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Room 101 - What We’d Banish from Teaching
From minor irritations to major frustrations, Hannah and Lucy, the Ant and Dec of the Education World, chat about the serious and the ridiculous. No topic is too niche or too well-trodden. Whether it's forced fun, motivational mug culture or the tyranny of laminated displays, nothing is off-limits.
But these aren’t just throwaway complaints. Each “banishment” reveals something about the work policy and professional contradictions teachers navigate daily. But don't worry, there's the usual joy and sarcasm and a hefty dollop of discomfort.
This week’s chat includes:
❗️The performative culture of positivity: Why teachers are expected to be relentlessly upbeat, and how this can obscure real burnout and discontent.
❗️The ‘edu-celebrity’ phenomenon: A look at how social media amplifies certain voices and ideas, and what gets lost in the noise.
❗️Unnecessary admin and data demands: Why some policies and processes feel designed to tick boxes, not improve practice.
❗️Tokenistic well-being initiatives: Candles, cupcakes and “wellbeing Wednesdays” that don’t touch the root causes of exhaustion.
❗️Misuse of research buzzwords: How terms like “evidence-based” and “resilience” are often stripped of nuance when rolled out in policy or CPD.
❗️Professional guilt and perfectionism: The unspoken pressure to always do more, be more, give more, even when you’re already running on empty.
Despite the rants (and a fair bit of laughter) this isn’t an episode about cynicism. It’s about reclaiming the right to critique the system without being labelled as negative or ungrateful. It’s about naming what isn’t working so we can start imagining something better.
Hannah and Lucy discuss the small pleasures that still light up the classroom and the moments of solidarity that keep people in the profession. And yes, they share what they’d absolutely keep in the world of education, the practices, ideas and values that still feel meaningful.
Whether you're a teacher on your lunch break, a student wondering what staffroom life is really like, or just someone who loves a bit of smart, compassionate chaos, this episode is for you. Come for the rants, stay for the honesty and maybe start making your own Room 101 list.Follow us, we're worth it:🔗 Website🔗 Spotify🔗 Instagram🔗 Bluesky🔗 X (Twitter)#leadership #education #teacher #school #schoollife #inspiration #support #podcast #video
Room 101 - What We’d Banish from Teaching
From minor irritations to major frustrations, Hannah and Lucy, the Ant and Dec of the Education World, chat about the serious and the ridiculous. No topic is too niche or too well-trodden. Whether it's forced fun, motivational mug culture or the tyranny of laminated displays, nothing is off-limits.
But these aren’t just throwaway complaints. Each “banishment” reveals something about the work policy and professional contradictions teachers navigate daily. But don't worry, there's the usual joy and sarcasm and a hefty dollop of discomfort.
This week’s chat includes:
❗️The performative culture of positivity: Why teachers are expected to be relentlessly upbeat, and how this can obscure real burnout and discontent.
❗️The ‘edu-celebrity’ phenomenon: A look at how social media amplifies certain voices and ideas, and what gets lost in the noise.
❗️Unnecessary admin and data demands: Why some policies and processes feel designed to tick boxes, not improve practice.
❗️Tokenistic well-being initiatives: Candles, cupcakes and “wellbeing Wednesdays” that don’t touch the root causes of exhaustion.
❗️Misuse of research buzzwords: How terms like “evidence-based” and “resilience” are often stripped of nuance when rolled out in policy or CPD.
❗️Professional guilt and perfectionism: The unspoken pressure to always do more, be more, give more, even when you’re already running on empty.
Despite the rants (and a fair bit of laughter) this isn’t an episode about cynicism. It’s about reclaiming the right to critique the system without being labelled as negative or ungrateful. It’s about naming what isn’t working so we can start imagining something better.
Hannah and Lucy discuss the small pleasures that still light up the classroom and the moments of solidarity that keep people in the profession. And yes, they share what they’d absolutely keep in the world of education, the practices, ideas and values that still feel meaningful.
Whether you're a teacher on your lunch break, a student wondering what staffroom life is really like, or just someone who loves a bit of smart, compassionate chaos, this episode is for you. Come for the rants, stay for the honesty and maybe start making your own Room 101 list.Follow us, we're worth it:🔗 Website🔗 Spotify🔗 Instagram🔗 Bluesky🔗 X (Twitter)#leadership #education #teacher #school #schoollife #inspiration #support #podcast #video