Primary First Issue 27 by Synergy

PrimaryFirst The journal for primary schools Issue 27 £5.00

“Freedom is not a gift which is given or taken, but a power which grows or fails to grow and it is a power of special value to children at school.” Christian Schiller

National Association for Primary Education

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR PRIMARY EDUCATION

Rosemary Evans

Bequest Award

Are you a recently qualified early years / primary teacher (QTS gained since June 2018)?

Are you keen to reflect on your professional development as a classroom practitioner?

If so, we hope you will be interested in the Rosemary Evans Bequest Award to be given on an annual basis to the best article received for publication in Primary First from a recently qualified teacher. The award is for £250 and either the theme can be selected from one of the following: • The highlights and challenges of taking on your own class • What do you see as the key principles and/or values which inform your approach to learning and teaching? • How can teacher retention be improved? • The global teacher for the 21st century. Or you can identify your own issue for exploration which draws directly on your experience of teaching in the classroom and your developing professional awareness as a primary practitioner. This could, for example, relate to an area of responsibility you are taking on or might be linked to a masters level unit or might simply be an issue about which you feel passionate.

Are you keen to get something published in an educational journal and add it to your CV?

The article should be between 1500 and 2000 words and you are encouraged to select your own focus and title, irrespective of whether you select one of the above themes or opt for something different. The article should both critically explore aspects of your own experience and identity as a recently qualified teacher and be informed, where appropriate, by relevant literature. The final date for submission for this academic year is 1 May 2020. It is to be submitted electronically in Word or PDF format to Robert Young, NAPE General Secretary at rmyoung1942@yahoo.co.uk. The Primary First Editorial Board will judge the submissions and it is anticipated that more than one submission will be considered for inclusion in the journal, although not in receipt of the Award itself. Further details about the Award can be requested from Robert Young.

Editorial Bring in the new! A new Ofsted framework in November 2019; a new Conservative administration voted in by the public in December 2019; a new decade; a new relationship with the European Union in January 2020 and a new editor for ‘Primary First’ in the same month. That said, however, teachers are always wary of the new and being ‘new’ does not always mean that change will be better’ or that ‘old’ was always right. Christian Schiller wrote: ‘Nothing stands still. Each generation in turn succeeds its elders in circumstances which are different, and itself becomes different. Each generation in turn, itself educated in the past, attempts in the present to educate its children who will live in the future’ (1984, p. 57). He later described that change was continuous, irregular, that nothing stands still. Perceptively, Schiller argued that schools should contemplate the ‘cross-section’ of old ideas and that which is a bold creation to inform their practice. Teachers are all too aware of gimmickry, new measures that are introduced without research underpinning it, or a new minister setting out his or her stall looking for immediate impact and setting a specific direction. Being able to provide continuity of what works well that gives pedagogy an assured presence in the classroom matters.

the implementation of teaching relationships and sex education from September 2019 and mental health provision. Then there are new things which seem to have more pessimism involved: the reduction in the arts and foundation subjects, the phenomenon of ‘up levelling’ words and parts of creative writing and a return to behaviourist-focussed pedagogy. Teachers can look at the continuity underpinned by careful analysis of the old and the new and allow their teaching to have its freedom in the classroom: change needs scepticism but not always cynicism, continuity needs appraisal but not rejection. This new decade, as part of the ongoing fourth industrial revolution will probably see teachers looking for freedoms to equip children with the necessary skills to thrive in a rapidly changing world which may see artificial intelligence become more prominent in teaching and assessment, a reduction in teaching assistant numbers, holograms beamed into classrooms to replace some teachers, and a tighter allegiance to centralized provision and monitoring. This journal is not afraid of new ideas or different points of view.

There is a need to look at the ‘new’ with healthy optimism, with among other things; Ofsted’s new focus on ‘deep dives’; Amanda Spielman’s brave focus on ‘undiscussables’ and the shutting down of debate;

About us Editorial Editorial Board Photo Credit

Dr Robert Morgan Peter Cansell, Stuart Swann, Robert Young Sam Carpenter

Primary First journal is published three times per year by the National Association for Primary Education. Primary First, 57 Britannia Way, Lichfield, Staffordshire, WS14 9UY Tel. 01543 257257 Email: r.a.morgan@gre.ac.uk ©Primary First 2020 Spring Issue No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted in any form or by any means without the express written permission of the publisher. Whilst every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the editorial content the publisher cannot be held responsible for errors or omissions. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the publisher.

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Editorial Dr Robert Morgan

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Music in the Primary National Curriculum by Dr Mark Betteney

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Teacher Training in England and Wales the potential impact of Curriculum 2022 on QTS by Dr Jane Dorrian

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Ground-breaking initiative challenges UK’s music education crisis by Phil Castang

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Rather than outstanding why not stand out?” by Steve Davies

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More than teachers by Emmanuel Awoyelu

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Hair today gone tomorrow by Frances Coulson

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Child-informed’ lessons from the West Riding? By Colin Richards

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SEND in Ordinary Classrooms by Michelle Prosser Haywood

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Are we really inclusive? by Jon Daveney

An introduction to ethics morality and virtues for children (March 2019) by Tony Frais

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Teacher Training in England and Wales - the potential impact of Curriculum 2022 on QTS

by Dr Jane Dorrian The attention of the Welsh education workforce is focussed firmly on the introduction of the new ‘Curriculum for Wales 2022’ that will replace National Curriculum. Consultations have been held, briefings have been delivered and content is being designed and scrutinised. The wholesale replacement of a curriculum impacts on every aspect of the education system, from the practicalities of recording pupil progress to philosophical considerations of the purpose of education. Discussions and debates about all aspects of the process are taking place, but the conversations connected to certain areas are louder and more urgent than others due to pressures of impending timeframes. As the date for the initial implementation of the curriculum approaches the focus currently is on the changes this will bring about in the classroom and how existing teachers and other staff will be supported to deliver the different pedagogical and professional principles underpinning it. Whilst these aspects are clearly and rightly the main priority, an issue that has not yet been given due attention is the impact that the divergence in curriculum design could have on initial teacher education (ITE) courses in England and Wales and the transferability of qualifications across the two countries. In the current system students who gain their Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) in Welsh institutions are able to teach in England with no need to undertake any additional training related to the English curriculum, and the same applies to students who qualify in England and go on to teach in Wales. This differs from students who gain their teaching qualifications in Scotland or Northern Ireland who have to complete an additional QTS qualification to teach in England or Wales, and likewise teachers that hold QTS need to complete an equivalence qualification to teach in Scotland or Northern Ireland. One of the reasons for this requirement has been that the curricula delivered in Scotland and Northern Ireland are distinctly different to that delivered in England in

Wales, but the introduction of Curriculum 2022 annuls that argument. Since devolution in 1999 there has been a quiet determination by the Welsh Assembly Government to create an education system ‘made in Wales, for Wales’. Rhodri Morgan, then First Minister of Wales, stated in 2002 that the Welsh Government would place “clear, red water between Cardiff and Westminster”, and subsequently differences have emerged. The introduction of Foundation Phase to replace Key Stage 1, the development of the Welsh Baccalaureate, the abolition of SATs and the introduction of Teacher Standards specific to Wales have meant that the educational landscape in Wales is becoming distinctly different from that in England and Curriculum 2022 can be seen as the culmination of this process. The Welsh Assembly Government website states that the overhaul is necessary because ‘since it was created, the (current) curriculum has become narrow, inflexible and crowded, limiting creative approaches in schools’. This statement refers to the National Curriculum that continues to be delivered in English schools, which returns us to the question of how the same initial teaching qualification can equip teachers to deliver curricula that are increasingly divergent, particularly when the teaching qualifications in the other home nations are deemed to be non-transferable because of the different curricula designs in those countries. It could be argued that the Northern Ireland curriculum is closer in design to the proposed structure of Curriculum 2022 than to National Curriculum as that is organised into areas of learning rather than subjects, so if teachers who trained in Wales need to gain additional qualifications to deliver the Irish curriculum then it would seem logical that the same requirement would be needed for those who come to 05

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teach in Wales if they trained in one of the other home nations. There are already some inconsistencies between the initial teacher training system in England and that in Wales, with the most noticeable being related to the Welsh language. Primary trainee teachers in Wales must learn basic, incidental Welsh as part of their course in order to complete the language requirements in the current Welsh curriculum. This is regardless of whether the students come from Wales or not, whether they have any previous Welsh language experience, or whether they intend to teach in in Wales in the future. Welsh domiciled trainees who gain their qualifications in England do not have to learn any Welsh, and this can have implications for their employment if they return to Wales to work. Students who undertake their training entirely through the medium of Welsh are able to teach in England without undertaking any English language requirements. Despite the differences associated with the Welsh language provision in ITE courses, the QTS qualification that trainees achieve in England or Wales on graduation allows them to work in either country. The issue is perhaps thrown into sharpest focus when considering PCGE primary programmes, which have a limited timeframe in which to cover pedagogy, subject knowledge, classroom management and professional practice. On PGCE courses students spend a significant amount of time in the classroom, and students who are working in Curriculum 2022 primary school settings in Wales will be dealing with a very different curriculum structure and design compared to those in National Curriculum classrooms in England. At the most basic level, one set of trainees will be teaching subject disciplines whereas the other will be teaching across areas of learning of experience but there are more significant professional issues that need to be considered too. Curriculum 2022 is dependent on teachers’ abilities to develop, contribute to and maintain effective communities of practice which will be used to support the creation of a curriculum that suits an individual setting. Students on PGCE course in Wales will be immersed into this approach to planning and designing the learning events that take place in their classrooms. They will be required to interpret the general principles outlined in the curriculum guidance (the ‘What Matters’ elements

