Going to France

This week week's blog comes to you courtesy of the I-PAD. It’s Saturday. I'm sitting on a coach at 7.45 pm not far short of Scotch Corner. I'm with Mesdames March, Carr and Archer and Mademoiselle Wood as well as 27 tired but happy key stage 3  students. We are returning to Consett after a six day educational visit to Montdidier in the Picardy region of France.

 After a long career in teaching, the past few days have been a brand new experience. I've never taken students abroad before and it was a real eye opener. Pat March is a well seasoned group leader and I learnt a great deal from her meticulous attention to detail.

 First of all, every care was taken to ensure that the whole group was safe at all times. This was especially  true when we were travelling and also when we visited Paris where repeated head counts were necessary in one of the most hectic cities on the planet. Also, Pat saw many and various opportunities to increase students’ knowledge of French culture and history. Even when we were on the coach she would take to the microphone to point out features of interest we were passing by.

 But the main learning objective of the visit was to improve spoken French. I’m certain that this was achieved because my own very rudimentary French was enhanced by Pat’s tuition.

 (Now at this point  I can't resist the opportunity to complain once again about my secondary education. I passed French O level ...somehow... but the first time I actually spoke French was when, as an ungainly 15 year old and after several years of French lessons, I was ushered into the deputy head’s office for my GCE oral test with an examiner from the exam board. This experience was made all the more farcical by my somehow managing to steer the conversation to  the aerodynamics if the Concord. I wish I had it on tape and I’m still amazed that I passed with such pitiful support from my French teachers who placed so little value on actually speaking the language.)

 Anyway, Pat's influence helped me lose my self consciousness about speaking a foreign tongue and I hope that the kids feel the same. They certainly managed the shopping trip to Montdidier market on Thursday when Pat had set them the challenge of buying their picnic lunch with bonus points for making healthy choices.

 So many thanks to Pat March and the other adults for making the trip so happy and gainful. Oh, and to the students too for their enthusiasm and excellent behaviour.

 In a way, the visit was part of my signing off from Moorside. I'll always treasure the memory of standing in such delightful company at the top of the Eiffel Tower, with the magnificent Parisian cityscape spread before us.

Phones

I want to start by apologising for the negative message  about mobile phones on our home page.

If you are a parent or carer, you might feel that we’re telling you off. That’s not intentional , so don’t be too sore about it. As I keep saying, if you knew what we had to deal with, you’d probably tell us to ban mobile phones altogether.

And I regret to say that that might well happen if we don’t see a big improvement in responsible use of phones by students and, to be honest, parents.

Sounds like a backward step doesn’t it?

And, anyway, the toothpaste is out of the tube and don’t bother slamming the stable door – the horse cantered off ages ago. As far as mobiles are concerned that is - because they’re well and truly here to stay.

Let’s face it, whether we like it or not, they’ve changed society: mobiles are  everywhere and it’s  become normal for just about all of us to start fiddling with our handsets in any idle moment. They even go off at funerals which must be bizarre if you’ve got The Birdy Song as your ring tone.

So it’s not just teenagers who use mobiles irresponsibly. We adults should set a better example and schools should start giving education on how to use phones appropriately. Kids must learn that it’s just plain wrong to text your dad every time a teacher tells you off.

Right – the rant ends here.

Let’s go back to the home page because you’ll have noticed that we’re advertising something which shows the good side of hand held technology. We’re going to host a training day for teachers from other schools and it’s all about how you can use I-pads etc. to boost learning. Some of our people have made great strides in how to use these devices in lessons so we’ll be able to show how our students can use I-pods and I-pads to learn in exciting new ways. You can even paint with your fingers on an I-pad screen – a brand new artistic medium which Moorside students absolutely love.

Wouldn’t  be great if we could have an understanding with everyone involved that smart phones could also be brought into the classroom and used constructively?

Anyway, I must go and pack my bag for France. I'll report back next week on what it's like to accompany 31 Moorsiders to another country.

