Five ways to avoid ineffective ‘instructional coaching’ The instructional coaching approach is being misunderstood in some schools leading to ineffective support for teachers. David Weston explains why and considers what we should be doing
School staffing: It’s time to take the menopause seriously How does your school support colleagues who may be affected by menopause symptoms? Legal and HR expert Kelly Rayner offers some important advice and practical tips
What does pedagogy mean to you and why is this discussion important in schools? Pedagogy has become a word that we use every day, with an assumption that we share a view on what we mean by it – but what does ‘pedagogy’ mean to you? Fiona Aubrey-Smith offers some advice to help drive CPD discussions
Staff wellbeing: Complete the stress cycle and avoid burn-out Stress hormones have an important job to do, but they are not designed to stay in our systems permanently. Emily Kenneally offers seven ways to complete your stress cycle and three tips to avoid burn-out
Cost of living crisis: Conversations with colleagues The cost of living crisis is biting hard. Pupils, families, and school staff are all suffering. In two articles, Sean Harris considers how to support both pupils and school staff. He concludes here with a focus on how we might respond with colleagues who are struggling
Beating the teaching plateau: Professional Inquiry Programme New teachers often make rapid improvements in their practice before hitting a ‘performance plateau’. Alex Beauchamp explains how a professional inquiry programme has helped overcome this challenge
Sharing lesson planning with your teaching assistant Good lesson outcomes can be supported by teachers sharing their planning with teaching assistants. Sara Alston offers three key questions to help facilitate this important process
Teacher appraisal: What targets should we set this year? Are your school’s teacher appraisal targets full of well-meaning but poorly thought out statements and objectives. Nick Hart considers how we can give meaning and purpose to appraisal
Working relationships: Dealing with difference If we want to build better relationships with colleagues, it ultimately starts with us. But dealing with differences and building workplace relationships is not always easy. Leonie Hurrell advises
'If you do that, you’ll be much happier in the job you do' Primary school professionals – and brothers – Lee and Adam Parkinson’s podcast has been listened to more than five million times. Emma Lee-Potter caught up with them to talk staff wellbeing, advice for new teachers, online safety and more
Teaching with moral purpose What is the purpose of education? As retirement approaches headteacher Jim Mepham is more convinced than ever that we want children who know things, can apply this knowledge, but who also understand themselves, others, and the world around them
Implementing deliberate practice as part of CPD: A case study Effective teacher development involves practising the right things, at the right time and in the right way then it is a key CPD tool. In part two of his look at deliberate practice, Robbie Burns explains how his school has implemented this approach
Teachers collaborating on the curriculum It is teachers who deliver the curriculum, so curriculum design and implementation through collaboration is a clear way to improve teaching and learning quality, says Richard Jackson
Safeguarding: What does a culture of safety look like? Safer working practice in schools is crucial to establishing safe cultures and ensuring effective safeguarding. In this article, Elizabeth Rose explains how schools can minimise opportunity for harm perpetrated by those working with children
Teacher appraisal: Professional development reviews Teacher appraisal forms part of established practice in maintained schools and the majority of academies. Brian Rossiter shares practical advice when reviewing performance with colleagues as part of a professional development cycle as we move into a post-Covid world
Instructional coaching: Cycles, systems and processes Considered by many to be the most effective form of teacher CPD, instructional coaching is gaining popularity in schools. In part two of a two-part article, Robbie Burns looks at implementing instructional coaching across the primary school 1 comment
Instructional coaching: What it is, how it works and why it matters Considered by many to be the most effective form of teacher CPD, instructional coaching is gaining popularity in schools. In part one of a two-part article, Robbie Burns looks at what it is, why it works, three types of approach, and three principles for implementation
Inclusion: How to plan lessons with your teaching assistant How can we work and plan with teaching assistants to support inclusion and learning for SEN and other pupils throughout the lesson? Sara Alston offers some pointers
Social media, teachers and schools: How to avoid the pitfalls Planned changes to safeguarding law could see schools conducting social media checks on prospective teachers. Legal expert Sarah Linden considers the common pitfalls of social media use for teachers…
How would you respond? When pupils get angry In her articles this year, Shahana Knight is spotlighting common behaviours or classroom scenarios, looking at why they might occur and how we can respond therapeutically. This time, she looks at pupils who are angry
The golden triangle: How to improve performance management in schools The golden triangle of performance management takes in quality improvement, performance development and CPD. Matt Bromley explains, offering some key tenets of effective performance management systems
Getting the most out of your MAT As a teacher, how do you get the most out of your school’s multi-academy trust? Paul Ainsworth looks at some of the opportunities MATs should be providing for their staff and what teachers themselves can do to take advantage
How to improve CPD and teaching – right now! A report from the Education Endowment Foundation advises on ensuring effective CPD in schools. Roger Higgins outlines some of the practical lessons we can learn from the findings
Meet the two Mr Ps... The Two Mr Ps in a Pod(Cast) is one of the most popular educational podcasts. Emma Lee-Potter meets the two brothers behind the show and shares some of their anecdotes about primary school life
Flexible working: How can it work for your school? Over the last 18 months more school staff will have worked flexibly than ever before, but what does flexible working actually mean in the school context? Louise Hatswell looks at employment law, best practice and offers some guidance for employers
