BACK AT OAKWOOD HIGH SCHOOL!

I visited Oakwood High School this afternoon to meet again,​ the wonderful young people who are on the Better Learners, Better Workers pilot with Rotherham Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. This programme is led by the Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust and is a consistent and coherent, employer-led approach that will develop, in this very special group of young people, the skills needed for employability and the world of the NHS.

BACK AT OUTWOOD ACADEMY CARLTON!

I was at Outwood Academy Carlton again this morning to see their Y10 'Better Learners, Better Workers: Made in Barnsley' ambassadors...

A GREAT PLACE: THE SHEFFIELD INCLUSION CENTRE!

I visited the Sheffield Inclusion Centre yesterday to see my colleague and friend Andy Ireland, who now heads up this dynamic and supportive learning environment. The Primary Inclusion Centre and the KS3/KS4 Inclusion Centre support children and young people from across Sheffield who are either displaying challenging behaviour in mainstream primary school or who have been permanently excluded from mainstream secondary schools.

MEETING WITH THE STOCKSBRIDGE AMBASSADORS!

I visited Stocksbridge High School after school yesterday and met again some of the wonderful young people who are on ambassador programmes. I was there to introduce the new BLBW materials and explain how to use the new BLBW Handbook.

HOW TO BE POSITIVE!

YES YOU CAN!

I have spent time with some really wonderful young people over the last couple of weeks and something worries me. Schools and teachers are hugely important in helping young people see themselves as capable learners or not!! So many of these young people believed it when they were told what they couldn't do and forgot to use the word yet!!!

MAKING ALL SCHOOLS IN WALES STRONG AND SUCCESSFUL LEARNING ORGANISATIONS!

I have argued for years that a new school curriculum needs a new learning culture and it is great to see that Wales is placing this at the heart of their school development strategy to ensure that all Welsh schools become strong and successful learning places. 

OUR YOUNG PEOPLE ARE THE FUTURE!

Life is never ever dull, and the last couple of weeks working in Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield has once again showed me the outstanding practice, inspirational colleagues and the incredible young people that exist in these places. Young people with skills, talents and abilities which we need to nurture and grow...

BACK AT SAINT PIUS X CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL!

I visited Saint Pius X Catholic High School today and met again the wonderful young people who we interviewed over a year ago for the Better Learners, Better Workers pilot with Rotherham Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

THE BLBW MADE IN BARNSLEY AMBASSADORS VISIT THE CUTLERS HALL!

Great to see the Year 9 'Better Learners, Better Workers: Made in Barnsley' ambassadors at the Cutlers Hall this morning.

THE BADGERS ARE MOVING THE GOAL POSTS!

I love this poem... Carol Ann Duffy tells us that all nature is in uproar, what with rule-bending ferrets, the fact-twisting skunks and the gun-jumping foxes... it explains a lot of things and makes as much sense as anything else at the moment!!

"Because the Badgers are moving the goalposts.

BLBW AUTUMN TERM NEWSLETTER

I LOVE MATHS... BUT NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE SHARE THAT PASSION!

I have a had a great week working with some amazing young people who talked so positively about their interests and passions... social media, games, netball, gymnastics, kick boxing, swimming, reading. Sadly, as a maths teacher in the dim and distant past, no one talked about a passion for number! 

WORKWISE AND BLBW: WORKING TOGETHER!

I moved on to see John Barber at the OSL offices near Meadowhall. John, who heads up the Workwise team, and I have been working on the engineering strand of 'Made in Sheffield' and now 'Better Learners, Better Workers' since the programme started in 2011.

DARTON COLLEGE

I was at Darton College again this morning working with their new Year 9 'Better Learners, Better Workers' ambassadors. Dave Bond had organised the session for me to take them through the new BLBW materials.

OUTWOOD GRANGE ACADEMIES TRUST

I moved on to Outwood Grange Academy in Wakefield for a meeting with Julie Slater. Julie is Chief Executive of Outwood Institute of Education (OIE), Executive Principal for Outwood Grange Academies Trust, and a National Leader of Education.

BLBW: MADE IN BARNSLEY!

