'Coach' Colin Farrell in Guy Ritchie's wonderful film 'The Gentleman' typifies the standard, traditional idea of coaching. But it's not 'pure coaching'. In this episode I'll define and describe pure coaching and suggest when and when not to use it. Find out how a coach does their thing. Discover the 3As of coaching to help you work out the difference between mentoring, coaching, pure coaching and other kinds of paired professional support. I've also added in some excellent royalty free music from Penguin Music, found on Pixabay. That's not an ad. Just a genuine thanks.

Everyone is intelligent; everyone is valuable; everyone succeeds. Really? Take a listen to Mike talking about Prof. Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI). The idea is 40 years old this year (2023) and although it's been hidden away for a while, its presence and impact remain. Find out how MI works and discover that you're probably using it already. Why do experts disagree about its validity? What are the eight and a half intelligences? What tests does a concept need to pass to become an official 'intelligence'? And which TV comedy show was first broadcast in the year MI appeared?

Why did a white female who unleased her dog illegally in Central Park hysterically call 911 after a black male birdwatcher simply asked her to control it?

Why are conversations about race difficult and messy - especially for white people? What's the fear? What's the risk? What's the barrier? And what's the gain for everyone if we get it right? Mike talks to New York Times bestselling author Dr Robin DiAngelo and History Hotline's Deanna Lyncook about Robin's book and concept, White Fragility. Find out what it is and how to start meaningful discourse about being black and about being white.

This episode partners with #28 Black Leadership as a grounding for you and your organisation to really get to grips with an essential aspect of diversity and inclusion.

If learning is the commitment of knowledge to long-term memory, then you'd see 'memory skills' on the curriculum, right? You wouldn't just expect children to remember, you'd teach them how, surely. And CPD would include the art and science of 'making learning memorable' - the cognitive stuff, yes?

This content would be a topic within the subject called 'How to Think and Learn'.

Do you formally teach children how their memory works? Does your curriculum include a progression of memory techniques and a continuity of cognitive understanding?

This time I'm talking with master educator Jordan Mac about Active Recall, Spaced Repetition and Mixed Learning - three easy wins if you want to start developing a Memory Curriculum.

What kind of conversations are you ready to have about gender and inclusion? How and why should we have those conversations? Mike talks to Hannah Wilson and Jo Brassington from Diverse Educators. We cover language, identity, french toilets, books, inclusive school approaches and suggest a way to cut through misconceptions and unintended bias.

If your organisation wants to usualise conversations about gender and become even more inclusive, this is the episode for you.

Makeup, model railway figures and underwear - what have these got to do with black history and black leadership in the UK? Are you leading conversations about race? How do you approach them in school and outside? Why are they needed and what might be the positive impact of engaging?

I talk to Deanna Lyncook from the History Hotline podcast and Renata Joseph, headteacher of a successful South London secondary school, who are both leading conversations about race in positive, effective ways.

If you want a way forward for your school to address race; if you want a strategy and content, then this is the episode for you.

Which skills should a curriculum emphasise and how should they be balanced with knowledge? And once they've been selected, how can children master them? - the durable skills

Mike talks to ex-teacher turned software instructor/coach Jordan McNamara who developed a style of teaching to answer these questions.

Jordan has a unique perspective: He now works in an industry which needs the skills that he taught his pupils in school.

Durable Skills at America Succeeds

The 10-Word Lesson mentioned in this podcast is part of Mike's C10 toolkit: "What is the best way to rank X and why?" where X is a list of content related directly to the knowledge curriculum.

Mike talks to Maria Wojciechowska-Caneda who has over 20 years’ experience working within Primary Education as classroom teacher, SLT and creative consultant. She is the founder of  creative company Arco Iris Learning www.arcoirislearning.co.uk which is now in its 12th year. Maria has supported primary schools with nurturing wellbeing through creative explorations and has delivered her sessions to primary schools and organisations nationwide.  Maria is currently piloting a new programme of imaginative explorations for primary schools called ‘Harmony in Nature’, in collaboration with The Harmony Project www.theharmonyproject.org.uk. It provides opportunities for children to engage with environmental and social challenges, and is linked with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. ‘Harmony in Nature’ is available from September 2023.