of the areas of learning) to create content that relates specifically to the locale they are working in, rather than using subject content as a start point and devising activities to deliver that. Whilst this might appear to be a subtle difference it is significant as the approaches require trainee teachers to develop a set of skills and working practices that would not necessarily be as effective in the planning and delivery of a different curriculum. Clearly initial teacher education is not solely about curriculum knowledge, it has to equip students with the skills and understanding of how to teach not just what to teach but the stated aims underpinning Curriculum 2022 and National Curriculum suggest that the pedagogic approaches that best fit their delivery are quite different. One of the aims of the National Curriculum is to ‘embody rigour and high standards and create coherence in what is taught in schools’. This aim contrasts noticeably with the principles underpinning the Welsh curriculum which is striving to eliminate one coherent approach by encouraging teachers to take the curriculum and design it to fit their own setting’s specific situation creating a more bespoke approach. The stated purposes of Curriculum 2022 are ‘to help learners to be ambitious and capable; enterprising and creative, ethical and informed, and healthy and confident’. National Curriculum aims to ‘ensure that all children are taught the essential knowledge in the key subject disciplines’. Again, these statements indicate a divergence in the fundamental philosophies underpinning the different curricula and this impacts upon the pedagogies that best enable their delivery. Stated simply, one curriculum wants to ‘help learners to be’ which appears to lend itself to co-constructive, shared learning pedagogies and other wants to ‘ensure that all children are taught’ which could be interpreted as favouring a more didactic style. Whilst this is a blunt and unnuanced distinction to make, and the National Curriculum clearly allows and enables effective shared learning and discovery-based approaches to be utilised, there is still a disparity evident in what the curricula are trying to achieve and this will impact upon the methods that are best suited to delivering them. Initial teacher training programmes need to produce employable graduates that can deliver the curriculum effectively. If their training has been based on the principles and pedagogies associated with one country’s curriculum is it

feasible to expect them to be able to switch to another without any additional training or development? This question applies to NTQs and experienced teachers alike and links back to the fact that there is a requirement to undertake an equivalence process to move to any other UK system. As the #IndyWales movement gains momentum, more and more attention is being paid to the extent to which policy and practice needs to be Wales specific rather than cross border and this has resulted in a variety of wider issues beginning to impact upon the education sector. There are funding implications for students who opt to train to teach through the medium of Welsh. Recent research for the Education Workforce Council (Egan, Longville & Milton, 2019) showed that the bursaries and additional financial support offered to encourage students to train through the medium of Welsh meant that, that in some instances, they could be worse off when they started work. The introduction of the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure in 2011 made Welsh an official language of Wales and established a legal framework to impose duties on public organisations to comply with one or more standards of conduct related to the Welsh language. This means Welsh must be treated no less favourably than English and there are minimum requirements that all organisations must meet, such as answering the phone with bilingual greetings. In conjunction with this agenda the Welsh Government has made a commitment to support the aim that there will be a million Welsh speakers by 2050. In schools the introduction of the standards and the associated commitment means that the expectations and requirements of teachers’ Welsh language skills are increasing. Previously some schools have used planning, preparation and assessment cover arrangements to deliver Welsh language teaching, particularly in areas of Wales with traditionally low numbers of Welsh speakers such as Torfaen and Monmouthshire, but as children’s language skills improve and expectations around language provision increase delivering discrete lessons in PPA sessions will not be a suitable or appropriate approach. Welsh will need to be embedded and used throughout all aspects of school life rather than taught in isolation. These examples of wider political and social issues impacting upon education in Wales further illustrate the potential challenges that could be faced

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by teachers training in one country and moving to teach in the other without any transitional professional development requirements. This is not to suggest that Wales is unique in having region specific issues that impact on teaching and learning, or that these issues should preclude teachers from training in one system and teaching in another. As mentioned previously, all teacher training programmes should equip students with the skills and knowledge to develop a wide range of pedagogical approaches and the teacher standards underpinning training programmes in England and in Wales require students to be able to demonstrate this range. However, the current transferability of the QTS qualification between the two countries must raise concerns about whether teachers are being adequately supported if they make the transition between Wales and England, particularly when compared to the requirements associated with moving to work in the other home nations. As the consultations, preparations and training events related to the implementation of Curriculum 2022 begin in earnest this is surely the time to consider the impact the change will have on the current transferability of teaching qualifications and to explore whether the existing arrangements will work in the future. Without this consideration there is a risk that teachers moving from one country to another to work will find the transition a stressful, complex and challenging experience which they have to navigate as an individual, compared to the systems in place to support the transition into teaching in the other home nations. Having a similar requirements or systems across the whole UK could allow for easier movement and more effective preparation for their new role which is more likely to have positive outcomes for teachers and for their learners.

References Egan, D., Longville, J. & Milton E. (2019) Graduate Recruitment: Teaching and Other Professions: A research report for the Education Workforce Council Cardiff: Cardiff University Press Dr Jane Dorrian is a Regional Academic Staff Tutor with the Open University based in Wales.

National Association for Primary Education

NAPE promotes the very best opportunities for children's learning through: • sharing exemplary teaching approaches • bringing together groups of colleagues for support • developing a strong professionalism • providing conferences with speakers of national reputation • publishing Primary First, a reflective and informative journal • enabling debate about innovative teaching

NAPE is an important national voice for early and primary education. We influence government and its agencies through: • engaging with consultations and formulating responses • participating in discussions at the highest level with other organisations • Issuing media releases and influencing public opinion • responding to media enquiries • participating in radio and TV interviews

Members are kept up to date and fully involved through the NAPE website www.nape.org.uk By joining NAPE you become part of a nationwide movement to improve the status and resourcing of early years and primary education. You will gain not only from a fellowship of shared aims and expertise but also from an increasing range of benefits available to members and school communities.

Join us now through our website or by emailing to nationaloffice@nape.org.uk The office administrator at 01604 647646 will be happy to answer any queries. Payment can be made through BACS, Paypal or cheque. • Individual membership £30 • School Community membership, Group 1 £40, Group 2 and above £55 • No fee is due from student teachers. 09

Rather than outstanding why not stand out? by Steve Davies An article about taking on a supposedly outstanding school in an east London borough as probably my last leadership role of a career spanning over 30 years. I have been a Deputy Head, Head, Partnership Head and Executive Head, across five schools and in two authorities in the south east of England for the last 22 years and have always taken on schools that are faced with challenges of some kind or other. Usually they are ‘requires improvement’ and need to improve. So, when I saw my present role advertised in the TES I was amazed to find myself visiting, being impressed by those who showed me around the school and then even more amazingly, submitting an application to become the Head Teacher of what was presented as an ‘Outstanding school’. There are a number of reasons for why I was further amazed and these were: •

It was 42 miles away from where I was now living

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I had been happy as the Executive Head Teacher of a large federation in Kent and we had become quite successful at the federation and were enjoying this new-found success (the two schools had previously struggled and one was facing an Ofsted inspection when I arrived that if it were to go badly could mean academisation. It did not and we were awarded good with Outstanding leadership)

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It would appear to be a backward career move as I was moving back into a hands-on role of Head Teacher and away from the more corporate role of executive headteacher (EHT).

Indeed though, this was a motivating factor for me as I had always missed the day to day organisational

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leadership and as an EHT I always became too involved in the operational. I could not help myself, as this was where my passion for leadership lay. But an Outstanding school? First, a little context as this is important in realising that things were possibly not what they seemed to be on the surface. The school had been through some troublesome times in its recent past namely the whole governing body and the Head Teacher had resigned, parents were rightly up in arms about what was happening and the local authority had sought to avoid the school having an Interim Executive Board (IEB) imposed upon it and possible academisation. Something the school, its parents and the local authority were dead set against, thankfully! It had therefore, received a monitoring inspection from Ofsted in October 2018 (I joined in September 2019) to check whether it was still the Outstanding school it had been graded in its 2013 Inspection. Prior to the inspection the local authority had ensured that a very experienced interim governing body was appointed led by a national leader of governance whom I am glad to say is still the chair and a man of supreme experience and character; he has worked hard during this period to keep the school’s head above the water line and indeed appointed me (to which I will forever be grateful for). The governing body and the LA had appointed an interim Executive Head Teacher who was also the headteacher of another outstanding school in the borough and he had worked very hard to gain the

trust of parents and to build a staff team that were motivated and well coached mainly by him. Together with a very experienced, and extremely capable Interim Deputy Head, he worked hard to steady the ship and subsequently led the school through a successful inspection. The parents and the school community, however, wanted their own substantive Head Teacher and this is where I come in. Although Ofsted agreed that the school should remain as ‘outstanding’ there was much underneath the surface, and indeed above it when I arrived, to tell me that this may be a school that Ofsted graded as ‘outstanding’ but it certainly was not a school that stood out for me. Consistency of approaches to planning, curriculum, teaching and learning and display in general was just not there. There was no mission statement or set of values that the school lived by and because of lack of leadership (there had been four different Head Teachers in the last four years and a part time Executive Head Teacher for the last one of these years), no real vision. Staff were craving leadership and some described this to me on the first INSET day in September as “it feels like a ship with a determined and hard-working crew which has no captain and no rudder. We have been floating in the sea, surviving but not really getting anywhere.” The one leadership constant was the acting Deputy Head who knew the school inside out and having been at the school for a very long time was completely committed and invested in it. My first big decision was to make her the substantive Deputy Head and convince her that I needed her and that I was going to be here for the duration and was committed to truly making this school stand out. I am glad to say that she trusted me and she is undoubtedly a major asset in what we are now trying to do at the school. She works as part of the new highly talented and passionately enthusiastic senior leadership team and is ably supported and complimented by a seconded Deputy Head, who is also talented, resilient and passionate. This team works

tirelessly with me to ensure that the vision for the school is constantly evolving and embedding. The school did not feel or look like it was an outstanding school. Indeed, it was not even celebrating the successful outcome of the inspection, almost they were concealing it. There were no banners outside to advertise that this was an outstanding school (standard practice in these circumstances if only to increase bums on seats as parents often look at Ofsted-wrongly in my opinion, before choosing where to send their children), it was not reflected on their paper work or communication with parents and more sadly for me, there had been no celebratory staff or children’s party. In fact, it was as if they did not believe that they had achieved something that some schools strive all their existence to be. At this point I should make it abundantly clear that I do not subscribe to the Ofsted system of grading schools and I have definitely worked in schools that were, and should have been given the recognition as outstanding, and never were by Ofsted. So, I do not hold too much faith in their labelling of schools. Rather, I have striven as a Head to ensure that the schools I have worked in stand out because they are excellent places where children love to learn and teachers love to teach. Where the curriculum is so irresistible that teachers cannot wait to do their planning and are excited when they are teaching it. They are places where children do not want be absent because they feel like they are missing something. Where wow experiences are the norm and the expectation and not the exception. Where parents invest and engage fully in all that we do and leadership and teachers welcome their input. So, if we were to make this school stand-out then there was a lot to do. I quickly realised that I was not the only one who thought like this. In the very first INSET day after the usual meet your new HT and ice breaker activities I asked the staff to tell me two things; 1-What was great about RBPS and 2-What needed to improve. Almost 100% said the school was great because of the staff togetherness and this they felt had been achieved through the adversity of their situation i.e. lack of 11

