In this episode of Head Room: Curious Conversations for Leaders in Education, I'm joined by Bruce Robertson—renowned educator, consultant and author of The Teaching Delusion trilogy.

Bruce brings over 20 years of experience in education and a track record of transforming schools through a relentless focus on high-quality teaching and professional learning.

We explore:
🔹 Why great teachers don’t always mean great teaching
🔹 What high-quality teaching actually looks like
🔹 How to build a shared understanding of excellent pedagogy
🔹 The power of purposeful professional development
🔹 Lessons from Bruce’s turnaround leadership at Berwickshire High School

Whether you're a classroom teacher, school leader, or education policy-maker, this conversation is full of practical insights and inspiring ideas to help take your practice to the next level.

Check out all of Bruce's books via this link: https://www.nextleveleducational.com/books

In this episode of HeadRoom: Curious Conversations for Leaders in Education, we sit down with Dr. Denry Machin, a seasoned educator, school leader, and thought-provoking author, to delve into the complex realities of headship. Together, we explore the delicate balance between the challenges and celebrations of school leadership – from the pressures of navigating the daily demands of headship to the immense satisfaction of shaping a thriving school community.

Denry shares candid insights on:

• Striking the right balance between strategic leadership and being present in the classroom.
• The paradoxes of headship – the tensions between policy and practice, pressures and passions.
• The importance of making space for mistakes and learning in leadership.
• How focusing on one impactful priority can drive meaningful change.
• Reconnecting with your why when the pressures feel overwhelming.

Whether you’re an experienced school leader or stepping into headship for the first time, this episode offers a wealth of inspiration, encouragement, and practical strategies to navigate the unique highs and lows of school leadership.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How to manage the paradoxes of headship while staying focused on what truly matters.
• Strategies for balancing office responsibilities and classroom presence.
• The role of self-reflection and curiosity in effective school leadership.
• Tips for building resilience and maintaining passion amidst challenges.

About Our Guest:

Dr. Denry Machin is an experienced educator and school leader with a wealth of insights on leadership. Known for his candid reflections through his writing, Denry inspires leaders to think deeply about their roles, embrace both the highs and lows, and lead with purpose.

Connect with Denry - linkedin.com/in/denrymachin/

Books

The Wisdom of Heads - bit.ly/WoHeads
International Schooling: The Teacher's Guide - www.teachabroad.ac
My Educated Life - sendfox.com/lp/1wxdp6 (register for advance copies)

Articles

Find a Smile - https://foxly.link/OJyDuq
What It Is To Be Wise - https://foxly.link/fIcCQY
Define Problems To Solve Them - https://foxly.link/QXfwoy
Problems, Every Day Problems - https://foxly.link/lnZiyC
Headship is Hard - https://foxly.link/W2sEVS

In this episode I'm so pleased to be joined by Georgina Durrant, a true advocate for children with special educational needs and disabilities. Georgina is a former teacher and SENDCo and is now a SEND Consultant and the founder of the award-winning SEN Resources Blog. She is also the host of the podcast SEND in the Experts and the author of three insightful books, including her latest release, SEND Strategies for the Primary Years.

Georgina’s expertise and passion have made her a go-to voice on SEND topics in the media, and most recently has been appointed as National Thought Leader for Inclusion at Twinkl resources.

So, join me in this curious conversation as we explore ways that we can all better support SEND students.

Check out the links below for more information on Georgina and her work:
The SEN Resources Blog:
https://senresourcesblog.com/georgina-durrant/
SEND in the Experts with Georgina Durrant - Podcast:
https://open.spotify.com/show/0fe7KoZe3x4p2RMeLC3CDm?si=a9eb9f63a21241e5
SEND Strategies for the Primary Years:
https://amzn.eu/d/bjoXOLV

How good are you at listening?
We are all familiar with the phrase – you have 2 ears and 1 mouth therefore you should listen twice as much as you speak. However, how many of us as school leaders, can legitimately claim we listen more than we speak? In our schools we strive to train our young people in the art of communication however the emphasis can so often be on how they present to others rather than how they receive or listen to others. Regardless of how good we think we are at listening I’m fairly sure there’s room for improvement.

