Teach Secondary 14.4

43 THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM Unless Ofsted addresses inspectors’ packed schedules and its own quality assurance processes, school inspections will continue being more unpleasant and less consistent than they should be, says Adrian Lyons 45 CAUGHT SHORT Anthony David offers up some helpful advice for any school leaders struggling to recruit teaching staff for shortage subjects 48 LET THE FUTURE THROUGH The prospect of a new, genuinely inclusive curriculum for neurodivergent learners is an exciting one, writes Meena Wood – but is our accountability system ready for it? 62 PRISONERS OF PEDAGOGY Teaching and learning strategies mandated from on high are doing teachers and students alike a disservice, argues Aaron Swan 66 A DEFINING ISSUE Jennifer Hampton makes the case for why the profession’s knowledge of what dyslexia is and how teachers can help is less robust than you might expect 70 AGAINST IMPOSTER SYNDROME Feeling like a fraud who’s out of their depth when facing your classes? You’re not the only one, says Colin Foster... 73 DOUBLE OR QUITS We’re well beyond the point where schools need to start taking underage gambling seriously, writes Sam Starsmore TS Special – Health &Wellbeing 28 ANXIOUS TIMES Ann Marie Christian charts the growing levels of distress, worry and anxiety among students over time, and what schools can do in response 33 EARLY WARNING SIGNS You might think that your school’s ECTs are doing fine, says Amy Sayer – but when was the last time you actually checked? 34 NO TRADE-OFFS We should reject the fallacy that attending to students’ wellbeing inevitably means compromising on academic outcomes, writes Alice Guile CONTENTS Regulars 11 DICTIONARY DEEP DIVE David Voisin examines the hidden origins and surprising behaviours concealed within our everyday vocabulary 12 THINK PIECE Alka Sehgal Cuthbert explains why it’s time for the profession to look more closely at the role exam boards have played in shaping the nature and quality of GCSE assessments 15 NATASHA DEVON Netflix’s widely praised drama Adolescence deserves praise for publicising the issue of online radicalisation among teenage boys – but unless we take on the power of the big tech platforms, the problemwon’t go away... 16 MELISSA BENN If anything, Labour’s upcoming Curriculum Review is perhaps too modest in its aims – so why are the same familiar voices from yesteryear claiming that the government has gone too far? 38 OFF THE SHELVES Brilliant titles for you and your students to explore 69 MAKING SENSE OF… STANDARD FORM If your students are struggling to express numbers below 1 in standard form, then Colin Foster has some advice to share 82 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS John Lawson explains why – within reason – students can and should consider matters of pop culture, and even pornography within RE lessons Features 21 WHAT I LEARNED AT SCHOOL Fara Williams tells us why, when she earned a place on England’s under-16s squad, her schoolfriends and teachers were none the wiser... 22 STAND YOUR GROUND Ed Carlin on why school leaders mustn’t let parental complaints snowball and start changing your school’s culture for the worse 24 WHAT’S WORKING – AND WHAT’S NOT? Gordon Cairns examines whether the current vogue for teachers researching their own teaching ideas via a Practitioner Enquiry could constitute a new and valuable form of CPD 40 BRINGING BOYS ON BOARD Recent social trends and nefarious online actors have conspired to complicate the process of engaging teenage boys in learning – but it doesn’t have to be that way, asserts Lewis Wedlock MAY/JUN ‘25 Publishers: Joe Carter, Sam Reubin, Richard Stebbing Editor: Callum Fauser, callum.fauser@artichokehq.com , 01206 505115 Group Advertising Managers: Samantha Law, samantha.law@artichokehq.com , 01206 505499 Hayley Rackham, hayley.rackham@artichokehq.com, 01206 505928 Deputy Advertising Manager: Hannah Jones, hannah.jones@artichokehq.com , 01206 505924 Art editors: Richard Allen, Sarah Barajas Customer services: secondary@artichokehq.com Accounts: artichokemedialtd@integral2.com Published by: Artichoke Media, Suites 2 & 4, Global House, Global Park, Eastgates, CO1 2TJ The views in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher. We try to ensure the veracity and integrity of the companies, persons, products and services mentioned in this publication, and the details given are believed to be accurate at the time of going to press. However, no responsibility or liability whatsoever can be accepted for any consequence or repercussion of responding to information or advice given or inferred. ©Artichoke Media Ltd TS Focus – Edtech 56 READING BETWEEN THE LINES Professor Victoria Baines shares her thoughts on why the teaching of critical thinking can play a crucial role in online safeguarding 59 ONLINE SAFETY Tasha Henstock outlines her five key steps for educating students about the importance of staying safe online 60 AI REGULATIONS If the bold new future for learning promised by AI comes to pass, we’re still going to need guardrails, warns Kirsty Treherne Learning Lab 75 BE INSPIRED One anonymous teacher wonders if the teaching unions might be overplaying their hand; why it pays to de-personalise your behaviour management interactions as much as possible; and what you and your colleagues need to know about the government’s Digital and Technology Standards for schools... 04 teachwire.net/secondary