Where next for Curriculum for Excellence?
Today, I took part in a seminar in Edinburgh which focused on Scotland's curriculum and the priorities for the new Education Bill currently being prepared for parliamentary approval by the Scottish...
View ArticleProfessional learning on a Saturday?
Last Saturday I had the pleasure of attending a professional learning event for teachers, provided by teachers. PedagooTweed was one of a series of events happening across Scotland, supported by...
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Yin and Yang, golf and leadership
Being a leader, whether it be of a school, or any other type of organisation, can be both challenging and rewarding. We could see these as the Yin and Yang of formal leadership roles, no matter what...
View ArticlePlay not tests
Last night I attended the launch the 'PlayNotTests' campaign being led by Sue Palmer and the Upstart organisation in Scotland. This campaign is aimed at getting the Scottish government to think again...
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What really matters in school leadership?
Last week, I was invited to give a 'keynote' presentation for the Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland (AHDS) to an audience of Deputy Headteachers and Principal Teachers. Having...
View ArticleTesting Times for Scotland
'These are not high stakes tests; there will be no 'pass or fail' and no additional workload for children or teachers.' John Swinney 25/11/16 news.gov.scotI start this look at the introduction of the...
View ArticleDeveloping metacognition and self-regulation in learners, of all ages
Ahead of a session with Rachel Lofthouse and the CollectivEd1, the mentoring and coaching hub created by her, I have been thinking a lot about metacognition. Our session with teachers in a few weeks is...
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Some summer reflections
This is my first post since June. Apologies for that, but I have used the summer months to go travelling, spending 6 weeks in Australia, only returning last week. Whilst this was ostensibly a holiday,...
View ArticlePedagooGoliath: Pretty Shining People
On Saturday I had the great pleasure to attend the latest, and first Pedagoo event of the new school year. Organised and hosted by Paul Cochrane and Port Glasgow High School, the event consisted of 13...
View ArticleMore warnings for Scottish education
The last seven days or so have again demonstrated some of the major challenges that lie ahead for Scottish education. These challenges are both long-term and short-term, and how we deal with them will...
View ArticleSporting models to support coaching and leadership
In his book 'Bounce'(2010), Mathew Syed writes about many things pertinent to education and teachers. At the start of his book, he reflects on the factors that enabled him to become the number one...
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The mechanics of teaching
When I was training to be a teacher, and I do mean training, in the early 1970s, I was able to buy my first car. This was helped in no short measure by a full student grant, and three years in...
View ArticleParental Engagement: time for more rhetoric or meaningful change?
'Parental engagement in supporting learning in the home is the single most important changeable factor in student achievement' (Harris and Goodall 2007)I have been thinking a lot about parental...
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Improving versus proving
During the first two months of 2019 I have been able to attend a number of professional learning events across Scotland. What has been impressive about these events is, not only the breadth and range...
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Why we might need more tortoises and fewer hares in education
We have heard Aesop's fable of 'The Tortoise and the Hare.' In this tale with a message, a tortoise challenges an arrogant hare to a race. The hare quickly leaves the tortoise behind. Being so...
View ArticleDon't look back in anger!
I was a pain at school. I mean as a pupil, rather than as a teacher or headteacher. Though I suppose there are some colleagues and former line-managers that might wish to dispute that second point....
View ArticleEvaluation: a process, not an event
Throughout my time as a school leader, and since, I have wrestled with the challenge of evaluation, in terms of measuring the impact of change, in a way which is meaningful and useful . Early in my...
View ArticleScottish education on the brink of profound change in professional learning
As most schools in Scotland have now returned for the new school session after the summer break, this is a time of great excitement and refocused activity in all schools. Teachers have had the summer...
View ArticleSharing practitioner enquiry results
One of the issues that can sometimes get in the way of staff thinking around practitioner enquiry is the expectation that we somehow share our results, either at the end of a particular enquiry focus,...
View ArticleTreating the symptoms, never the cause
I have again been thinking about education, and some of the frustrations built into our systems. It would seem as school teacher or school leader in Scotland and the UK, and I am sure elsewhere, we can...
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A road less travelled
This week I was asked by Neil McLennan (@neiledinburgh) if I would be willing to speak to some of his Masters leadership students at Aberdeen University about my own leadership journey, but...
View ArticleAnother GERM we need to still be concerned about
At the current time people across the world are very concerned by the growing spread of the coronavirus, and are right to be so, though, it is easy to despair at the reactions of some people and some...
View ArticleCoronavirus, Parental Stress and Guilt
Two days ago I tweeted,'Imagine being a parent of two, or more, children, trying to get them to complete all the work being set by their school, whilst also having to complete the work demanded by your...
View ArticleAn Ecological Approach to School Development
Ahead of a Webinar discussion around Curriculum for Excellence, and how this can be reimagined, I have been thinking about our whole approach to curricular and school development. What follows is what...
View ArticleSome thoughts for new student teachers
Having gained a host of new followers on Twitter, who are either completing PGDE, or other student teacher qualifications, got me thinking about the advice, thoughts, comments I would give to those...
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