Posts by Mark Taylor

094: Reading for Pleasure – Prof. Teresa Cremin

By Mark Taylor | May 6, 2019 |

It was my privilege to be at the NAPE Annual Schiller Lecture last week to listen to Prof. Teresa Cremin speak on the topic – Reading for Pleasure: developing readers for life.

You can find out more about Teresa Cremin on the Open University website

http://www.open.ac.uk/people/tmc242#tab1

https://researchrichpedagogies.org/research/team/reading-for-pleasure

National Association for Primary Education are the sole sponsor of the Education on Fire Podcast Network and it is my pleasure to be able to share one of their events with you to support this English & literacy season.

A Story about a Catalan school.

May 3, 2019 |

Guest blog post by Jeremy D Rowe.

This story starts in a very unlikely way: we went to a symphony concert at Barcelona’s Auditori, with the Orquestra Simfonica de Barcelona, which was to include Brahms’s 3^rd Symphony and Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite. Before the concert started, a short video was shown about music teaching in a local school. Suddenly we were listening to (and watching) a headteacher talking about her school’s commitment to the arts, and how this enhances all the children’s learning in all other subjects.

Following the video, the first item of the concert was a co-operation between the school and the symphony orchestra. The school had worked with a guest musician to develop instrumental and vocal music, based on the Firebird, and had added some mime and dance. The piece was called “Gall de Foc”. There were about fifty children on stage: nine playing junior double basses, about a dozen on violins, and at least twenty-five plastic guitars. Through the audience came another fifty or so, dancing and singing, and going up onto the stage to join the full orchestra and their peers. The children appeared to be from years 5 and 6. I counted at least five teachers working amongst them, keeping everything going.

The performance was wonderful, with the children playing alongside the professional orchestra, and singing with Festival of Voices gusto. I cried all the way through.

The concert programme said: “The school was born in 2014 as a unique project based on all artistic languages ….. our principal objective is to create a centre working on all the arts to make a social transformation.” It’s a state school, in a working class neighbourhood near the airport. During the weekend, they did three performances (Friday evening, Saturday evening and Sunday morning).

Back home afterwards, I looked for the school on the internet, and from its website it’s possible to guess that it has a very mixed population. I discovered a large number of videos of the work going on in the school, not just music, but all the arts, and with all primary ages. ….. how wonderful to find everything we believe in alive and well in an urban school in Barcelona.

The kind of work which is vanishing from schools in the UK, the kind of work which gives children a basis for a fulfilled life, bursts from the screen in the videos you can find on YouTube. Just look up “Escola Pepa Colomer” on YouTube and see what can be done with an enthusiastic staff, and a local authority willing to fund a “radical” approach to primary education. The children are exploding with enthusiasm. These kids will not be turning to knife crime to justify their existence!

Oh, and by the way, the Auditorium gave all parents tickets for the concert for only €15 (most seats cost about €50 or more), so this venture was supported in many and various ways.

Jeremy D Rowe

April 2019

Brave Young Heroes with Bolaji Oyejide. LF031

By Mark Taylor | May 3, 2019 |

Bolaji Oyejide joins me on the Learning on Fire podcast and explores the most important learning and educational moments that shaped his life.

Our guest – Bolaji Oyejide

Bolaji O is the creator of Brave Young Heroes – a series of 50 superhero books featuring diverse kids who find their inner strength. Despite differences like anxiety, autism, dyslexia, obesity, shyness, OCD, and more.

As Doctor Hero, Bolaji helps kids to write themselves into a heroic story.

He founded Superhero Academy: A reality role-playing adventure game that helps kids master character development by putting them right in the middle of an epic struggle for the future of childhood.

He also invented I, S.U.P.E.R. – a proprietary method for creating a confident, bully proof, growth mindset in children.

Bolaji has been featured on ABC, TEDx, the News & Observer, and school counselor conferences across the country.

