Missed the Teachers Talk Radio Weekly Review - the show where we review the week in education? Catch up with the headlines and the discussion here...
This Sunday's Weekly Review saw host Nathan Gynn joined by panelists Shaniqua Edwards-Hayde, Kathryn Taylor and John Gibbs. They discussed the impact of Sure Start on GCSEs, the impact of book apps on our critical thinking capacity, and the scouts developing 'teaching skills' as part of the DfE's latest recruitment plan.
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IFS: Sure Start improved disadvantaged children's GCSE results
"It's blindingly obvious that if you do good things early on, giving support to families, it works in the long run" John Gibbs on the Weekly Review
A research report by the Institute of Fiscal Studies suggests that Sure Start centres generated large increases in test scores for children eligible for free school meals through primary and secondary school.
The report, authored by Pedro Carneiro, Sarah Cattan and Nick Ridpath and funded by the Nuffield Foundation, also reveals that Sure Start had a greater positive impact on non-white children.
Sure Start was also found to have increased the prevalence of support for SEND at young ages, leading to a need for EHCPs at age 16 years old or above decreasing by 9 per cent.
However, the government has closed almost 1,500 Sure Start centres in the last decade, albeit launching a family hubs scheme in 2022 which has led to 75 hubs being rolled out across the country.
Co-author Sarah Cattan said:
“The current family hubs initiative aims to join up family support services for children aged 0-18 with less than 5% of what Sure Start received at its peak. It seems unlikely family hubs will be able to go as far in realising the potential that this research shows early years integrated programmes can have for children and their families." Sarah Cattan, Institute of Fiscal Studies
However, Sam Freedman, who worked as a senior policy adviser to Michael Gove during the defunding of Sure Start, was less positive about the initiative:
What did our panel have to say about Sure Start?
John Gibbs
"It's blindingly obvious that if you do good things early on, giving support to families, it works in the long run. Sure Start was a slow burner - it was going to take time and manifest itself over a lifespan. You can go into a primary school, test kids' reading ages and predict their GCSE results with an alarming level of accuracy."
Kathryn Taylor
"I used to go to Sure Start centres when my child was a baby. They were so brilliant and so valuable. You'd go twice a week, get a cup of tea and a biscuit and talk to other new mums. It's such a shame that it isn't there anymore."
Shaniqua Edwards-Hayde
"There is clear evidence that a supportive environment for children in their younger years is life-changing. Sure Start centres did that - surprise surprise!"
What difference do teachers really make to exam results?
With the IFS's report suggesting a link between Sure Start and GCSE outcomes, it's worth considering how much, or how little, impact a classroom teacher can have on their students' results. Tom Rogers spoke to Dylan Wiliam, Robert Plomin and Stephen Gorard.
"Book summary apps are a good starting point - like a movie trailer - but it doesn't take away from the real magic" Shaniqua Edwards-Hayde on the Weekly Review
Authors have warned that book summary apps are damaging the habit of concentrated reading as well as undermining the book trade.
Apps such as Blinkist, Bookey, getAbstract and Headway have been accused of misrepresenting content and damaging sales. One author, Amy Liptrot, approached the Society of Authors union to take action. She told the Observer:
“It was unnerving to see a totally fictional quotation purporting to be from my book. These apps are very anti-literacy. They're for people who want to absorb the key ideas without reading the book. I don't mind a bland, soulless summary, but I do mind a false quotation." Amy Liptrot, author
Diana Gerald, chief executive of the charity BookTrust, also shared concerns of the impact of book summary apps on younger readers:
“Book summaries can be a useful starting point. However, it goes without saying that improvements in mental health, in sparking imagination, empathy and language acquisition that reading can have, come from reading the book itself." Diana Gerald, chief executive of BookTrust
What thoughts did our panel have on book summary apps?
Kathryn Taylor
"I recently had to find out something for my doctorate. I didn't really have time to read about it, so I watched a couple of videos to direct my focus. There are times when you need to get the information you need efficiently, and there are times when you need to develop a skill by engaging with a dense text."
Shaniqua Edwards-Hayde
"Sometimes I have a short attention span - which is disappointing for me to say as I love a book! Book summary apps are a good starting point - like a movie trailer - but it doesn't take away from the real magic. There are times when I feel like I don't have enough time to read a book - like teaching really - but I read these book summaries and wonder how accurate they are."
John Gibbs
"I would be delighted if we lived in a world where most of us were dipping into a broad range of things, even superficially. We are overwhelmed by information, and you have to be selective and efficient. Our problem today isn't that people have an incomplete understanding of things. They have an incomplete understanding of not much."
Building a reading culture in your school
Sean talks to Alice Visser-Furay about how to build a reading culture in your school.
Schools Week: DfE looking to Scouts to solve teacher recruitment crisis
"The idea that this is somehow a flagship policy is strange. Clearly the Scouts gives children skills that benefit them in later life. It's cute. But it's not going to solve recruitment" Kathryn Taylor on the Weekly Review
Be prepared! A Schools Week exclusive has found that the Scout Association has won a contract worth up to £129,000 over three years to provide 40,000 'explorers' aged between 14 and 18 with "teaching skills" and a desire to consider a career in the profession.
The DfE will work with the Scouts to "create age-appropriate activities that inspire young people to consider a career in teaching by linking to relevant badges and awards." There are currently no plans for a teaching badge.
The initiative forms part of the Get into Teaching "candidate pipeline strategy", aiming to "elevate the status" of the profession. Secondary school teacher recruitment targets have been missed for ten of the past 11 years.
A DfE spokesperson said that the Scouts scheme will "raise awareness of teaching as a potential career choice for young people, helping to build a pipeline of future candidates for Initial Teacher Training."
Perhaps unsurprisingly, social media had its say on this story...
But what did our panel think?
Shaniqua Edwards-Hayde
"I was a girl guide myself! Growing up I always wanted to be a teacher, so I would have loved this as a child. But teaching is one career everyone knows about. It's a good idea to get more children enthused about teaching. But if teaching were truly valued, we wouldn't need this. The profession is currently crumbling."
John Gibbs
"It does carry an air of desperation - the Army, the Scouts - there's some sort of obsession with people in uniform dealing with a difficult class. This is the idea that teaching isn't a learned profession, but a craft requiring practical skills. We need to elevate teaching to the status of lawyers and doctors as a skilful, complicated profession."
Kathryn Taylor
"I was also a girl guide! When you're going to become a teacher one of the things you used to have to do was spend time in a school. I also had to demonstrate work with children, which I did at the Girl Guides unit. The idea that this is somehow a flagship policy is strange. Clearly the Scouts gives children skills that benefit them in later life. It's cute. But it's not going to solve recruitment."
How do you solve a problem like recruitment?
What strategies and tactics are schools on the frontline using to save money on recruitment whilst maximising the number of applicants per role? Tom Rogers explored possible solutions with some special guests.
Want to listen to the discussion in full? Catch up with the full show, plus a message from our sponsors Teach Well Toolkit, here.