12 leadership and still having to ensure the school carried on. They were not wrong. There definitely is a bond, a real feeling of family, a warmth that is generated from this at the school and it is what attracted me to come here. In response to the second question they also told me to a person, that they craved direction, leadership, a vision and a consistent approach to the pedagogy of the place. Something they could get excited about again as they had been four years ago under the longstanding Head Teacher who had got the school out of its dark times and with them (most staff had been here for much longer than four years and could remember it in much different circumstances under this well thought of but tough headteacher) had transformed it into a much better place, but then had retired. In the early weeks of being here I lost count of the times people asked me to tell them what I wanted, what were my expectations of them, what were my non-negotiables as they desperately wanted to know how they could make this happen. The fact that they knew that there was a lack of direction and consistency helped me enormously in implementing much needed changes to policy and practice and helped me to implement my vision for the future of the school which would involve the following three pronged approach (some of which is based on what I have learned from Andrew Morrish in his book “The art of standing out” and some which I just knew to be the right thing to do because of previous experiences of working in schools that needed to improve quickly); Establish our base camp so that we could evaluate, change and reset “the holy Trinity” as Andrew Morrish refers to them:

The 5 values that we ask all who come here to celebrate and demonstrate in all that they do.

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The organisational culture

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The vision

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Our values and beliefs so that we could proudly live by these from now on (as Will Ryan says in his book “Leadership with a moral Purpose” “be careful to measure what you value otherwise others will measure what they value!”) We called these our drivers as these would be the thing that would get us to where we wanted to be as a school in future.

I also needed the children to be more invested so we asked them to come up with the new mission statement for the school which after a vote they decided on RED (Resilience, Excellence and Determination).

Tube train mural displaying the children’s mission statement; it is the first thing you see when you enter our school.

When I joined the school there had been over 40 parental complaints and two requests for information in the last academic year, because parents did not feel welcome, valued or listened to and they were also desperate for some direction, leadership and purpose. So, we placed a heavy emphasis on engaging them properly and genuinely so that they would feel that this was their school again, a place they chose to send their children to because it was the best option for them. A place they could invest time and energy into. A place they could commit to also. Simply the school needed a captain to help it to pin its colours to the mast, batten down the hatches and get ready to sail again.

The analogy I have used in my coaching with the leadership teams in setting the holy trinity has been the mountain model. This represents a whole year split into 3 terms and basically explained, it means that we are facing a climb and the mountain will have troughs, peaks, slips and summits and descents. What leaders absolutely have to make sure is that once base camp is established all staff are securely with us and not dangling as we climb at the end of a long guide rope. They must also decide who needs a little more guidance and who is able to climb and achieve the summit with little or no help. Also of course and perhaps more controversially, who cannot make the climb. The mountain model has served two purposes: One, it has given a visual analogy to the work we have had to do to get the school to be more stand out than Outstanding Two, it has clearly shown the progress we have made in terms of doing just that as we now perceive ourselves to be at the first summit. Now we are facing the trickier decent and the Spring term is all about making sure we do not travel too quickly, but ensure that we slalom down taking great care to avoid potential potholes or crevices and ensuring all the time that the whole school community is with us and not slipping past, falling by the wayside or taking their eyes off the descent. Summer term will be taking stock, embedding and preparing for the next climb in September (which will not of course be as steep as last year because we will by then have established procedures, practices and consistency to these that will help to make the next climb less arduous. However, when seeking to continue to improve schools, it is still always a climb. So, after just one term’s mountaineering we can conclude from evaluation work we have done with all stakeholders and from our leadership monitoring that we are in a good place. We have reached that first summit, safe and sound and even more together as a staff team and school community, the air feels good up here. Coming back after the Christmas break, however, everybody is under no illusion that we cannot stay here. The descent now starts and this

means consolidating on the gains we have made and embedding organisational culture and our values in everything that we do so that the vision can feel real and the direction and steer that the school so badly needed, and now has in place to a degree, can be honed and clarified even further. I said at the beginning that there would be much to do here at this so-called ‘outstanding’ school of ours, and that is still the case. Having spent the autumn term conquering that first mountain descent everybody now feels they are together and are climbing and descending into a much more positive future and nobody is under any illusion that this school can and will prove it is an excellent place for children to learn and teachers to teach. It deserves the honour of being graded as outstanding and more importantly for me we will begin to stand out not just in our borough but in our city and in the country, as a place of educational excellence. More important than any Ofsted grading our children, staff and parents will judge it to be so. It is also no surprise to any of us that in the last term we had only one parental complaint which was dealt with at stage one of our procedure and no freedom of information requests. Over 600 parents attended the various school events we held during the Christmas period and in the autumn term because of achievement award ceremonies, meet your child’s new teacher days, parent teacher consultation day, parental workshops, and class assemblies (which parents are now not just invited to but made to feel that they are welcome and that it is our privilege to have them here!) over 1,500 parents have been through our doors. It is little wonder that they now tell us they feel part of their school again and that they can see what we are trying to do and low and behold they support what we are doing! Our newly elected Parent Forum representatives from each of the classes in the school meet regularly with me and other leadership team members and we discuss honestly and openly the vision for the future and the issues we are all facing in realising the dream we have for the school. This is a new strategic group that draws upon a wide range of parental skills and interests and it has been instrumental in driving the 13

14 changes and helping me as a new headteacher to be open and honest with then parents about the scale of the task ahead of all of us. They are a fantastic group who then champion the school on their individual year group whatsapp pages (something which was used very much to criticise the school previously but is now a powerful social media tool for getting the positive message out there to the parents)

systems, that passion and enthusiasm always trump knowledge and skills because the latter can be taught or coached, but the former is born with you. He also knows that children always have the answers before the adults do, so we should always consult them first!

The message is we now have leadership, we now have direction, we now have a purpose and most of all we now have our beautiful school back where it deserves to be and should be; standing out for all to see and celebrate! Steve Davies has been a Head Teacher in various forms for the last 16 years before this he was a deputy Head teacher for 8 years and before this he was a teacher and he still describes himself today as a teacher who loves his job. He believes passionately that people come before

References: “The Art of Standing out” by Andrew Morrish “Leading with a moral Purpose” by Will Ryan

Some of the fabulous and inspirational leadership team at our school serving Christmas dinner to the children last term.

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Go teach outdoors! No fuss ideas for Maths and English lessons that can be completed in school grounds and don’t cost the earth!

View samples at www.collins.co.uk/KeenKite

Hair today gone tomorrow? by Frances Coulson There are some reports in the media paying attention to boys who are refusing to have their hair cut which is causing consternation in their primary and secondary schools. This issue is leading schools to ban the wearing of long hair and insisting on it being cut short. The reasons given are that it does not ‘look smart’, does not fit the uniform policy, or that it could distract from other pupils’ learning. If a parent or carer chooses to send a child to a state funded school then it would make sense that in the absence of the private school option or homeschooling, by default one would have to abide by the rules of that institution.

can be prevented from expressing their identity or their tonsorial preference. The boys would be further supported by all school’s adoption of Fundamental British Values and its insistence on ‘individual liberty’ and the need to ‘ensure all pupils within the school have a voice that is listened to.’ Perhaps it would be better if schools looked at the liberty of the individual in terms of their spiritual well being when it comes to deciding on rules of hair length. Aestheticism within fashion is arbitrary but equality should not be.

So, it is worth examining why those rules would be in place. The problem is that girls can wear long hair and some boys cannot. This is a rule that does not favour children according to their sex. Some rules are based on judgment – how is ‘looking smart’ defined? (It is similar to references that require teachers to gauge a candidate’s sense of humour). Some rules are based on the growing fetishization in schools that looking like a smart business employee is the panacea for educational attainment. If we accept that schools can decide the length of boys’ hair because parents and carers sign up to the rules and ethos, then schools cannot have it both ways. This can be ascertained in various mission statements that adorn websites and external signage. For example, ‘Every Child Matters’ or ‘Be special’ or ‘celebrate all children’. It is hard to argue against the ideal that if children matter in their individuality, they

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Frances Coulson is an interested observer of education.

“It is hard to argue against the ideal that if children matter in their individuality, they can be prevented from expressing their identity or their tonsorial preference.”

