Stuart Farmer

Another great piece of analysis from @daisychristo.bsky.social

I am pleased that an article on my research into the professional learning experiences of teachers in Scotland has been published today www.nexus-press.com/journal/FEPR... @iopscotland.bsky.social @colinmcgill.bsky.social @brucenextlevel.bsky.social @mrdissent.bsky.social @drewburrett.bsky.social

Another great blog post from @markmccourt.bsky.social. I wanted to select a line or two to quote but there are too many good lines for me to decide.

Oracy floats in a sea of knowledge daviddidau.substack.com/p/oracy-floa...

NEW POST: The Untold Story of Bloom's Taxonomy and the Pyramid That Never Was carlhendrick.substack.com/p/the-untold...

A lot of people have asked me: why are the govt trying to undo the edu policies that have made England so successful? Latest Substack does not attempt to answer that question, because I don't know the answer! But it has some related comment. substack.nomoremarking.com/p/what-is-go...

More on education reform, and the important and essential part that valid, reliable and objective assessment of pupil outcomes must play. Other factors must change but unless we can measure the impact of these then it is easy to come to the wrong conclusions. stuartphysics.co.uk/2026/10/01/i...

Decent potato crop and good quality despite the dry summer and no watering. Had my little helper again.

More on education reform, and the important and essential part that valid, reliable and objective assessment of pupil outcomes must play. Other factors must change but unless we can measure the impact of these then it is easy to come to the wrong conclusions. stuartphysics.co.uk/2026/10/01/i...

Another excellent post by @ensermark.bsky.social on the also excellent Curriculum Reform Handbook from Learning First’s Ben Jensen and @heatherbellaf.bsky.social. Good advice for curriculum-makers at all levels from classrooms to government agencies.

I haven't blogged in years, but prompted by an email @qualifications.gov.scot I've dusted off some old ideas... drewburrett.substack.com/p/revisiting... Please feel free to comment and share.

It was great to welcome 100 science educators to @enuteachered.bsky.social yesterday for a great day of high quality subject-specific professional learning. Thanks to all the speakers, exhibitors, IOPS Coaches, ASE Scotland committee members and the Education Academy Scotland who made it possible.

Power Up Your Curriculum is published this week! Here’s what @daisychristo.bsky.social has to say about it👇 Pre-order here: amzn.eu/d/0gLrLxqv

Really pleased to see this report published. Without sufficient physics teachers to teach physics knowledge and skills to young people we will find it difficult in the future to thrive as a nation and society or to have well rounded, educated citizens.

Join us on Thursday 17 Sept (4-6pm) for our first SCC webinar of the new academic year. David Gregory and Stuart Farmer will present 'Curriculum-making in the meso-level: lessons from a local authority'. Sign up at www.tickettailor.com/events/facul...

A significant issue in curriculum making identified by @ensermark.bsky.social “A curriculum can print “key concepts” at the top of every unit and still not have settled what one is, let alone what to do with it.” enserm.substack.com/p/concepts-i...

The 6th and final blog in my recent series on curriculum development and instructional design is at stuartphysics.co.uk The series ended up being a bit longer than I envisaged when I started but I hope the background and more practical examples are of interest and use to some. #TheoryIntoPractice

"We meet the child where they are, but we refuse to leave them there." "Attainment describes a present state; it does not reveal a future limit. Confusing the two is one of the most damaging mistakes an education system can make." Another thoughtful blog from @markmccourt.bsky.social

As expected, the latest report from @profcoe.bsky.social and @profkime.bsky.social at @evidencebased.education is a good read. See evidencebased.education/professional.... Improvement in student learning needs improvement in classroom interactions which needs us to build teacher expertise.

Another excellent blog from @ensermark.bsky.social. In the last few days he has considered curriculum making and curriculum reform in England which overlaps with many issues I have written about with regard to reforms in Scotland at stuartphysics.co.uk. Different starting points, same destination?

The 6th and final blog in my recent series on curriculum development and instructional design is at stuartphysics.co.uk The series ended up being a bit longer than I envisaged when I started but I hope the background and more practical examples are of interest and use to some. #TheoryIntoPractice

People are starting to write the obituary for England's "knowledge-rich" era. Before we bury it, I wanted to check something - was it ever really alive? enserm.substack.com/p/the-knowle...

Number crunching 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 ITE Maths teachers target: 250 Actual number recruited: 73, the worst in years Maths vacancies right now, weeks into the school year: 16 What’s the plan?

