Yesterday saw the conclusion of our three staff reading groups at DESC. 40 staff have been involved in this initiative this year, reading educational literature and then meeting regularly to discuss how findings can be applied to our context and help support the improvement of learning at our school. Additionally fostering a spirit of debate and inquiry across our teaching staff.

My group have been reading Tom Bennett’s ‘Teacher Proof’, which was the subject of some lively discussion in yesterday’s meeting. Some believing that Bennett’s work is necessary, thought provoking and highlights the necessity for teachers to be wary of fads in education, a call to arms for the teaching profession. Others felt the book stated the obvious and where such

We spent the last part of the meeting discussing the future of the reading groups and our thoughts for developing this even further next year. All agreed the process has been useful and I summarise the comments/feedback below.

FEEDBACK:

• It makes you think and supports reflection on teaching practice
• Increases collaboration
• Increases energy from other people’s company
• It has inspired me to read more
• Interesting to get fresh views on different topics
• Useful to engage with credible ideas
• Useful to have opportunities to talk about pedagogy with people from other depts
• Good practical ideas I can use in lessons
• Narrows the gap between research and practice!
• Has taught me to question what I think is right

FEEDFORWARD

• Can we meet more often?
• Ensure the books are not too heavy, light reads make it easier to get the reading done
• How are we disseminating the ideas further?
• How do we create more of these types of opportunities for staff to come together to discuss T&L outside of their Depts?

Would be great to see even more people involved in the reading groups next year!

I attach some tips and guidance for running a staff reading group.

Tips for running a staff reading group

Reading group meeting proforma

#DESClearn