Mr Barton Maths Podcast

In this conversation, Craig Barton and Ollie Lovell discuss various teaching strategies and approaches. They cover topics such as the importance of choosing effective examples, the benefits of using green smoothies for breakfast, and the concept of hands-up cold call. They also explore the idea of starting with general examples instead of easy specific cases, and how this can improve student understanding and engagement. Overall, the conversation highlights the importance of thoughtful planning and effective teaching practices. Teachers often spend too much time on questions where understanding is secure and not enough time on questions where understanding is not secure. This can be a result of relying on cold call or hands up instead of using mini whiteboards to assess understanding. It can also stem from a desire to probe further and ensure complete understanding, even when the majority of students have already grasped the concept. This can lead to a missed opportunity to address areas of struggle and alloc

Craig Barton and Jo Morgan discuss Jo's career journey and the context of her school. They then dive into the topic of achieving amazing GCSE results, starting with the importance of a solid Key Stage 3 and 4 curriculum and pedagogy. Jo emphasizes the need for high-quality teaching, a robust curriculum, and going into depth on topics. She also discusses the benefits of setting and the challenges of staffing Key Stage 3. Joe mentions the use of shared resources and the importance of consistency in teaching across the department. In this part of the conversation, Craig and Jo discuss the importance of being prescriptive in teaching methods and the use of calculators in the classroom. Jo emphasizes the need for live modeling and independent practice, while also acknowledging the challenges of using mini whiteboards effectively. They also discuss the benefits of regular calculator use from the start of Year 7 and the impact of embedded retrieval in lessons. In this part of the conversation, Jo discusses the u

In this episode, Craig Barton interviews Josh Goodrich, the co-founder and CEO of Step Lab, about his experience as an English teacher and his work in teacher education. They discuss the importance of instructional coaching and the challenges schools face in implementing effective coaching programs. Josh emphasizes the need for schools to de-implement ineffective practices and create a culture that supports coaching. He also introduces the concept of mental models and how they impact teachers' ability to change their practice. The conversation highlights the importance of awareness, insights, goals, and specific technical knowledge in coaching teachers. The conversation explores the coaching process and the importance of challenging misconceptions, using critical evidence, and introducing new ideas. It emphasizes the need for observation, hypothesis formation, and gathering evidence to support coaching sessions. The conversation also discusses the use of a framework for lesson observation and the importan

In this conversation, Craig and Ollie discuss various topics including Brian Johnson's quest to beat the aging process, fitness goals, teaching reading using Monster Phonics, treating failures as system failures, effective teacher professional development, and the use of silent teacher and checking for listening in the classroom. In this part of the conversation, Craig Barton and Ollie Lovell discuss various teaching strategies and methods. They explore the use of worked examples and the importance of checking for understanding. They also discuss the idea of tightening feedback cycles and the benefits of more frequent assessments. Finally, they delve into the controversy surrounding exit tickets and their effectiveness as a teaching tool. You can access the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-10/ Time-stamps: Consider failures first as system failures (09:15) My latest lesson observation and coaching template (16:43) Representation, Decomposition, Approximation (32:16

This month Ollie Lovell and I discuss the following things: Why change needs a deep understanding (08:15) The power of using critical evidence during CPD (23:10) Is making feedback into detective work really a good idea? (39:39) The Derring Effect (55:04) What have you got worse at? (1:11:24) I need the toilet (1:20:25) You can view the show notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-9/

In this episode, Craig, Ollie, and special guest Zach Groschel discuss various topics related to education. They start by introducing themselves and discussing their current locations. Then, they dive into the importance of standardizing entry and exit routines in schools. They also explore the concept of relentless precision in holding high standards and the obstacles to understanding that teachers may face. Overall, the conversation highlights the need for clear expectations, effective coaching, and ongoing support in education. The conversation covers obstacles to understanding, effective explanations, checking for listening, refining the list, gradual release of responsibility, six direct instruction shifts, and self-explanation. The conversation explores the pre-test effect, the value of mass practice, the importance of discriminative contrast in interleaving, and the role of similarity in interleaving. You can access the show notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-8 Time-stamps:

Cognitive psychologist, Nick Soderstrom, joins me to talk about all things memory and retrieval. We discuss the important distinction between learning and performance, and then dive into four desirable difficulties: testing, spacing, interleaving and pre-testing. Links can be found in the show notes: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/how-to-remember Time-stamps: Memory, learning, and career paths with a cognitive psychologist. (7:04) The importance of retrieval practice in learning. (12:25) Learning vs performance in education. (17:51) Retrieval practice and testing in education. (24:26) The benefits of testing students and how it can improve learning. (29:35) Effective feedback strategies in teaching. (36:11) Math testing formats and feedback. (43:03) Retrieval practice in math education. (47:37) Using retrieval practice and spacing to improve learning. (51:33) Spaced repetition in teaching fractions. (56:30) Optimal spacing for effective learning. (1:01:01) Optimal retrieval practice for learni

