Getting them out there: the importance of fieldwork in Geography and getting students in the zone to notice
June 13, 2024
In this post, Alex Booth and Mal Kerr make the case for the importance of fieldwork in geography and offer some guiding principles. “Geography wants to take children outside the school and into the streets and fields; it wants to take the keyboard tappers out of their gloomy offices and into the rain or sunshine.” …
PE is just playing sport…right?
May 1, 2024
In this post, Chris Pinnington from Brocklewood Primary School in Nottingham challenges traditional views of Physical Education (PE) as he describes the journey he and his school have been on to ensure the PE curriculum is fit for all children and staff in school. Introduction I’m not sure if there is any other school subject …
Is it possible to abolish primary homework? A view from Norway
March 25, 2024
In this post, Rachel Lehner-Mear revisits the place of primary homework with an international eye. I recently came across a report documenting the introduction of a ‘no homework policy’ in one Norwegian municipality. This is not the first time the idea of a homework ban has been discussed in Norway. In 2015, a coalition of …
Social Justice, Anti-racism, and Decolonisation: what place do they have in Teacher Education?
February 19, 2024
In this post, Balbir Kaur (PGCE tutor), Charlie Bird, Mary Scoular and Shannon Bains (PGCE student teachers) reflect on their understanding of Social Justice (SJ), decolonisation and anti-racist approaches to teacher education. These reflections stem from their engagement with academic literature, taught sessions on the Primary PGCE course and a personal commitment that …
How can we support male primary teachers?
January 15, 2024
At a time of intense focus on a ‘crisis’ of teacher recruitment and retention, Esther Fulton considers why the proportion of males in primary teaching remains stubbornly low and how we might respond. It is well documented that there is a lack of male primary teachers worldwide. For all ITE providers across the UK, …
My science teacher is telling tales
November 20, 2023
In this post, Jane Morris, from the University of Cumbria considers the potential contribution of a storytelling approach to science teaching. Doris Stickley’s thoughtful book “Water Bugs and Dragonflies” tells the story of a small colony of water bugs living happily below the surface of a quiet pond. Every so often one of them climbs up …
A collaborative approach to research-informed teaching
October 11, 2023
In this post, Rupert Knight offers examples of school-level collaborative inquiry as a teacher-driven form of research-informed practice. A broad and inclusive view of educational research A few years ago, in an early blog in this series, I considered ways that teachers might engage with research evidence. Back then, I made the case for teaching …
A classroom for everyone – designing an inclusive learning environment
September 7, 2023
In this blog, Rachel Tunney explains what to consider when designing an inclusive classroom learning environment. Her ideas link to previous blogs in the series, including a recent one on supporting children’s mental health through everyday class-based habits. Creating a classroom environment where pupils feel happy, safe, and a valued part of a community is …
Anti-racism within Initial Teacher Education
July 10, 2023
In this blog, Esther Fulton discusses the key points from her attendance at the first Anti-Racism Conference for Initial Teacher Education (ITE) providers, considering how this could lead to embedding an anti-racism curriculum in both centre-based and school-based parts of ITE. Why the need for anti-racism? Inclusion refers to the act or practice of including …
Moving beyond rigidly sticking to ‘My-turn, Our-turn, Your-turn’
June 5, 2023
In this post, Marc North problematises the rigid way in which the ‘My-turn, Our-turn, Your-turn’ approach is applied in some classrooms. There are a number of approaches common in schools at the moment that atomise teaching into a series of clearly defined actions. Rosenshine’s Principles of Instruction is a particularly popular example of this. …
