Author Archives: rosmcm1962

*A phrase I’m borrowing from @chaloner88 Having led schools in challenging contexts for over 20 years I now have ‘no skin in the game’ but I find myself dismayed at what is unfurling.  I am watching in horror the comments … Continue reading →

It is probably not a good idea to blog while still seething with anger, but this morning I am encouraged to do so by many others who are simply too exhausted and distressed. Over the last dreadful few months we … Continue reading →

My youngest is 16.  She did her GCSEs and had her prom a year ago, and is coping well with A-level study at home.  She has a large bedroom to herself, great wifi, plenty of gadgets, is well-supported by a … Continue reading →

I remember when I was a young Head of Faculty handing a letter into the office manager for typing.  She looked at it and then at me over the top of her glasses and said “This isn’t what you want; … Continue reading →

If you believe, as I do, that there is no better job than that of being a teacher then we should have all been surprised, horrified and baffled when listening to the news this morning that there is a crisis … Continue reading →

We all want every child to go to a good school.  We all want every child to reach their full potential.  And we all know that this is not currently happening.  During the time I have been leading schools (in … Continue reading →

It is not the same thing as a dramatic improvement in results. It is possible to effect a dramatic improvement in a school’s results and our accountability system puts demands on our most vulnerable schools to do this.  OFSTED inspections … Continue reading →

  At the @HeadsRoundtable summit earlier this year I attended a great workshop where Professor Bekky Allen outlined the problem so clearly: it is us who have allowed this to happen – we have been the agents through which this awful … Continue reading →

When I was first a head, back in 2000, I had taken on a particularly challenging school and had a ‘consultancy team’ of 3 experienced heads working with me.  They worked in the background coaching and advising me and, crucially, … Continue reading →

I am increasingly concerned that lots of people whom I respect greatly in our “Edu-Twitter sphere” seem to be forced into opposite corners.  I read lots of articles, blogs and pieces of research – many of which appear to contradict … Continue reading →