Tes News

The data revolution is here, and it’s taking place in schools just as much as elsewhere. Leaders and teachers are now increasingly able to view data in real time, be it on attendance, behaviour or safeguarding.

But how does this actually work in practice, what impact can it have on young people’s learning? There are myriad tools available now, with applications varying from in-class uses - such as live learning games where teachers can get real-time feedback on students’ responses - to analytics, helping staff to explore performance on assessments at a previously unimaginable level. 

There are also many behaviour-related uses, explains Winston Poyton, a senior product director at IRIS Software. Speaking in the latest Tes podcast, he says these can have a powerful impact on young people.     

“There are a lot of apps out there that can track students’ behaviour and allow teachers to comment,” he says.

“That comment then passes to the next lesson that the student turns up to, and the teacher already knows that the student is having a great day or maybe it's a more disruptive day, and they can manage that upfront and in real time.

“It freaks the kids out a little bit occasionally, because [they wonder] how do they know that happened in the last lesson? But it's a really good way of allowing people to be prepared and then take the right course of action in real time rather than either waiting for the disruption to happen again and having to deal with it retrospectively.”

But, he warns, there can also be far less useful applications, and schools should be aware of these when considering purchasing tech. He offers an example from across the pond as a case of what not to do. 

“There was an education company that put a big emphasis on putting video cameras into classrooms and using AI to track facial recognition,” he says. “This had two entertaining consequences. One was to track whether the students were engaged and it gave feedback to you, the teacher, at the front of the class as to where there may be pockets of disengaged students around the classroom.

"It also gave the teacher feedback on whether their class was interesting or not based on the level of engagement that they managed to get from the machine.”

This was clearly an example of “technology for technology’s sake”, he continues, where tech is used simply because it is “interesting or a bit quirky”, rather than offering useful insights. 

“Unsurprisingly, in that particular example, it backfired horribly, because teachers don't actually want real-time assessment on every single class and every single lecture that they're doing. It's not a very positive approach to take with things.”

Elsewhere in the podcast, our guests discuss the challenges of data security, the misapplication of AI for analysis and much more. 

This podcast is sponsored by Iris Education, a leading edtech provider with a suite of products designed to help schools and trusts work smarter.

The Battle of Hastings is a key moment in British history, but Battle Abbey offers cross-curricular opportunities far beyond the history classroom. 

In this podcast, we speak to experts about how to broach this fascinating moment with students and how visiting the site can bring the learning to life for young people. 

Hello and welcome back to the tes news podcast.

On today's episode Mary-Louise Clews, Callum Mason and John Roberts review the stories that have dominated the news agenda in 2022 from the schools funding crisis to the rise and fall of the Schools Bill and the ongoing battle to support education recovery from Covid.

And Dan Worth is joined by Helen Amass to discuss why staffing is the real barrier to a fully MAT-led system and the new parliamentary inquiry into early years education.

All articles discussed today are available on tes.com/magazine

•  Why ideology is not the real barrier to a fully MAT led system
• Inquiry launched into early years
•  The DfE’s original White Paper plans
• Schools Bill is axed, Keegan confirms
• Only 44% of schools used tutors in September
• DfE could ‘hit NTP target but miss the point’
• Schools to get £4.6bn extra after warning of funding crisis

Hello and welcome back to the tes news podcast.

On today's episode Joshua Morris is joined by, Matilda Martin, Rhodri Morgan and John Roberts to discuss the demise of the Schools Bill and how all appeals against unsuccessful accreditation bids by ITT providers have been rejected by the DfE.

And Grainné Hallahan is back to go over all schools need to know on Strep A to keep their students safe, and takes a look at an exclusive tes interview with Nick Gibb.

All articles discussed today are available on tes.com/magazine

• ITT Market Review: ‘All appeals rejected by DfE’
• Schools Bill: What to expect next from the DfE
• Schools Bill ‘will not progress’, says Keegan
• Schools Bill: DfE wants to salvage safeguarding plans
• Nick Gibb: ‘We had to blow up the concrete’
• Strep A: Why cases are rising and what schools can do

Hello and welcome back to the tes news podcast.

This week reporter Matilda Martin is joined by Jack Worth, school workforce lead at the National Foundation for Educational Research, to get his expert opinion after new DfE stats revealed the government missed 13 out of its 17 teacher trainee targets this year.

And Senior Editor Grainne Hallahan joins Joshua Morris to discuss why CPD and SEND should remain top of the funding priority list.

The full articles discussed today can all be found on our website tes.com/magazine

• Revealed: The ‘catastrophic’ drop in teacher trainee numbers
• DfE fails to hit primary teacher trainee target
• The SEND system is broken - and the new DfE funding won’t fix it
• Why schools can’t afford to stop funding CPD

Hello and welcome back to the tes news podcast

On today's episode we discuss:

• EYFS: ‘Significant’ drop in pupils at expected level
• ‘Very low’ attainers in Year 2 reading triple post-Covid
• Multiplication check: key insights school leaders need to know
• 6 key trends from the DfE’s new A-level results data

Hello and welcome back to the Tes News Podcast

On this week's episode Joshua Morris, Matilda Martin, Callum Mason, and Dan Worth are back to discuss:

• Hunt: Schools to get extra £4.6bn over 2 years
• Heads to vote on strike ballot despite cash boost
• ‘Heads’ strikes won’t close schools,’ says union boss
• NEU sixth-form teachers staff to strike over pay
• What will teacher strikes look like?
• We need a languages revolution - not just an injection of cash
• How schools can save money now - and prepare for the future

In this podcast, published during COP27, we explore how schools can work together to create positive change around climate learning. We speak to an academic who attended the conference to hear about her findings and the impact of the latest developments there, as well as hearing from two teachers about their international partnerships around climate education.

Hello and welcome back to the tes news podcast

In today's episode we discuss

• A-level results and what the disadvantage gap means

• The risk to schools that might lose their NTP funding

• How ITT and CPD have undergone huge changes and the impact on schools

Hello and welcome back to the Tes news podcast.

In today's episode we discuss:

• Why the DfE’s 2030 academy targets could be at risk
• Warnings that government catch up funding could go unspent
• What schools need to know about new guidelines on avoiding hair discrimination