Are you thinking what I’m thinking?

Have you ever read a book and then when the film comes out things aren’t quite how you imagined them to be? What if the same happens in education?

It feels entirely possible to either metaphorically or literally drown in the amount of literature that is being released (this blog included) giving advice about how to do things well or better in education.

Nothing wrong with any of that. It’s great. The availability to access other people’s thoughts and ideas has never been easier. This has lead to incredible conversations, fueled further blogs, podcasts, articles, books which has then fueled more blogs, podcasts, articles and books, which has then… and hopefully somewhere along the line the experience pupils receive has been improved as well.

Although the profession now seems to be talking the same language (cognitive load, explicit instruction, SLANT, be seen looking, I do/We do/You do…), are we certain that means the same to all of us? Much like we can never be sure if two people see colours the same, can we ever be sure we mean the same thing when we use these terms? I suspect, unfortunately, not. At least not without tearing yourself away from just the words and getting yourself into a school and actually seeing it in action!

I felt relatively well read around all this but nothing could prepare me for what it was like working at King Solomon Academy. All of a sudden, I wasn’t reading or listening to thoughts about great practice, I was seeing it and living it.

I saw silent corridors be purposeful (everyone has their doors open all the time and break times don’t happen all at the same time so any noise in the corridor was going to disturb others lessons), family dining be truly commutity focused, lessons be distraction free, warm-strict be applied consistently, explicit instruction in action, think pair share working like a well-oiled machine. It raised the bar for me of what a school is able to acheive.

Having seen what is possible feeds into everything else I do. It raises expectations, gives me no reason to say something “isn’t possible” and, I hope, helps me push the people I work with to be even greater versions of themselves.

If it’s been a while since you’ve visited another school then try to change that. People’s doors seem more open than ever. From the wonderful programme Steplab are running to the general kindness of people that open their doors to others. Visiting a school has never been easier. The availability of data these days should mean you can also pick a school that suits your catchment and gets great outcomes.

Here is a table, for example, of top progress scores for Secondary schools from 2022 who have more than 40% disadvantaged cohort. Many of these schools welcome visitors and you can be pretty sure you’ll learn something new if you visit.

Next time you are thinking about reading one more book, why not try asking for a day to visit somewhere great instead? Any sensible headteacher will be aware of the power that this CPD can have and the experience may just help reframe everything you thought was possible.

I’m always interested in what people make of this so please feel free to comment with thoughts, questions or incomplete musings. Follow this or my Twitter account Teach_Solutions for similar content in the future.