NEWLY QUALIFIED TEACHERS

I ended the day at the Newly Qualified Secondary Teachers Induction and Welcome Event at The Village Hotel in Headingley...


My colleagues from our Secondary Advisory Team, and from our Human Resources Team, had worked really hard to set up this day for the 70 talented, brilliant, gorgeous and wonderful teachers who have joined our secondary schools and SILCs this year. It was inspiring to be able to talk to so many young colleagues starting their learning journey here in Leeds as members of a simply wonderful secondary and special school workforce. I talked about the critical importance of the work we do. I talked about the WOW factor and how every school had to continue to strive to be outstanding. The difference between being in a classroom with a great teacher and a classroom with an OK teacher is enormous in terms of achievement and attainment. So everyone has to be a learner and develop their craft and their practice so that we are constantly learning from each other and learning from the best.

Standing talking to these wonderful colleagues reminds me of being in a school assembly and looking at the talent, the potential and the magic and again you wonder what we can't achieve together here in Leeds. The future is certainly bright for secondary education in Leeds if these colleagues are anything to go by!
Chris