In this head to head episode of Mind the Gap, Tom and Emma discuss educational ideas that have recently captivated them, as well as some of the latest developments in the field.

Emma has been thinking about the ways in which even beautifully designed curricula need well thought out task design to keep classes from becoming too formulaic across subjects. Tom, on the other hand, is looking at the newly announced panel on oracy, acknowledging both that people tend to worry about government mandates, but also that we need more pupils speaking with confidence.

Later, Emma brings up the idea of expertise, inspired by the book Expert: Understanding the Path to Mastery by Roger Kneebone. Finally, the two discuss the limits on classroom observation and Tom gives his thoughts about the recent conferences he attended across the pond in the United States, including a ResearchEd. Listen to the full episode to hear all about it.

Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

This podcast is produced by Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/