Louise Marie meets with Phil Banks (CEO of St Christopher's Trust and member of The Belonging Collective) to discuss exclusion: school policies, research and impact on belonging. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eoy_kFRxIRc&t=2s

For many years, schools, understandably, have been focusing on the gender attainment gap. We are asking questions about how the system is failing boys and the barriers they are facing. Is it a lack of a clear social role? Is it the feminisation of education? Is it a confidence issue? This article isn’t going to dispute the clear attainment gap, or state that boys don’t need our focus (they do, very much so). The purpose of this article is to flip the gender focus, because, ir

I’m not sure about you, but I’ve lost count of the amount of twilight sessions or INSET days I’ve attended where I’ve been excited to go, thinking ‘Yes! A chance to get better and do better!’ but I’ve come away feeling angry and let down. When I sit back and reflect on the provenance of my negativity, it inevitably points back to one thought: my time was wasted because I have learnt nothing new or tangible. CPD is meant to be one of the highlights of working in education, and

As teachers I think it’s expected that we know who we are, what we stand for and where we belong. I am unsure if anyone else feels the weight of this identity pressure, but I feel it. I arrive to my classroom each day suited and occasionally booted, with a laptop and a planner in hand. I know why I’m there. I know why I chose to get up and drive to this school and I know what difference I want to make in each lesson and interaction. I rest easy knowing I am lucky enough to be

Louise Marie meets with Shane Leaning to discuss how to lead, coach and implement change effectively https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kMqSypvqzc&t=7s

Interested to join the discussion on how to build and embed a healthy culture in schools? Click here! https://www.linkedin.com/posts/louise-marie-a3607978_schoolculture-buildingculture-activity-7377721877781303296-uDOv?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAABBiOYoBh7s8svTFNYUUQEv3LKzhBaENnYs

Laura McPhee discusses why belonging matters and how psychological safety can lead to school improvement We've all been there. Someone speaks up at work, perhaps in a meeting or in conversation with colleagues. They’re describing behaviours you recognise, making suggestions for improvement, challenging the status quo. But it’s… well, uncomfortable. In that moment, we all have a choice. Peer support matters. Building a safe environment is a collective effort, starting with lea

Psychological Safety as a driver for school improvement... Laura McPhee- Director of Education and published author on empowering teachers and improving schools, shares her wisdom on the importance of psychological safety. I’m sat at the back of the teacher training induction session, pretending to read the welcome pack, when a large imposing figure appears at the front. He thanks us all for coming and quickly moves on to a lengthy monologue, warning us of the perils that lie

Grace Barron, V21 Consultant, talks about five ways teacher voice shapes culture, growth, and change - and how we can hear them It’s the start of a new academic year - a season of fresh starts: new displays on classroom walls and teachers preparing for the students who are soon to walk through their classroom door. With this season of change comes a season of possibilities - habits we want to develop, (habits we want to break), and routines we want to refresh. And at the hear

Dr Adam McCartney explores the need for curriculum change to embed AI skills that are currently not being taught in schools. He discusses the wider impact on identity and our society. With all the buzz about the pros and cons of AI on employment, it is surprising how little we hear from education. The impact is already here. A recent Forbes article stated that Microsoft now automates up to 30% of its coding through AI. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, estimates that 20% of pe