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Sunday EduPulse Round Up
- Adam Kohlbeck & Chris Passey
- Sep 6, 2025
- 4 min read
Welcome to the Sunday EduPulse Round Up - a brief snapshot of some of the things that have caught our eye this week out there in Education Land.
They Behave for Me - this week, Adam and Amy talk to Nick Gibb about his legacy in education and his new book.
No punches are pulled (when are they ever?!) in this episode and you really get a sense that any decisions taken were in the best interests of those involved at the time.
Whatever your opinion, this episode is sure to challenge it!
This weekend, hundreds of keen educators and minds descended on the researchED national conference. Our own Adam Kohlbeck presented with Sarah Cottinghatt on their new book - with Dr. Haili Hughes - 'Coaching for Adaptive Expertise.' Whilst there, Prof. Becky Francis CBE of Curriculum Review fame, gave an update. Our notes are below:
• Involved: 7000 respondents. 2000 young people.
• Evolution, not revolution
• Feeling there is much working well and know there are limitations on capacity in an already stretched system. Feels this approach has been well received by the sector.
• Most parents feel balance of Eng/Ma/Sci is right
• 9/10 parents feel Arts are important. Most feel balance of Arts in Curric is right.
Four areas of focus
1. High standard for ALL. Concerns about the disadvantage gap and how this grows from KS1-5 (attainment, progress) Some of the explanation is beyond the control and beyond school, but we can and must do what we can within skills and must attend to.
2. Curriculum shape and content of particular subjects needs attention. Delivering a broad and balanced curriculum can be difficult and the balance of depth and breadth. EBACC impacted students engagement and achievement, and limits access to the arts and non-traditional subjects. She then showed the balance of subjects across a KS3 curric which shows the balance of time has not changed over years, but at KS4 it has changed with an increase in fire which squeezes other areas like Arts, DT and CS. At primary, core has grown and arts and foundation have been squeezed. Assessment we are not an outlier internationally generally but at age 16 the volume and duration we are an outlier which needs focus. Focus also on KS2 writing.
3. The curriculum needs to address global change and challenges. Eg. Climate change, AI and mass tech, geo-political shift. Curric needs to be updated and keep pace with changing social environment. Renewed focus on digital literacy and the skills to draw upon evidence and scrutinise misinformation. Awareness of climate change and science. Children to know and interact with how our society is becoming more diverse and to know about various cultures. Verbal communication very important (Oracy). Finance and budgeting (financial literacy) popular with parents as something they want to spend more time on - consistently brought up by pupils.
4. 16-19 education needs to deliver secure pathways - especially for those young people not taking 3 A levels or a T Level. Significant proportion of pupils where these are not appropriate pathways or they cannot access them, despite success at level 2. They need a different diet. Need an effective, comprehensive offer that is simple to understand. Greater clarity of pathways for students. Need for a 3rd pillar to sit alongside A and T levels - a vocational pillar. Need to improve L2 pathways (20% at 16, 10% at 17) for those still studying those at that age. Concerns about Eng/Ma resits, particularly for DA students. Need to address the pipeline pre-16 (why they aren’t succeeding) but also develop practice and provision post-16 - need support to have more positive outcomes.
Reflections
Challenging the headlines. Feeling report is landing well with the sector, but there have been some “interesting” headlines eg. assessment.
• They are NOT axing GCSE or slashing exams.
• It will focus on GCSE volume, specifically time spent j then
• PM measures 1 will not cut candied subjects but will look at how best to facilitate greater choice whilst not compromising breath
• Curriculum; not dumb down content or get into issues, will ensure that every child sees themselves in the curriculum and it challenges discrimination and broadens horizons.
Learning form the review
• Importance and benefit of robust evidence
• Much is going well and has shown progress
• Before benefits from exceptionally deep and extensive expertise on curriculum
• Curriculum can’t do everything - but we can make improvements
• There are many dilemmas - there is no perfect!
Next steps
• Reporting soon (autumn)
• Govt will then respond
Adam's blog this week has a big message that is often overlooked:
We all hope for inspiring, effective INSET to kick off the school year. But when reality falls short, you’ve still got power. With clarity on what quality development looks like and the will to improvise where your school’s provision is lacking, you can keep your growth moving forward. Ultimately, a bad INSET doesn't define your year—it’s what you do afterward that does.
Have a read with your Sunday coffee: https://adam-robbins.com/2025/09/06/so-youve-had-some-bad-inset-whats-next/
SENDCo CPD - Amjad Ali
Amjad Ali is offering CPD for SENCOs and their line managers - in this time of SEND crisis, we really couldn't recommend this highly enough. Amjad's sessions are always packed out and his feedback is outstanding.
Check out his offer here: https://x.com/teachleadaali/status/1964008682695299550?s=46
BOOK GIVEAWAY!
Mr Metacognition himself, Nathan Burns, has had a burst of generosity and is giving away a copy of his book, 'Inspiring Deep Learning with Metacognition'.
"Understand what metacognition is and how you can apply it to your secondary school teaching to support deep and effective learning in your classroom.
Metacognition is a popular topic in teaching and learning debates, but it’s rarely clearly defined and can be difficult for teachers to understand how it can be applied in the classroom. This book offers a clear introduction to applying metacognition in secondary teaching, exploring the ‘what’, ‘when/how’ and ‘why’ of using metacognition in classrooms with real life examples of how this works in practice.
This is a detailed and accessible resource that offers guidance that teachers can start applying to their own lesson planning immediately, across secondary subjects."
That's it for your Sunday EduPulse Round Up; have an amazing week and don't forget to tune into X tomorrow LIVE at 7:30pm for the return of Coaching Unpacked.
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