SEND in Ordinary Classrooms by Michelle Prosser Haywood In Michelle’s first column she proposes that as an early career teacher, you will need support and mentoring to be a teacher of SEND and understand the technical language that surrounds supporting learners identified with SEND. On the popular TV programme, The Great British Bake Off (GBBO), amateur bakers are given three challenges: a signature bake, a technical challenge and a show stopper. The bakers have planning time for the signature and show stopper bakes and can practice these at home. The technical challenge, however, is the blind test, the one challenge, whereby very little information is provided. A recipe is given, but the instructions assume a knowledge of technical language and can include specific words such as cream or whisk or they could be simply ‘bake a sponge’, and the expectation is that the bakers would have enough knowledge about baking to understand and undertake the task effectively. When you were a student teacher on an Initial Teacher Training (ITT) programme, you will have followed some ‘teaching recipes and styles’ provided by your training provider and your mentors on teaching placements, but it is when you enter your classroom for the first time, as an ECT (Early Career Teacher) you may face a number of the technical challenges and many of them could be considered to be around being a ‘teacher of SEND’. This is perhaps no more evident than when faced with a class list for the first time and being told ‘there are some pupils with SEND in this class’. SEND is a broad category, and firstly there are four areas described by the SEN Code of Practice (2015); communication & Interaction, cognition & learning, social, emotional & mental health difficulties and sensory and/or physical needs, these are then divided into a further

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thirteen categories which are reported by each school to compile the annual DFE Statistics return. If you are a mainstream class teacher you will also have to make a distinction between the learners in your classroom who receive SEN Support and have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and you may also be required to identify pupils who are ‘making less than expected progress given their age and individual circumstances’. This could be characterised by progress which is significantly slower than that of their peers, fails to match a previous rate of progress, fails to close the attainment gap and the attainment gap continues to widen. There are currently 14.9% of pupils with special educational needs, of whom 3.1% of learners have an ECHP. At SEN support the most common primary need is Speech, Language and Communication (SLCN) at 23% and for EHCP it is Autistic Spectrum Disorder at 29%. Teaching is recognised as a journey and your work with pupils with SEND should be no different. As an early career teacher there may be more unfamiliar language than other areas, but there are ways your school and the wider education sector can support you to become a ‘teacher of SEND’ and recognise suitable interventions and reasonable adjustments. Some of the suggestions below,may be good starting points. Ask the SENCO. Every mainstream school is expected to have a SENCO, and although they may have additional and different roles in each school, they can be your first point of contact around the needs of learners with SEND in your classroom.

The SENCO may be leading on additional and different provision but may not be planning all the interventions for each individual class, so it is likely you are going to need some support on what reasonable adjustments and interventions are required. It is essential to understand the SEND Policy including how pupils with SEND are identified, how to informally and formally gather evidence to demonstrate need, and how to undertake an assess, plan, do, review, cycle. Furthermore, it is worthwhile understanding the procedures on requesting a Statutory Assessment for an ECHP, if it is deemed necessary to meet the learners’ need. It is most likely that it is the delegated SENCO’s role, but external agencies such as Educational Psychology Service will need to be involved and these services may make these arrangements directly with you, if the learner is in your class. As part of your Continuing Professional development (CPD), learn from others. Make time to visit other classrooms not just in your school, but other schools in your local area, academy group or cluster and take an observation schedule with you, which considers how

different learner’s needs are met. Consider classroom management for example, how the room is organised, what resources and intervention are used and ask the teacher whose class you are visiting why they have arranged their classroom in that way, and why they are using particular resources. Also find opportunities to meet with external agencies and visit specialist provision such as special schools and PRUs. Also remember that you can manage your own CPD too, by reading key publications such as the TES and Schoolsweek (both often found in school staff rooms) and joining organisations such as The Chartered College, nasen and The British Dyslexia Society. In future columns I will discuss some of the ‘technical terminology’ introduced here in more detail so you are faced with a technical challenge of your own, you will be well equipped and confident to tackle it yourself.

Michelle Prosser Haywood, is the Head of ResearchSEND at the University of Wolverhampton. 19

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Are We Really Inclusive?

by Jon Daveney

Contemporary principles of inclusivity in mainstream primary education for children with Special Education Needs, largely derive their ideologies from many decades of government policy for inclusion, (Warnock, 1978) and still remain as influential to educational practice now as they did in the years prior to and post the 1978 Warnock Report, the premise of which was ‘that no child should be sent to a special school who can be satisfactorily educated in an ordinary one’ (Warnock, 1978; 99). This conviction of ideology for the integration of children with Special Educational Needs into mainstream schools was however, by no means singular to English education but rather bridged educational systems internationally, with concepts of “mainstreaming” and “normalisation” emerging in America, Scandinavia and Canada (Warnock, 1978; 99). For Warnock then, concepts and practices of inclusion were becoming at that time an expression of a broader, international social ideal which would enable those with Special Educational Needs shared ‘opportunities for self-fulfilment enjoyed by other people [and] uninhibited participation in the activities of everyday life’ (Warnock Report, 1978; 99). Whilst society has evolved since the Warnock Report, and perceptions of disability and related terminology have matured, fundamental principles of inclusivity remain integral to contemporary educational policy and practice, with the National Curriculum Inclusion statement (DfE, 2013; 8) identifying that in accordance with the SEN Code of Practice mainstream practitioners should differentiate or individualise provisions for children who have English as An Additional Language, low prior attainment or whose socio-economic background, race or disability disadvantage their engagement. Yet whilst the Code of Practice (DfE and DoH 2015; 25) proposes ‘the progressive removal of barriers to learning and participation in mainstream education’ for those children identified as having such protected characteristics, there is nevertheless evidence that in many instances a pattern of deficit in the inclusion of disadvantaged children in mainstream education is emerging. This can be identified through Department for Education data (DfE1, 2019; 3-4) which establishes an increase in both fixed term and permanent exclusion rates across the primary and secondary sectors since 2012/13. Substantially represented by children eligible for free school meals and from areas of high

deprivation (DfE1, 2019; 6) these trends then, offer an uncomfortable reflection on contemporary inclusive practices across England. Significant contributing factors for these increases for the primary sector however, are the disproportionate number of fixed-term and permanent exclusions for children from disadvantaged backgrounds excluded for behaviourrelated difficulties (Timpson, 2019) as compared with those for example with Special Educational Needs, the disparity between the two being approximately sixteen thousand in the academic year 2017/18 (DfE2, 2019; Tables 4 and 5), indicating greater inclusion in primary schools for those with SEN than those for whom conformity to normative behaviours are challenged by social circumstance. The reasons underlying these outcomes according to Frederickson and Cline (2006 ed.) emerge from an emphasis in the last three decades on an education system driven by testing and inspection regimes, ‘market forces and consumer choice’ which have influenced increasing tensions between improving standards and the ‘inclusion agenda’ (2006 ed.; 22), compelling a decreasing tolerance of children from disadvantaged backgrounds and problematizing those who cannot or will not ‘conform to the requirements of schools, particularly in terms of learning capabilities and appropriate behaviour’ (Tomlinson, 1982 in Frederickson and Cline, 2006 ed.; 36). This is additionally emphasised in research by Jones et al (2017; 809) who identify that the focus in English schools on performance targets are often at the expense of other important objectives and to the detriment of those children unlikely to attain target levels. The influence of the accountability agenda in schools therefore, has increasingly created a culture of educational exclusivity and a growing reliance on the ‘normalisation’ (Dahlberg and Moss, 2005, 51) of the child into adultassumed normative learning behaviours by which to coerce conformity to expected values and to dissuade disruption to the smooth running of schools and their ‘examination-orientated, credentialling functions’ (Tomlinson, 1982 in Frederickson and Cline, 2006 ed.; 36). Discontinuous with the social ideal of inclusivity originally proposed by Warnock (1978), and clearly contradictory to DfE (2014; 9) equality guidance for schools which establishes a framework for indirect discrimination based on ‘“provision, criterion or practice”’ which have

the effect of disadvantaging children of particular characteristics, the ‘normalisation’ of the child (Dahlberg and Moss, 2005, 51) whose atypical capabilities and behaviours are considered inconsistent with the urgency of testing and inspection regimes, appears therefore at variance with equality legislation and certainly of dubious ethical legitimacy. This is particularly evident in Dewey (2001 ed.; 114) who maintains that externally imposed educative processes and ends removes both the autonomy of the teacher and learner and induces conflict in the child ‘between the aims which are natural to their own experience at the time and those […] which they are taught to acquiesce.’ In essence then, systems of education which demand a process of conditioning accordant with externally devised criteria and aims invariably prove inequitable and therefore ethically unsound. As Dewey (2001 ed.; 113) suggests, ‘there is […] an inclination to propound aims which are so uniform as to neglect the specific powers and requirements of an individual, forgetting that all learning is something which happens to an individual at a given time and place’. Whilst however, it is not unreasonable to suppose that some decisions need to be made by adults as to the aims for education (Thompson, 1980 ed), from an ethical perspective, where the child holds an entitlement under equality legislation (DfE, 2014; 7) to access educational provision free from practices discriminatory towards the influences of their socio-economic conditions, so adult-initiated educative processes which place value on conformity to rigid, external policy to the neglect of the child’s personal experiences and abilities cannot lay claim to a substantive ethical framework for equality. In order to redress this imbalance therefore, and to stem the flow of exclusions from our schools, perceptions of inclusivity might begin the process of looking beyond the provisions and adaptions for children most generally associated with Warnock and subsequent theory, policy and practice, to a broader conception of social inclusivity which promotes a ‘climate for learning’ responsive to the individual child, and which develops a ‘value-based’ educational system focussed on quality relationships that gain the trust of children, families and their community (Hawkes, 2013; 96). Jon Daveney is senior lecturer in primary education, specialising in SEN, at the University of Greenwich.

