"Up until the point you are sacked it is worth questioning what you are told."
Speaker: Tom Bennett
This quote stood out to me because in my first year teaching I ended up working at a school with an incompetent head teacher and a totally out of their depth SLT. My constant questioning of aims/methods essentially led to my contract not being renewed. Well, that and the bullying and harassment case we as staff brought against the head (by the way we tacitly won our case when she retired in disgrace). This was during my NQT year too. This questioning of management is a subject close to my heart, unless we question and bring SLT's to account, we will all end up on the learning bike, cycling to the brain gym, while keeping a growth mindset about the upcoming journey.
Quote number two:
"A lot of people say: if Gove says it, it is shit. Which is total rubbish."
Speaker: Ben Goldacre
This I overheard in the queue for bohemian coffee on the morning of the conference. I also think as a quote it IS bollocks. I don't think teachers hate Gove because of what he says, think they hate him because he is a Tory and has spent the entire time he has been in the job belittling the teaching profession. Whether this is an organised campaign or not I don't really care, I will listen if he is talking sense. I suspect though, that his attack on teachers is more in keeping with a Daily Mail caricature of us as lazy, militant left-wing scum than anything else. I also expect that he sees his attack on teaching unions as a kind of badge of honour he will wear during the inevitable election to find Cameron's successor after the next election.
"Key decisions are made in corridors."
Speaker: Brian Lightmann
Chimes with me. In my school most good decisions are made in corridors because it is the time when we use our gut instincts to make quick choices. It is also the place in most school where the management is generally absent from. Their movement out of the classroom and into their offices gives us as teachers the authority to move into that vacuum and assert our authority. After all, we spend all day with the kids, not them. We make the better decisions as a result in my opinion.
"Reading ability is dependent on knowledge."
Speaker: Daisy Christodoulou
By reading ability read: comprehension. Totally agree with this. Giving our kids the best experiences in all subjects ultimately aids their comprehension. How can you answer a question booklet about the plague if you have no idea what the plague was? Answer: with difficulty.
"If you think about something a lot, you will probably remember it." (heard twice)
Speaker: Katie Ashford (and Daisy C)
Not hugely scientific this one. Do you or not?
I really enjoyed the conference, look forward to the next one.
****If I have misquoted anyone I apologise, my brain obviously didn't think about the quotes enough****
