Inside Education - a podcast for educators interested in teaching

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney. This week I conclude my interview with Dr. Alf Coles from the School of Education at the University of Bristol. Among the topics we discuss this week are:   Planning for the unexpected in mathematics classes His work with the charity “Five by Five by Five Equals Creativity” Using Cuisenaire rods and a tens chart to teach mathematics How the number naming system in the English language makes learning mathematics more difficult and what you can do about it Using the tens chart to teach decimals How our current curriculum limits children’s understanding of number Creativity in primary school mathematics What inspires him Whose work in education he likes to read What he would change about his current institution How his own schooling influences his practice in education today

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney. On this week's programme my guest is Dr. Alf Coles from the University of Bristol School of Education. Among the topics discussed are:   What teachers learn from using video Responding to video through description versus judgment Using video clubs for teacher professional development The centre for researching education across boundaries Who was Caleb Gattegno What is the Silent Way of learning a language What is an energy budget for learning? Four stages of awareness Inventing the geoboard Book, What we owe children by Caleb Gattegno How he became a teacher educator How he balances his teaching and research work How he practices teacher education Greg Simon’s blog: https://gregsimonmusic.com/blog/ Gregory Bateson: https://mri.org/gregory-bateson/

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney On this week's programme I bring you the second part of my interview with Páiríc Clerkin, the Chief Executive Officer of the Irish Primary Principals' Network (IPPN). In this part of the interview our conversation covers topics such as: What the IPPN does How he finds the role of CEO of the IPPN What teachers should think about before applying for roles as principal or deputy principal How will job of principal be different in ten years’ time to what it is today What inspires him What he likes to read/listen to Changes he’d make in the IPPN The five minute bench break How his own education influences his work as an educator

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney On this week's programme I look ahead to the 2018 annual conference of the Irish Primary Principals' Network with the Chief Executive Officer of the Network, Páiric Clerkin. Among the topics we discuss are: Priorities for principals at this time School funding Droichead What to expect at the IPPN Conference

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney On this week's programme I bring you the second part of my interview with Dr. Gerry O'Connell from the Marino Institute of Education where we talk about religious education and much more. Among the topics discussed this week are the following: Prayer and religious education and how mindfulness was introduced to Catholic schools over two decades ago The power of prayer and mindfulness How do you define a practising Catholic if not by their attendance at church? The problem with large class sizes How to develop one’s religious imagination Integrating religious education with other subjects Accommodating children who don’t take religious education in a religious school How do prospective teachers learn to teach religion? Dr. Gerry O’Connel outlines seven elements that are key to his approach: Waiting and wondering The threshold experience Asking the question Gathering around the subject Journalling ( What did I learn? What does it say to where I am? What am I going to do about it?) Pushing back the horizon Concluding ritual

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney   On this week's programme I speak to my colleague in the Marino Institute of Education, Dr. Gerry O'Connell about religious education. Gerry is a primary teacher and a teacher educator with vast experience and his ideas are grounded in this experience and in his scholarly work in the field. Among the topics discussed this week are the following: The difference between teaching religion and religious education The importance of starting with the students’ experiences The challenges of working with diverse student experiences The teaching methodology “Godly Play” Social media as a force of oppression Why contemplative space, depth of conversation or wonder and symbol or story are central to religious education Whether sacraments should be taught in school or in parishes What makes a teacher? Teaching as a vocation A perceived secularist agenda in some media organisations

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney. On this week's programme I am joined once again by philosopher and retired primary school teacher, John Doyle. In the interview, John reflects on the role of questions in teaching.

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney On this week's programme I bring you the third and final part of my interview with David Didau, author of What if Everything You Knew about Education Was Wrong? Among the people and websites referred to in this part of our discussion are the following: The Neuroscience of Intelligence by Richard J Haier How to Teach by Phil Beadle Dylan William Dan Willingham Doug Lemov Rob Coe My second guest this week is Jane Shimizu who is a primary teacher in a DEIS school in county Galway. For many years she kept a busy classroom blog and current updates are on the school website. As part of her discussion on science week, she mentioned the website www.rokit.com.    

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney. On this week's programme I welcome back a guest who was on the programme before, Brendan Culligan. Brendan was a keynote speaker at the 2017 annual conference of the Literacy Association of Ireland. His presentation was titled “More than one hundred and twenty five years of Crushing ‘Garlic’!" - in which he honours the memory of an educator who had insightful ideas about teaching spelling.

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney This week I bring you the second part of my interview with writer, blogger, speaker, trainer and former English teacher David Didau. We focus particularly on his book, What if everything you knew about education was wrong? Among the topics discussed are the following: How teachers can use research Why less feedback is more Carol Dweck’s research on mindsets The difficulties in telling if what children learn is retained or transferable Why a sat-nav is the perfect “assessment for learning machine” The illusion of knowledge Assessment for learning Why testing should be rebranded as quizzing Why differentiation is a “dark art”