References Dahlberg, G and Moss, P (2005) Ethics and Politics in Early Childhood Education, Routledge Department of Education (2014) The Equality Act 2010 and schools: Departmental advice for school leaders, school staff, governing bodies and local authorities https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/ system/uploads/attachment_data/file/315587/Equality_Act_ Advice_Final.pdf Department for Education and Department of Health (2015) Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/ system/uploads/attachment_data/file/398815/SEND_Code_ of_Practice_January_2015.pdf (Accessed 12.2.2020) Department for Education1 (2019) Permanent and Fixed Period Exclusions 2017 to 2018 – Main Text https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/ system/uploads/attachment_data/file/820773/Permanent_ and_fixed_period_exclusions_2017_to_2018_-_main_text.pdf (Accessed 12.2.2020) Department for Education2 (2019) Permanent and Fixed Period Exclusions 2017 to 2018 – Na-tional Tables https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/permanent-andfixed-period-exclusions-in-england-2017-to-2018 (Accessed 12.2.2020) Dewey, J (2001 ed.) Democracy and Education; Pennsylvania State University https://nsee.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/KnowledgeCenter/ BuildingExpEduc/BooksReports/10.%20democracy%20and%20 education%20by%20dewey.pdf (Accessed 15.2.2020) Frederickson, N and Cline, T (2006 ed.) Special Educational Needs, Inclusion and Diversity; A Textbook, Open University Press Hawkes, N (2013) From my Heart – Transforming Lives through Values; Independent Thinking Press Jones, K, Tymms, P, Kemethofer, D, O’Hara, J, McNamara, G, Huber, S, Myrberg, E, Skeds-mo, G and Greger, D (2017) The Unintended Consequences of School Inspections: The Preva-lence of Inspection Side-Effects in Austria, the Czech Republic, England, Ireland, the Nether-lands, Sweden and Switzerland in The Oxford Review of Education, Routledg Timpson, E (2019) Timpson Review of School Exclusions; Department for Education https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/ system/uploads/attachment_data/file/807862/Timpson_ review.pdf (Accessed 16.2.2020) Tomlinson, S (1982) in Frederickson, N and Cline, T (2006 ed.) Special Educational Needs, Inclusion and Diversity; A Textbook, Open University Pres Thompson, K (1980) Education and Philosophy; Blackwell Warnock, M (1978) The Warnock Report (1978) Special Educational Needs, in Gillard, D (2007) Education in England: The History of our Schools http://www.educationengland.org.uk/documents/warnock/ warnock1978.html#07(Accessed 12.2.2020)

Music in the Primary National Curriculum by Dr Mark Betteney The national curriculum was heralded as a knowledge-based document, but how much knowledge is contained in the primary national curriculum for music?

Amongst many primary and Early Years teachers lurk insecurities regarding the teaching of music. Unless they are confident in their music subject knowledge, for many primary school teachers and Early Years practitioners the first question is not so much ‘how’ to teach music, but ‘whether’ to teach music. This binary choice is a possibility because it is common practice for specialist music teachers to deliver the music curriculum while teachers undertake their planning and preparation time, and although for perhaps fifteen years this has been a successful way of organising release time for teachers, the process has had two damaging consequences regarding the teaching and learning of music. The first is that it reinforces widely held beliefs that to teach music one must be a specialist, and to learn it one must be gifted. The second consequence is that it separates music from the rest of the curriculum, both in the eyes of teachers, and of the children. One of the problems for non-specialist teachers of music is the nebulous nature of music in the National Curriculum (DfE 2013). In that document, only two pages are dedicated to the subject, and the targets for KS1 and KS2, both contained within a single side of A4, include direction such as ‘Children should be taught to play tuned and untuned instruments musically’ (DfE, 2013:258, KS1) and to ‘improvise and compose music for a range of purposes’ (DfE, 2013:258, KS2). How these things might be taught, or what specifically needs to be learnt is not disclosed. There is none of the prescription inherent in the guidance surrounding the teaching of mathematics or phonics. This is a blessing for the music specialist, but not for the teacher who would welcome help and direction.

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The national curriculum (2013) was published with a fanfare of commitment to subject knowledge. Across the board it was to be a transformative knowledgebased curriculum. Consider these excerpts from speeches by prominent drivers of education policy around that time. “What is to be criticised [in the previous curriculum] is an education system which has relegated the importance of knowledge in favour of ill-defined learning skills”. (Hon. Nick Gibb, Schools Minister, 1st July 2010) “Our new curriculum affirms - at every point - the critical importance of knowledge acquisition”. (Rt. Hon. Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, 5th February 2013) “At the heart of our reforms has been a determination to place knowledge back at the core of what pupils learn in school. For too long our education system prized the development of skills above core knowledge” (Rt. Hon. Nicky Morgan, Secretary of State for Education, 27th January 2015). It is perhaps this commitment to knowledge that is a stumbling block for non-specialist teachers. Atkinson (2018) is interesting in her response to this. Exploring non-specialist teachers’ first priorities to teaching music as she asks, “which parts of the curriculum treat ‘music’ more as a noun and which ones treat it as more of a verb?” (Atkinson, 2018:11). This is a question that could be transformative to how nervous but willing nonspecialist teachers see their role in embracing music. In Atkinson’s (2018) view, if a teacher tries to teach ‘music, the noun’, the emphasis is on a product, or an outcome. If a teacher tries to teach ‘music, the verb’, the emphasis is on an experience, or involvement in

an event. In ‘music, the verb’ it is the participation which is important, allowing children opportunities to experiment with music resources, to participate in music games, and to sings songs, not because these things sound good, or would warrant a performance, but because they are enjoyable and developmental.

‘to perform, listen to, … review and evaluate, …to create, … to sing and use their voices, to appreciate, to improvise … (DfE, 2013:257). The word ‘know’ appears only once in the national curriculum for music (p258). This is not the vocabulary of knowledge acquisition. It is the language of participation.

As an example of binary attitudes, compare the phrases ‘mark-making’ and ‘music-making’. Early Years practitioners celebrate mark making, not as a product, but as a process. This contrasts heavily with the phrase ‘music-making’, where performative connotations often rush in to strangle simplicity of thought and aspirations of engagement. Welch (2005), urged teachers not to let children’s musical experiences be confined to the confidence or limitations of the teacher. He asked teachers to be musical role models, to engage and learn with the children, in order to erode the myth that music is an exclusive pursuit, engaged with only by the especially talented.

The much-heralded commitment to subject knowledge at the publication and implementation of the national curriculum is neither outworked, nor welcome in the identified subject content for music.

The statements about the supremacy of knowledge over skills which heralded and accompanied the publication of the national curriculum can serve to be unhelpful in the delivery of it. Both Welch (2005) and Atkinson (2018) recommend process over product, for the learning and teaching of music. The language in the national curriculum for music is predominantly skills- and activity-based. The aims require children

Reference Atkinson, R. (2018) Mastering Primary Music, Department for Education (2013) The national curriculum in England: Key Stages 1 and 2 framework document © Crown copyright 2013 Gibb, N. (2010) ‘The Academies Bill’ Speech to the Reform think tank conference, November 2010. Gove, M. (2013) ‘The progressive Betrayal’ Speech to the Social Market Foundation, 5th February 2013 Morgan, N. (2015) ‘Why knowledge matters’. Speech at the Carlton Club, January 2015 Welch, G. F. (2005). We Are Musical International Journal of Music Education 23(2), 117-120 Dr Mark Betteney is senior lecturer in primary education, specialising in music, at the University of Greenwich.

Ground-breaking initiative challenges UK’s music education crisis by Phil Castang

28 A new education initiative developed and funded by Bristol Music Trust in partnership with the Earthsong Foundation has launched in Bristol. The first pillar of the programme, Start with Singing, introduces pupils to music earlier in their academic lives and will support children that have traditionally not progressed beyond early stages in music by providing high-quality singing and instrumental music lessons. Initially piloted at Minerva Primary Academy to 120 pupils in 2018, Start with Singing will engage pupils in music from Year 2 (Key Stage 1) to build on their experiences and combat the known shortcomings of the government funded Whole Class Ensemble Tuition (WCET). The programme lasts a full academic year and covers rhythm, melody, harmony, timbre, form, texture and dynamics. Now taking place in 13 schools in Bristol, the programme will reach around 4,500 children over the next 5 years, with the wider aspiration that the project will have a UK-wide impact, changing the national understanding of the power of music education.

a seamless transition into learning an instrument. Once children are learning an instrument, high quality singing remains at the heart of every WCET lesson. The programme recognises that nearly all schools have singing at key stage 1. This singing is often built into classroom learning and is a natural part of school life. Bristol Music Trust analysed what we would need to do to create an equitable learning environment to improve the chances of children continuing with music beyond WCET. The aims of the programme are: •

To encourage an understanding and appreciation of the elements of music through singing

•

To encourage confidence and enjoyment in performing in small groups and in front of an audience

•

To prepare Year 2 learners for WCET in Key Stage 2

Start with Singing is aimed at schools with a high percentage of BAME and EAL pupils, specifically in the East Central areas of Bristol, where the numbers of pupils who continue to learn an instrument beyond WCET is significantly lower. To develop the programme, Bristol Music Trust spent time researching what made the most musical schools in Bristol successful. The simple answer is they all start the musical journey with very high-quality singing. This singing remains consistent from reception and throughout KS1 and KS2 and doesn’t stop for WCET. By the time children pick up an instrument in KS2 they already have a good understanding of the elements of music and are able to deal with the technical aspects of the instrument without having to learn additional musical terminology. In addition, the fun factor remained high when singing and musical games were included. Developed by Bristol Plays Music, Minerva Primary Academy and Horfield Primary, the Start with Singing scheme of work combines techniques and resources from Sing Up, The Voices Foundation and the British Kodaly Academy to create a solid foundation and give

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Bristol Music Trust believes pupils who benefit from Start with Singing are more likely to embrace instrumental tuition and continue to orchestral level, as well as continue to develop their voices through singing in choirs. Results during the pilot period have been impressive, not just for music. Although it’s difficult to prove a direct link, a Minerva Primary Academy class teacher

has attributed increases attainment in reading, writing and maths directly to the programme.

after WCET in a school like Minerva Primary school in Bristol can be less than half that of a school in a more affluent area.

