In the first episode of the relaunched Mr Barton Maths Podcast I spoke to Andrew Taylor, the Head of Maths at AQA.

I asked Andrew many questions, including:

Does he feel that the Maths GCSE actually needed changing?

What are the biggest differences, in his opinion, between the current and new specs?

What advice does he have for teachers when preparing their students for the new Maths GCSE?

What will the new Maths GCSE grade boundaries look like?

What tier of entry would he recommend for a Grade C student?

And the big one… why should schools choose AQA ahead of the other exam boards?

All of the resources Andrew mentions can be found at All About Maths: http://allaboutmaths.aqa.org.uk/home

The lovely (and free!) AQA Diagnostic Questions quizzes can be found at: https://www.diagnosticquestions.com/aqa

Music for the podcast is provided by podcastthemes.com. If you want to get in contact, on twitter I am @mrbartonmaths.

See you next time!

Craig Barton

The post 1. Andrew Taylor – Head of Maths at AQA appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

In the second episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast I spoke to Graham Cumming, the Head of Maths at Edexcel.

Graham and I spoke about many things, including:

His view of the public’s reaction to Edexcel’s June 2015 Higher GCSE, in terms of Hannah’s sweets and that notorious Grade C boundary.

How Ofqual’s proposed Reference Tests might work

Why Edexcel’s first batch of Sample Assessment Materials were so hard, and what will their actual papers be like?

How Graham would change the GCSE if he had his way

Why he thinks you should choose Edexcel ahead of the other exam boards

And finally… I almost get an answer to the problem of grade boundaries for the new GCSE!

I am obviously ridiculously biased, but I believe this is essential listening for any teacher of maths GCSE, regardless of the exam board you are with or thinking of joining.

All of the resources Graham mentions can be found at the Edexcel pages here:
http://www.edexcelmaths.com/
http://qualifications.pearson.com/en/subjects/mathematics.html

Music for the podcast is provided by podcastthemes.com. If you want to get in contact, on twitter I am@mrbartonmaths.

See you next time!

Craig Barton

The post 2. Graham Cumming – Head of Maths at Edexcel appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

In the third episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast I spoke to Neil Ogden from OCR, in the final part of what nobody except me is calling “The Great Exam Board Podcast Trilogy”

Neil and I spoke about many things, including:

If he could completely redesign maths GCSE assessment what would he do?

How difficult has it been to design papers and support materials for the new GCSE Maths specification?

How are OCR’s actual GCSE exam papers different to those of AQA and Edexcel, and why did they made those choices?

The wealth of free resources that OCR have available

Did Ofqual ever consider changing the names away from “Higher” and “Foundation”?

And once again I push my luck over the issue of grade boundaries. Will I get a definitive answer? Spoiler Alert: no I won’t!

All of the resources Neil mentions can be found at the OCR pages here:
http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/gcse-mathematics-j560-from-2015/

Music for the podcast is provided by podcastthemes.com. If you want to get in contact, on twitter I am @mrbartonmaths.

See you next time!

Craig Barton

The post 3. Neil Ogden – Maths Specialist at OCR appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode four of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to four of our Year 13 students from Thornleigh Saleisan College, Bolton, who have recently had interviews for Oxford or Cambridge University. I thought it might be useful if you have students thinking about applying to Oxbridge, or if you just want to hear some of the tricky questions maths they got asked!

We spoke for about half an hour, on the last day before the Christmas holidays, covering questions such as:

What should you include in your personal statement?

What was the most useful thing you did in preparation for your interview?

What actually happens on the day of the interview?

What questions did you get asked, and what happens if you don’t know the answer?

If you could go back in time, what would you do differently?

The students involved and their subjects were: Ben Norris – Physics, Joe Middleton – History and Economics, Nushaiba Mohammed – Experiential Psychology, and Rob Singlehurst – Economics.

Music for the podcast is provided by podcastthemes.com. If you want to get in contact, on twitter I am @mrbartonmaths.

See you next time!

Craig Barton

The post 4. Oxbridge Interview Special appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode five of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to Jo Morgan. Jo is a secondary school maths teacher, the creator of the amazing Resourceaholic blog, and a prolific Twitter user. If it was up to me, I would make her regular “Maths Gems” posts compulsory reading for all maths teachers, as they highlight the most interesting, innovative practises and resources out there.

I planned to speak to Jo for about an hour, but it turned into a bit of an epic. I asked Jo loads of things, including:

Why did she become a teacher?
Why did she start her blog?
How does she organise all her resources?
How does she plan her lessons?
Describe a lesson that went badly, and what did she learn from it?
How is she preparing her students for the new GCSE?
What advice does she have for student teachers or NQTs?

