Education Scotland podcast

Winter Webinar Launch of The Pedagogy Podcast

This recording features clips from the Winter Webinar launch session of The Pedagogy Podcast alongside clips from the podcast series. Joan MacKay, strategic director of Education Scotland introduces the session. The session is hosted by Bex Ewart, Quality Improvement Officer of City of Edinburgh Council and Lynn Taylor, Senior Education Officer of Curriculum Innovation at Education Scotland.
 
Clips include discussions from:
 
Ben Mardell, a teacher, researcher and former principal investigator at Project Zero, a research organisation at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Ben was project director of ‘Pedagogy of Play’ a collaboration with the LEGO Foundation and the International School of Billund, exploring how play can be a central part in children’s learning in school.
 
Award winning academic, artist and author Professor Alison Clark who talks about the concept of ‘slow knowledge and the unhurried child’ - the urgent need to embrace slow pedagogies in early childhood and beyond.
 
New Zealand’s Nicola Ngarewa, a school principal passionate about disrupting the educational norm through transformative leadership and a focus on global citizenship. Her significant experience was gained by working across all sectors of education from early childhood to tertiary - and even in New Zealand’s prison system.
 
Marnie Ferguson, head teacher of award winning Torphichen and Westfield Primary schools in West Lothian. Marnie has led both schools in the development of an innovative, research-based, agile and child-centred curriculum approach built upon learner agency.
 
We also hear from the children from both primaries. They share their insights on their schools’ agile approach to learning and teaching and offer views on what should happen to meet learner needs across Scotland.
 
Blair Minchin, a primary teacher in Edinburgh talks about his journey from law to teaching, trusting the children, play pedagogy beyond early years and the main influences on his child-centred pedagogical approach
 
Then Carl Gombrich is a former professional opera singer, an English interdisciplinary educator and co-founder of the London Interdisciplinary School. Professor Gombrich is an academic who writes about interdisciplinary learning, philosophies of education and music.
 
The podcasts can be accessed here:
 
The Pedagogy Podcast Spotify Playlist:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OlQjzxsYdhXkYg8W7F7d1?si=dc4fd84d97d649e4
 
The Pedagogy Podcast – Core Pedagogical Considerations Graphic:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SY5Z4lXiluxNXhNkgk0UCukrKXNzw3iX?usp=sharing
 

Education Scotland School Libraries podcast.Episode 3 Shona Page

Welcome to the Education Scotland School Libraries podcast. The three episodes which make up this short series will focus on the role of the school librarian in supporting Health and Wellbeing. The role of school librarians in contributing to health literacy was outlined in Strategic Aim Four of the Vibrant Libraries Thriving Schools Library National Strategy, first published in 2018. This podcast will be of interest to everyone involved in school library provision in Scottish schools.
Episode 3 – In the third and final episode of this series, we talk with Shona Page, a school librarian who works in Dundee. Shona shares tips and ideas of how to establish a safe and trusted library space in which the mental and social wellbeing of young people can be nurtured.
 
Previous Episodes
Episode 1 – In the first episode of this series, we talk with Jess Burnett, a Health and Wellbeing Education Officer. Jess shares her reflections on her previous role as a principal teacher of pastoral support and how she worked closely with the school librarian to support the mental health and wellbeing of young people in the school.
 
Episode 2 – In the second episode in this series, we talk with Moira Paton, a school librarian who works in Falkirk. Moira shares how she supports the health and wellbeing of the young people in her school community and tells us more about ‘Words for Wellbeing’.
 

Education Scotland School Libraries podcast. Episode 2 Moira Paton

Welcome to the Education Scotland School Libraries podcast. The three episodes which make up this short series will focus on the role of the school librarian in supporting Health and Wellbeing. The role of school librarians in contributing to health literacy was outlined in Strategic Aim Four of the Vibrant Libraries Thriving Schools Library National Strategy, first published in 2018. This podcast will be of interest to everyone involved in school library provision in Scottish schools.
Episode 2 – In the second episode in this series, we talk with Moira Paton, a school librarian who works in Falkirk. Moira shares how she supports the health and wellbeing of the young people in her school community and tells us more about ‘Words for Wellbeing’.
 
Previous Episode
Episode 1 – In the first episode of this series, we talk with Jess Burnett, a Health and Wellbeing Education Officer. Jess shares her reflections on her previous role as a principal teacher of pastoral support and how she worked closely with the school librarian to support the mental health and wellbeing of young people in the school.

Education Scotland School Libraries podcast. Episode 1 Jess Burnett

Welcome to the Education Scotland School Libraries podcast. The three episodes which make up this short series will focus on the role of the school librarian in supporting Health and Wellbeing. The role of school librarians in contributing to health literacy was outlined in Strategic Aim Four of the Vibrant Libraries Thriving Schools Library National Strategy, first published in 2018. This podcast will be of interest to everyone involved in school library provision in Scottish schools.
Episode 1 – In the first episode of this series, we talk with Jess Burnett, a Health and Wellbeing Education Officer. Jess shares her reflections on her previous role as a principal teacher of pastoral support and how she worked closely with the school librarian to support the mental health and wellbeing of young people in the school.