Changes in % of pupils meeting end of Key Stage 1 (Y2) expectations:

The initiative has been made possible thanks to an extraordinary philanthropic donation, the largest single donation to a music hub in the UK, but the Trust hope Start with Singing and the broader Earthsong Programme will be a model that can be emulated elsewhere in the country. For more information on the work of the Music Education Hub Bristol Plays Music, visit www.bristolplaysmusic.org

•

Reading up 55%-81%, an increase of 26%

•

Writing up 48%-74% an increase of 26%

•

Maths up 64%-81% an increase of 17%

Start with Singing was born out of the belief that every child should be given an equitable learning environment and considering the huge financial investment from the DfE going towards WCET, children being able to simply have a go on an instrument is not a sufficient outcome. Bristol Music Trust felt that the continuation rate to take up an instrument beyond WCET in schools in challenging areas, compared to schools in more affluent ones, was far too low. The number of children continuing to learn an instrument

Phil Castang is the director of Creative Learning and Engagement, Bristol Music Trust. 29

More than Teachers by Emmanuel Awoyelu I’ve always said teaching is one of the best jobs in the world if not the best. Those that agree would usually say it’s because we make a difference to the lives of others. However, very few mention the fact that we’re not just teachers; we’re more than that. The actor First and foremost you’re an actor. Not everyone likes to admit it but nobody can be happy and in the mood all the time. So when we step into the classroom we’re often putting on a performance to engage our students. This is more prevalent in primary schools, where the students are reliant on your performance and ability to engage them creatively. Have you ever watched a colleague in awe, during an assembly or lesson, and think ‘You’re such a performer’? We don’t always realise that our tone of voice, our mannerisms and the things we say are all tailored to the audience of young students hanging on to our very words. When you read to your students, you are the visual representation of what they hear in a story. They attentively watch the expression on your face and the sound effects you make during a funny part in a play. For some, you are the first actor/ actress they have ever met and your classroom is their theatre. The Role model You’re also a role model, something we’re forced to be as teachers. Looking back in my life, I don’t recall having too many positive role models around me but my teachers were the closest things to them. As teachers, the way we communicate, our body language and how we treat our colleagues is always under scrutiny by the students. As we know, children are impressionable and the need for positive influences in their lives is paramount. Many of the young people I teach have difficult backgrounds and have experienced awful trauma in their early childhood. When they step into my

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classroom, I’m mindful that I may be their first or the most consistent role model they have in their life. Therefore, I’m aware that how I conduct myself as a young male professional shouldn’t be taken for granted. As teachers we have to be prepared to be what we ask of our students. The counsellor Just like adults, young people can struggle with a range of emotions in a day or for a sustained period of time. The difference is young people aren’t always equipped to deal with these emotions and this can manifest into negative behaviours in the classroom. For instance, if a child is suffering from anxiety, this can impact their ability to engage in a lesson or with their peers. This is when we become their counsellors/therapists.. There are situations you don’t anticipate at the start of the day, but often you will effectively encourage, motivate and support students through your kind and gentle words. This is why we recognise empathy and compassion as some of the traits great teachers have. Teachers working in SEN will sometimes have to deescalate situations before offering a shoulder to lean on when a child is in turmoil. When you experience these moments, it’s often a reminder that we are working with vulnerable young people who need as much support as adults, particularly when it comes to supporting their mental health. Not everyone has access to a therapist so it’s often you. Emotional dumpster There aren’t too many jobs in the world, where you can sign in at 7:30am, sign out at 6:30pm and then continue with more work at home until 10:00pm and do it all again the next day. Your entire time at school and when you’ve left school, you’re thinking about work. Sometimes it’s planning and other times it’s marking books you failed to check across the term but other times it’s just your students on your mind. You can’t always help that. When I first started

teaching at my school, I would go home physically and emotionally drained. The students would project their anger and frustration on to me and I would deal with it the best way I could. However, when some of your students are a cause for concern in terms of child protection and safeguarding, these situations can leave scars in your memory. These are the moments you don’t always prepare for when you start your day and even when you are prepared, you don’t always know how to deal with the emotional baggage offloaded onto you. This is why we’re their emotional dumpsters. Third parent Although I have no children of my own yet, it’s not unusual that a student has mistakenly called me ‘dad’. This is because we are their third parents. A typical school day may last 6-7 hours. For some of my students, they see more of me in a day than they do of their parents. Naturally, the relationship you develop with your students creates an accountability that they would only typically have with their parents/carers. The nurture, structure and discipline that we provide for our students’ mirrors what they receive at home so school very much becomes their second home. However, some students do not have the very basics required at home to develop well. Therefore, when they come into our classroom, we are providing something that supports their wellbeing and development. The difficulty we may face is the inconsistency these children have between home and school and what part this might play in the progress they will make. The advocate Difficult behaviour in the classroom is often a by-product of the issues in a child’s family or environment. Therefore, more and more teachers will come across students in their class who will need to develop their social emotional aspects of learning before they’re available to learn. This is why we are also their advocates. As teachers, we are always safeguarding our students even if that creates awkward moments with their families. We are always looking out for the wellbeing of our students, studying their behaviours and body languages to ensure they are receiving their rights. Unfortunately, not all teachers are adequately supported or trained

to deal with this and these students are often left disengaged and sometimes excluded from school. As a teacher for children with social emotional and mental mealth issues, I am particularly passionate about the well being of my students when they enter my classroom. Children with Social Emotional Mental Health (SEMH) can often be unavailable to learn because emotionally they are not ready and they are dealing with problems in their home environment. Therefore, I am consciously [and subconsciously] teaching them how to manage their feelings, be self-aware and express themselves in a positive way. I often assume that most learning has taken place in class, where the student has repeated the three states of water to me. I don’t always consider teaching a student how to hold a knife and fork as the life skill they’d cherish that day. The point is, it all matters and you’re there to help them achieve both. The Teacher of many roles Lastly, you are obviously their teacher but that word shouldn’t be taken for granted. We often limit the word teacher to someone who helps someone learn a subject. You may have a particular subject you’re passionate about and if you’re like me, a primary teacher, you may teach a number of subjects but the subjects we teach don’t define our roles at all. As a teacher, your role goes beyond pedagogy because the education we provide focuses on developing the whole person. This can vary from teaching them their times tables to supporting them with poor eating habits. Ultimately, we teach and offer way more than our subject knowledge on physics or Shakespeare. In a full days work, you may have played many different roles that all make up the single role of a teacher. Emmanuel Awoyelu is a primary schoolteacher and SENCO from East London, Newham. He has worked in education for 9 years, whilst developing youth programmes across London. Emmanuel is also a director of ‘The Reach Out Project’, a programme that aims to mentor and support vulnerable young men in London. Twitter: @MannyAwo www.mannysconscience.com

‘Child-informed’ lessons from the West Riding?

by Colin Richards

1974 was an inauspicious time for those supporting ‘child-centred’ education. It was the year in which the head of William Tyndale Junior School took up his post and it was the year in which the West Riding of Yorkshire disappeared as a county and as a local education authority. William Tyndale Junior School soon became a cause-celebre both for those sympathetic to its radical ethos and to those fundamentally opposed to it. It became notorious as an example of laissezfaire education. Its critics claimed there was neither order nor teaching in the school and by 1975 the school had fallen apart. Its significance was two-fold. Firstly It raised three fundamental questions for public, political and professional debate: what should be taught; how should it be taught and who should see to it that it was taught. Secondly, William Tyndale provided opponents of child-centred education with a convenient, off-quoted caricature of a laissez-faire, knowledge-poor, discovery-oriented, undisciplined, so-called ‘education’. Half-century this caricature still reverberates on twitter, in some ministerial pronouncements and, I suspect, in the sub-text of Ofsted thinking. ‘Child-informed education’: aspects of the West Riding heritage That caricature needs to be questioned since it fails to do justice to the complexities and nuances of an important, misrepresented tradition in English primary education best described perhaps as ‘child-

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informed’ education. Which brings me to discussion and illustration of the educational heritage of the West Riding - officially “lost” with the 1974 reorganisation but certainly alive and well a decade later as I witnessed first-hand and at the very least still a ‘trace-element’ in contemporary professional debates. In retrospect it is tempting to view the West Riding with white-rose-coloured glasses but it did have some notable (dare I say ‘outstanding’?) features. For about a quarter of a century it was led by Alec Clegg, a chief education officer whose chief concern was indeed the education of the mind and the spirit of the young people in his charge. In 1972 two years before his retirement at a summer school for West Riding teachers he summarised some of his core ‘child-informed ’ beliefs. These included : •

there is good in every child, however damaged, repellent or ill-favoured he (sic) might be;

•

success on which a teacher can build must somehow be found for each child;

•

all children matter;

•

happy relationships between head, teachers and pupils are all-important;

•

the life of the child can be enriched by the development of his (sic) creative powers;

and importantly •

teachers just as much as pupils need support and thrive on recognition.