Jo’s excellent Resourceaholic blog can be found here: http://www.resourceaholic.com/
And on Twitter she is @mathsjem: http://www.twitter.com/@mathsjem

Here are the links to Jo’s Big 3:
1. AS Resource Page: http://www.resourceaholic.com/p/resource-libraries.html
2. New Maths GCSE Page: http://www.resourceaholic.com/p/new-gcse-support.html
3. Blog post on different ways to find the Highest Common Factor: http://www.resourceaholic.com/2015/03/tricks-and-tips-1-hcf.html
And, as a bonus, the amazing Pret Homework website: http://prethomework.weebly.com/

See you next time!
Craig Barton

The post 5. Jo Morgan – Resourceaholic appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 6 of the Mr Barton Maths podcast I spoke to Mel Muldowney, better known as Mel from the JustMaths website and blog. I have been huge fan of Mel’s work for a good few years now. Her blog posts are inspiring, engaging and provocative all in one, and the workshop she and her colleague Chris Seager gave at the Edexcel Conference in Warwick last summer was one of the best I have ever attended.

I asked Mel loads of things, including:

How does she plan her lessons, and how does this lead to successful behaviour management?

Can she describe a lesson that did not go to plan, and what did she learn from it – and her candid answer propels me to exorcise a few lesson demons as well!

How difficult did she find the move to a new school?

What are the most successful strategies that her and Seager have implemented in their maths department?

How are Mel’s school reporting data on students in Years 7 to 10?

I am obviously completely biased, but I think this is a cracking listen. I was blown away by Mel’s honestly, openness and passion for her job. I hope you agree.

Mel’s excellent JustMaths website and blog can be found here: http://justmaths.co.uk/

And on Twitter she is @Just_Maths: https://twitter.com/just_maths

Here are the links to Mel’s Big 3:
Making a difference: http://justmaths.co.uk/2015/03/07/4766/
Moving to a new school: http://justmaths.co.uk/2015/10/15/get-cape/
New Maths GCSE Questions by Topic:
Both Tiers: http://justmaths.co.uk/2016/01/03/9-1-exam-questions-by-topic-both-tiers/
Higher: http://justmaths.co.uk/2015/12/21/9-1-exam-questions-by-topic-higher-tier/
Foundation: http://justmaths.co.uk/2015/11/29/9-1-exam-questions-by-topic-foundation-version-2/

See you next time!
Craig Barton

The post 6. Mel Muldowney – JustMaths appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 7 of the Mr Barton Maths podcast I spoke to Bruno Reddy, former Head of Maths at King Solomon Academy, creator of MrReddy.com, and the man behind the phenomenon that is Times Table Rockstars.

In an epic 2 hour interview, we covered loads of things, including:

• How does Bruno plan his lessons?
• Bruno describes a bad lesson he taught and what he learned from it
• Why does Bruno believe that culture, both in the school and the classroom, is the key to behaviour management and learning, and what specifically is the culture like at King Solomon Academy?
• What lesson routines do Bruno’s students follow?
• What are Bruno’s views on homework and written feedback?
• What does Mastery mean to Bruno, and why does he believe in it so passionately?
• What preconceptions did Bruno have before going to Shanghai, and what are his thoughts now?
• Why does Bruno believe that Mixed Attainment classes are so important?
• And to top it all off, Bruno gave us a lovely puzzle, which you can tweet him your effort using the hashtag #BrunosPuzzle.

Obviously, I am completely biased, but I think this is a cracking, thought-provoking listen. I hope you agree.

The two things I mentioned in the introduction can be found here:
1. Free 100 Day Countdown GCSE Revision Streams: https://www.diagnosticquestions.com/streams
2. My Just the Job Podcast: http://www.thejustthejobpodcast.com/ 

Bruno’s excellent website and blog can be found here: http://mrreddy.com/
And on Twitter he is @MrReddyMaths: https://twitter.com/MrReddyMaths (and remember to tweet him your efforts at his puzzle using the hashtag #BrunosPuzzle)
This King Solomon Academy Job Vacancy page is here: http://kingsolomonacademy.org/vacancies
Times Table Rock Stars can be found here: https://ttrockstars.com/

Here are the links to Bruno’s Big 3:
1. Thinkers by John Mason and Anne Watson: http://www.atm.org.uk/Shop/Sale-Items—50-Off/Language-and-Mathematics/Shop/Thinkers/act057
2. Glencoe Manipulatives: http://www.glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/mathematics/ebook_assets/vmf/VMF-Interface.html
Guide to the Manipulatives: http://www.educational-freeware.com/online/virtual-manipulatives.aspx
3. Thinking Blocks: http://www.thinkingblocks.com/ 

Thanks so much for listening, and see you next time
Craig Barton

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The post 8. Charlie Stripp – NCETM and MEI appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 9 of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I got to speak to one of my all-time maths heroes, Dan Meyer.

