Mind the Gap: Making Education Work Across the Globe

On this episode of Mind the Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Tom Needham - teacher, school leader, and author of Engelmann’s Direct Instruction in Action - to explore what direct instruction really means. Marking the final book in the In Action series, the conversation digs into Siegfried Engelmann’s work, from the power of carefully sequenced examples and non-examples to the importance of “sameness,” big ideas, generative content, and tightly designed practice. Tom explains how direct instruction transformed his teaching of English, particularly for pupils who had struggled with writing, spelling and foundational skills, while also showing how its principles apply across subjects from maths and science to history and geography. Along the way, they discuss the philosophical and practical objections to scripted programmes, the role of teacher expertise in curriculum design, and why precise instruction can be a route to greater pupil success, confidence and independence.
Tom Needham has been teaching for nearly twenty years. He has previously taught English in International schools in Malaysia and Nigeria; EFL in Bangkok and Harrogate, as well as Sociology, Media Studies and all the Humanities in Croydon. He is author of Explicit English Teaching, and most recently Engelmann's Direct Instruction in Action, which will be available on the 19th of June. Tom is currently an Assistant Headteacher at a school in Charlton.
Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Emma Turner FCCT is a school improvement advisor, education consultant, trainer and author. She has almost three decades of primary teaching, headship and leadership experience across the sector, working and leading in both MATs and LAs. She works nationally and internationally on school improvement including at single school level and at scale. She has a particular interest in research informed practice in the primary phase, early career development, and CPD design. Follow Emma on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
This podcast is sponsored by Teaching WalkThrus and produced in association with Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://walkthrus.co.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/⁠⁠

On this episode of Mind the Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Christian Mba, who is a vice principal, speaker, content creator, and now author of the upcoming book, Teach Like Your Heart Is On Fire. The trio engage in an uplifting conversation about purpose, passion and the moral imperative at the heart of teaching. Christian reflects on his journey into education, the teachers and mentors who shaped him, and why he wants to 'talk up' the profession at a time when its challenges can dominate the narrative. The discussion explores the importance of knowing your why, finding your own authentic voice as a teacher, and balancing evidence-informed practice with the character, conviction and humanity that make great teaching come alive. Along the way, Christian shares ideas from the book’s three-part structure - character, capacity, and culture - including the power of big, ambitious goals, the role of education as a leveller, and the responsibility teachers have to open up possibility for every young person in front of them.
Christian Mba is a senior school leader working in secondary education in England. Born and raised in London, he taught in the capital for over a decade before moving into senior leadership, with experience spanning a range of complex and high-challenge school contexts. His leadership work has included responsibility for teaching and learning, behaviour, personal development, inclusion, character education, and professional development. Alongside his school-based role, Christian is a Programme Lead for a Middle Leadership development programme within a large Multi-Academy Trust and serves as a School Governor in a local secondary school. His new book, Teach Like Your Heart Is on Fire, is out on 29 May, 2026.
Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Emma Turner FCCT is a school improvement advisor, education consultant, trainer and author. She has almost three decades of primary teaching, headship and leadership experience across the sector, working and leading in both MATs and LAs. She works nationally and internationally on school improvement including at single school level and at scale. She has a particular interest in research informed practice in the primary phase, early career development, and CPD design. Follow Emma on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
This podcast is sponsored by Teaching WalkThrus and produced in association with Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://walkthrus.co.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/⁠

In this episode Tom and Emma go head-to-head to discuss realities that schools face as they grapple with an ever-expanding variety of social and economic issues while simultaneously attempting to deliver quality education. Emma says, "I think we could probably agree as a profession that there are core things that are common to great classroom teaching, but in terms of school improvement, I think that needs a much more forensic, bespoke look at the genuine context of each school because there aren't shiny, transferable solutions because of the nature of the breadth of school type in our system." Tom envisions an inspection system without judgements that supports schools and attempts to understand their contexts. As he says, "Schools need to be known, not just visited." Overall, they thank teachers for their hard work across the system, and acknowledge that school improvement can be much easier for schools who already have resources and support than for those without.
Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Emma Turner FCCT is a school improvement advisor, education consultant, trainer and author. She has almost three decades of primary teaching, headship and leadership experience across the sector, working and leading in both MATs and LAs. She works nationally and internationally on school improvement including at single school level and at scale. She has a particular interest in research informed practice in the primary phase, early career development, and CPD design. Follow Emma on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
This podcast is sponsored by Teaching WalkThrus and produced in association with Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://walkthrus.co.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/⁠