 I was at The Dearne ALC again this morning with the steering group for the 'Better Learners, Better Workers: Made in Barnsley' programme...

WINGFIELD ACADEMY!

I was at Wingfield Academy earlier this week to see some of the wonderful young people on the 'Better Learners, Better Workers' engineering programme and take them through the new BLBW materials...

WHAT IS RESILIENCE?

HOW TO BE RESILIENT!

RESILIENCE MATTERS!

There is a great difference between failing to achieve a result and the conclusion you draw about yourself. In Carol Dweck's book 'Mindset' she explains that those who stay down after a setback make a judgment that they have failed, not just that their attempt failed. On a small scale, being resilient enables us to raise our hand and risk "sounding stupid." On a bigger scale, it allows us to try something really hard whether or not we're sure we'll do well at it.

CHANGE NEEDED!

If we are really serious about building world class learning in this country we need to refocus, re-imagine and re-engineer.

We need to shift the focus away from knowledge to concepts, from subjects to disciplines, from content to skills, from teaching to learning!

REMEMBER THAT FAITH, FAMILY AND FRIENDS MATTER MOST!

It is't fame or celebrity or money that is most important in my life... it's faith, friends and family. I saw an old friend last week and she reminded me that when it comes down to what really matters, faith, family and friends make life worth living!

EAT CHOCOLATE AND DRINK RED WINE!

We know that research suggests that the keys to happiness are a good diet, exercise, sleep, sunlight, social interactions and fun and laughter. Nothing there I haven't been telling people for years, but my list would also include red wine and dark chocolate...

EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS REPORT!

I was sent this wonderful Mind Gym report this week and I wish I had read it when I started my career because everyone should read it...

DAN PINK ON THE ABILITIES THAT MATTER!

Drawing on research from around the advanced world, Daniel Pink, in his book 'A Whole New Mind', argues that everyone should be given opportunities to develop six fundamentally human abilities that are essential for professional success and personal fulfilment and reveals how to master them.

ENTERPRISE CHALLENGE WORKSHOPS!

My colleague Sarah Ward told me about another great day she spent with the Workwise team...

DOING THE RIGHT THING MATTERS!

Over the last forty years, working at all levels in education and business, I have learnt the hard way that knowledge rarely changes people's behaviour or their lives...

CHARACTER IS THE KEY!

Interestingly, people who work hard, persevere and have passion are more likely to be successful than those with high IQ or those who are simply conscientious. These qualities lie at the heart of the Cutlers' 'Better Learners, Better Workers' programme... 

WE NEED TO WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE!

We continue to sleepwalk into a future that requires brave, bold and creative solutions. We face problems wherever we look... productivity and investment are problems and Brexit is making everyone increasingly nervous. There isn't enough money and local authority services are increasingly under pressure, schools are facing increasing challenges and academisation clearly isn't the answer to life, the universe and everything!! Clearly we need to wake up and think differently...

BLBW 'WHAT EMPLOYERS WANT' CONFERENCE

John Barber and his Workwise colleagues organised another fantastic day over half-term for our Year 11 Cutlers' Engineering Ambassadors at the 'What Employers Want' Conference...

Great to see these young people being put through their paces by employer volunteers from Doncasters Bramah, Liberty Steel, Chimo Holdings and Cooper Brown Enterprises. These young people have come so far in the last 2 years and gave up a day's holiday to join John and the team at Jurys Inn.

BACK TO THE FUTURE WITH BLBW AT THE MAGNA SCIENCE CENTRE!

John Barber and his Workwise colleagues organised two fantastic days at the Magna Science Centre over the half-term break...

On the first day, Ken Cooke, the current Master Cutler, handed out 'Better Learners, Better Workers' badges to the new Year 9 students from Park Academy, Springs Academy, Mexborough Academy, Oakwood High School, Horizon Community College and The Dearne ALC. He also took one for himself which he said he will wear with pride.  On the second day Year 9 students came from from Penistone Grammar School, Darton College, Oakwood High School, King Edward VII School, Yewlands Academy, Stocksbridge High School and Don Valley Academy.