SecEd Podcast

This episode offers practical advice, ideas and reflection for effective school improvement practices and processes. Four school leaders discuss the core elements and philosophy of effective school improvement, including vision, values & strategic priorities. We consider how to get everyone on board, communication and change-management, consistency, collaboration, distributed leadership, successio...

This podcast looks at the Everyone's Invited testimonies and Ofsted's review into sexual harassment, abuse and violence in schools – and the implications for safeguarding practice. We look at how schools can respond effectively to Ofsted's recommendations, not least the requirement that we "assume that sexual harassment and online sexual abuse are happening". How can we encourage victims to report...

This episode looks at student-led eco-work in schools as well as how schools can reduce their carbon emissions. Our panel includes both teachers and students and offers a range of ideas large and small for projects and cost-saving initiatives. The podcast is inspired by the Let's Go Zero schools campaign. We look at practical carbon reduction ideas, wider eco-work including single-use plastics and...

Following our popular podcast on quality first teaching ( https://bit.ly/2R5PIT8 ), this episode looks specifically at effective marking and feedback practice for teachers. Our experts offer ideas and tips to ensure your marking and feedback is effective. Themes include: the purposes of teacher assessment, school assessment policies, consistency across the school, using assessment to inform curric...

There is much talk about catch-up, lost learning and a Covid generation. Many politicians and commentators have adopted this deficit model to discuss schooling post-pandemic. But have we stopped to ask what our children actually need? Or what school should look like from September for those of us who reject this deficit mindset? This podcast sets out to do just that. Our guests, who include two he...

This episode considers the impact of poverty on children, families and education – and what schools can do to address these consequences. We look at the national picture of increasing child poverty (4.3 million children and rising), the causes of poverty, the barriers it creates to education, and the impact of Covid. We discuss why free school meals is a poor proxy for poverty and how schools can...

In this episode, Matt Bromley interviews colleagues from four secondary schools to find out how we can ensure an effective transition of pupils from year 6 to 7. The panel shares perennial good practice advice for transition and ensuring a smooth start in September, but also touches on the particulars of transition in 2021 as pupils recover from the impact of Covid-19. We discuss issues relating t...

Host Adele Bates leads a reflective and practical discussion on equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in the school, especially within the curriculum, school culture and workforce. Adele and guests, including #DiverseEd's Bennie Kara, author of A Little Guide for Teachers: Diversity in Schools, discuss how far we have come and what needs to happen next. Topics include decolonising/diversifying t...

This episode offers a wealth of practical insights, advice & ideas for effective safeguarding practice in schools. We look at general good practice as well as safeguarding during Covid-19. Our experts tackle issues including the key principles of effective safeguarding, safer working practice, making effective referrals/working with children's social care & the 'trends' to be aware of in 2021 (sex...

In this episode, three guests – who have more than 34 years' teaching experience between them – dissect what exactly Quality First Teaching looks like in the classroom, offering practical ideas, guidance, tips and reflection. We tackle issues such as teacher CPD, subject knowledge, and research-led teaching. We look at the environment for learning, some key principles of effective pedagogy, stretc...

This episode focuses on issues of SEND, inclusion and diversity in the school environment in the context of the Covid pandemic, our students returning following national lockdown, and how we might build back better. Host Adele Bates leads a wide-ranging discussion which offers practical reflections, empathy and advice across areas including students' lockdown experiences, issues around the current...

This episode looks at how we can effectively teach and support students who use English as an additional language (EAL) in the classroom. With advice from three experienced teaching experts, we consider who our EAL students are, the five bands of language proficiency, the tenets of good classroom practice, learning materials, translanguaging, high expectations, assessing learners' progress, effect...

This episode looks at the plight of our vulnerable learners as schools re-open once again to all students after the third Covid-19 national lockdown. We consider barriers to learning and wellbeing that vulnerable learners face and what our priorities must be coming out of Lockdown 3.0. We discuss: what we have learnt about effective remote education, teaching & lessons, the cancelled Summer 2021 e...