On this episode of Mind the Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Sarah Cottinghatt and Adam Kohlbeck to explore the craft and complexity of instructional coaching, drawing on their widely shared Coaching Cuts series on Substack. The conversation unpacks how coaching can move beyond surface-level feedback to focus on teacher decision-making and mental models, and why the most powerful coaching conversations centre on surfacing goals, comparing versions of events, and working collaboratively towards better outcomes for pupils. Through concrete examples, they illustrate how shifts in language and mindset can transform the quality of coaching dialogue. Along the way, they tackle bigger questions about scaling coaching across schools, the balance between whole-school professional development and one-to-one work, and the importance of a shared understanding of how learning happens as the foundation for any meaningful improvement.
Sarah Cottinghatt is Research Lead at Steplab. She is a former English teacher, teacher educator, and Associate Dean at Ambition Institute. Sarah has an MA in Educational Neuroscience and writes books for teachers and coaches, including Ausubel's Meaningful Learning in Action, as well as co-authoring Coaching Cuts and Coaching for Adaptive Expertise with Adam Kohlbeck. Find her on Substack @https://substack.com/@cognitivecoach
Adam Kohlbeck is the Director of Teacher Quality at Chiltern Learning Trust. He has been teaching and leading in schools for 17 years and has an undimmed love for teaching. Adam was a finalist in the 2025 National Teaching Awards and is the author of three education books, including co-authoring Coaching for Adaptive expertise. He also holds Chartered teacher status and is a qualified executive and instructional coach.
Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Emma Turner FCCT is a school improvement advisor, education consultant, trainer and author. She has almost three decades of primary teaching, headship and leadership experience across the sector, working and leading in both MATs and LAs. She works nationally and internationally on school improvement including at single school level and at scale. She has a particular interest in research informed practice in the primary phase, early career development, and CPD design. Follow Emma on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
This podcast is sponsored by Teaching WalkThrus and produced in association with Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://walkthrus.co.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/⁠

On this episode of Mind the Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Professor Becky Francis, CEO of the Education Endowment Foundation, for a rich and wide-ranging discussion about the role of evidence in improving education - and the complexities that come with it. Becky unpacks how the EEF has evolved from a research-focused organisation into a trusted, sector-facing resource used by the vast majority of schools. The conversation explores the power - and limits - of randomised controlled trials, the importance of meta-analysis and implementation, and why teaching can be considered a “best bets” profession shaped by context and professional judgement. Along the way, they tackle big questions around social justice, student grouping and attainment, the risks of initiative overload, and how teachers can engage meaningfully with evidence without oversimplifying it. Looking ahead, Becky highlights key frontiers for research: AI, SEND, and school improvement at scale - making this an insightful and thought-provoking episode for anyone interested in how evidence can genuinely inform practice without losing sight of the realities of the classroom.
Professor Becky Francis CBE is currently CEO of the Education Endowment Foundation, and was previously Director of the UCL Institute of Education (IOE), which is ranked #1 in the world for education in the international QS rankings. Her prior roles include Professor of Education and Social Justice at King’s College London, Director of Education at the RSA and Standing Advisor to the Parliamentary Education Select Committee. Throughout her career, Becky has sought to maximise the impact of academic research by working closely with teachers and policy-makers. She has spearheaded high-profile research programmes assessing the impact of major reforms in the English school system on educational inequalities, and is sought out internationally as an advisor to Governments on education policy. Becky was the inaugural Charles Yidan Global Fellow at Harvard University. Her academic expertise and extensive publications centre on social identities and inequalities in educational contexts. She is best known for her body of research on social identities and educational attainment, including gender, race and social class.
Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Emma Turner FCCT is a school improvement advisor, education consultant, trainer and author. She has almost three decades of primary teaching, headship and leadership experience across the sector, working and leading in both MATs and LAs. She works nationally and internationally on school improvement including at single school level and at scale. She has a particular interest in research informed practice in the primary phase, early career development, and CPD design. Follow Emma on X ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
This podcast is sponsored by Teaching WalkThrus and produced in association with Haringey Education Partnership. Find out more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://walkthrus.co.uk/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://haringeyeducationpartnership.co.uk/⁠