Dan is know for many things, including his dy/dan blog, TED Talk “Math Class needs a Makeover“, 3 Act Math, 101qs.com, Graphing Stories, and now Desmos. He has also probably been the most influential person on my teaching career.

I was lucky enough to speak to Dan for an hour, and during that time I asked him, among other things:

• How does he plan lessons?
• Can he describe a lesson that went badly, and what he learned from it?
• When does technology enhance teaching and learning, and when does it hinder it?
• What exciting stuff is in the Desmos pipeline
• What is Dan’s take on the importance of real life mathematics?
• Where did the idea for 3 Act Math come from, and what tips does he have for teachers delivering lessons using that structure?
• What was the inspiration behind the Headache and Aspirin series of blog posts
• And what tips does Dan have for teachers embarking upon their careers?

The post 9. Dan Meyer – 3 Act Math, Desmos, TED Talk and more! appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

The post 10. Will Emeny – Great Maths Teaching Ideas and Numeracy Ninjas appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 11 of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast episode I spoke to Stefanie Sullivan

Stef is in charge of the whole PGCE Teacher Training programme at Nottingham University, but is still heavily involved in the Secondary Maths PGCE. In the interests of full disclosure, Stef was my maths tutor 12 years ago when I did my maths PGCE at Nottingham, after I had completed an Economics degree at Cambridge University, a brief flirtation with working in the City, and a year picking courgettes in Australia. I am not afraid to say that I loved every second – well most of them – during my PGCE at Nottingham, and it gave me a wonderful start to my teaching career for which I will always be grateful.

In a wide ranging interview, we covered the following things:

• How does Stef advise her trainees to think about the planning process?
• Stef describes an excellent lesson she saw on forming linear equations, and then a lesson on bearings that looked very good on paper, but which went off the rails for a very important reason
• We discuss whether good teachers are born or made, and what are some of the traits and habits of the most successful teachers Stef has worked with
• We look at the merits of the PGCE route versus Schools Direct, what Nottingham has to offer, and what Stef would like to see included in the PGCE if it was up to her… which it is, so that is good news!
• We talk about the best practises Stef sees in schools for supporting their trainee teachers
• We look at the most common reasons for the huge numbers of teachers leaving the profession in the first few years and what can be done about this
• Finally we talk about the importance of that very first lesson, and establishing positive relationships between teacher and student as quickly as possible

I hope this interview will be of interest to teachers in general, whether you are a trainee teacher yourself, someone thinking of joining the profession, an NQT, someone who mentors trainee teachers, or just someone, like me, who is interested in the preparation and support the next cohort of teachers gets.

The post 11. Stefanie Sullivan – Maths PGCE Tutor from Nottingham University appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 12 of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast I spoke to Mark McCourt.

Mark has had an incredibly varied career in mathematics education, including being a classroom teacher, AST, Head of Department, Senior Leader, Headteacher, Ofsted Inspector, Director of the NCETM, Founder of the Teacher Development Trust, creator of emaths, and now CEO of La Salle Education, which amongst other things give us the wonderful MathsConfs.

In a wide ranging, epic interview, we covered the following things:

• Why Mark really, really, really loves zero
• We learn about the five key questions Mark asks himself when both planning and delivering a lesson
• Mark shares his experience as an Ofsted inspector, talking about common traits of some of the successful and less successful lessons he has seen
• What is the impact of having a non subject specialist inspector observe your lesson, and how best to cope with this?
• What is Mark’s view of the state of initial teacher training and CPD in this country, and why might the subject associations hold the key to solving this?
• What books should every maths teacher read, and why is there a notable omission from this list?
• Despite his first name, why has Mark never actually “marked” a book in his life?
• How do we cope with the problem of a fixed mind-set?
• And if I made Mark the Secretary of State for Education, what changes would he make to the curriculum, Ofsted, teacher training, SATs, GCSEs and A Levels?