The News is Out!

You’ll know from our home page that I’m moving on at the end of term.

One of the things I’ve learnt over the years is that change is inevitable and that nothing stays the same. I’ve had eight unforgettable years at Moorside, but I’ve decided that now is the time for me to do something new.

Like Moorside, Marden High is a great school with great staff, students and community support. However, it offers a completely different set of challenges from those I took on here in 2003. If I tell you that Marden already has very high academic standards and that it’s full and oversubscribed, you’ll know what I mean. My job is to make it even better.

So you’ll understand that I’m very excited by the prospect of what lies ahead of me.

You’ll also understand that I’m very sad to go.

Especially, if you’ve read these blogs over the years. If you look back on them, a common message has been my intense pride of what Moorside stands for and of the great things which we have achieved through brilliant team work.

Well, those achievements will not change. Everyone knows what we’ve accomplished and they’re historical facts. What Moorside must do now is take full advantage of the transition to academy status and , knowing the people involved, I’m sure this will occur.

Anyway, another action packed term lies ahead. Year 11 are working hard, I’m glad to say, so we’ve high hopes of GCSE results. On Monday, there’s a meeting about America Day, date still unknown. I’ve already been asked to dress up as Abraham Lincoln – I’ll have to think about that one, especially if it comes with an invitation to the theatre. I’m accompanying the educational visit to France, there’s another football training camp in Spain, we’ll be meeting the students starting year 7 in September...I could go on.

Oh, and look out for my video blog about how we use new technology.

History Matters

Yesterday a group of us devoted the afternoon to analysing our predictions for this summer’s GCSE results. You’re never safe until the results actually arrive in mid August, but, all being well, we might well have cause for celebration because we’ll be making history.
 
And even if we don’t quite make the very high targets we’ve set for ourselves (and I’m not going to tell you what they are, just in case we do undershoot) the confidence and hard work of students and teachers are still very impressive and worthy of a school which is on the crest of a wave.
 
Well, so what? You might ask.
 
Moorside’s outstanding – everyone agrees – just look at the successive years of massive improvement. And all this from a school where ten years ago they’d actually started the demolition process and the results were the lowest in the area.
 
All of that is true.
 
And not only that but parents have been clamouring d for places at Moorside for some years now which shows how well we’ve won over community confidence. So what’s my point?
 
Well, it’s this.
 
The Moorside name disappears at midnight on December 31st, 2011. From that moment we will be Consett Academy and Moorside will have closed for business. Well, it won’t be quite as brutal as that. Our new sponsors assure us that it will be business as usual, but you might still think that staff heads would go down.
 
And in some schools you’d be right.
 
But not this lot.
 
Staff enthusiasm for doing the very best for the students in undimmed, even though legal closure of the school is in sight.
 
And I know that because of the exam meeting I ‘ve just mentioned,  a quite amazing breakfast meeting of the Teaching and Learning group and the full attendance by Humanities staff and students at the exam revision classes after school.
 
And all on the last day of a long, hard term which, by the look of them, has left quite a few teachers utterly exhausted.
 
Anyway, I hope you get my point.
 
So the Moorside staff show that we can go on improving even though we’re near the end of our history.
 
And speaking of history, on Wednesday night at our year 10 parents evening I met a very nice guy called Eric Symonds. Eric taught technology at Moorside in the sixties and wanted to tell me that he’d taught Paul Brasington who passed away recently. Eric also gave me a historical nugget which, as a total rock music anorak, really took my interest. Apparently, Moorside use to hold an end of year dance and in 1969 they hired a young band from Newcastle. Anyway, who should turn up but a very young Mark Knopfler destined for international superstardom in Dire Straits in the 1980’s. Apparently, Knopfler and co blew the roof of with an incredible performance.
 
Well, I love the idea of one of the world’s best guitarists doing his stuff on the Moorside stage. And wouldn’t it be great if we could find some photos of what sounds like a great gig?
 
