EdBlogs

What is it?  The use of rewards given to pupils who have not missed many days of school (often 98-100% attendance). The nature of these gifts varies from school to school; for some it is a certificate, while many other schools opt for pricier prizes such as iPads, bicycles and trips. Earlier this month, writer and mother Rachel Wright's b...

Let's start with the bad news: now that you're a teacher, your to-do list will never be complete. Ever. Part of the deal with having a job that's so important is that you will also have so many demands on your time that working 24/7 wouldn't be enough. It's imperative, then, that you master the art of effective time management early. You can only w...

Intuitively, it seems obvious that reducing the number of pupils in a class will improve the quality of teaching and learning, for example, by increasing the amount of high quality feedback or one-to-one attention learners receive. There is no doubt that parents like small class sizes. However, Professor John Hattie in his book, Visible Learning: a...

While the summer holidays are much-needed respite for weary students, research suggests that the long break can do more harm than good to their brains. This seems to be especially true for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, who often return to school after the summer holidays having fallen behind compared with their wealthier peers. This need...

It is the best of times, it is the worst of times, but your NQT year is never dull. Last Sunday, we held an NQT surgery on Twitter to look at some of the issues facing new teachers in that high-pressure period. Here are the highlights: What are your top tips for surviving and thriving the NQT year? John Socha, primary school educator and the creato...