Mark is a man who is never afraid to share his views, and you will get plenty of these throughout this interview. I know I say this every time, but I genuinely think this is worth a listen, whatever your role or stage of career might be. And if you disagree with anything Mark says – and you probably will do – he loves an argument, so just send him a tweet, where he is @EmathsUK

The Books Mark Recommends:

Researching Your Own Practice: The Discipline of Noticing
John Mason

Collaborative Learning in Mathematics: A Challenge to Our Beliefs and Practices
Malcolm Swan

Understanding Mathematics for Young Children
Derek Haylock

Children Discover Arithmetic; An Introduction to Structural Arithmetic 
Catherine Stern

The History of Education in England
Cockcroft Report 1982

Relational Understanding and Instrumental Understanding

Action Research: Principles and practice
Jean McNiff

The post 12. Mark McCourt – Ofsted, emaths, La Salle Education, NCETM and more! appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 13 of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast I spoke to Jamie Frost.

Jamie is a maths teacher at the high-achieving Tiffin School, and the creator of the amazing Dr Frost Maths.

When I say Tiffin is high-achieving, I really do mean, high-achieving. To put this into context, Jamie would expect around half of his bottom set Year 11s to achieve an A* grade, which just about put them on a par with our top set! But this context lead to a fascinating conversation about how to challenge these high achieving students, which I hope is something all teachers will find interesting and useful.

In a wide ranging interview, we covered the following things:

• How does Jamie use the categories of Structure, Exposition, Assessment and Differentiation to help plan his lessons?
• What teaching gimmicks does Jamie not like?
• Why is thinking through the sequence of lessons so important, and what does the Tiffin maths scheme of work look like?
• How does Jamie make use of past UKMT maths challenge questions within his lessons, together with skill check questions?
• Jamie talks us through a bad lesson he has delivered and what he learned from it
• We discuss if it is easier to teach high achieving students than low achieving students, and whether Jamie would consider working at a more traditional comprehensive
• We uncover a form of differentiation that is necessary when working with high achieving students that is not commonly discussed
• Jamie explains why he feels it is vitally important that students learn to internalise concepts in mathematics, and he illustrates this concept with some really interesting examples
• We look at the process of resource creation
• What are Jamie’s future plans for his site?
• Jamie shares some really valuable tips and advice which are aimed at trainee teachers and NQTs, but which will ring true for so many teachers, including myself
• Why Jamie would advise all maths teachers to try tutoring

Jamie is engaging, and his approaches are carefully considered and thought-provoking. I hope you agree that this is another engaging, worthwhile listen.

Jamie’s website is: http://drfrostmaths.com/ 

On Twitter he is @DrFrostMaths

The post 13. Jamie Frost – Dr Frost Maths and Teaching High Achievers appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On episode 14 of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast I spoke to Beth Lilley.

The post 14. Beth Lilley – NQT appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On this episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to Ed Southall.

As well as being a prolific blogger and Tweeter, Ed is the PGCE Mathematics Tutor at the University of Huddersfield. Interestingly, he combines this role with teaching in a local secondary school two days a week, thus giving him something of a unique perspective on both maths teaching and training.

In a wide ranging, interview we covered the following things and more:

– How does Ed use Concept Mapping to plan sequences of lessons?
– What classic mistake does Ed think many teachers make in the plenary of their lessons?
– What so-called conventional wisdom does Ed hear about good lessons that he does not agree with – and fans of purple pens and lesson objectives, beware!
– Ed brilliantly describes a bad lesson he taught and what he learned from it
– We talk about Ed’s forthcoming book about uncovering the “why” behind mathematics
– Why is creating a safe maths environment so important, and how does Ed do that?
– What does Ed mean by a “Safe Lesson”, and why should every teacher have one up their sleeve?
– If Ed could completely redesign teacher training what would it include?
– How should differentiation best be done?
– What books would Ed recommend maths teachers to read?
– And Ed gives a lovely answer to the question “What do you wish you had known when you started teaching that you know now?”

Remember to check out our brand new, completely free Diagnostic Questions GCSE Scheme of Work is now live. Head over to diagnositcquestions.com and sign in to find out more.

You may have noticed that mrbartonmaths.com has had a long overdue summer make-over. I am particularly proud of my new Topic section, where you can find full lesson, worksheets, videos, rich tasks, topic-specific Diagnostic Questions, interactive resources and probing questions on every single maths topic up to GCSE. More importantly, I also have a new maths jokes and puns page, containing award winning maths movie title puns such as Pi Hard, Factor the Future, and Radius of the lost Arc. The last one is probably the best thing I have ever come up with in my life. Head to mrbartonmaths.com to check all the new stuff out.

On Twitter, Ed is @solvemymaths
Ed’s Blog is solvemymaths.com
And Ed’s lovely profile on the University of Huddersfield website is here

The “current obsession” I refer to is Mr Taylor’s amazing “Increasingly Difficult Questions”, which can be found on his blog here, and they are also linked to by topic in the Topic section of my website. Simply find the topic you are after and click Lessons.

