Authors

Bernard Trafford
All articles by Bernard Trafford
‘Schools try to deal with the youth mental health crisis. But they can’t do it alone. Where is the government?’
Heads and teachers are grappling with the many problems faced by their students, writes one top school leader, but it can feel swimming against the tide
29 April 2016
‘The government constantly falls into the old trap of valuing most that which can be most easily measured’
Schoolteachers are rated by Ofsted, so why should academics be permitted to carry on in their ivory towers? But just because we’re having a lousy time doesn’t mean that academics should, too, says a leading headteacher
22 April 2016
‘Teachers need space away from targets, planning and marking to pursue extracurricular activities with pupils’
It is powerful beyond words when pupils see school staff in different guises – the maths teacher who runs a football team, the English teacher who puts Shakespeare on stage – but growing pressures and government policies are making them an endangered species
15 April 2016
In other sectors customers aren’t permitted to become aggressive or abusive to staff: Why do we accept if from parents?
We’ve all experienced parents phoning us in the evening – often after a glass of wine – and having a go, writes one high-profile head. Schools should not put up with it
8 April 2016
Abysmal grammar, newspeak and doublethink: it’s a brave new world we teach in
The government insists that it’s setting teachers, school leaders and governing bodies free to make the decisions. It’s all looking decidedly Orwellian, says this leading headteacher
28 March 2016
‘This is what we are hearing from the DfE robots: monotonous, meaningless, triumphalist claptrap’
Think of a Dalek, with the warmth and humanity removed – that’s the Department for Education spokespeople, according to a leading headteacher
20 March 2016