In today’s podcast episode I have the perfect guest to help us dive into these issues a little deeper. Joining me from across the globe in Sydney Australia is Oscar Trimboli. Oscar is the author of the award winning book How to Listen and host of the Apple award winning podcast Deep Listening. He is on a quest through his Deep Listening Ambassador community to create 100 million deep listeners in the workplace. On the front cover of ‘How to Listen’ Michael Bungay Stanier states –‘When Oscar has something to say about listening, listen. He’s the best in the world.’

Whether at student level, at staff level or at system level we need to raise our game in how well we listen so that those we converse with feel seen, heard and valued.

Check out Oscar's website for more information on his listening quiz, his books, his podcast and his amazing resources. www.oscartrimboli.com

"Middle leadership in schools should be much more than just bridging the gap between the top and the bottom". Professor Andy Hargreaves

Join me in conversation with Professor Andy Hargreaves in my latest Head Room podcast episode where we take a deep dive into what exactly it means to lead FROM the middle.

Andy has just released his latest book 'Leadership from the Middle' which offers educators a wealth of insights into how impactful this role should be on transforming education.
In this episode we discuss:

• Defining middle leadership in schools
• How do middle leaders foster resilience within schools?
• The Leadership Paradox
• The importance of collaboration in middle leadership
• Overcoming resistance and building support
• The future of middle leadership in schools

You can check out Andy's latest books as well as keep up to date with his speaking engagements and much much more at his website: www.andyhargreaves.com

Andy's Latest Books:
The Age of Identity: https://amzn.eu/d/9EmQMbM
Leadership from the Middle: https://amzn.eu/d/etQLd6c
Please note these are not affiliate links.

It has been 18 months since I published an episode of HeadRoom and I want to thank you for your patience. During that period the downloads have continued and we have seen over 2000 episodes downloaded across 41 countries since our very first release in November 2020.
In this episode I'm in conversation with Shane Leaning who was the very inspiration for my re-launch and to whom I am very grateful. Shane is an organisational coach with many years of experience working with International schools. He is originally from the UK but now works and lives in Shanghai in China. Shane started his own podcast earlier in 2023 called Global Ed Leaders and it has been an instant hit with educators around the world. Join me in conversation as I hear about Shane's journey in education, his experiences of working in International schools and his reflections on the success of his podcast so far. You're in for a treat in this episode.
For more information on Shane check out his website: shaneleaning.com

Does your school have 'The Buzz'?

Join me in conversation with Tracey Ezard as we discuss how you can develop a collaborative staff learning culture in your school. See Tracey's message below for more details and a special offer for Head Room listeners to access the 'Buzz Diagnostic'.
Please note this episode is not sponsored.

A message from Tracey:
Getting a good sense of how strong our buzz is (Is it a buzz? A hum? Or are those just crickets chirping?) can be a challenge when we’re sitting in the middle of it. To gauge what is going on we need to sit back and reflect on ourselves and our school.

‘The Buzz’ Diagnostic will guide your reflection. It has been undertaken by over 9500 educators and support staff over the last three years, giving great insights into school culture, as well as giving benchmarks for each school. It is suggested that schools undertake the diagnostic annually to monitor the growth in their professional learning culture.

The Buzz Diagnostic, when undertaken by the members of your staff, will give you insight into how they see The Buzz at your school. Individual staff members assess their individual contribution to the three pillars of The Buzz, as well as how they perceive the school as a whole.

It asks about three core areas of learning intelligence: mindset, environment and belief.

· Mindset. The way people in the learning community think.

· Environment. The actions a learning community takes to stimulate professional learning.

· Dialogue. The quality of the conversations learning communities have.

In each of these areas, there are some questions about how you feel as an individual educator, and how you feel as an educator within your school community.

When you’ve finished the Buzz Diagnostic, you will receive an individual report with feedback on important actions for your professional reflection practices. If your school is participating in a whole school diagnostic, they will receive an aggregate summary report, however individual responses will still be kept confidential as your responses will be collated with feedback from other staff.

The diagnostic takes about 10 minutes to complete and is often done at a meeting time to ensure high levels of participation. To access the whole school Buzz Diagnostic, request an access code via this link or complete an individual assessment here.

So, what’s The Buzz at your school like?

eBooks

Glue e-book PDF

Buzz e-book PDF

Buzz Academy - www.thebuzz.academy

Tracey’s website - www.traceyezard.com