To see the books Ed recommends teachers to read, please visit: mrbartonmaths.com/teachers/books/

Ed Southall’s Big 3:
1. openmiddle.com
2. Aplusclick.com
3. jamestanton.com

The post Ed Southall – SolveMyMaths and Mathematics PGCE Tutor appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On this episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to Dylan Wiliam.

Quite simply, Dylan is one of my heroes. He was the inspiration behind my Diagnostic Questions website, and his many books, presentations and writing that I have eagerly consumed over the years have always left me filled up with new ideas to try in the classroom.

Dylan Wiliam is Emeritus Professor of Educational Assessment at University College London. In a varied career, he has taught in inner-city schools, directed a large-scale testing programme, served a number of roles in university administration, including Dean of a School of Education, and pursued a research programme focused on supporting teachers to develop their use of assessment in support of learning.

It was an absolute pleasure to talk to Dylan, and we covered loads of stuff. In fact, you might want to listen to this episode at one-quarter speed in order to pick up on all the ideas Dylan shares. Amongst other things, I asked:

• What makes a lesson successful in Dylan’s opinion
• Why is Dylan a big fan of the classic SMILE resources, and what did a lesson look like involving these materials?
• Why is it a mistake to plan a lesson on the assumption that students will understand a topic, and what should teachers do instead?
• Dylan describes a lesson he taught that went badly, and what he learned from it, which leads to a discussion about the dangers of so-called “real life maths”
• We talk through Dylan’s selection of things he’d wished he knew when he started teaching, including ensuring students know you care, and the importance of forgetting for learning
• Dylan explains why he thinks lesson observations are a waste of time, and describes a model that he believes would support teacher development much better.
• Why is a good idea to test our students more, and how can we get around the problem that students often hate being tested?
• What makes good group work, and how can you make the whole group accountable?
• We discuss feedback in great depth, specifically when it is effective and when it is simply a waste of time. Some of the findings might surprise you.
• Dylan describes the most important piece of research he has been involved in, and what other piece of research has surprised him the most
• How would Dylan up-skill teachers who simply do not have time to go on Twitter, read blogs, study research, listen to podcasts, and so on?
• Why does Dylan like multiple choice questions, but is not overly keen on using them with mini whiteboards or electronic voting systems?
• What books would Dylan suggest teachers read?
• Finally, Dylan offers up advice for Heads of Department, and describes how he would change teacher training courses

Hopefully you will agree with me that this interview is jam-packed full of food for thought and practical takeaways. Things you can try in the classroom tomorrow, and ideas that will hopefully improve your teaching practice for good, whatever stage of your career you are at. And also, whatever subject you teach. Many of the ideas Dylan shares are not maths specific, so please share this episode with your non-maths colleagues, especially any student teachers or NQTs you may know.

Spoiler alert here, but I was both proud and humbled that Dylan picked Diagnostic Questions as one of his Big 3 websites to direct listeners towards. For listeners not aware of the site, it is the largest collection of top-quality maths multiple choice questions in the world, with a growing number of Science and Computer Science questions as well. We have been working hard over the last few months to develop new features, such as feedback, reporting, a scheme of work, and a mobile app for students. All of this is 100% free and always will be. Head over to Diagnostic Questions to find out more.

On Twitter, Dylan is @dylanwiliam
Dylan’s website is www.dylanwiliam.org

Dylan gives some background on his favourite number, Skewes Number, here

The links to the books Dylan recommends, along with the books recommended by all my podcast guests, can be found here: mrbartonmaths.com/teachers/books/

The SMILE Cards that Dylan talks about are available to download for free from by registering at the STEM e-library here: www.stem.org.uk/elibrary/

Dylan’s “Relevance as MacGuffin in Mathematics Education” article is here

Dylan’s article entitled “The nine things every teacher should know” (although he would prefer the title “”Things I wish I’d known when I started teaching”) that he wrote for the TES is here

Dylan describes in more detail the piece of research he has found most surprising here

Dylan Wiliam’s Big 3:

1. diagnosticquestions.com
2. twitter.com 
3. gregashman.wordpress.com

Dylan’s two Podcast Puzzles can be found here

Dylan has kindly compiled all the references to the articles he discusses in the interview here

Finally, the concepts of “Convince me that…” and “VI3 Treatment” that I discuss in the takeaway segment at the end can be found in the Topic section of my Mr Barton Maths website here: mrbartonmaths.com/topics/ . Find the topic you want and click on Probing Questions.