This episode looks at the skills, traits and approaches that effective middle leaders need to employ in the secondary school environment and offers practical advice, tips and reflections from three practising middle leaders. We discuss how to work with and lead your teaching colleagues, how to manage tricky colleagues, how to work with those who are more experienced than you, and how we can best s...

In this episode, we consider what effective teaching for SEN students looks like in the mainstream school classroom. The discussion considers the principles of good teaching for SEN students, common barriers to success, and the implications for pedagogy. We touch upon the use of teaching assistants, models of intervention, and how we should work with families. Other themes include the SEND in Main...

In this episode, we interview former headteacher and author Jackie Beere and former teacher and school leader Kevin Piper about metacognition and self-regulation. The panel define their terms and discuss ways to help students develop metacognitive skills in order to support their wellbeing, their learning and progress. They debate whether metacognition can be taught as a transferable skill or if i...

This episode looks at Covid-19. We discuss how schools have coped during the autumn term. Their biggest successes and the biggest challenges. What lessons have we learned? What good practice advice can we give? We also touch upon how we are planning for the spring and summer terms 2021. We are joined by three headteachers from schools in Tier 2 and 3 areas and Geoff Barton, general secretary of th...

This episode looks at the impact the Pupil Premium has had over the last 10 years on closing the attainment gap. The panel discuss the causes of academic disadvantage and explore some solutions for schools, including tackling the vocabulary gap, improving quality first teaching, and putting in place targeted interventions and support. It features Debi Bailey, CEO of Newcastle East mixed MAT, Charl...

This episode offers practical advice, guidance and tips for schools delivering the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) curriculum, which has been a statutory requirement since September. Our experts, including from the Sex Education Forum, discuss how things are going so far, specific challenges schools have faced in delivering effective RSHE, the impact of Covid-19, the role of RSHE in...

Matt Bromley talks to headteacher Phil Denton, head of English Chloe Testa, and education trainer Peter Radford about teacher workload. They discuss the impact burn-out can have on teachers' wellbeing, as well as the consequences of low teacher retention and explore possible solutions. They discuss the importance of school culture, explaining that often it's the nature of the work teachers are ask...

This episode of the SecEd Podcast offers a practical discussion about behaviour management across the school and in the classroom, with advice from three school leaders. Themes: Effective whole-school approaches; sanctions & consequences; behaviour as communication; King Ecgbert School's Consistent Behaviour Model Policy; exclusion; internal exclusion; parental engagement; low-level behaviour; cla...

This episode of the SecEd Podcast focuses on how schools can best support both SEN students and looked after children as we continue our recovery from the coronavirus lockdown. We discuss what barriers to education and wellbeing these children are facing so far this term and offer practical suggestions for how schools and teachers can support them. Topics include interventions, whole-school approa...

This episode is the final of four Back to School podcasts offering advice to schools this autumn term and beyond. In this episode, we consider the technological legacy of Covid-19, effective remote education, and the role of edtech in supporting teaching and learning. With Bukky Yusuf, Al Kingsley & Paul Haigh, we discuss lockdown (what worked, what didn't), the digital divide, remote teaching ped...

This episode is the third in a four-part Back to School Series offering advice to schools as the autumn term begins. This time, we consider what teaching & learning should look like in schools after the Covid-19 lockdown, this term and beyond. With Dr Niki Kaiser & Dr Robin Bevan, topics include teaching & learning approaches & interventions, effective pedagogy, assessment, curriculum, exam prepar...

In this episode of The SecEd Podcast – produced in partnership with Pearson – we explore the role schools can play in teaching the digital and employability skills that students will need in the future. We discuss the importance of teaching key skills and developing core knowledge and understanding as part of a broad and balanced curriculum, as well as through the discrete IT qualifications. We al...