Teacher, author and my arch-rival podcaster, Ollie Lovell, joins me from the land Down Under for the seventh of our monthly chats. We each share three things we have been thinking about from the world of education recently. In this episode, we discuss CPD, checking for understanding, rehearsal, lesson planning, and more. For show notes, videos and links please visit this page: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-7 Time-stamps: Plan CPD around the in-between times (10:04) Questions to ask during CPD (17:52) Ask Who got 8/10? (28:16) Importance of rehearsal when coaching (35:42) Move slowly (50:47) What’s harder, planning lessons from scratch, or adapting existing lessons? (57:27)

Where to begin? Mark McCourt has done it all. From maths teacher, head of maths, head teacher, Ofsted inspector, CEO, founder, and the creator of MathsConf. I first met Mark almost 20 years ago, and have learned from him ever since. This is Mark’s 3rd appearance on the podcast, and given he recently announced his retirement, I fear it may be his last. To access the show-notes, please visit: Time-stamps: Retirement and career changes. (4:43) Potential and ability in education. (13:30) The meaning of "ability" in education. (21:31) Teaching methods and class organization. (25:30) Teacher performance and subject-specific knowledge. (33:28) Education trends and subject matter in schools. (38:06) Education sector fear and lack of agency among teachers. (44:14) Assessing student learning and understanding. (53:21) Teaching methods and mini whiteboards. (58:59) Maths education and manipulatives. (1:03:41) Using manipulatives in math education. (1:10:22) Maths education and teacher t

The episode features a conversation with Ofsted's Maths Subject Lead, Steve Wren. We discuss everything from inspections, subject deep-dive, lesson observations, book scrutinies, COVID and more. For show notes, please visit: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/ofsted Time-stamps: Education career, controversies, and accents. (13:13) Maths education, policy, and personal interests. (15:31) Maths education and refereeing football. (20:56) Football refereeing and teaching career insights. (23:27) Lesson planning and the importance of cutting losses. (26:31) Ofsted inspections and their practicalities. (29:12) School inspection process and expectations. (35:33) School inspection and grading. (39:09) School inspection process and leadership. (42:40) Ofsted inspections and deep dives in a secondary school. (49:15) Maths curriculum and lesson observations. (51:13) Teaching maths in a school. (55:22) Ofsted inspections and lesson quality. (1:00:18) Ofsted inspections and consistency in teaching pra

For this special episode (kindly sponsored by Casio Education), Ollie Lovell and I are joined by Emma Turner and Tom Sherrington to discuss coaching, the view form the back of a lesson, pre-testing, implied competencies and more! Access the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-6 Time-stamps: Be wary of the view from the back of your lessons (05:29) Implied competencies at primary (21:52) The Montessori approach (37:01) Why cannot Craig not make pretesting work? (58:45) Is coaching in groups better than one-to-one? (1:21:53) The power of manipulatives (1:35:15)

Vic Simms is a Professor of Developmental Psychology at Ulster University. Her recent research interests have been in understanding the influence of the home environment on early mathematical development, understanding influences on development from cross-country perspectives and developmental differences (for those children born preterm or with genetic conditions). This episode is part of my Research in Action mini-series, where I interview a researcher from the Mathematics Education Centre at Loughborough University about their chosen area of interest, and the implications for maths teaching and learning. You can access the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/research-in-action-25 Time-stamps: Introduction to today’s topic. (6:29) How parents engage with their children. (11:20) Differences between the quality of the interactions and the frequency. (15:37) The ideal combination of frequency and quality. (19:58) The home mathematics environment in China. (24:35) The hierarchy of what parents

Kinga Morsanyi is a developmental psychologist, and currently a Senior Lecturer in Mathematical Cognition at Loughborough University. Her main focus is on mathematics learning, but her research interests also encompass reasoning and decision-making, the motivational and emotional aspects of learning, and educational approaches to improving thinking and mathematics skills. Kinga is also researching the atypical development of cognitive skills, in autism and in developmental dyscalculia. This episode is part of my Research in Action mini-series, where I interview a researcher from the Mathematics Education Centre at Loughborough University about their chosen area of interest, and the implications for maths teaching and learning. You can access the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/research-in-action-24 Time-stamps: Introduction to Kinga. (0:14) Craig's background. (2:08) Maths Anxiety. (8:52) The bias for positive findings in research. (15:17) What is dyscalculia and what does it mean? (19:

Dave Hewitt taught in schools for 11 years, including as Head of Department working with all-attainment classes from Years 7-11. Dave has since been working in teacher education for over 30 years, initially at the University of Birmingham and then setting up the mathematics PGCE at Loughborough University in 2014. Dave was last on the show back in 2020 when we discussed when to tell students how to do something. This episode is part of my Research in Action mini-series, where I interview a researcher from the Mathematics Education Centre at Loughborough University about their chosen area of interest, and the implications for maths teaching and learning. You can access the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/research-in-action-23 Time-stamps: Dave's background. (2:07) The law of efficiency and short term success. (7:36) The subordination of teaching to learning. (13:16) Children can abstract from a world of complexity. (19:49) Direct access to students. (25:15) Direct access vs. prior knowle

