Your website provides a vital link between staff and parents, school and home – or at least it should. There are so many templates schools can use to build a website quickly and easily but many of these could be outdated. They can often look old-fashioned and may be hard for parents to find their way around. So if you’re considering a new website for your school, how can you make sure to build a site that you can be proud of? Here are five key factors to consider. 

Web statistics

Why do people come to your website? Website statistics tell you how many visitors you’ve had, which pages they visited, how long they’ve spent on each page and much more. Once you know what people are looking for, you can make sure key information is easy to access. But you can only do that when you know the stats – so make sure your website design company offers access to them and presents them in an easy-to-understand way (Webanywhere does this! [https://www.schooljotter.com/school-websites/]). Use this data to identify the information that is viewed the most and structure your website in relation to the traffic – reducing click rate.

Easy navigation

There’s nothing more frustrating than a website with poor navigation, especially when you’re using your smartphone or tablet. If we can’t find what we want straight away, we generally give up and go elsewhere. This is the same for parents, if they can’t find something in 3 clicks or less, they are likely to get frustrated and call the school office for information. Make sure you have a simple navigation structure that makes it easy to find key information. Again, choose a web design company like Webanywhere who provide simple, straightforward navigation tools.

Keep it ‘above the fold’

Imagine a newspaper, folded in half. Where does the editor put the biggest, most important headline? On the top half of the front page, above the fold … And that’s the most important area of your website too. Think about what you want visitors to do when they land on your site – subscribe to a newsletter, request a prospectus, download a form? Put that CTA – call to action – on the top half of your homepage, and it’s the first thing people see – and the first thing they are likely to do. 

Keep it updated

There’s nothing worse than being out of date, yet so many schools’ websites look like they’ve not been updated for years. A fresh, modern design using your school colours and badge gives visitors a great first impression. It’s not all about looks though – make sure your key information, like contact details, staff directories and term dates, are up to date too. It’s also vital to keep updated with ofsted requirements, such as keeping evidence of current and previous curriculum – a website is the perfect tool for this.

Encourage repeat visits

Finally, encourage people to visit the website by adding new content on a regular basis. Newsletters, field trip reports, photo galleries, a calendar and a blog all help you connect with parents and keep people coming back. 

The humble mobile app has transformed numerous aspects of daily life.
Our social media apps give us the freedom to chat with people all over the world in seconds. Our banking apps let us manage our finances at any time, any place. And gaming apps keep us entertained on buses, trains and in waiting rooms.
But school mobile apps have even more to offer: they provide schools with streamlined ways to stay on schedule, communicate with parents and educate pupils via interactive tools. Any designed to help pupils learn may be downloaded on a parent or teacher’s smartphone as an educational aid.
Many school mobile apps are available today, so how do you know which are the best?
We’ve picked the top 8 below.

#1. School Jotter – School Web Design and Mobile App

School Jotter’s CMS is a complete solution for schools, empowering you with the means to update your website, add content, advertise vacancies, manage CVs, communicate with staff through text messages and more.
The School Jotter mobile app is an excellent complement to the CMS, providing parents with various features and information. They can:

• keep up to date with the latest school events
• view calendars
• read newsletters
• check out galleries
• view maps
• see what homework has been set
• complete forms on the school website
• take part in surveys
• book appointments for parents’ evenings
• send free instant messages

This helps parents stay informed of their children’s school’s latest events, keep in touch with teachers and much more.

#2. Duolingo

Educating primary-school children on a second language can be a real challenge, but Duolingo helps to make it simpler.
It has been called the ‘best language-learning app’ by The Wall Street Journal and is (perhaps best of all) free! Duolingo is designed to help users learn multiple languages, including:

• English
• Spanish
• French
• German
• Italian
• Dutch
• Russian

Duolingo makes learning new languages fun and interactive, utilising quizzes and bite-size lessons. This school mobile app is available on Google Play and iTunes.

#3. My Study Life

Staying on top of homework, exams and special occasions at school is difficult for young children, but My Study Life aims to change that.
This isn’t just a calendar app — you can use it to:

• see when work is due
• view when exams will take place
• set reminders for classes and unfinished work
• create timetables to reduce the risk of missed deadlines

My Study Life is a helpful app for schools, helping staff and pupils alike stay focused on tasks without confusing dates or classes. It’s available on Google Play and iTunes.

