Mary Myatt -Education adviser, Writer and Speaker - Wales
In this episode, I’m talking with Mary Myatt. Mary is nothing short of a patron saint of curriculum design in the uk, with her books including The Curriculum: Gallimaufry to Coherence, Huh: Curriculum Conversations Between Subject and Senior Leaders and Back on Track: Fewer Things, Greater Depth.I find myself quoting things Mary has said in discussions with colleagues on a regular basis and was elated with the chance to speak with her. Particularly of interest was her focus in middle school and her insistence that with the right planning, it can become the ‘intellectual powerhouse’ of secondary schooling. We discuss: The extent to which schools have taken the advice of a 2015 paper entitled ‘KS3: the wasted years?’Why as a profession we were getting curriculum coherence wrong for so many yearsThe advice Mary typically gives to identify the powerful knowledge a curriculum should be organized aroundWhat she feels are the strengths and weaknesses of units or assessments that are planned with authenticity or a real audience in mind.Her work with the University of Sussex's Just Reading strategiesAnd finally, where does Mary stand on interdisciplinary learning?Thanks again to Mary for her indefatigable online presence, her writing and taking the time to talk to me today. If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhkLinksMary’s booksOfsted’s ‘KS3: the wasted years?’
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A Zoom with a View #5
In this episode, I’m talking to Eoin MacCarthaigh. This is the latest in a running series of conversations between Eoin and I, where we share 3 things each from the world of education that have been causing us some consideration.We discuss: 1. The challenges of instructional coaching2. The challenges of achieving improvement in education3. Handbooks versus playbooks and what this means for professional development4. Whether themes can be considered hinterland in English curriculum design5. The relationship between direct instruction and EnglishIf you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhk and Eoin @EMCTeachLinks:Carl Hendrick’s X post regarding coachingCraig Barton’s podcast with Adam BoxerClaudia Lewis’ blogpost on playbooks and handbooks
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Sam Gibbs - Curriculum / Development Leader for The Greater Manchester Education Trust and Author - Manchester
In this episode I’m talking with Sam Gibbs. Sam is a former English teacher and curriculum / development leader for a school trust in Manchester. Additionally, she co-authored the brilliant The Trouble with English and How to Address It: A Practical Guide to Designing and Delivering a Concept-Led Curriculum. As we go onto discuss, making the shift to concept-led curriculum in English is a paradigm shift that ensures deeper learning for students. Consequently, Sam and Zoe’s book offers an excellent introduction to this change as well as practical advice for how to go about doing it. We discuss:How Sam advises on starting the shift to a concept-led curriculumWhether she suggests teachers start by exploring foundation concepts initially before then bringing in second-order ideas over timeExamples of how schools have taken on the concept-led curriculum and subsequently tried to build in assessmentWhether 'argument' is a foundational concept of EnglishAnd finally, the difference between 'structure' and 'pattern' as conceptsThanks again to Sam for giving up her time today as well as the amazing work she and Zoe Helman have done in bringing this book to the subject. If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhkLinks: Sam and Zoe’s book: The Trouble with English and How to Address It
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Dr James Mannion - Director of Rethinking Education, Author and Podcast Host - Brighton
In this episode I’m talking to Dr James Mannion. James is co-author of Fear is the Mind Killer a book designed to guide, implement and evaluate a Learning Skills curriculum in schools. More recently he has written Making Change Stick, a book that brilliantly synthesises research on school improvement so that is can be practically implemented in a sustainable way. James is also a fellow podcaster, hosting the Rethinking Education podcast and is director at Rethinking Education. I was really happy to be able to speak with James after following his work on Learning to Learn for a long time and wanting to know his interpretation of the International Baccalaureate’s approach to this. Additionally, his more recent writing on implementation science is incredibly useful in providing pragmatic approaches for new and existing leaders of change. We discuss: What the distinction is between cognition, metacognition, self-regulation and self-regulated learningWhat James makes of the IB's Approaches to Learning framework How his Learning to Learn programme was sequenced Whether Learning to Learn should be tailored to respective subjects or taught through a bespoke class How much of the Making Change Stick programme would be relevant to middle leaders And finally, whilst compiling a fantastic collection of implementation strategies, who are James’ 3 or 4 pillars of the field in terms of researchers or texts that proved seminalThanks again to James for doing the hard yards in condensing a decade’s work of research down into an eminently readable books on two separate occasions. If you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhkLinks: James blog post on metacognition and self-regulationJames’ booksRethinking Education PodcastViviane Robinson’s Reduce Change to Increase ImprovementDiffusion of Innovations by Everett RogersThe Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM)
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1:08:50
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WILF: Reduce Change to Increase Improvement by Viviane Robinson
In this episode, I’m explaining What I Learnt From: Reduce Change to Increase Improvement by Viviane Robinson. This is the third episode that sees me go through my annotations and notes for a book that explores an area of English teaching or leadership.This time, it’s a text that I was actually assigned as part of a Masters I did a few years ago. Amidst all the theoretical reading, Viviane Robinson’s writing jumped out as instantly practical and so resonant when considering my own experience with leadership. I subsequently listened to a brilliant episode she did with Ollie Lovell for the ERRR, which brought all of its ideas to life. As always with these books, I really recommend you take a look by purchasing for your department or self but particularly if you’re someone with middle leadership or management aspirations or responsibilities. Expect to hear: What the bypass and engagement approach to improvement areWhat a theory of action isHow to have constructive problem talkHow to respectfully inquire into others’ theory of actionAnd finally, the four phases of theory engagement that lead to lasting changeIf you want to be kept up to date on when educational chat like this happens, then be sure to subscribe to the podcast and/or follow me on Twitter @chrisjordanhkLinks:Reduce Change to Increase Improvement by Viviane RobsinsonOllie Lovell’s interview with Viviane Robinson on the ERRR
Portugal