There has been a very clear hiatus in my blogging.
I love writing. This is often seen as a strange passion being a mathematician by trade but I more often than not have my head in a book and strongly believe that my J.K. Rowling moment is only months away. Ok, perhaps slightly optimistic in that last one, but writing about teaching and learning and all other aspects of school life is not only something that I enjoy immensely but allows me to reflect on my own practice and helps me formulate new ideas. I also love the diary element of maintaining this blog and know that in years to come, revisiting my little corner of the Internet will be something I really value.
So why the rather long absence?
With frank honesty, the autumn term was tough. Mornings and nights were dark and we were stretched. As a team we were really sad to see a highly talented, experienced and, moreover, lovely member of staff return to the UK for health reasons. Although now well on the road to recovery, it was a huge loss for not only us but the students who adored her alongside us. Last term was about keeping afloat and ensuring that classes had a body in front of them, parents were as happy as they could be and that plans were in place for when a new teacher arrived this term. I took on a lot of extra teaching hours and the marking, assessment, planning, homework, detentions.... that came with those hours. Four extra hours in front of new groups meant that these hours doubled in my time outside of lessons. A particular highlight was a Thursday in which each week I was teaching my own five lessons and setting two cover lessons for a non-specialist for whom the odd were not in their favour that day.
I will have that medal now, thank you.
Leading a large, core department on four frees a week and still maintaining all extra-curricular, CPD and duty commitments left me very little time to "lead". I became a manager. Pinging off emails 10 minutes before the start of lessons became my only viable communication channel as I battled to make sure that students were taught roughly in line with the scheme of work and that books had some form of assessment in them. In my head, this was a disaster; I had not completed the department development plan, no performance management had even been started, I had two new members of staff I was yet to see teach and I was pretty sure that 40% of my body was actually coffee.
But now, here I sit and with a new teacher settling into the team I reflect in my little corner of the Internet. I imagine myself as the parent of little Tom in Year 7 who three weeks into September discovered that dear little Tom was only being taught by a maths specialist for 50% of his lessons for the rest of the long autumn term (I am said ‘maths specialist’ by the way). In the 50% of lessons taught by the maths specialist, was he taught engaging, pacey, target driven lessons based on a love of mathematics? Yes. Was his book assessed, fed back and praised in a timely manner allowing him to know what and how to improve? Yes. Was he set solid consolidation for the other 50% of his lessons? Yes. Did he achieve in line with his target and peers in the end of term assessment? Yes. Has the department development plan even been looked at? No.
There are some things you learn best in calm and some things you learn best in a storm. So what have I learnt? As long as I continue to care about little Tom loving mathematics and becoming the best mathematician he can be 10 Ticks will return to its dusty folder and the storm will pass with us all becoming much better sailors...or at least knowing where the compass is when the next cold front comes in.
I love writing. This is often seen as a strange passion being a mathematician by trade but I more often than not have my head in a book and strongly believe that my J.K. Rowling moment is only months away. Ok, perhaps slightly optimistic in that last one, but writing about teaching and learning and all other aspects of school life is not only something that I enjoy immensely but allows me to reflect on my own practice and helps me formulate new ideas. I also love the diary element of maintaining this blog and know that in years to come, revisiting my little corner of the Internet will be something I really value.
So why the rather long absence?
With frank honesty, the autumn term was tough. Mornings and nights were dark and we were stretched. As a team we were really sad to see a highly talented, experienced and, moreover, lovely member of staff return to the UK for health reasons. Although now well on the road to recovery, it was a huge loss for not only us but the students who adored her alongside us. Last term was about keeping afloat and ensuring that classes had a body in front of them, parents were as happy as they could be and that plans were in place for when a new teacher arrived this term. I took on a lot of extra teaching hours and the marking, assessment, planning, homework, detentions.... that came with those hours. Four extra hours in front of new groups meant that these hours doubled in my time outside of lessons. A particular highlight was a Thursday in which each week I was teaching my own five lessons and setting two cover lessons for a non-specialist for whom the odd were not in their favour that day.
I will have that medal now, thank you.
Leading a large, core department on four frees a week and still maintaining all extra-curricular, CPD and duty commitments left me very little time to "lead". I became a manager. Pinging off emails 10 minutes before the start of lessons became my only viable communication channel as I battled to make sure that students were taught roughly in line with the scheme of work and that books had some form of assessment in them. In my head, this was a disaster; I had not completed the department development plan, no performance management had even been started, I had two new members of staff I was yet to see teach and I was pretty sure that 40% of my body was actually coffee.
But now, here I sit and with a new teacher settling into the team I reflect in my little corner of the Internet. I imagine myself as the parent of little Tom in Year 7 who three weeks into September discovered that dear little Tom was only being taught by a maths specialist for 50% of his lessons for the rest of the long autumn term (I am said ‘maths specialist’ by the way). In the 50% of lessons taught by the maths specialist, was he taught engaging, pacey, target driven lessons based on a love of mathematics? Yes. Was his book assessed, fed back and praised in a timely manner allowing him to know what and how to improve? Yes. Was he set solid consolidation for the other 50% of his lessons? Yes. Did he achieve in line with his target and peers in the end of term assessment? Yes. Has the department development plan even been looked at? No.
There are some things you learn best in calm and some things you learn best in a storm. So what have I learnt? As long as I continue to care about little Tom loving mathematics and becoming the best mathematician he can be 10 Ticks will return to its dusty folder and the storm will pass with us all becoming much better sailors...or at least knowing where the compass is when the next cold front comes in.