EDUCATORS

BOOK REVIEW, CPD, EDUCATORS, SOCIAL MEDIA, TEACHING

Book review – The Confident Teacher by Alex Quigley

Posted on

The Confident Teacher : Developing successful habits of mind, body and pedagogy by Alex Quigley really surprised me – as the book covered much more than I expected it to. I have never met Alex Quigley, yet I follow his educational profile online via his Twitter account @HuntingEnglish and I am a regular reader of his blog, also titled The Confident Teacher. I thoroughly enjoy reading his blogs and they have been great resource to me as a teacher, so I was very keen to read his book. Alex is a Teacher of English, that is evident  as I think he has a wonderful style and use of language as well as many literature references made throughout his book. He is also Director of Huntington Research School, this book is heavily research informed and influenced which also supports many of his arguments and points. The Confident Teacher is obviously not some sort of quick fix self help guide to give teachers a transformation with confidence overnight, but it does focus on a wide range of strategies to develop confidence for both teachers and pupils. This book is filled with many stories from his career as well as anecdotes about various well known individuals from Pablo Picasso to Michael Jordan and Albert Bandura along the way! Read more

CPD, EDUCATORS, LEARNING, SOCIAL MEDIA, TEACHING, TRAVEL

Ten educational tweeters to follow in the UAE

Posted on

In August 2016 I relocated to teach in Al Ain, Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Before my move I had already made some online connections with teachers based in the UAE via Twitter and I have since been fortunate to meet many of them. I’ve also been able to stay in touch with the online educational community in the UK, keeping up to date with the latest developments and news via Twitter. If you are using Twitter you will know it is a fantastic resource for professional development with networking, sharing, collaborating and much more! I have blogged in more depth about how social media can be used for teachers’ professional development here. Read more

CPD, EDUCATORS, LEADERSHIP, LEARNING, SOCIAL MEDIA

Tips and advice to host your own TeachMeet

Posted on

In 2015 I joined Twitter with the aim of having a specific account dedicated to my professional development. I remember some of the first teachers I followed were Ross Morrison McGill, Amjad Ali and Mark Anderson. They were all tweeting about #TMLondon. I had no idea what they were on about?! I did some quick research to find out that #TMLondon was a free CPD event for teachers with a line up of experienced and diverse speakers. Fortunately, it was during my Easter break in Wales so I was able to attend. TMLondon 2015 was such a revelation for me and really did inspire me. The presenters including Mary Myatt, Stephen Lockyer and Jill Berry were all very interesting, engaging and shared something different yet relevant. I learnt so much and felt surrounded by people totally committed and dedicated to teaching. Read more

CPD, EDUCATORS, SOCIAL MEDIA, TEACHING

Social media for teachers professional development

Posted on

Tonight, I have just hosted my first #Bettchat with @Bett_MiddleEast focusing on the topic of teachers using social media for professional development. If you are not familiar with #Bettchat it’s a Twitter chat, similar to the weekly #UKEdchat, where questions are posed and people respond on Twitter using the hashtag so others can read their responses and reply… simple! A Twitter chat is a powerful method of connecting educators worldwide, to all be involved in one specific discussion or debate online at the same time despite distance or time zone. Read more

BOOK REVIEW, CPD, EDUCATORS, LEADERSHIP

Leadership Matters by Andy Buck – Book review

Posted on

Leadership Matters : How leaders at all levels can create great schools by Andy Buck was recommended to me by Mark Anderson. I assumed this book was aimed at SLT given the experience and position of the author. However, as the title suggests it is a book written for leaders at all levels and aspiring leaders. I am a Middle Leader with experience of leading a team within my department and also leading on various whole school approaches and events. I am about to undertake the NPQML leadership course so I thought this book would be very useful and relevant- and it was, as well as very interesting (throughout you can read some of my favourite quotes from this book that I have selected and made using Adobe Spark Post). Read more

CPD, EDTECH, EDUCATORS, SOCIAL MEDIA, TEACHING, TRAVEL

Connected Educator

Posted on

What does it mean to be a connected educator? 

It’s that term you’ve probably heard but what are people actually talking about? The term ‘connected educator’ is the term used to describe teachers who use modern methods to stay connected with each other. Connected educators tend to be passionate and committed educators who use their global network of educators called a ‘professional learning network’ to share, learn and develop their work as an educator. This could vary from having a friend who teaches in another part of the world to having thousands of followers online from across the globe. In my opinion a connected educator is someone who is passionate about education and learning from others. Due to the global nature that comes with being a connected educator, essentially all connected educators are international because their networks transcend geographical boundaries (although time zones can be a pain sometimes!).  Connected educators are able to keep up to date with educational issues and debates, beyond the walls of their staffroom and the whole school. Connected educators are dedicated to their own professional development and recognise that as well as learning and gaining so much from others they can also share, collaborate and inspire other educators in some shape or form. Read more

EDUCATORS, LEARNING, TEACHING

Are you thinking of becoming an examiner?

Posted on

A lot of teachers have considered becoming an examiner for some reason or other. Some teachers will strongly recommend becoming an examiner whilst others will tell you to avoid it at all costs! I was a History GCSE examiner for three years in a row but now I have relocated to the UAE to teach I am unable to continue as an examiner in the UK. There are several pros and cons to becoming an examiner so I thought I would reflect and share my experience. Different examiners for different exam boards and subjects will have different experiences so it is worth asking around with colleagues or teachers online to get a broader view. Read more

CPD, EDTECH, EDUCATORS, HISTORY, LEARNING, SOCIAL MEDIA

The TeachMeet event for History teachers…

Posted on

I love teaching ( hence LoveToTeach the very obvious and not so subtle title!) and exploring pedagogy, research, methods and so on. I am also very passionate about my subject – History ( my mum remembers me at nine years old and being obsessed with the Tudors!). Although I have taught various other subjects as well such as Geography, Religious Education, Politics, Drama, Social Studies and even Welsh! As well as trying to stay on top of my workload I aim to keep up with the latest developments in education. As a Historian I am always keen to delve deeper into a specific period or study another event/period/country that I have yet to learn about. Subject knowledge and pedagogy are both very important elements of continuing professional development for all educators. TeachMeet History Icons is a very unique event focusing on teaching and learning, specifically within History. It is a TeachMeet ( free CPD event) hosted and organised by History teachers for History teachers. I am delighted to be a co-host, organiser and presenter once again this year as we return on the 1st April in Chester! The idea has to be credited to my good friend Tom Rogers who approached me about organising this event and I am so glad he did. Read more

EDUCATORS, LEARNING, SOCIAL MEDIA, TEACHING, TRAVEL

My 2016!

Posted on

Professionally 2016 has been a very exciting and interesting year. This year includes attending and organising various CPD events, setting up my own educational blog to share/reflect and most importantly moving abroad to live and teach.

TMHistoryIcons 2016 Read more