#4. Khan Academy

This free app is well worth looking into, providing access to a huge catalogue of videos and other learning resources across many subject areas.
You can use Khan Academy to:

• watch over 10,000 videos and explanations on maths, economics, history, science and more
• make education more interactive with over 40,000 questions
• try exercises and read articles on countless topics

Khan Academy gives teachers and children a vast catalogue of information, serving as an educational aid when studying a huge range of subjects. Achievements can be unlocked for a touch of gamification too, helping to engage pupils.
It’s available for download from iTunes only.

#5. Quizlet

Quizlet is a learning app based around flashcards, with multiple functions. This can be used by pupils as an aid to learning and practicing for tests through all years of primary school, as well as for teachers brushing up on subjects.
Quizlet offers the following features:

• prepare for tests and exams with the Learn section
• check your memory using Write
• share flashcards with other users
• implement custom audio and images to reinforce learning

Quizlet is free for the first seven days of usage, and multiple paid versions are available with additional functions. You can download it from iTunes and Google Play.

#6. WolframAlpha

WolframAlpha refers to itself as a real-life counterpart to the powerful computers seen on Star Trek, offering information on a massive variety of subjects using cutting-edge algorithms to create answers / reports.
Apple’s Siri is used in some aspects of WolframAlpha. This app can help with:

• elementary maths
• algebra
• astronomy
• geology
• animals
• plants
• dinosaurs
• climate
• calendars
• weather
• geography
• oceans
• historical figures
• linguistics

And much more!
WolframAlpha is an impressive school mobile app that to benefit teachers in the classroom and pupils at home. It’s not free, but its low cost and real potential makes it a worthy investment.
You can find it on Google Play and iTunes.

#7. Math Motion: Cupcake!

Many children struggle to learn maths, even at the most basic levels. Not only is the work itself difficult, but just the prospect of studying maths can be incredibly intimidating.
Math Motion: Cupcake! is a colourful, fun mobile app designed to help pupils develop their maths skills by running a cupcake business. It educates through such tasks as:

• fulfilling orders
• working out the cost of every cupcake
• paying loans back

Math Motion: Cupcake! shows how important maths is in everyday life in a practical, more engaging way. This app is available on iTunes only, for a modest price.

#8. Star Walk

Space is a fascinating subject to study at any age, but particularly in primary school. Today’s children have access to countless exciting resources on space, stars and astronomy, and Star Walk is a great way to help them learn.
Using Star Walk, you can explore the sky in real time, identifying planets and constellations using just a smartphone. It allows you to:

• locate and discover facts about celestial bodies
• study an astronomical calendar to find when eclipses, meteor showers, full moons and more will occur
• use the Time Machine feature to look at sky maps of the past and future
• explore the night sky with Night mode, making the app more comfortable to use

Many more features and functions are included, making Star Walk an indispensable aid to educating children on astronomy. It requires no internet connection.
You can download Star Walk from iTunes and Google Play for a small cost.

Each of these school mobile apps can help teachers, pupils and parents in a specific way, whether that’s building a reliable schedule, exploring historical events or even learning another language.
They’re simple to use and compatible with an extensive range of devices. Prices are generally kept low too, to suit schools on diverse budgets.
Have you used any of these apps, or do you have others to recommend? Let us know below!

Your mobile app is your school’s chance to boost parental engagement.
It’s a sad fact that teachers are finding it increasingly difficult to keep parents engaged with what’s going on at school.
Parents’ ‘go-go’ lifestyles mean they don’t have time to visit the school’s website for the latest news and announcements.
Hard copies of newsletters often get lost or thrown out.

What does this mean?

• Meetings with parents are missed
• Permission slips never get signed
• Children are dropped off when school is shut for training

Fortunately, the School Jotter mobile app is now bridging the gap between parents and schools and this is why it’s considered the best school mobile in the UK.
Free for parents to download via the App Store and Google Play, Jotter Mobile transformed the way schools communicate with parents.

