different qualities might be. I’ve made this case in various blogs before including … Continue reading
Common Maths Struggles – some examples.
This combines a couple of old posts that I recently revisited – because the challenges remain! Working with teachers from primary to FE, I’ve found it fascinating to consider the areas of maths that students find difficult and the processes we need to consider when teaching them to overcome these difficulties. It seems to me … Continue reading
Great Teaching. The Power of Stories
Across many subject domains, very often the challenge for students is to understand and remember sets of ideas where there is a sequence of events or steps, where there are causal links between one set of events and other sets and where complexities arise from the multiple possible paths that events can follow. How climate … Continue reading
To address underachieving groups, teach everyone better.
This blog is inspired by another by Ruth Walker – E-coli and quality first teaching. I’m basically trying to say the same thing. In her brilliantly punchy post she uses an excellent analogy: when food hygiene is poor, the more vulnerable sectors of a population are most likely to suffer – the elderly and babies … Continue reading
Know my name! A basic entitlement.
When I was in Jakarta at the British International School, the EAL department supported a group of Korean students to stage a protest. They made some placards and, during lesson time, they walked around one of the central areas chanting ‘Know My Name! Know My Name!’ It was a powerful moment for them -and for … Continue reading
Great Teaching. The Power of Expectations.
Image credit: Melbourne Child Psychology As each new term approaches, it’s worth reflecting on the powerful Bill Rogers concept that, as teachers, ‘you establish what you establish’. This means: If we establish that we expect high standards and reinforce them continually with tight routines in lessons characterised by rigour, depth, drive and a clear sense … Continue reading
Great Teaching: The Power of Questioning
In my Learning Rainforest and Evidence-informed practice CPD sessions, a core element is a focus on the power of questioning. In my view, good in-house CPD and feedback from lesson observation should put teachers’ capacity and confidence with questioning at the centre. In my experience, great questioning is the hallmark of a really effective teacher … Continue reading
Get Into Teaching. The best job going.
One of the great joys of my current work as a travelling education consultant and teacher trainer is that I get to meet teachers everywhere; all over the UK; all over the world. Everywhere I go I encounter wonderful teams of people doing incredible work, full of energy, enthusiasm, a sense of mission; bursting with … Continue reading
Exploring Barak Rosenshine’s seminal Principles of Instruction: Why it is THE must-read for all teachers.
This post is based on a talk I gave at ResearchEd in Rugby. The paper in question is Barak Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction published in American Educator in 2012, downloadable in full as a pdf here: I first came across if after seeing Oliver Caviglioli’s superb graphic summary for How2 – available here: My admiration … Continue reading
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