Teach Secondary Issue 13.6

Publishers: Joe Carter, Sam Reubin, Richard Stebbing Editor: Callum Fauser, callum.fauser@artichokehq.com , 01206 505115 Group Advertising Manager: Samantha Law, samantha.law@artichokehq.com , 01206 505499 Advertising Manager: Ria Bentham, ria.bentham@artichokehq.com , 01206 505928 Deputy Advertising Manager: Hannah Jones, hannah.jones@artichokehq.com , 01206 505924 Senior Account Manager: Alfie Bennett, alfie.bennett@artichokehq.com , 01206 505996 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 CONTENTS School of thought 19 MELISSA BENN There have already been signs of a dramatic change in education policy following Labour’s historic election victory in May – though some concerns remain... 25 NATASHA DEVON Aggregate absence statistics can serve to conceal some deeper psychological reasons for teens’ reluctance to attend school Regulars 12 THINK PIECE TobyMarshall weighs up the merits of a Labour manifesto pledge whichmay now come to pass – that of lowering the voting age to 16... 17 DICTIONARY DEEP DIVE David Voisin examines the hidden origins and surprising behaviours concealed within our everyday vocabulary 46 OFF THE SHELVES Brilliant titles for you and your students to explore 49 MAKING SENSE OF … SPEED CALCULATIONS Students coming unstuck with those speed, distance and time calculations? Colin Foster has some suggestions for getting themback on track 90 START AS YOU MEAN TO GO ON The first lesson you teach those newY7s or Y12s will leave a huge impression, says John Lawson – somake sure it’s a good one... Features 21 TURNING POINT Ofsted’s biggest policy changes have traditionally coincided with the election of a new government – which shouldmake for an interesting year ahead, writes Adrian Lyons 22 LEVEL UP Gaming has long been the preferred pastime for many a schoolwork-averse teen – but as a storytelling medium, it can also have lots of lessons to teach around narrative,maintains Morgan Owen 34 PICKING UP THE PAGES The drop-off frequently seen in students’ enthusiasm for reading between KS2 and KS3 is by nomeans inevitable, writes KarenWilson 38 A PROBLEM WE CAN’T AFFORD One school-centred initial teacher training provider talks us through their efforts at tackling the cost and knowledge issues contributing to the ongoing teacher recruitment crisis SEPT/OCT ‘24 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 41 DATA PROTECTORS The task of keeping your school’s data secure is one to which everymember of staff can and should contribute, advises Nicola Pearce 42 THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE Our current cohort have grown up with the internet as a continuous presence throughout their lives, says Nicky Cox – which is precisely why we should be giving them lessons in critical thinking 51 THIS WAY! Teach Secondary ’s regular dispatch for SLTs examines the thorny issue of persistent school absence – what causes it, why it’s on the rise, and what schools can do about it... 55 TURNING THINGS AROUND We hear howWelling School in Kent embarked upon a rapid school improvement process after being hit with an Inadequate rating by Ofsted 60 RESPECT DUE Expand the scope of your next history discussion with these remarkable accounts of two Black individuals whose achievements deserve to be more widely known 64 NATURAL SURROUNDINGS Steve Brace serves up some advice on how to ensure your geography fieldwork visits consistently hit the mark each time 78 PERFORMANCE ON THE PITCH As James Crane explains, PE isn’t the easiest subject to assess – but some approaches to measuring students’ progress are more reliable than others... TS Special – Assessment 28 MARK MY WORDS Your assessment data can be a springboard for some enlightening learning conversations with students, writes Kit Betts-Masters 31 ASSESSED TO EXCESS? Assessment is a leading cause of teachers’ workload woes, cautions Al Kingsley – so how can you tell when things have gone too far? 32 EXAM CONDITIONS Mock GCSEs are a staple of the academic calendar – but there’s something to be said for making themmirror the real thing as much as you can... TS Focus – English 68 COMPELLING NARRATIVES It might be a factual writing assignment, but that needn’t make their prose any less creative, says Meera Chudasama 71 SHARE THE KNOWLEDGE It’s time to heal the rift between how SPaG is approached at primary and howwe treat it at secondary, states Jenny Hampton 72 FLIP THE SCRIPT Working screenwriter DavidWolstencroft explains what your students can get out of crafting scenes and dialogue 74 RULES ARE MEANT TO BE. . . USED PROPERLY? Elaine McNally considers the tension between prescriptive grammar and expressive creativity at the heart ofmany an English lesson Learning Lab 83 BE INSPIRED How to help students navigate the ‘learning leap’ between KS3 and KS4 art; the importance of keeping your word when quelling negative behaviour; the school that devised its own ‘Global Curriclum’; and the secret of Burnage Academy for Boys’ success... 04 teachwire.net/secondary