Twenty years ago this week – on Indian Republic Day, 26 January 2000 – I wandered into the slums behind the Charminar, in the Old City of Hyderabad, and my life changed. Building on my PhD at what is now the UCL Institute of Education, I had become an expert on private education. Twenty years... Continue Reading →
It is now thirty years since the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) was globally ratified by nearly two hundred States, recognising education as being a fundamental right. In 2005, The UN Committee clarified the practical application of Article 12 by saying that a child’s right to express their views should... Continue Reading →
I love stories. We use them to work through our context in the world, they serve to transform lives and some of them are even true. I have worked in leadership development for a number of years and like many others I have used the metaphor of the frog remaining in a pan of water... Continue Reading →
PISA (the Programme for International Student Assessment) is funded by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). The programme started in 2000 with tests happening every three years. PISA is the most rigorous project ever undertaken to assess what makes schooling effective. PISA tests are computer-based, administered to a sample of 15-year-olds in each... Continue Reading →
In the PGCE courses here at Buckingham we create excellent reflective practitioners. The design of the course requires it. The weekly readings and stimulus questions direct our trainees to consider a particular area of research or focus of pedagogy and reflect systematically on this in relation to their own teaching. They are encouraged to consider... Continue Reading →
The story of Finland is a good example of the complexities of understanding the causes of school success. When the PISA 2000 results were released in December 2001 Finland emerged as the top performer in the world. People flocked to the country to work out what it was that they did so well. They looked... Continue Reading →
Every person has their own compass which we use to navigate the decisions we make in life and in our professional roles. I find that this can be a useful visualisation when faced with strategic and operational decisions with regards to the sensitive and wide-ranging understanding of inclusion and special educational needs. I have been... Continue Reading →
Professor Robert Plomin is a researcher at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London. In 2018 he published a book, Blueprint, which reveals his research findings. He looked at the genes and life-histories of 10,000 twin pairs born 1994-6, some of whom were identical, some not, some brought up by the same... Continue Reading →
Reflective practice and its challenges are my constant. Why is this? Supervision of doctoral students at Buckingham relies on the development of academic reflective practice and necessitates all of us to be research active and meaningfully reflective. To cut a clear path through the intellectual thinking around this process is very time intense and as... Continue Reading →