Alec Clegg was a formidable and far-sighted supporter of comprehensive education, oversaw its implementation within the county and pioneered the establishment of middle schools as part of that reorganisation. To support those teachers whose ‘teaching genius” he constantly celebrated, he recruited like-minded officers, appointed forward-thinking subject- and phaseadvisers from around the country and enlisted advisory teachers from within the authority. He developed a well-funded and extensive programme of in-service education focused on the LEA’s residential centre at Woolley Hall but also including a network of teachers’ centres. Working with social services he pioneered educational efforts to combat disadvantage. He established fruitful working relationships with museums, music organisations, cooperative institutions, colleges of education, local HMIs and universities including Oxbridge through the provision of “Clegg scholarship” for pupils from disadvantaged communities. Many of those officers who worked for him were very influential when appointed to senior appointments in other LEAs such as John Dorrell and John Coe who helped pioneer similar developments in Oxfordshire. Though not evident in every single school, the LEA developed a recognisable West-Riding tradition of child-informed primary education which in its philosophy, disciplined thinking and rigorous, demanding practice was a far cry from the William Tyndale caricature of laissez-faire progressive education. It was based on a enriched concept of the “basics” to include the arts and all forms of communication . A distinctive, wellarticulated pedagogy was developed based on the belief that primary-aged children learn most effectively when they are actively involved in tasks which •

are based on extensive and intensive firsthand experience involving, for example, manipulative skills, close observation, data collection, analysis and interpretation;

•

require recording, reporting or imaginative responses using oral and written language,

art, movement , music and other forms of communication; •

demand personal and collective thought to allow the development and application of knowledge, understanding and skills in contexts or in solving problems meaningful to the children concerned;

•

involve the use of a range of interesting materials and a variety of approaches especially in the visual arts;

•

take place in surroundings, internal and external to the school, which add interest and stimulus and provide opportunities for work to be displayed, celebrated and used in the promotion of further learning;

•

give children enough time to complete their art works, assignments and investigations so as produce work of the best possible quality;

•

teaching children in a variety of mixedattainment groups formed expressly for the purpose in hand – whole class, small group, paired or individual work – along with limited use of attainment-based groups for aspects of English and mathematics.

The result was a distinctive educational culture releasing the amazing potential of so many children especially in the area of language beautifully conveyed in Alec Clegg’s published collection The Excitement of Writing and in wonderfully vivid and evocative artwork displayed both in schools and in public spaces throughout the county. Some of this work was of an aesthetic quality rarely, if ever seen, in primary schools forty years on. The sector is poorer for its absence. The heritage in action Extracts from a published HMI report of a small school staffed by teachers nurtured in the West Riding illustrated that tradition in action. Note the absence of ‘Ofsted-speak’ in what follows! First there was a sense of confident unity conveyed through a consistent child-informed ethos – very different from the pressurised,

defensive atmosphere generated in too many primary schools by the current accountability regime ”Three closely inter-related facets contribute to a sense of harmony: the high quality of children’s social and personal education; the approaches to learning fostered in both classes, and the use of themes as bases for much of the work.” Second there was a focus on personal and social development which permeated the whole school – very different from the provision of formal lessons in personal and social development . “The work is organised so that the children have many opportunities to work responsibly either as individuals or in small groups, both within the classroom and in other parts of the school. Children readily cooperate with one another in activities provided by the teacher and sometimes in tasks arising from individuals’ initiatives.” Third, rather than the current emphasis on written texts and other forms of vicarious experience, the school emphasised the use of first-hand experience as a stimulus to expressive learning of various kinds including a wide range of general and more specific skills : “Great emphasis is placed in firsthand experience and observation, either within the classroom itself or in the immediate environment of the school. Such experience is skilfully exploited to encourage children to represent their thoughts and feelings in a variety of modes: oral, written, mathematical, scientific and artistic.” Fourth there was the encouragement of enquirybased activity following on from shared experience rather than teacher-prescribed follow-up work after “knowledge-rich” class teaching: “Common experiences- collecting and analysing data, visiting places of interest in the locality, discussion of museum objects- are used as initial starting points but as the work unfolds, sub-groups are formed in which the children work together, exchanging ideas to mutual advantage. Enquiries are pursued to different depths and, to some extent in different directions depending on the interests and capabilities of the children.” Fifth the school gave a prominent place to the visual and plastic arts, not as an add-on or an afternoon activity or a post-SATS treat but as an integral dimension to its work so that children were given

time and space to work in depth and at length: “Children produce two-and three-dimensional work of good quality. They handle tools and materials confidently and construct models with great interest and concentration. Problem-solving is a marked feature of the work.” All this but with time also devoted to the “basics”, though not as narrowly defined as the current highly prescriptive national curriculum: “Good attention is paid to the development of reading and writing skills, with talking and listening playing equally important roles... Mathematics arises from, and is applied to, thematic work but is also given separate treatment through the use of commercially produced materials.” Testing was used but not nearly to the same extent or with the same urgency as in current practice: “A reading test is administered periodically to all pupils and a standardised mathematics test to children in the oldest age-group. These tests and others devised by the teachers are used to pinpoint areas where children are having difficulties and for which future work has to be planned.” The published report concluded: “Through effective leadership, a common philosophy and approach inform the work of children in each age group. Due regard is paid to academic standards….The sense of shared endeavour and zest for learning nurtured by the school make it a learning community of unusual quality.” The one-word descriptor, “outstanding”, did not appear anywhere in the report; it did not have to. That conclusion sums up some of the characteristics of a principled, rigorous approach to ‘child-informed education’ which was a far cry from the anarchy of William Tyndale in the 1970s or from the caricature presented in to many simplistic progressive v. traditional debates on twitter in 2019. Through the effective, sympathetic leadership of Alec Clegg and his fellow officers there was a common philosophy and approach which gave many West Riding schools a distinctive unmissable ‘feel’. Some of us had the privilege of seeing it in action. We remember it still. Conceivably, just conceivably, does it still has some lessons to teach us in a very different context nearly fifty years on?

Colin Richards began his inspectorate career in northern England. The school featured was the first one he inspected as lead inspector. The article is written in fond memory of his mentor, the school’s head teacher Margery Roberts MBE. 35

An introduction to ethics morality and virtues for children (March 2019) by Tony Frais

This article details a course designed for teachers that allows children to explore the concept of morality and virtue within primary education and is written by the author and not by NAPE. Virtue and acting virtuously is about thinking and doing what is right and avoiding what is wrong. Virtue is also defined as a personality trait; an inclination to act, desire, and feel that which involves the exercise of good judgment and leads to a recognizable human excellence and doing well in life. We are not born with a fixed character. It is, we suppose, partly up to ourselves what character traits we acquire; those which help us to make the most of our lives are the virtues; without them, we cannot prosper.

The price of the book is £10 and is available from Amazon books and other online booksellers.

Research from the University of Birmingham: The Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues (2013) has found that 84% of UK parents believe that teachers should encourage good morals and values in their pupils. The results of this research are not surprising. Most parents would like to see their children flourish in life and instilling the knowledge and importance of practical ethical, moral and virtuous behaviour can help children achieve this.

Children are potentially (if not actually) moral subjects. The aim of the course is to instil an introduction to how they can achieve a moral responsibility for themselves. This practice is considered important in positively contributing to a child’s good character and self-esteem. It is our own responsibility in seeing to it that children are taught the meaning of being a good character by practicing the virtues i.e., the ability to know what is good, to want what is good, and to do good. In designing this introduction course, the major objectives were to make it teacher and pupil friendly, and to keep it short enough for each subject to be taught and then discussed by the pupils within a morning or afternoon session. The first task was to conduct a systematic literature review. Well over 150 academic articles and websites devoted to promoting the teaching of ethics morality and virtues to children were reviewed including original works by prominent philosophers such as Aristotle. Sixty-seven of these articles were eventually referred to in the course’s bibliography.

The task then was to condense the contents of all these articles into a relatively short introduction course with sufficient information to cover the basic premises for teaching and learning about ethics morality and virtues for both teachers and pupils. The end result combines a blend of ancient wisdom with relative references to popular culture and good examples for the pupils to think about. The course was primarily written for year 5/6 pupils. The course does not require special teacher training or the need for extensive lesson planning. Although it is a relatively short course, it serves to highlight most of the crucial points in each of the subjects to be taught in a way that children can readily understand. There are twelve subjects for the pupils to discuss: Honesty, Trust, Friendship, Courage, Loyalty, Being kind and caring to other people, Perseverance, Ownership, Gratitude, Patience, Having a sense of purpose and Doing something magnificent. The majority of these subjects are considered as virtues with two exceptions. Ownership is not usually thought of as a virtue but it does introduce children to the concept of autonomy; where children can make their own decisions about what they do with the objects they own without being controlled by anyone else; it gives them a sense of independence. The subject of Doing something magnificent is recognizing that young people have an important role to play in making the world a better place so this subject suggests ways that the children could realistically achieve something they passionately believe in; make it possible to turn their own ideas in to something that will make a big difference to peoples’ lives in a positive way. The way the course works is as follows: Each subject to discuss has teachers’ notes and a copy of the pupil’s notes. The teachers’ notes provide an easy to understand philosophical background to each subject. Teachers have the option to introduce these deeper points to the pupils if they think it appropriate. The pupils’ notes have been kept concise for ease of learning and understanding. On each of the pupil’s subject of virtue pages, pupils should first read the notes then there are questions

for them to discuss with one another and then to share their opinions with the teacher. The questions are the more important components of the course as it gets them thinking. The pupils’ questions mostly ask what ‘you’ would do in a given circumstances and moral dilemmas. These questions are asking for the attitudes of each individual pupil. The pupils should discuss their understanding of each subject of virtue and discuss the possible answers to the questions with their fellow classmates who share the same table. It is suggested to do it this way as psychological research found that peer interaction is a powerful means to promote pupil learning and development. To emphasise this particular point, another piece of research found that pupils enjoyed and engaged with this peer-to-peer exercise, which brought out a surprisingly high level of moral language, understanding and moral subtlety. One example from the course is from the subject of honesty. It is emphasised that always telling the truth is the right thing to do. However, there may be occasions where lying was kindly meant. There may be circumstances where lying did no harm or was doing less harm than telling the truth would have done. The following is an extract from the teachers’ notes on honesty explaining this concept: ‘Just such a case was when the British philosopher Sir Isaiah Berlin in his eighty sixth year, was interviewed about his views on death and dying. He said that he saw no reason to believe there is a world after death. He went on to say: his father had told him that he hoped that there was a future life. In fact, when he was dying, he asked me if I thought there was going to be life after death. I said that yes, I did. That was a lie because I did not want to tell him what I really believed. So I did not tell the truth, and I don’t regret it. Since I believed that nothing would follow one’s death, why should I cause a dying father pain?’ The French philosopher Blaise Pascal, properly interpreted, got it exactly right: ‘The first rule is to speak [only] the truth; the second is to speak with discretion’. 37