And on that theme, we are starting to talk about ways in which we can celebrate Moorside’s history between now and Christmas. The school opened in 1958 (I think) so thousands of children and hundreds of staff have walked the corridors over the years – that makes for a lot of stories.
 
So if you have any film, photos, mementoes and recollections of Moorside you’d like to share before the academy opens, just let me know.
 

Talent Spotting

 
The media have a lot to answer for.
 
I was out with non-teacher friends last night and they’d all seen the national news reports about the school in Lancashire where the staff have gone on strike because of bad behaviour. Then with undertaker frowns they moved on to Waterloo Road. I knew at this point that Jamie’s Dream School was going to be next on the list, felt the blood pressure rising, took a deep breath and managed to change the subject.
 
Apart from the legendary Kes back in the sixties, I’ve never seen a true representation of British school life on television or on film. I did watch Teachers on Channel 4 a few years ago, but that was for only 2 reasons:
 
1.   I liked to spot the surreal cameo appearance of a donkey in the school corridors in every episode
2.   I was a huge fan of Brian, the PE teacher.
 
So it was an entertaining programme but a million miles from what it’s really like. And as for the   print media, they  are only interested in bad news stories like the upheaval in Lancashire and not the great work that most teachers do, often heroically in very challenging areas.
 
Anyway, you’d think that with that kind of media exposure no one would want to be a teacher.
 
Well, I’m pleased to say that you’d be wrong.
 
You see it’s recruitment season at Moorside and this week I’ve been immersed in interviews for new staff for September. Many of the candidates were young and brand new to teaching and the quality was awesome. In fact, I wish that we’d had ten jobs because we could have filled them easily.  We were presented with  talented and diligent young professionals who will go a long way and who are determined to give something back to young people, despite the media distortions.
 
Everyone knows that it’s stressful being interviewed, but it’s pretty hard on the other side of the table too. I hate having to tell good people they haven’t got the job, for instance. But staff selection is  one of the most important things a head does. You have to be good at spotting talent and sizing up whether or not someone will fit with the rest of the team and the Moorside ethos.
 
Mind you, we collect plenty of evidence before we decide.
 
Apart from considering the written application and the references, we see candidates in different situations throughout the day. The most important event is the lesson observation, of course, because teaching and learning come first at Moorside. We also involve the Student Council who hold their own interviews and provide valuable insights from the pupil viewpoint.
 
And just to finish off and you’re a teacher looking for a job, here are some of my highly subjective dos and don’ts at interview.
 
·        Dress for business. Teaching is a profession, so dress immaculately and practically for your subject environment and keep dressing that way if you get the job. Jacket and tie for men, preferably suit and definitely tie. My female colleagues say there should be no visible undergarments with complete coverage of the chest region. If it’s PE, bring your sports gear to change into, but first sight of you should be in your best bib and tucker.
 
·        Do lots of homework on the school, so that you know the place already when you arrive. Make an informal visit beforehand if you can. One of the successful candidates this week somehow found out  how we use the learning passport and included it in her lesson and that was impressive.
 
·        Leave nothing to chance with your lesson observation. You probably won’t get the job unless your lesson is graded as at least OFSTED Good. If you want more information for planning your lesson, contact the school before the interview day and don't be afraid of asking for prior attainment data so that you can differentiate without guesswork.
 
·        Don’t chew (I’m serious), constantly text in the staff room (it’s annoying) or (you won’t believe this) repeatedly swig from a bottle of water when you’re in the actual interview.
 
·        And don’t complain that the questions are hard during the interview and don’t keep saying that you’re nervous. We know that you’re nervous and would be worried if you weren’t. We’re nervous too because we might give the job to the wrong person. So  deal with it by concentrating with a single mind on giving the best impression of you.
 
Anyway, we’ve appointed some great young teachers who will start before the end of the summer term and I can’t wait to work with them. They will strengthen the excellent Moorside staff even further and help us look to the future with great optimism.
 
