Common sense suggests, scientific research tells you, and Pisa proves it; what makes the biggest difference to student outcomes is the teacher in front of the class. That means if you really want to improve the school system, you need to focus on teacher training and professional development. Teachers need the core knowledge to plan, deve...
EdBlogs
Stephen Tierney is the executive director of the Blessed Edward Bamber Catholic Multi Academy Trust (or BEBCMAT). The trust, based in Blackpool, comprises of three academies – two primaries Christ the King and St. Cuthbert's, and one secondary St. Mary's. A regular and popular speaker at education conferences, Stephen has a brilliant reputation as ...
Teacher Katherine Birbalsingh received a standing ovation at the 2010 Conservative Party Conference, when she said: "The [education] system is broken because it keeps poor children poor." She went on to condemn a "culture of excuses, of low standards"; "the chaos of our classrooms"; and a "sea of bureaucracy". Birbalsingh has since regretted her co...
"Instead of comparing ourselves with the past, we should compare ourselves with the best" by Michael Gove (2010) Politicians and the media have long taken an interest in the results of the two main cross-national comparative studies of pupil achievement – The Programme for International Student ...
While it might feel like having fewer pupils in your class would help you make more progress, there is strangely little hard evidence that reducing class sizes consistently improves student attainment. It's not just teachers who gravitate towards a leaner classroom; reducing class sizes is extremely appealing to parents and one of the main attracti...