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I was fine until I started speaking to you! Was what I overheard on the train to central Brum on the Saturday of this positively scorching bank holiday weekend. Of the pair, it seemed one was perfectly fine being single until her insensitive friend decided to tell her about her lack of a man. She … Continue reading Protecting Other Peoples Mental Health

You finally get an interview at your dream school.  Scrubbed up in your best attire, you sit at reception with a bunch of others, all looking equally keen and enthusiastic. While you know they are your competitors, you also know that not speaking to them would be antisocial, so you bravely spark up a conversation:  … Continue reading When There’s an Internal Candidate at The Interview

This is ridiculous! No school does as much as we do! I’ve had enough! I’m leaving! Said no teacher ever. Or, said every teacher, usually during stressful times in the academic year. Often, the sentiment is a passing one, but for some, the feeling that the grass is greener elsewhere just cannot be shaken. Some … Continue reading From The Frying Pan into The Fire: Before You Start Applying

Like a bucket of water for some, or a finger in the eye for others, it hits you: The holidays are over. You haven’t eaten a vegetable for two weeks; you’ve watched so many murder documentaries on Netflix that you’re convinced you can do it and get away with it. Your bedtime routine is totally … Continue reading Why We Can’t Wait For Monday

‘Great. I’ll keep it in my butt with your nose.’ Was what Joanna says to her assistant Sophie when she pathetically tells her she bought her a macaroon for lunch. The One With the ‘Cuffs. Season 4 episode 3 of Friends. Who can resist a bit of nostalgia in the Easter holidays eh? Nevertheless, the … Continue reading Friendships At School: Who to Avoid and Who to Embrace

PGCE vs NQT: Which one’s tougher? I can finally exhale- it’s the Easter holidays. Is what you told yourself when you heard the final bell and made a beeline to your local to exchange stories, to drown sorrows, with fellow trainee teachers. No more 400 page lesson plans, you told yourself. No more hypercritical mentor … Continue reading PGCE vs NQT: Which one’s tougher?

This is NOT you. You might think this is you; your mother and friends may even convince you that this is you, but I’m sorry- this is definitely not you. Was what your inner monologue said when you agreed to an innocent coffee with a nice sounding, nice looking person you met online. Silly you … Continue reading What Schools Will Hide From You . . . Until The Interview

What Does Good School Leadership Look Like? The Muppets. A fellow teacher I met at a union conference once told me that he and his colleagues used this term to describe their leadership team, when they decided that a Mocksted inspection was still necessary, after a good Ofsted inspection. Some staff indulged the term further … Continue reading What Does Good School Leadership Look Like?

The days are short, the nights are long. Your classes are dancing circles around you, and as you panic your weekend away worrying about the looming book scrutiny- for which you have weeks of pupil response missing- you find yourself shutting down. You sit at your desk, your eyes glazed over, wondering why on earth … Continue reading How To Ask For Help: A Guide for PGCEs and NQTs