Education articles - Teaching Expertise

Demands for a more creative curriculum are emerging thick and fast, but what do we mean by this and how might it be achieved in teaching? Rachel Lofthouse reports

Is your voice being heard at school? Elizabeth Hartnell-Young explains how a project undertaken by a team at Nottingham University revealed that teachers and students have a lot to say about the learning process, and that they should be heard

What happens when all the pupils and staff at a school read the same book at the same time, and what impact can this kind of whole-school project have on CPD? Lesley Hutchison explains

Early Years Update focuses on the importance of health and well being with babies, toddlers and three- to five-year-old children. This is part of a range of practical ideas to underpin the information in the Early Years Foundation Stage Principles into Practice cards

What is best practice when it comes to facilitating young children’s learning? Stephanie Mathivet, curriculum and standards manager for the Pre-school Learning Alliance, discusses this issue

The eight principles for observational assessment, provided in the DCSF’s Creating the Picture, can be used by practitioners in all early years settings to ensure that the requirements of the EYFS are met read more

Your teaching staff must have the health and physical capacity to teach, but in assessing this you must make sure you comply with disability discrimination rules, says Yvonne Spencer

How effective is wraparound childcare provision in addressing issues in areas of deprivation? Therese Allen, head at Mychall Primary in Birmingham, dicusses why it plays such a key role in her school

As a continuation of our at-a-glance references for explaining the vocabulary associated with gifted and talented education, we look at the Baccalaureate qualification

Breadth: another term explained in our reference guide for terms commonly used within gifted and talented education

Can music have beneficial effects in the classroom? Teachers in a Warwickshire school set out to test theories that Mozart’s music stimulates learning, as Dr James Haughton reports

Whose opinion takes precedence in a dispute over provision, asks Michael Segal – parent or local authority?

Planning, coordinating, managing, sustaining, networking and facilitating; these are all key aspects of an extended school manager’s role. Fran Shelley discusses these different aspects of her role as extended schools manager at Downside Middle School in Newport

How do you create (and demonstrate) an ethos where high achievement is valued? Bob Cox visits a school with a strong commitment to ‘ambition and educational achievement’

Are students and student voice involved in strategic decision making at your school? ‘Learning conversations’ at Rivington and Blackrod High School, near Bolton, means that they are, explains Ingrid Cox

School size is a key factor in student achievement, according to a Channel 4 documentary, but Pam Woolner disagrees with its theories about school environment

How does the EYFS framework fit into an early years setting in reality? How should early years education now move forward? Abigail Steel discusses

Is this the last year for SATs? Sam Derby discusses a possible end to SATs, and looks at the opinion that the exams are “too stressful” for young pupils read more

Play-based learning can take a key role in the teaching of science and can encourage scientific enquiry skills, says Robert Sinclair

Teaching primary languages is easy and fun when using fairy tales, activities and illustrations

Can the Teacher Learning Academy double the number of teachers it has enrolled by 2011? What are the benefits of signing up? Four teachers describe their involvement with the academy read more

In a bid to help students raise their achievement and know success, the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust initiated Raising Achievement Transforming Learning (RATL). David Crossley explains the school-to-school mentoring scheme which allows teachers to learn from the success of others

At some schools, individual cases of underachievement can be masked by overall good performance. Liz Allen tells how her school in Bromley overcame this by redesigning its whole approach to teaching and learning

Before you recruit a new member of your early years childcare team, you must first effectively define the job to be done and your expectations for the ideal person to do it

Early Years Update looks at the proposed new Ofsted inspection framework

If you work with children or vulnerable adults, there are difficult decisions regarding when to disclose sensitive information. Chris Webb-Jenkins examines the impact of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 on this issue

Employers looking to prevent and defend claims of stress, and employees who are suffering from stress at work, should make time to read the complex litigation involved, urges Tamara Ludlow

Why have previous attempts at community schooling largely failed? Pam Woolner from the Centre for Learning and Teaching at the University of Newcastle discusses, and sets out possible implications for the current initiative

As an extended school, Chesnut Lodge School in Halton provides inclusive after-school and holiday provision for children with additional needs and mainstream children. Heather Austin, their deputy head, explores why it has been a success

How can you provide adequate opportunities for gifted and talented artistic students? Joan Hardy has found the Arts Award scheme to be an effective means of identifying and encouraging artistic talent read more

An educational ‘road system’ for individual gifted and talented children is needed, says Deborah Eyre, so that they can construct their own unique learning journeys read more

Meditation can help create calmer and more relaxed classes as well as help a school achieve great SAT scores, says Kevin Hogston

Re: A (a child)(adoption) [2008] 1 FCR55, CA

How can eradicating detention lead to a decrease in challenging behaviour? Geraldine Rowe describes how her discovery of choice theory caused her to rethink her approach to discipline

Nicola Adams talks about becoming the first female to box for England at 18 years old, in the first of three interviews with women in amateur boxing who are at the top of their game

Rock-It-Ball is the fastest growing sport on the planet according to Paul Kildreth, secretary of the International Rock-It-Ball Federation

A vicious attack from an opposing player when she was 17 years old meant that Alex Chambers was told she would never play hockey again. 15 years later she promotes sport in schools and is representing England in Rock-It-Ball

Improving pupils’ leadership skills can have a positive impact on many areas of school life and PESS provides a key opportunity to develop, hone and improves them, explains Jill Wyatt

Exploring magical myths and legends through the medium of dance can bring a whole new perspective to creative learning, says Lisa Symonds

In March 2008, a four-year investigation into whether Glaxosmithkline had withheld negative information about the effects of Seroxat on under-18s ended with a decision that there was insufficient evidence to mount a successful prosecution. Special Children reports read more

Following the government’s rejection of the recommendation that the link between assessment of children’s SEN and funding for their provision be broken, John Wright discusses the reaction of the select committee who proposed the change

Louise Coigley enhances and develops the communication of SEN children and adults through inclusive storytelling. Michael Jones describes seeing her in action

Are pupils with special educational needs receiving the level of music provision they ought, as LAs and schools are getting more money for it than ever before?

Sound is now an integral part of the sensory environments that exist in many special schools, and the latest technology involved encourages interaction, stimulation and feedback

With 20% of children leaving school with lower than expected literacy levels, additional support is needed. Reading Recovery, a reading intervention programme developed in 1993, offers exactly that, say Rebecca Jenkin and Isobel Goss read more

What impact will Every Child Matters have on CPD in schools? According to Steven Coombs and Mike Calvert, it will be huge; and schools need to be ready read more

Admissions authorities and statutory appeal panels can avoid potential litigation from parents by using tactical decision making, says Yvonne Spencer read more

How can outreach work effectively engage hard-to-reach community members? Partnership working and forward thinking has been successful in breaking down barriers to participation, as Nazia Hussain, project manager for Keighley extended schools cluster in Bradford, explains read more

Governors have a great chance to improve pupils opportunities for taking part in physical activity, with the government’s school sport strategy read more

Crispin Andrews speaks to practitioners in order to examine the challenges and the opportunities for pupils with SEBD in PE