Dec 15th – Extraordinary history

"Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3 With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I...

Some thoughts on avoiding ‘Twitter spats’

I get a lot out of Twitter. I learn a lot from the various voices and contributions on it, I can keep in touch with what’s happening, and occasionally I say some things that a couple of people are kind enough to read and respond to. I would encourage colleagues at my school, for example,...

Sweller’s Cognitive Load Theory in action: takeaways, thoughts & questions

In 2017 Dylan William wrote on Twitter: “I’ve come to the conclusion that Sweller’s Cognitive Load Theory is the single most important thing for teachers to know.” That’s a big statement from a big educational researcher and thinker. It sounds like teachers should get their heads around Cognitive Load Theory (CLT). Fortunately, Oliver Lovell has...

11 things to remember when recieving feedback

This is part of a briefing I did for staff a couple of years ago, in the middle of a week of observations. Observations and feedback is something I've always struggled with, so this was written as much for me as for anyone else. It doesn't just apply to lesson feedback: these kinds of struggles...

Teachers and school leaders: are you getting enough sleep? (Part 2)

Why don’t we get enough sleep? In Part 1 we saw that sleep deprivation has a significant negative impact on our own wellbeing (physical, mental, emotional), our ability as teachers and leaders (decision-making, recall, resilience) and on those around us.  So, why don’t we get enough sleep? Let’s think about a couple of broad areas....

Teachers and school leaders: are you getting enough sleep? (Part 1)

Walk into a staffroom to grab a quick coffee (because you need one - you’re pretty tired). You see a couple of your colleagues and you ask them how they’re doing. If you were going to guess, Family Fortunes style, what the top answers might be, I’d imagine ‘tired’ would be right up there.  There...

Education Myths: takeways and questions from the researchEd guide

Here are some takeaways followed by some questions from reading The researchED guide to Education Myths,: an evidence-informed guide for teachers published by John Catt. I won’t go through every chapter; rather, these are themes that seemed to run throughout the book.  It’s a well-written, easy to read book that only runs to 100 pages...

Teaching The Trinity: avoiding the pitfalls

Last week it was time to teach Y10 about the doctrine of the Trinity as part of their GCSE Christian Beliefs unit. The Trinity is a notoriously easily misunderstood belief, so here are a few things I try to remember and be clear on with pupils when teaching it, in case it is of help...

What are we doing when we meet together in church? Takeways & questions from Rhythms of Grace by Mike Cosper

Rhythms of Grace by Mike Cosper came out in 2013. I’m pretty sure I bought it soon afterwards, having heard positive things about it, but it’s taken me 8 years to get round to reading it (a common story for me).  I read it over Christmas and it was well-worth it. It’s a fantastic book....

The greatest final page of a novel?

This post isn’t about the greatest novel ever written. It’s not about the book with the best start or the most engaging middle. It’s about the end: in fact the final page. And I think I’ve just finished reading the novel with the greatest ending.  I knew it was coming. It’s a book I’ve read...