Thinking Deeply about Primary Education

Episode 121: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education I'm joined by Kristian Still and Ben Ebdon for an exploration of Test-Enhanced Learning. As part of the chat, we discuss what test-enhanced learning is, why it is important for teachers, how to get the most from it, potential pitfalls to look out for, plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

You can support the podcast via www.ko-fi.com/tdape or by subscribing to www.youtube.com/@TDaPE 

If you would like to submit a question, email us at [email protected] or join the TDaPE discord!

Episode 120: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education I'm joined by Brendan Lee for the first of two special episodes where Brendan and I quiz each other about the "Science of Mathematics (Teaching)" and, in particular, a model for teaching mathematics devised by Brendan off the back of his reading into education research. Across the two episodes we hope to provide an in-depth exploration of the mathematics teaching, what our best bets might be and how we can support teachers in improving their practice.

In this episode I interview Brendan and as part of the chat we discuss...

1. What is Brendan's model for mathematics teaching?

2. How has it been informed by the science of learning?

3. How can we support teachers in developing their practice?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

You can support the podcast via www.ko-fi.com/tdape or by subscribing to www.youtube.com/@TDaPE 

If you would like to submit a question, email us at [email protected] or join the TDaPE discord!

Episode 119: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education I'm joined by Elliot Morgan for an in-depth exploration of the teaching/leadership job application process, establishing a timely set of guiding principles for anyone preparing to land your dream teaching job. Covering every part of the job application and interview process from start to finish, Elliot has a ton of solid-gold advice for anyone interested in finding a new role within schools.

As part of the chat we discuss...

1. How important is visiting a school before applying for a job?

2. What advice do you have for completing the written job application?

3. How should we prepare for an interview?

4. Interviews normally come with tasks. What are they and what advice do you have for approaching these tasks?

5. What other general advice do you have for anyone who might have an application/interview on the horizon?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

You can support the podcast via www.ko-fi.com/tdape or by subscribing to www.youtube.com/@TDaPE 

If you would like to submit a question, email us at [email protected] or join the TDaPE discord linked above!

Episode 118: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Lloyd Williams-Jones and Christopher Such for a spot of format diversification as we take questions from listeners and do our very best to provide mildly-satisfactory responses. As part of the chat we discuss...

1. Do you report the result of in year summative assessment tests to pupils or parents and, if so, what form does this take? 

2. Where can teachers to find high quality plans related to high quality texts? 

3. When new to leading Year 6, are there any potential sticking points to be aware of?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

podcast via www.ko-fi.com/tdape or by subscribing towww.youtube.com/@TDaPE 

If you would like to submit a question, email us at [email protected] or join the TDaPE discord linked above!

Episode 117: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Neil Almond and Christopher Such for an in-depth exploration of story and the privileged position it holds in the human mind, including what this means for teachers, how we can utilise it in the classroom, and the potential pitfalls to avoid. As part of the chat we discuss...

1. Dan Willingham says that stories are particularly sticky, David Didau says that story holds a privileged position. What does that actually mean?

2. How can we get the most from the use of story in our classrooms?

3. Are there any pitfalls we should avoid when trying to utilise story?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

You can support the podcast via www.ko-fi.com/tdape or by subscribing to www.youtube.com/@TDaPE 

Episode 116: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Neil Almond and Christopher Such for an in-depth exploration of English orthography, including how it compares to other orthographies, the relationship it has with morphology, and the impact it has on the teaching of early reading and spelling. As part of the chat we discuss...

1. What is an orthography?

2. How does English orthography compare to other orthographies?

3. To what extent is English orthography a representation of spoken language?

4. What role does morphology play in English orthography?

5. How has the history of English words impacted English orthography?

6. How does all this potentially impact the teaching of early reading and spelling?

7. How much of this do most teachers need to know?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

podcast via www.ko-fi.com/tdape or by subscribing to www.youtube.com/@TDaPE

Episode 115: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Shannen Doherty, Jonny Hall and Elliot Morgan for an in-depth exploration of task design, including key principles to keep in mind when designing tasks, how to tell they are going as planned, and what to do if they don't. As part of the chat we discuss...

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

Episode 114: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Dan Rosen and Elliot Morgan for an in-depth exploration of science practical experiments, including key principles to keep in mind, and what their purpose is at all . As part of the chat we discuss...

1. What is the purpose of practicals in science?

2. What are the principles of effective science practicals?

3. What practical considerations must teachers make to ensure they run smoothly?

4. It feels like a heavy time investment to change an approach to practicals. How would you review the strengths and weaknesses of what you have in place?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

Episode 113: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Lloyd Williams-Jones and Christopher Such for an in-depth exploration of communication with parents/carers, including how it can go wrong, as well as effective communication strategies for teachers and/or as a school leaders to help make sure it doesn't . As part of the chat we discuss...

1. What do we mean by communication with parents?

2. Why is communication with parents so important?

3. How can it go wrong?

4. What are the features/behaviours of effective communication between teacher and parents?

5. What are the features/behaviours of effective communication between schools and parents?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!

Episode 112: This week on Thinking Deeply about Primary Education, I'm joined by Lisa Coe, Shannen Doherty and Sarah Farrell for an in-depth exploration of multiplication tables, the fallout from the first official multiplication check in England and how we can support all pupils in developing automaticity and understanding in this area of mathematics. As part of the chat we discuss...

1. With regards to multiplication tables what comes first, knowing or understanding?

2. What systems or approaches should and can we put in place to help pupils learn about multiplication tables?

3. What did you think of the outcomes of the MTC this year (2022) Is there anything you’d change on a school or systemic level as a result?

4. If we imagine that the MTC is a suitable proxy for pupils knowing their times tables, what would you change on a systemic level so that more than 27% can be considered to know their times tables at the end of Year 4?

5. If pupils are struggling to develop quick or even derivative recall of multiplication facts what can we put in place to support them?

...plus much, much more.

Whether you're new to the profession or an experienced senior leader, you won't want to miss this one!