EdBlogs

Schools up and down the country are moving into the final week of term. It's hot. Half the kids are out on rewards trips. It's tempting to loosen the reins and capitulate to shrill demands for 'a fun lesson.' Don't. You'll regret it. "Hi Sir! It's the last day of term! Can we have a fun lesson?" "You have worked hard this term and I do want you to ...

Talking at a number of conferences recently I've suggested that we've got to stop reinventing the wheel and use research wisely. Research provides signposts towards what might work for us, based on what has worked elsewhere and to what extent. The following suggestion, improving attendance by using simple letters home with key information,&nbs...

Spurred by perceived inefficiencies in centralised education systems, school choice has in the past decades gone from a mostly fringe academic theory to a mainstream policy option worldwide. The idea is that the expansion of choice – through, for example, open enrolment and private-school vouchers – will increase market incentives in the school sys...

I have a son who's 11 and has been doing his SATs this week. He's a bright little boy and he also has autism. He's got a sense of logic that would give Mr Spock a run for his money, combined with a social detachment which leaves him unable to understand why he needs to (in his words) "do yet another stupid maths paper, which will be exactly the sam...

By Bradley Busch and Alex Lucas  "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." This old African proverb – often associated with Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore after he tweeted it in reference to climate change – will ring true for any school leader trying to steer their school towards success. The senior leadership ...