Should our Children Read More and Look at Screens Less?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 30/05/2023 BBC Northern Ireland Education Correspondent Robbie Meredith has recently highlighted a report into children’s reading habits by the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) which was administered by the NFER in 2021 for the Department of Education. This international study used dat...

The Andrew Tate Effect. Who is Shaping the Values for School Boys?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 02/05/2023 According to the Guardian newspaper in February 2023, Andrew Tate the social influencer has become very popular among British teenage boys. They apparently copy his phrases and philosophy. Parents and schoolteachers have expressed concern that he is influencing boys to exhibit misogynistic and aggr...

Cost of Living Crisis -Teaching Pupils about Money

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 21/04/2023 The cost-of-living crisis has profoundly shaken our confidence in our ability to manage our finances well. As adults we are all on a steep learning curve educating ourselves about the best ways to cope with mortgage rates, credit card bills and even simple daily shopping. Logically therefore we nee...

The Human Cost of School Leadership

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 30/03/2023 No one can fail to have been shocked at the story of Reading headteacher Ruth Perry, who sadly took her own life while waiting for the release of an Ofsted inspection report which was about to downgrade her school from “outstanding” to “inadequate”. The BBC reported on reaction to this terrible new...

Equality of Educational Opportunity for Children with Complex Medical Needs

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 06/03/2023 BBC NI Education Correspondent Robbie Meredith has reported on a recent judicial review which found that The Education Authority (EA) breached the human rights of two pupils with complex medical needs, where in one case the pupil was prevented from attending school for long periods and in the other...

Teacher Strikes: A Plea for Fairness!

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 09/02/2023 Teachers in Northern Ireland are to hold a half-day strike on Tuesday 21st of February. This will be the first strike in over five years. The largest teaching unions, NAS/UWT, UTU and INTO will strike from midnight until midday which will mean many schools will be closed for the morning. The NEU ar...

Have we Forgotten the Importance of Emotional Intelligence?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 27/01/2023 With Prime Minister Rishi Sunak advising us that all pupils should study mathematics to prepare themselves better for success in our modern world, is there a danger that we will come to understand intelligence and ability in terms of exam grades only? In preparing our young people for an increasing...

Education Funding 2023 – Not A Happy New Year

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 05/01/2023 Just before the Christmas break ASCL NI President Graham Montgomery wrote to Chris Heaton-Harris, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, to express his dismay at the financial settlement for schools in 2022/23. He pointed out that although the Government have allocated extra money to pay specific...

Robust School Leadership – Risks and Rewards

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 29/11/2022 With much debate in the media just now on ethics in public life and in particular with accusations of bullying levelled at government ministers and leaders in top jobs, it is appropriate to reflect on how these impacts on our schools and how they are managed.As in the world of politics where high-...

Homework – Is It Really Necessary?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 08/11/2022 Back in 2016, I wrote in this column about the possible value of homework, as it was being much debated in the newspapers at the time. As our schools gear up for open nights, hoping to attract new year 8 pupils for 2023, is it timely to look at this again and see what our schools are setting out as...