How to make a difference for every learner and teacher

The role of teachers in schools and society attracts considerable debate. With increasing concerns about teacher retention and recruitment, authentic views are welcome. Inside teaching aims to provide a broad overview of being a teacher today. The author has a long career in teaching and consultancy across the educational spectrum.

The book is divided into three main sections. ‘Your pupils’ discusses aspects of pupil motivation, achievement, and working with parents and carers. This section is the strongest, and conveys a passion for improving the lives of all children through education. Each chapter provides a good mix of academic research, with insight from a range of settings, exemplified through anecdotes. The section identifies education as a social enterprise, one that requires a collective approach, rather than individuals working in isolation.

The second section, ‘Planning, teaching and assessing’, includes a distillation of key ideas about how to be an effective teacher. Its chapters emphasise the ebb and flow of lessons and the school day, and highlight the importance of high quality questioning in class, and of professional conversations with colleagues. The two chapters on how to develop pupils’ thinking and on how to help them structure their knowledge seem the most contemporary.

The final section looks at job satisfaction and teachers’ continual professional development. While short, this section provides a punchy set of ideas about taking control of a teaching career, and gaining support for improving practice.

While the anecdotes are useful, the majority seem primary based – I would have preferred a more balanced set from across the age ranges. Additionally, there is little on the pastoral or extra-curricular roles many teachers play, or on engaging with research evidence.

Overall, the book reads like a primer for teaching. I recommend it to those a couple of years into teaching who are looking to broaden their horizons beyond the day-to-day. However, those looking for science-specific teaching volumes should invest in Shaun Allison’s Making every science lesson count and Tom Sherrington’s Teach now! Science.