Teachers Talk Radio

Two-week half-terms in the autumn term are becoming more commonplace in schools around the UK. While for students and teachers, this is welcome respite in the middle of a gruelling, dark and long term, the challenge arises for parents (and many parent-teachers with conflicting school schedules) in organising childcare.

The benefits for wellbeing and workload are clearly reported by those schools that have already adopted this as th...

Should speaking and listening have equal status with reading and writing and what would that mean in the classroom? Tony Harwood, Rae Whitehouse, Lucy Trimnell and Christopher Vowles join TTR Points of View to debate plans to put oracy at the heart of the curriculum.

Could this help tackle disadvantage and equip pupils for a world shaped by AI? How should spoken language be taught and assessed and will teachers get the time, traini...

Chatting, calling out, tapping and answering back: how much disruption has become accepted as part of everyday teaching?

On Points of View, we debate the cumulative impact of so-called low-level disruption on teachers and pupils. Where is the line between ordinary classroom restlessness and behaviour that stops others learning?

Are expectations clear and consistent and do teachers get the support they need to uphold them?

We refere...

Who keeps our schools running when the classroom doors close? This show shines a light on the often-overlooked support staff who keep education moving. From dealing with frustrated parents to supporting teachers and school leaders, their contribution is vital but often unrecognised. Featuring an interview with an 18-year-old school office apprentice, the show explores the realities behind the scenes and asks a powerful question: Ar...

Tim Smale is joined by executive headteacher Adrian McLean to ask why school values so often go out of the window, and why schools might need virtues instead. They also get into teacher overload and the rise in AI-written complaints to schools. Adrian has taken one question to the TEDx stage and the House of Lords: what does character ask of a leader when holding the line is the lonely and expensive option? Tim and Adrian take it o...

Headaches, migraines, nausea and high blood pressure: are we taking the health impact of poor pupil behaviour seriously enough?

JP, Liz Webb and Maud Waret discuss a NASUWT survey linking severe pupil behaviour with higher rates of reported physical health problems.

Of more than 10,000 respondents, 59% reported verbal abuse from pupils in the previous year and 17% reported physical assault. Should poor behaviour be treated as an oc...

In this fourth episode, PSHE lead and educator Clare Price considers how to challenge the unsafe myths that vaping is "safe", considers who might be the right person to deliver messages about misogyny in schools and statistics that show young people are increasingly positive about Relationships and Sex Education. 

Articles referenced include: 

One million UK people who have never smoked are now vapers - BBC News

Half of g...

This week, multiple reports paint a picture of a watchdog under pressure, with school leaders questioning Ofsted’s leadership, unions losing confidence, and serious concerns mounting over the impact of inspections on school leadership and staff wellbeing.

An independent study has found that almost nine in ten schools reported a negative impact on staff mental health following inspection, while ASCL has passed a vote of no con...

Are classrooms becoming politically biased, or are teachers being dragged into another political row? Tonight on Points of View, we debate Laura Trott’s claim that some teaching on equality, citizenship and identity amounts to “propaganda that’s brainwashing our children”. The Conservatives are proposing compulsory impartiality training, greater Ofsted scrutiny and a ban on school “culture” or &l...

The teaching profession is tough in the UK with high workload, sustained accountability pressures and increasing levels of student need. But how do the pressures in the UK compare to those overseas? Perhaps we have some reasons to be thankful? Join Yannick and Tony as they delve into some of the biggest challenges faced by other countries currently and reflect on why some aspects of UK education might not be as bad as perhaps they ...

A major DfE survey "Growing up in the 2020s" has found that 31% of students affected by bullying said that staff were aware, with 33% saying they were not and 36% being unsure.

The survey, conducted by UCL and the Anna Freud Centre, will follow 8000 students in England, currently aged 12 and 13, through their secondary school experience. The results reported are the first collected.

The survey also revealed that girls and students ...

Tim Smale is joined by Guy Holder, Head of PSHE for a frank conversation about the technology arriving in children's lives faster than schools can keep up. Camera-equipped smart glasses are on sale on the high street, and Guy is campaigning to have them banned. Tim and Guy ask what these glasses mean for consent, for safeguarding and for anyone who could be filmed in a classroom without knowing it. They also get into phone pouches ...

It will come as little surprise to most that work in education to hear that teachers are leaving the classroom in their droves. This is a pattern being repeated around the world, but in England the statistics are above the OECD average, with 7.2% of fully qualified teachers resigning in comparison to a 4.2% average. 91% of these are resignations in England, in comparison to an average of 55% across OECD countries. Membership of Fac...