Thanks so much for listening, and I really hope you enjoy the show!
Craig Barton

I am a maths teacher, currently teaching at Thornleigh Salesian College, Bolton, UK. Here are links to some of my work:
mrbartonnmaths.com
Mr Barton Maths Blog
Twitter: @mrbartonmaths
Diagnostic Questions
Mr Barton Maths Podcast
Just the Job Podcast

The post Dylan Wiliam – Author, Researcher, Trainer and Assessment for Learning Expert appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On this episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to John Corbett.

John has been a maths teacher for 11 years, and is better known the world over as the man behind the ridiculously incredible Corbett Maths – the home of hundreds of free videos, practice questions, textbook exercises, revision materials and more.

In a wide ranging, interview we covered the following things and more:

• How does John introduce pi via the medium of a baguette?
• How does John prepare and deliver a lesson using the Flipped Learning approach? Now, I feel Flipped Learning is a concept that does not get discussed all that often these days, and it is absolutely fascinating hearing John talk about the planning process, the logistics, the technology, what happens before the lesson, what happens in the lesson, what John perceives as the numerous benefits to Flipped Learning, and what advice John has for teachers wanting to try this out.
• John tells us about his amazing 5-a-days, where the idea came from, and how exactly he uses them with all his classes
• We delve deep into why John started recording videos, how Corbett Maths has grown, and he describes exactly how much work goes into preparing and recording a video – and it is quite a surprise, I can tell you!
• How has creating videos made John a better teacher, and why he would advise every teacher to record a video?
• John explains about his Practice Questions and Textbook Exercises, and how he manages to write so many original questions
• We talk about John’s GCSE Revision Cards, and after you have heard how much work John does, and how good these are, you will be ordering them up
• And just before he talks about his Big 3, John describes what he he wishes he had known when he started teaching

Now, this is yet another epic interview, and unless you are stuck in some serious traffic you might need to digest it in a couple of sittings. But I am so happy that people are seeing these interviews as really useful CPD. I know I am learning so much myself from my guests, and I hope you are too.

As ever, just a reminder to check out the most recent developments of Diagnostic Questions – including our lovely GCSE Maths Collections for Edexcel, AQA  and OCR, and our student mobile app  – and over at Mr Barton Maths, where I have updated my Topic Page to make it even easier to find rich tasks, worksheets, complete lessons, interactive resources and probing questions for every single maths topic, and my popular GCSE Maths Takeway page for the new specification.

John’s website (as if you didn’t know) is corbettmaths.com
On Twitter John is @CorbettMaths 
You can find out more about John’s amazing GCSE Maths Revision Cards by watching this video
The the website/app John uses to collect student notes prior to his lesson is showbie.com
The construction website that John mention is mathopenref.com
Click to download the (amazing) Pirate Game, and the festive spin-off The Reindeer Game

John Corbett’s Big 3
1. Resourceaholic 
2. Mrbartonmaths (I am going to go bankrupt if I keep having to pay guests to mention my site)
3. Twitter 

Thanks so much for listening, and I really hope you enjoy the show!
Craig Barton

I am a maths teacher, currently teaching at Thornleigh Salesian College, Bolton, UK. Here are links to some of my work:
mrbartonnmaths.com
Mr Barton Maths Blog
Twitter: @mrbartonmaths
Diagnostic Questions
Mr Barton Maths Podcast
Just the Job Podcast

The post John Corbett – Flipped Learning, Videos and Corbett Maths appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On this episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to someone I’ve been wanting to get on the show for ages – Tom Bennett.

Among many other things, Tom is a former Religious Studies teacher, a prolific blogger, the Behaviour Advisor to the UK Department of Education and the founder of ResearchEd. He also has the notable honour of being the first ever non-maths specialist guest on the show, although you would never know it with his impressive recollection of the digits of Pi.

In a wide ranging, interview we covered the following things and more:

• Why, despite a previous career managing nightclubs in Soho, Tom still found behaviour management the trickiest part of becoming a teacher
• Why being told “you need to work on your status”, or “you need to get the students to respect you”, is an absolute waste of time
• How Tom agrees that workload and behaviour are the two main reasons teachers leave the profession, and why he feels both can be fixed
• Why Tom’s “Two Schools” theory can go a long way to explaining the workload problem that affects many schools, and what is the responsibility of senior management when it comes to workload?
• What does Tom think makes a bad homework as opposed to a good homework, and what can everyone do about this?
• How would Tom improve meetings in school with one simple, quite brilliant strategy?
• We then move onto the Big One: what are the most practical, effective things teachers can do to improve behaviour in their classrooms?
• Tom feels classroom culture is incredibly important. How does he establish it, and what happens when students break this culture?
• How can classroom teachers promote positive behaviour, as opposed to simply condemning negative behaviour?
• Is consistency the key to behaviour, or should you treat some children differently to others?
• A big issue for me: is it just as dangerous to be inconsistent when focussing on good behaviour as well as bad behaviour?
• How about the teacher who midway through the year thinks they have already lost their class? How do they get them back?
• What can supply teachers, temporary teachers, or even regular teachers covering a single lesson, do to instill the classroom culture that they expect when you don’t have the benefit of long period of time to establish it?
• I throw a few behaviour cliches at Tom to see what his take on them is. Don’t smile until Christmas, anyone?
• What’s the best bit of research and what is the most surprising piece of research Tom has come across, and what one of these has to say about direct instruction.

