Review of Tools for Teachers

May 24, 2022

My review of this book has just been published in Teach Secondary magazine. The review there is slightly different from the one I submitted, so I’ve included my original one here as text, and the Teach Secondary one as a scan.

Review: Organise Ideas: Thinking by hand, Extending the mind

January 7, 2022

This book is by no means an easy read, but it’s worth persevering with. It explains why graphic organisers or, more accurately, word diagrams work, drawing on various cognitive-related theories to do so.

Recent book reviews

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The book contains some interesting ideas.

A question of leadership

I have somewhat dichotomous views of this question of whether leaders make a difference, or much of a difference. I think my views can be classified as macro and micro.

Review: Making Good Progress?

Daisy Christodoulou carefully picks apart the pitfalls of various kinds of assessment, drawing on different subject areas to do so.

principles and practice of assessment.jpg

Review: Principles and Practices of Assessment

There is plenty in this book to like.

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Although this is a few years old now (2018), it has stood the test of time.

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This wide-ranging book takes in probability, fractals, astronomy, Babbage, Lovelace and a host of other areas and people.

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Two books on the Nazi era.

Review: One for English teachers

No book about the craft of writing seems complete without a stern chapter on the importance of eschewing adverbs and adjectives - but what to put in their place?

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If you’re of a mathematical bent this could be just the book to delve into.

Review: How to lie with statistics

Although this book is over 60 years old, it is remarkably apposite for our times -- and especially in the fields of educational research and assessing pupils' understanding and progress.