That said, young children have yet to have experience of life in such a way that would enable them to make these sophisticated moral judgements about where and when it may be more beneficial to lie in certain circumstances. Encouraging children to always tell the truth from an early age is clearly the best way forward.’ The pupils have nine questions to discuss on the subject of honesty. As an example, two of the questions are: ‘Suppose you won a competition in your class and your teacher gave you a pencil case as a prize but you already had many pencil cases at home so you did not like the prize. If the teacher asked you if you liked your prize, should you lie and say yes to be polite to your teacher and not to hurt their feelings, or should you tell the truth and say no, ‘I do not like my prize? Do you think there can be times when it could be unkind to be honest?’ ‘How do you feel when people have been dishonest with you?’ The pupils’ pages need to be photocopied and distributed. The pupils’ pages have been limited to a single sheet of paper for ease of photocopying or printing. There is an optional extra exercise at the end of the course which is a pupil’s monthly diary. Pupils can record any virtuous action they did that month and perhaps discuss it. Aristotle believed that moral virtue comes about as a result of habit; habitually performing virtuous acts can become second nature. Aristotle concludes that whether or not we can lead a good life depends a great deal on the habits we form when we are young, in our childhood and early adulthood. By pupils recording their good actions in the diary, it would be a reminder of what they have achieved; that they may be more likely to remember and repeat these good and positive actions. It could be a good idea for the teacher to ask the pupils what they had entered in their diary at the end of the month and to talk about it. Perhaps repeating the exercise for another few months is an option.

Teachers would always have the option if they wished to add further material to the subjects discussed from resources available on the Birmingham University Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues website. Initial feedback from teachers about the course have said the philosophical background contained in the teacher’s notes has taught them something new and interesting. When asking the pupils to discuss the questions asked, the entire classroom has literally ‘exploded’ into animated discussion. The course has also been bought by parents who wish to teach their children at home. It is hoped that by giving pupils the chance to think about and discuss the contents of the course it will serve as a basic and sound foundation for them to understand the basic concepts of virtuous behaviour and how it can equip them in order to live well, to make the most of what life has to offer. With many schools on tight budgets, the aim was to keep buying the course as affordable as possible.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR PRIMARY EDUCATION in collaboration with Humanities NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR PRIMARY in collaboration with Humanities 20:20 Project and Bannockburn Primary EDUCATION School, London NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR PRIMARY EDUCATION in collaboration with Humanities 20:20 Project and Bannockburn Primary School, London 20:20 Project and Bannockburn Primary School, London

Towards a Balanced and Broadly-based Towards a Balanced and Broadly-based TowardsCurriculum a Balanced and Broadly-based Primary Primary Curriculum Primary Curriculum

Wednesday 8 July 2020, 4.45pm – 7.00pm Wednesday 8 July 2020, – 7.00pm With registration/refreshments from4.45pm 4.15pm Wednesday 8 July 2020, 4.45pm – 7.00pm With registration/refreshments from 4.15pm Venue: Bannockburn Primary School, Church Manor Way, Plumstead, London, SE2 0HY

With registration/refreshments from 4.15pm Venue: Bannockburn Primary School, Church Way, Plumstead, London, SE2about 0HY The Conference, embracing a theme which hasManor been always been central to debate Venue: Bannockburn Primary School, Church Manor Way, Plumstead, London, SE2 0HY The Conference, embracing theme which hasbybeen always been central to debate about children’s entitlements, has abeen highlighted OfSTED as critical in curriculum The Conference, embracing a theme which has been always been central to debate about children’s entitlements, has been byschool OfSTED as critical in curriculum development. It will therefore be highlighted of interest to leaders, classroom practitioners and children’s entitlements, has been highlighted by OfSTED as critical in curriculum development. It will be of interest to aschool leaders, classroom practitioners and governors alike, withtherefore the workshops providing window on innovation and quality in action development. Itwith will therefore be of providing interest toa school leaders, classroom and governors alike,school. the workshops window on innovation andpractitioners quality in action in the primary alike, with the workshops providing a window on innovation and quality in action ingovernors the primary school. in the primary school. KEYNOTE SCHILLER LECTURE: DR. TONY EAUDE – a former Oxfordshire Primary Head, and KEYNOTE SCHILLER LECTURE: TONY EAUDE – a former Oxfordshire Primary Head, and author of several seminal textsDR. in the area of primary education. – a former Oxfordshire Primary Head, and KEYNOTE SCHILLER LECTURE: DR. TONY EAUDE author of several seminal texts in the area of primary education. author of several seminal on texts the area ofinprimary WORKSHOPS theincurriculum action:education. WORKSHOPS on the curriculum in action: WORKSHOPS on the curriculum in action: Naheeda Maharasingham, Head of Rathfern Primary School, Lewisham, on Naheeda Maharasingham, Head of Rathfern Primary School, Lewisham, on Social Action in the Primary School Naheeda Maharasingham, Head of Rathfern Primary Lewisham, on Social Action in the Tina Farr, Head of StPrimary Ebbe’sSchool Primary School, Oxford onSchool, Developing a Curriculum, Social Action in of theStPrimary School School, Oxford on Developing a Curriculum, Tina Farr, Head Ebbe’s Primary as Rich in Humanity as in Knowledge Tina Farr, Head of Stas Ebbe’s Primary School, Oxford on Curriculum, as Rich in Humanity in Knowledge Alison Hales, Senior Lecturer in Education, University ofDeveloping Greenwich,aon as Rich in Humanity as in Knowledge Alison Hales, Senior Lecturer Education, University of Greenwich, on Exploring History through thein Local Alison Hales, Senior Lecturer in Education, of Greenwich, Exploring History through the Local Rachel Ford, Head of Bannockburn Primary University School, Royal Borough of on Exploring History through the Local Rachel Ford,on Head of Bannockburn Primary School, Royal Borough of Greenwich, Beyond Teaching: Experiencing the Humanities Rachel Ford, Head of Bannockburn Primary School, Royal Borough of Greenwich, on Beyond Teaching: Experiencing the Humanities CONFERENCE FEE: £20 each but reduced to £15 each for two or more teachers Greenwich, on Beyond Teaching: Experiencing the Humanities CONFERENCE £20 each but reduced to £15 each see for two or more teachers from the sameFEE: school. £10 each for students. Please www.nape.org.uk for CONFERENCE FEE: £20 each but reduced to £15 each for two or more teachers from the same school. £10 each for students. Please see www.nape.org.uk for booking details or contact Robert Young on rmyoung1942@yahoo.co.uk or from the same school. £10Robert each for students. Please see www.nape.org.uk booking details or contact Young on rmyoung1942@yahoo.co.uk or for 07940 487628 booking details or contact Robert Young on rmyoung1942@yahoo.co.uk or 07940 487628 07940 487628

Widely recognised as a leader in its field Widely recognised asaaleader leaderininitsits field Widely recognised as field (and economically priced) (and priced) (andeconomically economically priced). Christopher Jarman’s Christopher Christopher Jarman’s Jarman’s scheme for the scheme for the teaching of handwriting teachingfor of the handwriting scheme teachingmatching of handwriting matching the Primary Framework for the Primary Framework for Literacy. for matching the Primary Framework Literacy Literacy DEVELOPING

DEVELOPING DEVELOPING HANDWRITING HANDWRITING HANDWRITING SKILLS SKILLS SKILLS TeachersResource ResourceBook Bookwith withfull fullset setofof12 Teachers Teachers Resource with full 12 workbooks andBook copybooks forset of 12 workbooks and copybooks workbooks and copybooks forunder underfives fivesupwards. upwards for under fives upwards The Resource Book contains 150 pages on

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The (£55.00 NAPE members) includes: Thecomplete completeset setcosts costs £65.00 £80 (£72.00 for for NAPE members) and and includes: The complete set costs £65.00 (£55.00 for NAPE members) and includes: Resource bookforforteachers teachers– -available availableseparately separatelyatat£30.00 £30.00each each 1.1. A A Resource book 1.2. A Six Resource book -for teachers – available separately at £30.00 each copy books available separately at £4.50 each 2. Six copy books – available separately at £4.00 each 2. Six copy books – available separately at £4.00 each at £4.00 each photocopiable work books - available separately 3.3. SixSix photocopiable work books – available separately at £3.00 each 3. SixP&P photocopiable work books – available separately at £3.00 each on all orders £5.00 for orders up to £50 and £8.00 for larger orders.

All prices include post and packing All prices include post and packing For a sale or return pack contact: For a sale or return pack contact: NAPE at 01604 647646 For a sale or return pack contact: or at 01604 647646 NAPE NAPE at 01604 647646 orFREEPOST orNAPE MID 24319 FREEPOST FREEPOST Moulton NAPE MID 24319 NAPE MID 24319 Northampton NN3 7BR

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Primary First Issue 27

Articles inside

An introduction to ethics morality and virtues for children (March 2019) by Tony Frais

Child-informed’ lessons from the West Riding? By Colin Richards

More than teachers by Emmanuel Awoyelu

Are we really inclusive? by Jon Daveney

SEND in Ordinary Classrooms by Michelle Prosser Haywood

Music in the Primary National Curriculum by Dr Mark Betteney

Rather than outstanding why not stand out?” by Steve Davies

Ground-breaking initiative challenges UK’s music education crisis by Phil Castang

Teacher Training in England and Wales - the potential impact of Curriculum 2022 on QTS by Dr Jane Dorrian

Hair today gone tomorrow by Frances Coulson

Editorial Dr Robert Morgan