I am obviously ridiculously biased, but I hope you will agree with me that this interview is essential listening for any teacher, no matter what their age or experience. On a personal level, it made me feel like I was not alone in some of the struggles I have had with my classes over the years, and I now feel a lot more equipped with practical, tried and tested strategies to get behaviour back on track.

If this interview has hooked in any fellow non maths specialists, then I would just like to remind people that over at my Diagnostic Questions website you will find not just maths questions, but also thousands of top-quality, free Science and Computer Science questions, as well as growing numbers in subjects like English and Languages. And just so the maths crew do not feel left out, February 14th 2017, as well as being a day of romance, will also mark the start of the 100 day GCSE Maths Revision Stream at Diagnostic Questions. This will be 100% free, and you can sign up by following this link: https://diagnosticquestions.com/Streams. There will also be two Primary Streams for Key Stage 1 and 2 Maths SATs, and two IB Maths Streams. What better present for your loved one than 2 maths questions a day for 100 days – it truly is the gift that keeps giving.

Tom’s Blog is: behaviourguru.blogspot.co.uk
On Twitter Tom is: @tombennett71

The DfE ITT Working Party document that Tom mentions can be found here

Project Follow Through can be found here

Tom Bennett’s Big 3
1. Becoming a Research Lead
2. The Science of Learning – Deans for Impact
3. ResarchEd

Thanks so much for listening, and I really hope you enjoy the show!
Craig Barton

I am a maths teacher, currently teaching at Thornleigh Salesian College, Bolton, UK. Here are links to some of my work:
mrbartonnmaths.com
Mr Barton Maths Blog
Twitter: @mrbartonmaths
Diagnostic Questions
Mr Barton Maths Podcast
Just the Job Podcast

The post Tom Bennett – Behaviour, Teacher Workload and ResearchEd appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On this episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to Paul Rowlandson.

Paul is currently the Deputy Director of Learning for Trinity Academy Trust. He is an experienced secondary mathematics teacher, one of the leads for White Rose Maths Hub, and he delivers a lot of training workshops for teachers all around the country on the likes of bar modeling and questioning.

Now, whilst Paul might not be a household name like some of my other guests, such Dylan Wiliam, Dan Meyer, or Bruno Reddy, in my opinion, he should be. And that is not just because he is from the North. Well, not entirely, anyway. Paul is an expert in some of the areas that listeners have most requested we cover, including bar modelling, questioning, Shanghai and advice for teachers delivering CPD. He also speaks very open and honestly about lots of aspects of teaching that I hope you can all relate to.

So, in a wide ranging, interview we covered the following things and more:

• What is the first thing Paul thinks about when he is planning his lessons, and how has this approach developed over his years as a teacher?
• We delve deep into bar modeling, looking at its strengths and weakness, whether you can just dip into it for certain topics, which type of students the approach works best for, and in a world first for the podcast, we even get interactive as Paul takes us through a couple of bar modelling scenarios, so get a pen and some paper at the ready.
• We look at what makes a good question, and Paul discusses his research into questioning, including what what common mistakes that teachers, including myself, often make
• What did Paul learn from his trips to Shanghai and Tokyo, and how has it changed his approach to teaching?
• What advice does Paul have for teachers running training sessions for other teachers?
• What has made the White Rose Maths Hub so successful, and what are some of the free resources that it has on offer for maths teachers?

As I say, I think this is a fascinating discussion, with lots of practical tips and food for thought. I really hope you enjoy it.

Just a quick reminder that we have a load of free daily revision Streams available at Diagnostic Questions in the build up to the summer’s maths exams. So, whether your students are preparing for their Key Stage 1 or 2 SATs (with questions written by Paul’s very own White Rose Maths Hub, incidentally), the new GCSE, the Legacy GCSE, IB, or even Welsh Numeracy, then we have a Revision Stream for you. Head over to diagnosticquestions.com/Streams to find out more.

