Edufuturists

We are delighted to be joined today by Professor Rachel lofthouse. Rachel is a Professor of Teacher Education and Director of CollectivED at Leeds Beckett University. Rachel has 30 years experience  as a teacher, teacher educator, writer and researcher, and is working weekly with students, teachers and school leaders as well as being involved in a range of European projects. She is passionate about professional learning that crosses boundaries, brings educators from different sectors together and respects the individual motivations and authentic concerns that drive change.   Follow us on Twitter https://www.twitter.com/edufuturists Check out all past episodes at https://www.edufuturists.com Subscribe on iTunes https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/edufuturists/id1347592880

#TeacherHugRadio @Edufuturists @TeacherHugRadio The Edufuturists launch show for TeacherHugRadio.com which aired on 31st January. In this special episode about the exam fiasco of the last 10 months we are joined by Lord Jim Knight, Laura McInerney, David Price OBE and Dr. Debra Kidd. After 10 months of dithering and delay in England on many political issues, one important decision that teachers up and down the country won't have missed is that surrounding exams. A Levels, vocational qualifications, GCSE's and SATS. They've all been affected by lockdowns, the government and mutant algorithms. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson is adamant that exams are the best and "fairest" way that students can show what they have learned. Is this true? Winston Churchill once said that "democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time". Are we in danger of lazily appplying this logic to exams, in that exams aren't perfect but it's the best we have? Many of us want to avoid just teaching to an exam, however year 11 engagement in online learning dropped last year when exams were scrapped. Implying that many students think they are just being taught to pass an exam. Leadership tables based on exam results dominate our education system and pressure to achieve certain grades causes many teachers to leave the profession every year. All this when many companies are now saying that exam results are not what they primarily consider when hiring employees. So our question today is: Has a year of exam fiascos revealed that when it comes to end point assessment, the tail is wagging the dog? And if so, are there better solutions?

We are delighted to be joined today by Paul Dix. Paul is an Award-winning Behaviour Specialist who has helped schools all over the world transform their behaviour policies. He is author of the book “When the adults change, everything changes” and leads the very popular Ban the booths campaign. Paul starts a new venture this coming weekend when his new radio station for teachers, Teacher Hug Radio, launches at TeacherHugRadio.co.uk.  www.teacherhugradio.co.uk

We are delighted to be joined today by Bob Harrison who has had extensive experience in schools and colleges as a teacher, lecturer, senior manager, principal and governor. Bob was recently shortlisted for the TES FE “Lifetime Achievement award” for services to Further, Vocational and Adult Education. You can join his following on twitter @bobharrisonedu

We are delighted to be joined today by our good friend, Al Kingsley, Managing Director of NetSupport Group. Al joins us to talk about educational leadership and learning during lockdowns and into the future.    Follow us on Twitter https://www.twitter.com/edufuturists Check out all past episodes at https://www.edufuturists.com Subscribe on iTunes https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/edufuturists/id1347592880

Kenyatta Forbes is the former Edu Content Manager for Google for Education where she managed content across the Google Teacher Center, Chromebook App Hub, Google Certified Exams Level 1/2, and Google’s Edu Equity Initiatives.  She now works as Great Lakes Senior District Manager - Adoptions for Nearpod and Flocabulary. Kenyatta spent two years working with Mozilla Foundation as a Community Manager stewarding the internet as a tool for innovation and learning globally. She previously worked as an Educator for the Chicago Public School district for over 10 years, including teaching technology and special education. Kenyatta holds an M.A. from National Louis University in Education and an M.F.A in Film/Video/Animation from the University of Illinois-Chicago.  You can follow her on Twitter at @kenyatta_forbes.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ais8vbEeGcg We are joined in this episode by Bukky Yusuf and Mark Anderson. Bukky is a senior leader, science teacher and coach. She is also a Network Leader and coach for WomenEd & BAMEEd. She is a judge for The EdTech50 Schools, BETT Awards and serving as an Education Board Member for Innovate My School.  She is a co-chair of the EdTech Leadership Group to support the Government’s EdTech strategy.   Mark Anderson taught ICT and Computing for more than twenty years. He is a multi-award-winning blogger, best-selling author who now runs his own consultancy and training business, ICT Evangelist. His business sees him working alongside teachers, schools, colleges, universities and leadership groups exploring effective use of technology, deployment and digital strategy. He also works with and supports a wide variety of educational technology companies around the world.  Together Mark and Bukky host Teach Meet UK EduStories. A live show on YouTube and social media.

We are delighted to be joined by Ben Owens and Adam Haigler from Open Way Learning - the co-authors of Open Up Education and pioneers in innovative education from the USA. Ben Owens worked as a mechanical engineer for a multinational corporation for 20 years before becoming a STEM teacher for 11 years in rural Appalachia. While at Tri-County Early College, he helped transform the school into one that has gained international recognition for its unique approach to community-facing Project Based Learning. In 2018, Ben left the classroom and co-founded the nonprofit, Open Way Learning, which helps schools create the cultural conditions where authentic, learner-centered innovation will thrive. Adam Haigler worked with Ben at Tri-County Early College as a Science teacher before joining him to start Open Way. He also works with Education Evolving, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organisation focused on improving American public education and as a Digital Marketing Consultant for Launch Marketing. Watch this episode on YouTube to view all the links shared in this episode: https://youtu.be/yeE2P5ZGfmE

We are joined by the brilliant Laura McInerney, a former teacher and editor of Schools Week, who has spent over 12 years on the frontline of education policy and interviewed over 60 top education names — from Dylan Wiliam to Carol Dweck to Amanda Spielman. Laura has keynoted at events such as The Education Festival, the Headteachers Roundtable Summit and the BETT show and since 2013, has been a columnist for The Guardian. She has written for other publications including The Observer, the New Statesman, The TES, and Prospect. Laura is the author of two books - The Leadership Factor, co-authored with our good friend, Drew Povey from Educating Manchester - and The Six Predictable Failures of Free Schools (And How To Avoid Them). She is also the co-founder of Teacher Tapp - an app that was created to give teachers a voice.

We are joined by Mike Feerick, CEO and Founder of Alison.com. Mike is an internationally recognised and award-winning social entrepreneur. He is a key figure within the education industry and believes that free, accessible learning is the answer to many of the world’s problems and the solution lies within education. Mike started the business in 2007 as an avenue to increase employability for all. Alison is one of the largest, and first ever massively open online course (MOOC) provider. With 17 million members, the Alison platform provides free learning for basic education and workplace skills with over 3m graduates of its 1,700+ free courses.  https://www.edufuturists.com