From NASA: It happened again! Here's Phobos passing in front of the Sun as seen by the Perseverance rover from the surface of Mars on Aug. 12. science.nasa.gov/photojournal...

Very much looking forward to reading @profkime.bsky.social and @profcoe.bsky.social have to say in this new paper. I definitely agree that many teachers have never experienced good professional learning.

We Need a Revolution in Professional Learning. In this short preview, @profcoe.bsky.social and @profkime.bsky.social explore why that matters, what the revolution could look like, and how schools, colleges and educators can get involved. The paper will be published on 5 September 2026. Stay tuned

For various reasons @mrdissent.bsky.social, I thought I would use some of my time over the last few weeks to put some of my experience and thinking on curriculum making in the sciences down in writing. I hope that some in Scotland might find it interesting and useful in the coming months and years.

In the 4th blog in the series I look at the purpose and detailed content of a curriculum strand on the properties of matter stuartphysics.co.uk/2026/08/20/s... @colinmcgill.bsky.social @drewburrett.bsky.social @mrdissent.bsky.social @andrewkbailey13.bsky.social @brucenextlevel.bsky.social

When can we move beyond correlation to causation? Curriculum-making analysis and observation using curricula and PISA scores from several countries. I wonder if the trends will continue when the 2025 PISA results are published next month? Third blog in a series. stuartphysics.co.uk/2026/08/19/s...

The second instalment is now posted. It looks back on a research-informed bit of classroom curriculum-making that I conducted over 30 years ago, and some lessons I learned then and observations I have made since. More to follow. stuartphysics.co.uk @dnleslie.bsky.social @brucenextlevel.bsky.social

I have posted the first in a series of blogs where I discuss curriculum making and instructional design in the context of Properties of Matter, see stuartphysics.co.uk. More to follow in the next few days. @colinmcgill.bsky.social @drewburrett.bsky.social @andrewkbailey13.bsky.social

If you need a metaphor for the fact that billionaires and supposed trickle down economics don’t care or work for the rest of us then this sums it up. Responding to a distress call is a longstanding duty following the sinking of the Titanic and is just human decency. www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Next Level Educational is looking to recruit a new Professional Development Lead. 🚀 Lead professional development for schools
 🚀 Expand membership of the Teaching PowerUps platform
 🚀 Contribute to the strategic development of Next Level Educational nextleveleducational.com/recruitment

NEW POST: You can't apply the science of learning to materials that weren't designed for it. Retrieval practice is a curriculum property, not a teaching technique. carlhendrick.substack.com/p/retconning...

NEW FREE POST Education’s dark matter There is no evidence to inform most of what we do fillingthepail.substack.com/p/educations...

Families in Dublin, are you looking for something free, fun and educational to do with the kids this summer holidays? Join Mimi & her friends on her latest adventure through at our summer exhibition Mimi and Friends’ Big Earth Adventure. 🔗 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/mimi-and-f... @iopireland.bsky.social

This w/end's little snippet from my new book is from Chpt1 where we're asking "What is light?" Dear 🇺🇸US friends hoping you have a good chuckle at me attempting an American accent, rather than being affronted! #BookSky 🔭 📖: www.bloomsbury.com/uk/how-to-de... 📽️: www.youtube.com/shorts/-RIPE...

Got a great idea to make physics fun for families? Get up to £4,000 to bring it to life with the IOP Public Engagement Grant Scheme. Workshops, festivals, new initiatives - all welcome. Applications open until 7 September: www.iop.org/about/suppor...

Kick-start your career with this one-day online course, designed specifically for new secondary school science technicians. 💻 Delivered live on Zoom with expert guidance, demonstrations, and opportunities to ask questions. 👉 Find out more and book your place today! https://ow.ly/ETO450ZltLV

Congratulations to Ariana from Ashmole Academy, who received a Highly Commended Award in the Age 11 category of #TheEurekas26! Her video entry, My Home is the Worst Home Ever, imaginatively explores how physics and emerging technologies could improve everyday homes. theeurekas.co.uk/submissions/...

Congrats to Anna (Nord Anglia International School Dublin) who received a Highly Commended Award in the Age 13 category of #TheEurekas26! Her animated video explains how solar panels generate electricity & why they’ll play a key role in creating sustainable homes. theeurekas.co.uk/submissions/...

Congratulations to Alex from Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, winner of #TheEurekas26! Alex’s comic, The Physics Behind a Better Future, brilliantly shows how physics can help create more sustainable homes using solar panels, battery storage and insulation. 🔗 theeurekas.co.uk/submissions/...

Thought provoking blog from @markmccourt.bsky.social