Commissioning editor @tesmagazine.bsky.social, with a focus on teaching & learning and education research. Former secondary English teacher. https://www.tes.com/magazine/author/helen-amass
Helen Amass
"A school is a community where many, often competing, needs must be balanced as equitably as possible - all while keeping within what is financially viable. And nobody likes being told 'no'. So how do we say it and retain respectful relationships?" @nancygedge.bsky.social shares her advice.
Seems an apt time to put this out again - nothing has really changed in the research consensus since I wrote this.
Also, if the 'harmful' bits are banned, does that make phones 'safe' for schools...?
www.tes.com/magazine/tea...
My latest piece for @tesmagazine.bsky.social explores the influence of the manosphere in schools. I heard some truly shocking stories: www.tes.com/magazine/ana...
ADHD has been oversimplified, misreported and misunderstood, argues professor Gaia Scerif. “It’s a spectrum,” she argues, and the environment a person is in can often determine whether support is actually even needed.
A must read interview this morning.
www.tes.com/magazine/tea...
"A child isn’t born with SEND. They aren’t born knowing that they don’t fit," says the writer. "This is something they learn; something that they’re taught."
This piece is one of the most beautiful mediations on SEND I have read.
www.tes.com/magazine/ana...
In ‘The Anxious Generation’, Haidt makes the case that social media and smartphones have ‘rewired’ today’s teenagers, but his critics say the evidence tells us something very different - and that bann...
Schools and trusts are facing ‘the most significant update to employment law in decades’ – but how, exactly, will they be affected? @jasminenorden.bsky.social asks legal experts about the implications of the Employment Rights Act 2025
There is an ‘unhelpful myth’ that children should avoid writing altogether in the early years – but research shows that early writing and mark making helps with literacy, writes @juliangrenier.bsky.social
“If your measure is randomised controlled trials, then there is no evaluation of Building Thinking Classrooms... Most of the research is design-based, more qualitative, smaller scale. And there is a risk that if you [only go on these types of studies], things then look very successful.”
Extra time is "by far and away" the most popular access arrangement for pupils with SEND sitting exams. But does its dominance mean we might be missing out on alternative arrangements that might help pupils more? @ellencph.bsky.social investigates.
"With regards to phones and social media, the evidence of causality for ADHD specifically remains limited. Attention development, from the early years into adult life, is so complex. We should be wary of pinpointing a single cause." Fascinating interview in Tes today from @jonsevers.bsky.social ⬇️
Helen Amass
A decade of working in alternative provision led this teacher to question the usefulness of labels and the benefits of having his autistic son diagnosed
Leaders constantly find themselves having to turn down requests - but there are ways to do this that reduce the likelihood of a breakdown in relationships, writes Nancy Gedge
Extra time is the most popular access arrangement to help students sitting their GCSE, AS-level and A-level exams, but is it the most helpful? Ellen Peirson-Hagger weighs up the evidence and whether t...
www.tes.com
ADHD is misunderstood and mischaracterised, and that’s creating significant challenges for those with the condition as well as those trying to support them, argues Professor Gaia Scerif
Group work using ‘vertical, non-permanent surfaces’ is a staple of Building Thinking Classrooms - a pedagogical approach gaining traction across the Atlantic. But how well does it work?
ADHD is misunderstood and mischaracterised, and that’s creating significant challenges for those with the condition as well as those trying to support them, argues Professor Gaia Scerif
With measures in the Employment Rights Act 2025 set to become statutory in the next school year, Tes asks legal experts how schools should be preparing
A myth has taken root in early years that children should avoid writing until they can form letters and spell correctly – but encouraging early writing and mark making can help with literacy, says Julian Grenier
The rise of the ‘manosphere’, and its potential to incite aggressive behaviour, has become a national talking point. But what does research tell us about the scale of the problem and how schools shoul...