Teacher, author and my arch-rival podcaster, Ollie Lovell, joins me from the land Down Under for the fifth of our monthly chats. We each share three things we have been thinking about from the world of education recently. In this episode, we discuss instructions, the Split-Attention Effect, backwards-faded worked examples, and the first lesson with a new class. For show notes, videos and links please visit this page: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-5/ Time-stamps: Front-loading instructions (09:09) Backwards fading for worked examples (12:51) Never write what you don't understand (28:36) Hands-up who thinks they know the answer (40:02) Do you really understand the Split-Attention Effect? (49:50) First lesson with a new class (58:36)

Camilla Gilmore is the Developmental Psychology and lead of the Centre for Early Mathematics Learning. She has done research for 20 years focused on learning mathematics in particular looking at cognitive aspects (e.g. executive function skills that we discussed back in episode 151) This is part of my Research in Action mini-series, where I interview a researcher from the Mathematics Education Centre at Loughborough University about their chosen area of interest, and the implications for maths teaching and learning. You can check out the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/research-in-action-22/ Time-stamps: The importance of early years maths. (7:38) What are the age groups of early learners? (11:52) How much variation is meaningful and how much incidental? (15:42) Early years and executive functions. (21:11) Cognitive load theory and extraneous load. (27:13) How retrieval practice works in early years. (31:10) The month of birth effect on learning. (35:33) How much do emotional aspects

Jodie Hunter is a visiting professor at Loughborough University from Massey University, New Zealand. We discuss developing culturally responsive mathematics education in classrooms with students from diverse ethnic groups including Indigenous and migrant groups through building on culture as a strength. This is part of my Research in Action mini-series, where I interview a researcher from the Mathematics Education Centre at Loughborough University about their chosen area of interest, and the implications for maths teaching and learning. You can check out the show-notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/research-in-action-21/ Time-stamps: Jody's background. (1:53) What do you mean by early algebra? (7:34) Cultural representation of mathematics in school. (14:17) The power of geometric patterns. (21:39) How children's academic achievement accelerates. (26:56) Shoehorning in inverted commas and real-life applications. (31:58) Strategies on how to integrate cultural learning into maths. (38:06

Paul Howard-Jones joins me to discuss how and why teachers use (and don't use) research to inform their teaching. This is part of my Research in Action mini-series, where I interview a researcher from the Mathematics Education Centre at Loughborough University about their chosen area of interest, and the implications for maths teaching and learning. You can access the show notes here: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/research-in-action-20/ Time-stamps: Paul's background. (4:15) Why research doesn’t play out as well in the classroom? (10:36) How do researchers and educators work together? (16:27) The shift towards evidence of impact in research. (22:30) Understanding the why and how of the research. (29:23) Implementation adaptation and sustainment. (36:26) How to break down barriers to research. (43:10) Advice for teachers who value research. (48:51) Fostering a culture of innovation in the classroom. (54:06) The research community’s take on practical classroom techniques. (59:30) What Pa

Teacher, author and my arch-rival podcaster, Ollie Lovell, joins me from the land Down Under for the fourth of our monthly chats. We each share three things we have been thinking about from the world of education recently. In this episode, we discuss live coaching, shared lesson plans, CPD, Dylan Wiliam and more. For show notes, videos and links please visit this page: mrbartonmaths.com/blog/tools-and-tips-for-teachers-4/ Time-stamps: Is this now correct? (5:29) Some elements of good teaching I don't use enough in CPD (11:14) Moving towards shared lesson plans (26:26) Live coaching (44:12) When are you ready to be a head of department? (1:04:26) Task structures (1:14:21)

Science teacher, Pritesh Raichura, shares his insights about how to ensure 100% of our students are listening, thinking and understanding at each stage of a lesson. From All-Hands-Up Cold Calling, to high-frequency checks for listening, this episode is jam-packed with incredible, practical insights. You can access the resources and videos from the episode here: https://www.mrbartonmaths.com/blog/170-how-to-secure-100-student-engagement-with-pritesh-raichura/ Useful time-stamps: Welcome to Pritesh (06:51) Pritesh's favourite failure (10:37) What does Pritiesh mean by attention? (19:25) What does 100% attention look like? (22:53) Is 100% attention really achievable? (28:15) What is the relationship between attention and behaviour? (33:44) All-Hands-Up Cold Call (46:06) How do you secure attention when students are practising independently? (1:16:37) Show Call (1:20:35) High-frequency checks for listening (1:25:20) Desks in rows (1:43:05) S-L-A-N-T (1:58:10) Silence as a default (2:08