Empowerment: Partners

Empowerment and collaboration for improvement happen at all levels in an empowered system. Partnerships are therefore a key cornerstone of this approach. Partners in an empowered system includes schools, local authorities, parents and carers, colleges, universities, the local community, third sector, public sector and business organisations.  In this podcast you’ll hear representatives from Barnardo’s charity, West Lothian College, Scottish Qualifications Authority, Community Learning and Development and Skills Development Scotland discuss and share their understanding of empowerment within their contexts and how it could be taken forward across the system.
Education Scotland believes an empowered, connected, self-improving education system is vital to achieve excellence and equity for all children and young people in Scotland. In this latest podcast series, the School Empowerment Steering Group has launched a number of episodes focusing on what empowerment looks like for those working across the education system, including insight from school leaders, teachers and local authority leads.
Previous episodes:
1 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-an-introduction/
2 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-school-leaders/
3 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-scotish-government/
4 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-local-authorities-and-regional-improvement-collaboratives/
5 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-teachers-and-practitioners/
6 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-parents/
7 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-learners/
 
 
 

Empowerment: Parents

Parental involvement in school decision making means education staff collaborating with parents and carers from the beginning to the end of key decision making and other processes. Parents and carers are also involved in matters such as school improvement planning as well as ongoing and effective two-way communication between home and school. This podcast allows parents and carers to discuss and share their understanding of empowerment and how it support educators to improve school effectiveness.
Education Scotland believes an empowered, connected, self-improving education system is vital to achieve excellence and equity for all children and young people in Scotland. In this latest podcast series, the School Empowerment Steering Group has launched a number of episodes focusing on what empowerment looks like for those working across the education system, including insight from school leaders, teachers and local authority leads.
Previous episodes:
1 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-an-introduction/
2 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-school-leaders/
3 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-scotish-government/
4 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-local-authorities-and-regional-improvement-collaboratives/
5 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-teachers-and-practitioners/
 
 
 

Empowerment: Learners

An empowered system creates a culture of collaboration and collegiality with learners, parents, colleagues and multi-agency partners who all share a vision for education based on the values and needs of the community.  Learner participation is an important part of an empowered system. Learner participation is defined as all of the ways in which children and young people contribute to school and the wider empowered school system, working with educational professionals, parents, carers, peers, and community members.  During this podcast you will hear learners from a range of schools across Scotland share how they contribute and participate in school life.
Education Scotland believes an empowered, connected, self-improving education system is vital to achieve excellence and equity for all children and young people in Scotland. In this latest podcast series, the School Empowerment Steering Group has launched a number of episodes focusing on what empowerment looks like for those working across the education system, including insight from school leaders, teachers and local authority leads.
Previous episodes:
1 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-an-introduction/
2 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-school-leaders/
3 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-scotish-government/
4 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-local-authorities-and-regional-improvement-collaboratives/
5 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-teachers-and-practitioners/
6 https://EducationScotland.podbean.com/e/empowerment-learners/
 

Attainment Advisors and UNCRC

Education Scotland fervently believes children should be seen and heard, and the incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is an excellent opportunity to further the rights and well-being of children in Scotland. In this series, Maxine Jolly sits down with guest speakers from across Education Scotland to better understand why children’s human rights matter and how UNCRC has influenced our work in supporting quality and improvement in learning and teaching.

Episode 5 – Bex Ewart in conversation with children from Westfield and Torphichen Primaries

Following on from her conversation with Marnie Ferguson, head teacher of Westfield and Torphichen Primary schools, Bex chats with the children from both primaries. They share their insights on their schools’ agile approach to learning and teaching and offer views on what should happen to meet learner needs across Scotland.
 
Episode links:
 
The Pedagogy Podcast Spotify Playlist:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OlQjzxsYdhXkYg8W7F7d1?si=dc4fd84d97d649e4
 
The Pedagogy Podcast – Core Pedagogical Considerations Graphic:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SY5Z4lXiluxNXhNkgk0UCukrKXNzw3iX?usp=sharing
 
Impressive innovation in Scottish primary at Torphichen and Westfield primary:
https://robhouben.com/2022/05/02/impressive-innovation-in-scottish-primary-at-torphichen-and-westfield-primary/

Episode 4 – Bex Ewart in conversation with Marnie Ferguson

In this episode Bex chats with Marnie Ferguson, head teacher of award winning Torphichen and Westfield Primary schools in West Lothian. Marnie has led both schools in the development of an innovative, research-based, agile, and child-centred curriculum approach built upon learner agency.
 
Episode links:
 
The Pedagogy Podcast Spotify Playlist:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OlQjzxsYdhXkYg8W7F7d1?si=dc4fd84d97d649e4
 
The Pedagogy Podcast – Core Pedagogical Considerations Graphic:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SY5Z4lXiluxNXhNkgk0UCukrKXNzw3iX?usp=sharing
 
Impressive innovation in Scottish primary at Torphichen and Westfield primary:
https://robhouben.com/2022/05/02/impressive-innovation-in-scottish-primary-at-torphichen-and-westfield-primary/