15 September 2014
Advice for young teachers
Forty-two years ago, having newly graduated, I commenced a post-graduate Diploma in Education course at…
4 August 2014
Snake oil and ladders
The assumption is often made that good schools always have good leaders and poor leaders…
21 July 2014
The long road from Ibrox to Brechin
The following piece appears as a chapter in Alan Bissett's and Alasdair McKillop's excellent collection…
3 July 2014
The teaching of creationism
Scottish educationalists have always looked to England and English education. We look for whatever is…
25 June 2014
Are you on your staff's side?
“At a time of great transition in our profession, many teachers appear to be at…
25 June 2014
Kicking the hornet's nest
There’s a flurry of debate in Scottish education over standards. The suggestion is that they…
25 June 2014
The case for grammar
I teach an adult evening class in formal writing skills. It is for learners who…
25 June 2014
A bureaucracy working group?!
Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) was initially welcomed by countless teachers. It has increasingly been…
25 June 2014
The structure of learning
Hard economic times have an impact on schools, usually, but not inevitably, for the worse.…