The app features:

• Latest news and newsletters
• Contact (and be contacted by) individuals and groups of parents for free.
• Push notifications for urgent messages such as snow days
• Calendar for semester dates, meetings and events
• Hot Link – browse an external URL without leaving the app
• Contacts – useful numbers at your fingertips
• Maps – locate a campus or sports field

Even the so-called ‘hard-to-reach’ parent, who has low self-esteem and lacks the confidence to get involved, can at least know what’s going on.
This may eventually entice some to become more involved with their children’s education and school life.
Relying on parents to visit a school’s website for information is optimistic, as this can be time consuming and requires visiting several different pages, whereas with Jotter Mobile, everything can be accessed in moments.
Although Jotter Mobile is a stand-alone product, it works in synergy with our School Jotter website.
Not only does the app refresh automatically when the website is updated, parents can access photo galleries.
As lives get busier, the need for schools to have an app to act as a communications hub is greater than ever. It’s a great way to foster support and keep parents willingly engaged.
With hundreds on order, Webanywhere have already delivered over 1,000 School Jotter mobile apps – all beautifully designed to match a school’s brand and ethos. To date, our app has been used over 1,000,000 times.
Here’s what schools are saying:

“I think it’s great! Easy to use, can be accessed from everywhere. I have it on my phone and tablet. We’ve very happy with it. – St Joseph’s CPS Bradford
“Over a third of our parents use the app, and it is perfect for us because it’s so easy to use and manage.” – Old Sarum Primary School
“Thank goodness About time we have an app for holy family. It will make my life so much easier.well done!!”😁 – Holy Family CPS
“What a lovely app. Very informative and easy to navigate.” – Grange Park Primary School
“Great app.” – Drighlington Primary School

Your school website design is an important part of your school’s presence in the world. It’s a line of communication with parents, a way of celebrating your achievements, and a tool in attracting both pupils and staff. So how can you make the most out of the design?

Clear Navigation

It may not be glamorous, but the first thing you should think about is making your website easy to navigate. It affects the structure of the website, and so is fundamental to its design.
To do this, group pages together in a logical hierarchy that fits what people are used to seeing on the internet. Address, phone numbers, email, and a map to find the school should all come under “contact us”. Information about subjects can go together under “curriculum” or “what we teach”. Information about events should start with what’s coming next. A calendar with links to individual event pages can be a great way to tell people what’s going on.
Minimise how much effort it takes to find information. Whenever possible, visitors should be able to find the information they want within three clicks.

Accessibility

A few simple measures can make your website more accessible for a variety of users.
Use font colours that stand out well against the background. Black text on a background that’s white or pale is usually best. When making text stand out through different colours, avoid those that might be indistinguishable to the colour blind.
Use alt text for images. Make it describe what you want the picture to convey, as blind or partially sighted users will rely on this text.
Use clear, descriptive text for links, to help those using screen readers.
Some website providers, like School Jotter, include a translate option. If your school serves a diverse community then this can be a huge help by communicating with parents in their first language.

Use the Layout

Use the layout of each page to make it clearer and more accessible. For a page with lots of content, include jump links to each part at the top of the page, so that users with limited mobility can get down the page without much mouse use. Include drop down menus and links to break up text and provide extra options.
Because of the way people read, more information is absorbed from what’s at the top and left of each page. Focus the most important information here, to make sure that people see it.

Pick Your Font

The font you use can make a huge difference in how easy your website is to read. Avoid quirky choices like Comic Sans or old-fashioned ones like Times New Roman. The best fonts for online reading are sans serif fonts like Arial and Verdana, which are easy to read while looking elegant and modern.
Size matters. The best font size for online reading is 16px. You’ll also want to use other sizes for headers. With these, keep to the same font and to no more than three different sizes, to avoid mess and clutter.

Get Visual

Images are great for getting people’s attention and creating variety. You can use them to make pages more attractive and to draw readers to important parts of the page.
When using photos, take care in your choices. To keep them safe, children should not be identifiable from photos, so be careful with faces and don’t match them with names. Photos of eye-catching work can provide an interesting alternative.
Slideshows are another way of making the site more interesting. The movement they provide draws the eye, and they can show visitors a variety of images and text without taking up lots of screen space.
Bright colours create an emotional response and so can be good for drawing attention to important information. Use them sparingly so that they have more impact when they appear.

