Mind the Gap: Making Education Work Across the Globe Tom Sherrington & Emma Turner

On this episode of Mind the Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Jade Pearce and Isaac Moore, co-authors of a new book, Bjork & Bjork's Desirable Difficulties in Action. The four of them talk about what the term 'desirable difficulties' refers to, and how using challenging pedagogical strategies can actually aid pupils' learning. Jade and Isaac explain much of Richard and Elizabeth Bjork's research in succinct chunks with practical examples. This includes parts on spacing, interleaving, retrieval practice, independent study strategies, and more.



Jade Pearce is Trust Head of Education at The de Ferrers Trust. She is the Evidence Lead in Education for the Research Schools Network and a regular speaker and presenter at education conferences. Jade previously authored the best-selling book 'What Every Teacher Needs to Know: How to embed evidence-informed teaching and learning in your school’. Follow her on Twitter @PearceMrs



Isaac Moore is a Deputy Headteacher with a National Professional Qualification for Headship who focuses much of his work on education professional development. He is also an expert in reading and curriculum assessment. Follow him on Twitter @isaacmoore7



Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠

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Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠

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This podcast is produced by Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/


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In this head to head episode of Mind the Gap, Tom and Emma discuss educational ideas that have recently captivated them, as well as some of the latest developments in the field.

Emma has been thinking about the ways in which even beautifully designed curricula need well thought out task design to keep classes from becoming too formulaic across subjects. Tom, on the other hand, is looking at the newly announced panel on oracy, acknowledging both that people tend to worry about government mandates, but also that we need more pupils speaking with confidence.

Later, Emma brings up the idea of expertise, inspired by the book Expert: Understanding the Path to Mastery by Roger Kneebone. Finally, the two discuss the limits on classroom observation and Tom gives his thoughts about the recent conferences he attended across the pond in the United States, including a ResearchEd. Listen to the full episode to hear all about it.



Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

This podcast is produced by Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/


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On this episode of Mind The Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by René Kneyber and Valentina Devid, co-founders of Toets Revolutie in the Netherlands and co-authors of the upcoming book Formative action: From instrument to design. The four of them talk about the concept of formative action, which is purposefully named to steer clear of the sometimes-problematic term 'assessment'. They walk through the five steps involved in formative action, and highlight how it can be empowering for both teachers - aiding their learning processes - and students - giving them agency and independence.

René Kneyber is a former mathematics teacher and currently a consultant and book publisher in the Netherlands. He has written and edited multiple high-profile books on classroom authority and discipline, including the Dutch book Het Alternatief and the Dutch translation of Embedding Formative Assessment by Dylan Wiliam. Follow him on Twitter @rkneyber_EN

Valentina Devid is a co-founder and trainer at Toets Revolutie. She is an experienced secondary school teacher, assessment expert, speaker, and education consultant now primarily focussed on formative assessment. Follow her on Twitter @valentinadevid

Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

This podcast is produced by Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/


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On this episode of Mind The Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Carl Hendrick, author of two books about the science of teaching and learning and a third about bridging the gap between research and practice. Carl said he approached finding the research papers for his books in the same way that he would have compiled an album of seminal classic rock tracks, but with the criterion of having the greatest use for teachers and school leaders. The discussion turned to how education research is conducted and how "a lot of debates in education are people in different stages talking past one another". Carl also says that we now have a good understanding of the science of learning, but the three agree that especially in the early years and early primary education, even research-proven pedagogical practices like interleaving can't take the place of play-based learning, for example. Listen now to hear more on how teachers can really engage with educational research.

Carl Hendrick works at the Academica University of Applied Sciences in Amsterdam where his focus is on bridging the gap between research and practice. Carl was a secondary English teacher for 18 years in a range of different contexts and completed his PhD in education at King’s College London. He is the co-author of How Learning Happens, How Teaching Happens, and What Does this Look Like in the Classroom. Follow Carl on Twitter ⁠@C_Hendrick⁠

Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

This podcast is produced by Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/


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On this episode of Mind The Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Jon Hutchinson. The three of them talk about Jon's role at Reach which aims to weave five important threads into their community partners' educational systems: curricular coherence, understanding the principles of great teaching, maintaining relationships, understanding the community, and strong leadership. A large part of the conversation focused on the current curricular incoherence that plagues many schools. Jon says about teachers, "You're just one small part of that kid's journey, and it is incumbent on you and on the broader system to think about that journey in a much more coherent way." Finally, the trio discuss Reach's booklets, the Meno Academy videos Jon makes with his brother, and the effectiveness of instructional coaching.

Jon Hutchinson is a former assistant headteacher of Reach Academy Feltham now director of Reach Foundation. He has taught across both KS1 and KS2, and also tutors on Ambition Institute’s Masters in Expert Teaching. Jon has sat on expert panels for the Department for Education, Ofsted and the Standards and Testing Agency. Follow Jon on Twitter @jon_hutchinson_

Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.


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On this episode of Mind The Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Amanda Wilson. The three of them talk through Amanda's unorthodox journey to headship, and the traits that she has found most important throughout her educational career: confidence, authenticity, and empowerment. Those three themes shine through in her book, Letters to a Young Generation: Aspiring School Leaders, and Amanda says they are especially important for Black leaders, whose confidence can be mistaken for aggressiveness, and whose authenticity can be difficult to maintain without a strong support network. Amanda believes it is crucial for leaders to keep an eye out for promising candidates and "send the elevator back down" to help bring them up, which is the idea behind her company Crux Leadership Development.



Amanda is the headteacher of St Alfege with St Peter’s CofE Primary School and has 25 years’ experience in the education sector. She is a qualified coach with an MA in Coaching and Mentoring from Oxford Brookes University and is an EMCC Senior Practitioner. She has a track record for supporting teachers in securing leadership roles, and in 2023 Amanda published the book Letters to a Young Generation: Aspiring School Leaders which aims to encourage the next generation of Black school leaders. Follow her on Twitter @AmandaWilson910

Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.


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