Blog 9 - School Days

If we think back to our school days, we all remember those teachers who inspired us and made a lasting impression. For me, a teacher I will never forget was the mighty Mrs Sutton, an English teacher who had such passion and enthusiasm for English and Drama it rubbed off on her students. Her lessons were creative and fun, but rigorous and challenging. She certainly instilled in me a passion for literature and drama at an early age. 

Teachers are key to improving standards in schools and their professional development is something that we take very seriously at High Storrs. We aim to provide a seamless continuum of professional development opportunities for our staff. All teachers can remember their first experience of being placed in front of a classroom full of pupils; something that, at times, can feel like being thrown to the lions! At High Storrs we support trainee teachers across our school, providing them with a warm welcome and meticulous mentoring and coaching in the classroom. For our newly qualified teachers, we have a robust induction programme aimed to support them in their first year in a school. These new entrants to the profession meet weekly to discuss teaching and learning developments and share excellent practice. Teachers who are interested in developing their careers have the opportunity to participate in a professional development programme at High Storrs called ‘Pathway to Middle leadership’, a programme which supports teachers as they take their next steps in their career. Many of our staff have also taken part in the city wide Sheffield Middle Leadership programme, enabling them to take on a ‘closing the gap’ leadership challenge and present their findings to the Senior Leadership Team. We are also leading a cohort of female teachers from primary and secondary schools across the city who aspire to senior leadership in our ‘Leading Women Development Programme'. Several of our staff have taken or are currently undertaking the National Professional Qualification for Middle leadership or Senior Leadership and we are rightly proud of our teachers who hold ‘Specialist Leader of Education’ status, enabling them to support other schools through consultation or longer term placements.

Teaching and Learning underpins all our work in school and we are committed to improving practice. Our Teaching and Learning group is currently using action research to develop marking and feedback across school. Every year we host teachers from across the city as part of a ‘Leading Outstanding Learning’ programme. We are also the only centre in the country offering a level 3 Qualification for teachers in Co-Development Coaching, giving the opportunity for teachers to visit other schools and engage in coaching activities to improve their practice. In the summer term all our teachers are part of a ‘learning triad’, observing each other’s lessons and focusing on a particular area for development in the classroom, underpinned by wider research. We have hosted several regional ‘TeachMeet’ events giving teachers a platform to share ideas and experience with others. The development of teaching and learning is the foundation for all our INSET days which are relevant, interactive and provide opportunities for our staff to work collaboratively with each other across subjects.

There are many other opportunities for our staff to develop their skills and knowledge but I hope that I have given you a flavour of the kind of work that we are engaged in. Dylan Wiliam said, ‘Every teacher needs to improve, not because they are not good enough, but because they can be even better’… It’s with this mantra in mind that we ensure that High Storrs is the best that it can be and our teachers are unforgettable in the minds of their pupils.