Don Ledingham’s Learning Log

Friday 11th November

8.30-9.45am Education Officers’ Meeting – school based issues were shared and discussed. This meeting is proving very useful in helping us all to keep abreast of what’s happening in our schools. We discussed the issue of long term exclusions from schools and how we can all work together to support the child but enable the school to function. The real challenge is change the mind set as a mentioned yesterday from one of handing on the “problem” to one of continuing to “own” the child. I’m looking forwards to the 25th January when we will try to tackle this issue.

10.00am Department Briefing Meeting – birth notices; relevant school information –i.e. Headteacher absence; Christmas night out to an “establishment” – I’ve just had a thought! Could we organise an Education Christmas social event which would be open to everyone involved in education in East Lothian? – not in time for this year but would such an event bring people together?

11.00-12.30 Out to RossHigh School to meet Willie Carroll, who is acting Headteacher in Helen Alexander’s absence. Helen is likely to be absent for the next couple of months. I did a quick tour of the school with Willie during his interval duty. The pupils were very well behaved. We talked about a number of matters not least of which was the need for the authority to complete a follow up report on the very successful
school inspection undertaken in February 2004. I’ve arranged to visit the school again and interview three groups of staff – Curriculum leaders; principal teachers; and teachers. I’m also due out to the school to undertake the first evaluation visits which will consider the school’s examination results and the school’s standards and quality report. Hopefully these visits will enable me to complete the report which is due for submission by the 13th January. Such was the success of the inspection that the HMIe may sign off the process with our report and not make a return visit.

While I was touring the school I bumped into a former colleague – Peter Hill – a living legend from Dunfermline College of Physical Education, then Scottish Centre for Physical Education and Leisure Studies and now of Edinburgh University, Moray House Institute of Education,
Department of Physical Education. Peter has a had an incredible impact upon countless physical education teachers and was one of the first people to introduce me to the notion of teachers as reflective professionals when I worked with him during my three year secondment to Moray House from 1987-1990. Peter was also one of the first people in Scotland to promote the concept of teaching styles – see
Muska Mosston. When you consider the current emphasis on teaching approaches and preferred learning styles it is interesting to reflect just how far ahead of the game Peter actually was in the late 70s and 80's. Anyway, Peter was in the school supervising a student, Laura Wood,, who just happened to be one of my former pupils at DunbarGrammar School. Rarely, for me, I had some time to spare before my next meeting at 2.00pm. Again, even more rarely for me I took Peter out to lunch (and paid!). We had a grand chat about physical education, the old days and our respective families. Douglas, our eldest, is thinking about becoming a PE teacher – must run in the genes – although he is much brighter than his Dad - as his Highers prove. Nevertheless, Pete had invited us both up to Edinburgh for a tour round the University. Hopefully e can do this before the Christmas break.

Back to the office for a meeting with Caroline Harris of ABEL – Anti Bullying East Lothian. ABEL do tremendous work in East Lothian supporting schools and families who are encountering bullying problems.

3.00-5.00pm Tried to complete all my backlog of work and e mails as I’m out of the office on Monday and Tuesday at Stirling University Management Centre for a seminar on ICT in Education for Directors of Education – Alan Blackie couldn’t make it.

Just read Angus McCrury’s weblog – powerful stuff! Teachers have such power to ruin lives or transform them. I was bottom of the class three years in a row at primary school 36th out of 36. I remember the teacher calling me thick and worse still me believing it. Then in P6 we got Mrs. Simpson – I was transformed by someone believing that I could do things – thanks Mrs. Simpson- wherever you are.