#168 How to lead a maths department with Femi Adeniran and Matt Findlay

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May 25, 2023

Femi Adeniran, an experienced head of maths at a large independent school, alongside Matt Findlay, who has 12 years of secondary teaching experience, dive into the art of leading a maths department. They discuss vital topics like balancing teacher autonomy with consistency, managing parental complaints, and the significance of effective communication in departmental meetings. Insights on navigating leadership challenges and supporting educators, especially non-specialists, emphasize the critical role of structured professional development in fostering a positive teaching environment.

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ANECDOTE

Effective Teaching Varies Widely

Femi visited highly effective teachers who had vastly different lesson styles but demonstrated key teaching habits.
These habits included recall, efficient starts, clear modelling, classroom management, and noticing passive students.

ADVICE

Non-Negotiable Prompt Lesson Start

Start lessons promptly with structured recall to maximize learning time.
Use videos of lesson starters to show the team what effective practice looks like and explain the reasons behind it.

ADVICE

Engage All Students in Starters

Use mini whiteboards or go around the room to check all students' answers during starters.
Discuss common mistakes collectively instead of just correcting, to promote understanding.

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Sonia Gill's "Successful Difficult Conversations in Schools" is a practical guide designed to equip educators with the skills to navigate challenging conversations effectively. The book provides a step-by-step approach to preparing for, conducting, and following up on difficult discussions. Gill emphasizes the importance of creating a safe and respectful environment, active listening, and clear communication. It delves into strategies for handling conflict, addressing sensitive topics, and building stronger relationships. With real-world examples and practical exercises, the book empowers educators to approach difficult conversations with confidence and achieve positive outcomes for themselves and their schools. By adopting these skills, school leaders and teachers can foster a culture of open communication and collaboration.

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Running the Room

Tom Bennett

Experienced heads of department, Femi Adeniran and Matt Findlay, join me for an epic conversation about leading a maths department. We cover everything from consistency versus autonomy, departmental meetings, handling parental complaints and allocating sets. You can access links to the resources discussed, time-stamps and videos on the podcast show-notes page here: https://www.mrbartonmaths.com/blog/168-how-to-lead-a-maths-department-with-femi-adeniran-and-matt-findlay/

Time-stamps:

Matt's favourite failure (06:26)
Femi's favourite failure (10:38)
Matt's route into becoming a head of department (15:45)
Femi's route into becoming a head of department (18:17)
How many year's classroom teaching should you have before becoming a head of department? (21:02)
How strong a teacher does the head of department need to be? (24:41)
What does your timetable as a head of department look like? (28:43)
Do you find you are teaching more these days than 5 years ago? (32:38)
Does your teaching suffer with all the other things you have to give attention to? (40:00)
How does your workload compare to a teacher with a full time-table? (46:39)
How often would you be pulled out of a lesson to deal with something? (52:13)
How do you balance the need for consistency across your department with a desire for teacher autonomy? (56:46)
What are the non-negotiables that members of your team have to follow? (1:32:54)
What do your departmental meetings look like? (1:57:13)
How do you ensure good practice is shared around the department? (2:21:51)
How do you support less experienced colleagues, non-specialists, those who are struggling? (2:23:16)
How do you deal with directives from SLT that you don't agree with? (2:41:26)
What do you do to help non-specialists (particularly SLT) understand what the characteristics of high-quality T&L in maths are? (2:48:37)
How do you deal with difficult members of the department who are reluctant the make changes? (2:54:59)
How do you deal with parental complaints? (3:00:48)
How do you allocate teaching sets? (3:05:19)
Final reflections (3:19:37)
Craig's takeaways (3:32:42)