And just the usual plea. If you enjoy these podcasts, then I would really appreciate it if you could spend a minute to give them a quick review on iTunes, and also it would be great if you could share them with your friends and colleagues. They have been known to help making paving the driveway and being stuck in traffic a bit more tolerable, as well as sending crying new born babies to sleep. Not my original intention for them, but I will take what I can get.

Information about the Bar Modelling Conference on the 16th February that Paul mentioned can be found here
The White Rose Maths Hub free Schemes of Learning can be found here
The White Rose Maths Hub page on Diagnostic Questions can be found here

Paul Rowlandson’s Big 3
1. To get started with bar modelling there’s Char Forsten’s “Model Drawing in Mathematics”
2. A practical book about questioning would be Trevor Kerry’s “Questioning and Explaining in Classrooms”
3. Teaching and learning in general I would say Douglas Newton’s “Teaching for Understanding”

Thanks so much for listening, and I really hope you enjoy the show!
Craig Barton

I am a maths teacher, currently teaching at Thornleigh Salesian College, Bolton, UK. Here are links to some of my work:
mrbartonnmaths.com
Mr Barton Maths Blog
Twitter: @mrbartonmaths
Diagnostic Questions
Mr Barton Maths Podcast
Just the Job Podcast

The post Paul Rowlandson – Bar Modelling, Questioning, Shanghai, Tokyo & Training Teachers appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.

On this episode of the Mr Barton Maths Podcast, I spoke to Greg Ashman.

Greg is a maths and science teacher, originally from the UK but now based in sunny Australia. He is a prolific and influential blogger and is also working towards his PhD in Cognitive Load Theory, something which Dylan Wiliam recently tweeted was “the single most important thing for teachers to know”.

Now, if you enjoyed the educational research aspects of my interview with Dylan Wiliam, and the memory related discussion I had with Will Emeny, then you are going to love this. We dig deep into Cognitive Load Theory and in particular its implications for Direct or Explicit Instruction versus inquiry or discovery based learning in the classroom. And I will say from the outset – and discuss more in my Takeaway at the end of the show – reading Greg’s work and the research he cites has really changed the way I approach my own teaching 12 years into my career.

In a wide ranging interview we covered the following things and more:

• How does Greg plan series of lessons, and what would a typical lesson look like?
• Why is Greg such a big fan of joint planning within his department with an emphasis on refinement, and how do new ideas break through in this model?
• Why does Greg believe behaviour management is not something you are born with, but something that can be learned like any other skill
• And then we dive deep into Cognitive Load Theory, where Greg gives a lovely summary of the theory, looking at the role of working and long-term memory, the process of chunking and the dangers of means-end problems.
• We then look at some key Cognitive Load Theory “effects” including The Worked Example Effect, the Redundancy Effect and the Expert Retrieval Effect, each time asking what are the implications for the classroom. The Redundancy Effect in particular has huge consequences for how we present information to students.
• I then quiz Greg about implications for exam preparation, especially how to help students answer those tricky 5 mark questions that call upon a lot of different skills
• Surely if students discover something they will remember it better? Not according to Greg, and he has an anecdote about beer to try to convince me!
• What about the role of puzzles, real life maths, and the story structure of 3 Act Math lessons?
• Finally Greg has some excellent book recommendations, and a wonderful Big 3 selection.

If, like me, you are interested in educational research, no matter how much you have looked into it, I really believe you will find this discussion of great interest. I have tried as much as possible to tease out the practical implications for the classroom – and that is the great advantage of having Greg as a guest. He is a working maths teacher who can put the ideas he reads into practice every single day.

On Twitter Greg is @greg_ashman
His excellent blog can be found at: gregashman.wordpress.com
Greg’s ebook, “Ouroboros”, is available to purchase here

The article “Why minimal guidance instruction does not work” that Greg referenced a few times during the interview can be found here, and a more accessible version for teachers here.
A great introduction to Cognitive Load Theory can be found here
The Behaviour Management Pocket Book can be found here
The books Greg recommends, along with those recommended by my other guests, can be found here

Greg Ashman’s Big 3
1. American Education
2. Education Echo Chamber 
3. Research Ed 

Thanks so much for listening, and I really hope you enjoy the show!
Craig Barton

I am a maths teacher, currently teaching at Thornleigh Salesian College, Bolton, UK. Here are links to some of my work:
mrbartonnmaths.com
Mr Barton Maths Blog
Twitter: @mrbartonmaths
Diagnostic Questions
Mr Barton Maths Podcast
Just the Job Podcast

The post Greg Ashman – Cognitive Load Theory and Direct Instruction vs Inquiry Based Learning appeared first on Mr Barton Maths Blog.