Questions asked on the Learning on Fire Podcast Interview

1. Who are you?
2. What does your life look like now and how is it different from when you were growing up?
3. What was valuable about your school experience?
4. Which teachers do you remember and why?
5. Who did you admire when you were young?
6. What was it about that person that had such an impact?
7. What was the best piece of advice you have ever been given and who gave it to you?
8. What advice would you give your younger self?
9. What does your future look like?
10. What podcast, book, video, film, song or other resource has had the biggest impact on your life and why?

Our aim is to achieve a higher priority for the education of children from birth to 13. High quality learning in the early years of life is vitally important to the creation of an educated society. Young children are not simply preparing for the future, they are living a never to be repeated time of life and the best way to learn is to live.

Education A Manifesto for Change with Richard Gerver – NAPE 024

By Mark Taylor | May 1, 2019 |

Richard Gerver has been described as one of the most inspirational leaders of his generation. He is an award-winning speaker, bestselling author and world-renowned thinker.

Richard began his career in education, most notably as headmaster of the failing Grange Primary School. In just two years, famously transformed into one of the most acclaimed learning environments in the world. He was celebrated by UNESCO and the UK Government for its incredible turnaround.

Richard has since transitioned to the global stage where he uses his trademark humour and natural style to deliver passionate, provocative and authentic speeches. He draws upon the first-hand experiences and unique insights garnered from frontline education to explore the links between great leadership, human potential, change and innovation. His ability to connect experiences across many seemingly different environments helps people to expand their thinking and perception of potential. It is this authenticity and uniqueness which has helped Richard win him global acclaim and invitations to speak on the most recognised stages, including TED, the RSA and BBC radio.

The three core principles underpinning Richard’s philosophy are communication, empowerment and impact. He argues that great leadership is first and foremost about serving the needs of the people who work for you. His mantra: systems and structures change nothing; people do.

Having successfully transitioned from teacher to thought leader, Richard has had the opportunity to regularly advise governments and major corporations globally, including Google, Visa, Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, Deloitte, Harrods, Puig and Telefonica. His unique experience and insight into realising human potential also see him working in elite sport, with Olympic and Paralympic coaches, EPL Soccer coaches, England Golf and professional cricket teams. He has recently started working with the British music industry to help develop a capacity for forward, proactive and sustainable change.

Richard is also a bestselling author. His first book, Creating Tomorrow’s Schools Today (now in its second edition), has become a seminal text around the world for those engaged in the transformation of education. His other books are explorations of human potential, leadership and success. In Change and Simple Thinking, Richard explores the world beyond school, through the eyes of an educator. Both have received critical and public success; both achieving global bestseller status. All his books have been translated into a multitude of languages including Spanish, Chinese and Korean. Richard will also be publishing a new book: Education: A Manifesto for Change, to be published in April 2019, this book will explore how our school system can be made fit for purpose in our turbulent 21st-century world.

Most importantly, Richard is always humbled to be able to share his lifelong commitment to living, learning and laughing.

www.richardgerver.com

Twitter @richardgerver

093: Write On! Webb

By Mark Taylor | April 29, 2019 |

Melissa’s goal at Write On! Webb is to serve Parent Educators and their elementary and middle school children who long for support in the area of writing — but, not just learning to write well – actually enjoying the process, too! Through live educational webinars, digital courses, multitudes of writing aids and resources, as well as interacting with a community of like-minded, family-loving, kid-centered moms, Melissa inspires and empowers all who travel down the wild and wonderful parenting path of home study.

Melissa Webb: entrepreneur, credentialed teacher, author, and parent. In all of these capacities, I work hard positively impacting the lives of children.

Do you feel it is our responsibility and privilege to empower and engage today’s young learners?

Me, too, which is why I created Write On! Webb.

Since the summer of 2017, through my online community and instructional video lessons, I have been igniting children’s curiosity, knowledge, and passion for writing.

I’ve grown from classroom teacher > homeschool facilitator > homeschool mom > online instructor > home-based entrepreneur