This week the two gents chat to Maeve Birdsall and Jasmine Priestley again. They are joined this time by Claire Clithero. All three guests are strongly influenced by Reggio Emilia philosophy. This approach was developed in Northern Italy and continues today. It is an approach to teaching, learning and advocacy for children and in its most basic form, is a way of observing what children know, are curious about and what challenges them. Stan kicks off the chat considering what the government's vision for academy improvement is and how it doesn't appear to link too closely to Ofsted outcomes. Maeve then considers the impact of the 25 year old Good Friday Agreement and how it has brought relative peace and why it remains a crucial element in securing Northern Ireland's future. Jasmine discusses the sense of unrest within the teaching profession and why the national strikes are taking place. Claire reflects on the misunderstanding many members of the general public have of the profession and why this is stoked by some media outlets. The discussion then moves on to principled leadership in the light of a sting on an MP this week. Frank then asks the Early Years colleagues to explain how they developed their learning philosophy and how this was captured brilliantly in their book Rainbow Birds. Its a great chat. A new approach adopted accidentally in that the screen moves to the speaker rather than have all guests on screen at the same time. let us know whether viewers prefer this approach, or not.
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