Use White Space

As you try to make the website more eye-catching, it can be tempting to fill it full of images and text. But too much can be overwhelming. Don’t be afraid to leave plenty of empty background space. Then, the text and images you provide will stand out better, and it will be easy to see what’s important.

Clear Writing

The content of your website is as important as the way it is presented, so think carefully about what you’re saying and how you say it.
Wherever possible, use plain English to make your message understandable. If you can choose between two words with the same meaning, pick the simpler one.
Break the text up into small paragraphs. It might feel odd as you write it, but simpler, shorter blocks of text are easier for a reader to take in. Where possible, limit paragraphs to around three sentences and don’t let those sentences run on.

Break it Down

Divide the writing up with headings and subheadings. Like small paragraphs, this makes the text less intimidating and easier to take in. It also makes it easier for users to navigate the page, skipping to the relevant heading to find what they want.

Keep it Relevant

It can be tempting to cram in a lot of information, just like it’s tempting to go overboard on the visuals. This might seem like a good way to tell people more, but in reality it’s often overwhelming.
To avoid this, think carefully about what the important part of your message is and how you can get it across. What do you want people to know after each page? How much extra is going to be interesting or useful?
If you want visitors to do something after reading a page, make this clear through a call to action. For example, a page about an upcoming school trip might end by suggesting that parents fill in the booking form, and then provide a link to the form.

Learn by Example

You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Check out other schools’ websites and learn from what works for them. For some examples, check out our School Jotter website. There, you can also find out how School Jotter can help you make your own great website.

You’re a school with an IT provision that’s the antithesis of state-of-the-art. Your budget is allocated and the money is burning a hole in your pocket. You’re itching to buy all those shiny, new computers, interactive whiteboards and software, and who can blame you? But before you start shopping, have you asked yourself (and your IT specialist) these questions about buying school tech?
Hardware

• Interactive whiteboard – with the most popular choices having been Smartboard and Promethean Activboard, most teachers now prefer to work with a conventional screen and projector using their own laptop or alternatively, they use the screen mirroring feature with iPads or smart TVs. It definitely seems the trend is moving away from expensive Smartboards, with their clunky software and screens that won’t stay oriented.

• PC, laptop or tablets? – although it could be argued that laptops encourage poor posture with the monitor so low, there’s no doubt that these portable devices facilitate sharing 30+ computers around the school, even moving outside when required. It also frees up the need for having a dedicated IT suite. While laptops are more powerful and have a much larger capacity, many children will be familiar with smartphones and/or tablets, so you may wish to consider a set of iPads as well. The wonderful array of educational and creative apps can make learning more engaging. Tablets can be used for independent learning, guiding reading and whole-class teaching.
• BYOD – One controversial movement that’s gaining popularity is allowing pupils to bring in their own devices. Not only does this free up more of your IT budget but pupils will feel more familiar with their own tablets or laptops. Of course there is the problem of batteries running flat and online security.
• Broadband – often neglected when considering buying school tech. Always go for a larger bandwidth than you anticipate needing. Determine if you’ll need as much upstream as downstream bandwidth and how much data you’ll use each month. The line speed and capacity must take account of educational and managerial uses, as well as communications, networks, operational systems and security (closed circuit TVs). With the move towards an ever-increasing percentage of content being delivered through a VLE, requiring numerous pupils to be online simultaneously, it’s more sensible to overestimate the school’s broadband needs.

Software

• Virtual learning environment – an essential item is your VLE, which needs to be adaptable and easy to use. Apart from buying the platform, many suppliers charge annual, per-user licence fees, which can eat up your budget. An alternative would be to opt for an open source platform..
• Website – every school should have a modern and multifunctional website to act as a portal for the school brand. An innovative solution would be to find a platform that integrates website with VLE. Buying a complete package can save money and make it simpler to use, with a single interface style.
• Content – teacher’s time is at a premium and designing effective content for lessons can be demoralising, unless you’re tech-savvy. There are content design companies specialising in the school curriculum, such as Webanywhere. They also have their Content Club, where for an affordable, annual fee, schools can have specific topic websites created. Once in the club, schools can then share their bespoke sites between members. So a cluster group could collaborate to have multimedia, interactive content to cover the entire curriculum.