And there are two more interviews next week.
 

America Day

A lot of people have been asking, “Are we having another Glastonbury Day?”
 
If you’re new to Moorside, you might not know about Glastonbury Day.
 
It was the most successful non-uniform fund raising event we’ve ever had. It happened last year on the first day of the real festival when we held our own version on campus with live bands playing on the field, a village of shops selling festival memorabilia which students had made in DT and lots of lessons on the environment and music tuition. It was a very happy and, believe it or not, highly educational day, brilliantly organised by the staff and student Council. Not only that, but we raised £1200 for Wateraid, one of Glastonbury's adopted charities.
 
In fact, it went so well that we’ve decided not to do it again. We just don’t think we can surpass it and we don’t want to spoil the memory by having a second go.
 
Sounds decisive doesn’t it?
 
But it’s left the Student Council and me scratching our heads to think about another idea. The thing about Glastonbury Day was that it proved to be a great vehicle for involving everyone, whatever their interests. So it’s been a challenge coming up with a substitute.
 
Some good ideas have been offered.
 
How about a royal wedding day? We couldn’t think of anyone to stand in for the royal couple and, if we did, what if we really married them by accident? Could be complicated.
 
Harry Potter? The flying could be a challenge and some kill joys might object to Moorside students practising white magic.
 
The Olympics? Great idea, but best saved until 2012, provided that having fun is on the academy agenda.
 
Then I was talking to some students about Glee which I’ve never seen. Somebody said, “Let’s have a Glee Day.” And then we came up with America Day because we  saw that every subject could contribute and that we could tap into teenage interest in all things American.
 
So ideas, please. Thomas Dunn has already suggested that we walk on the right in the corridors for the day so that’s a start.
 
Oh, and we’re going to stage it as near to the fourth of July as we can. That’s a Monday so we might have to sweet talk Christine Connolly into changing her carefully planned calendar.

Getting to Know Straight Away

Paul Brasington

A group of us attended Paul’s funeral last Monday. It was an extremely moving event and I’ll never forget the eulogy given by Paul’s best climbing friend. It encapsulated Paul’s great love of life and made us all keenly aware of the great loss caused by his early passing.

Getting to Know Straight Away

All teenagers have a double life.

It’s typical teenage behaviour to try to jeep your life in boxes filed family, friends and school. To have maximum lifestyle control, the trick is to make sure that those three know as little as possible about each other.

So when you come home from school and someone asks what you did today, the answer has got to be along the lines of: “Nothing”...or...”Usual stuff”...or...”It was boring”. And then you launch a decoy operation by descending on the contents of the fridge like a plague of locusts.

And it’s that kind of behaviour (and it’s completely normal, by the way) which explains why the annual reports to parents and carers often provoke surprise – pleasant and unpleasant. So you hear comments like: “I didn’t know she was so good at Maths.” “How long have you been a peer mentor?” or, depressingly, to me or the staff, “Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

Anyway, we’re going to shake things up a bit and try to put an end to conversations like that.

You might already know that parents can access daily information about their kids on line via our virtual leaning environment. It’s called the parental portal. This means that you can find out all sorts of data about your little darling without having to ask them to give you their highly selective version of events. The parents who use it now absolutely love it, but we need to relaunch it so that even more can benefit.

Not only that, but we’re also going to shorten the annual report process (it takes a staggering 8 weeks to complete at present) and make it available via the internet. Parents will still receive the at a glance information we’ve always given about individual subjects as well as a comprehensive prose appraisal from the form tutor. We think we can have that to parents in a fortnight. So watch this space. Jeff Allan is leading the initiative and is planning to trial it first with year 10 next term.

Comic Relief Red Nose Day

Another happy day to add to the annals of Moorside thanks to the Student Council and many members of staff who all joined in with the utterly daft spirit of the event. By the end of the afternoon the cash total raised stood at £888 and this will no doubt increase in the final reckoning. It was a mad hair day too, so here are some photos: