We Are In Beta Podcast

In this episode, we speak with Kiran Mahil - History and politics teacher in East London. Obviously, things have changed a lot due to covid19, but what might not be obvious is how we will regain the things we’ve lost over this period. Kiran and friend (and fellow teacher) Hannah Dalton, have come up with a document that allows schools to understand what has been lost and consider how they will respond. It’s called the Roadmap to Renewal. We talked to them about it. Learn more about our...

In this episode, we speak with Sharifah Lee- The Deputy Headteacher of Dorney School in Windsor. We spoke to Sharifah in a previous episode and she mentioned that they're opening their school to more students. That was a couple of weeks ago... We wanted to see what worked, what hasn't and how it's been. Learn more about our guests, their schools, the roles they are recruiting for, and access all resources and bonus content from episodes at www.weareinbeta.community.

In this episode, we speak with Chantelle Clarke -Head of Department at Frederick Bremer School, Waltham Forest. We talked about how recent events have led to more support of Black Lives Matter and similar movements. But what do we do with that support? Learn more about our guests, their schools, the roles they are recruiting for, and access all resources and bonus content from episodes at www.weareinbeta.community.

In this episode, we speak with Anita Woodward-Benn about her role as the trust attendance manager at the University of Brighton Academies Trust. You could say attendance officers have a reputation for being the rule keepers. But Anita thinks about it differently. She thinks attendance practitioners could and should be the front line of support for families. How? By focusing on building relationships with parents. Learn more about our guests, their schools, the roles they are recruiting for,...

In this episode, we do something a little different. During lockdown, there's been a lot of online CPD happening. There's plenty of research about what good CPD and good online learning look like. But what do teachers who've been attending these sessions have to say? We spoke to three teachers about their experience of attending over 145 online CPD sessions over the past few weeks. We ask them what makes for good online CPD in their opinion. This is not science but hopefully, it will helpful...

In this episode, we speak to Emily Reynard - Headteacher of MEA Central - about year 7 transition. Emily talks about why transition is so important and how it's not an isolated incident; a transition is felt by every year group. Learn more about the school, roles they are recruiting for, and access all resources and bonus content from episodes at www.weareinbeta.community.

In this episode, we speak to David Sammels - Headteacher of Mayflower Community Academy - about how the lockdown has sparked David's change from a linear way of working to a non-linear way. We also speak about how David has been feeling more connected to parents, despite the distance and maybe because of the non-linear working. Learn more about the school, roles they are recruiting for, and access all resources and bonus content from episodes at www.weareinbeta.community.

In this episode, we speak to Mike Wilson - Headteacher of St. Edmund's Catholic School in Dover, Kent - about an issue we discussed in a previous episode, the 'digital divide': the gap between students who have access to data and devices at home and those who don't. St. Edmund's Catholic School is one where this divide is significant. Around 10% of students have limited or no access. Shortly after schools closed, the staff at St Edmund's were preparing to take their school online but...

In this episode, we speak to Amit Hathi - Headteacher of Wembley High Technology College, London. In the wake of the pandemic, school closures and the cancellation of exams, teachers are being asked to provide centred assessed grades for their students. Grades which they believe their students would have been most likely to get in the summer if they had taken the exams. But doing this fairly and consistently is not without its challenges. Amit explains the three step approach they are...

In this episode, we are speaking to Will Mackintosh and Nat Nabarro - Headteacher and Vice-Principal of Ark John Keats in North London Since we've been working remotely we have had to change the way we do a lot of things. One of them is recruitment. Without being able to visit schools or meet candidates teachers and schools have to change their methods without necessarily changing what they're looking for. Will and Nat tell us what they've done in their school to change the way they're...

In this episode, we are speaking to Nicole Fowles - Headteacher at Coleshill Heath School, Birmingham. During the COVID19 crisis Nicole, like many other school leaders., has been dealing with fragments of information and sometimes conflicting messages. She’s been dealing with bereavement, supporting teachers and parents for home learning, and safeguarding challenges. She’s been dealing with staff anxiety and communication overload. She talks about the four reassurances she gave her team to...

In this episode, we speak with Seb Chapleau - Director of Big Education Conversation. We spoke about an initiative he's supporting to help kids have access to the data and devices necessary to ensure the can access remote learning from home. Join the conversation here: www.weareinbeta.community

This episode we speak with Shonogh Pilgrim - Principal of Ansford Academy - about how, without knowing it, her school has been preparing her students for school closure. She reveals how their recent school ski trip and the culmination of their 4 year programme of work to increase student independence coincide to to set them up to open their virtual school. We also spoke about how Shonogh's staying in touch with her students and parents with daily videos. Join the conversation here:...

On this episode, we speak with Josie Mingay - School Improvement Lead, Greenshaw Learning Trust. We spoke about the decision between live or recorded remote teaching and their tutor reading programme. Join the conversation here: www.weareinbeta.community

This episode, we speak with Ben Layzell - Head of Atherton Community School, Wigan. We talk about taking care of staff first just before closing the school, the current generation of students being more socially conscious and missing the structure of a school day. Join the conversation here: www.weareinbeta.community

This episode, we speak with Cassie Young - SENCO and Head of School of Brenzett Primary School in Kent. We talk about some of the expectations put on parents at this moment as well the importance of staying connected with the students while they're home. Join the conversation here: www.weareinbeta.community

After 3 months of research and prep for Series 3, all our in person interviews were understandably postponed due to coronavirus. In times like these, it’s important we stay connected. So, Niall (host and founder of We Are In Beta) and Jay (Producer) will be making calls to teachers around the country to check-in and find what they’re doing that’s new, the questions they have and a little bit about their life. This episode, we spoke with Clare Fletcher - Director of Schools, The Yare...

Picking up from the last episode on BAME leadership, 'Critical Mass' featuring Allana Gay, which you should listen to first, we’re talking about what it means to be a good ally to your BAME colleagues, what the purpose is and what it looks like when it’s not easy. We speak to Patrick Ottley O’Connor - Executive Headteacher, North Liverpool Academy - and Allana Gay again about what they’ve done and would like to see done to promote an equitable education system for people of all...

This is an episode on BAME leadership in education. BAME stands for Black Asian Minority Ethnic. According to the Swan Report (1985) and a recent report by the Runnymede Trust (2017), BAME educators have more difficulty progressing to leadership in the English education system. We went out to hear some stories from BAME leaders in education about what it was like for them getting to their position…but we made a mistake. Listen to learn what it was, what we did about it. Allana Gay,...

Vivienne Porritt, amongst many things is one of the founders of the social equity group called #WomenEd. Vivienne set us a challenge. She asked us to take a message to every man in education. Chris Hildrew is a contributor to the WomenEd book '10% Braver', and Headteacher at Churchill Academy. He charts his change to becoming a He for She ally, from his early years in school to a speech he heard by Emma Watson at the United Nations. Later Chris would adopt some tips from Sheryl Sandberg’s...