Power in Numbers
And remember, before you accept any quotes and go off with your shopping cart, find out if anyone in your cluster group is looking for new software or hardware. If you collaborate with others, your negotiating power will increase when buying school tech.

According to research by Clare Campbell (2011), hard to reach parents are defined as those who:
“— have very low levels of engagement with school
— do not attend school meetings nor respond to communications
— exhibit high levels of inertia in overcoming perceived barriers to participation.”
Having greater parental / carer involvement isn’t just about helping at the bake sale; pupils whose parents actively engage with school attain more, so it’s vital to make that connection. Reluctant parents with low self-esteem cite their own negative school experiences for lack of engagement, so what can be done to encourage them to join in?

• Parent Profile

For reluctant parents and carers, it’s particularly important to find out what makes them tick. Do they have any outside interests? You might find they have a skill that the school could use, like speaking a second language or a talent for arts and crafts. Taking the ‘glass half-full’ approach and focussing on the parents’ assets will raise their self-esteem and build positive relationships. By getting to know the hard to reach parent, the school is saying, “You matter as much as your child.”

• Electronic Brochure

That’s essentially what a school website is but has the potential to be so much more. It’s important to have a site that reflects the school’s ethos and brand. Apart from essential information such as staff bios and Ofsted reports, your website should be the communications hub of your school. The calendar and newsletter should be continuously updated. Useful research data can be obtained through regular online surveys. Hard to reach parents would benefit from being able to securely access a portfolio of their child’s work.

• Connect

It’s vitally important to keep parents up to speed with what’s happening in school and with their children at all times. Poor communication, whether justified or not, is a common complaint from parents. Letters sent home in the school bag often go unread – assuming they’ve reached their destination in the first place. Chatting at the ‘school gate’ is beneficial but can be hit and miss. A more effective solution to sketchy communication is a school mobile app for parents. These apps allow parents to access the latest school news and important dates, as well as receive instant alerts such as an activity being cancelled. This saves time and improves relationships by keeping parents fully aware.

• Support Workshops

Supporting pupils with their learning at home is paramount, although some hard to reach parents feel ill-equipped, especially if their child has behaviour issues. Offering drop-in workshops during and after school is a way to bridge the gap, particularly if parents know their involvement can really make a difference. Workshops could cover basic numeracy and literacy support guidance.

• Storytime

It’s a sad fact that fewer children are being read to in the home. Shared stories help develop reasoning, imagination and communication skills, as well as an interest in reading and writing. Those pupils who would rather play computer games or watch TV need particular attention, as this is often a smokescreen for a feeling of inadequacy with reading. One way to encourage reading at home is to have a ‘Story Time with Parents’ initiative in school. Some children may never have heard their parent read a story, which can have a profound effect.

• Promote School Spirit

To encourage school spirit from the outset, set up a ‘boast board’, where teachers, governors, parents and pupils can post about what excites them about the coming school year. Regular blogging or podcasts can engage hard to reach parents by introducing topics they relate to. Posts don’t have to focus purely on what’s happening in school. It might be a discussion on different behaviour management techniques or it could be a recipe for paper mâché. Make it readable and keep it fairly light. School Facebook and Twitter accounts can be used to share your blog, raising the school’s profile. Social media is useful for school trips too, so parents can share in the experience and keep track of what’s going on.

• Outreach

Although this might be seen as a last resort, there are occasions when paying a home visit is necessary. This type of approach might be met with hostility from some parents, however if handled correctly, it can pay dividends. Keep it relaxed and friendly; ask for a hot drink if one isn’t offered, as it’s amazing how bonding can begin over a cuppa. Don’t be judgemental – the parent may already be thinking they’re in trouble. Take an interest and keep it chatty, eventually focussing on the child(ren). Hopefully the parent(s) will appreciate you took the time to visit.

• Speak Their Language

With an increasing number of immigrant parents with little or no English, it can be a nightmare getting them involved with school. Add to that any cultural differences that may preclude certain activities and hit a brick wall. The ideal solution is to ask for help from community leaders or other parents who understand the situation. These helpers should be able to start building a relationship for the school and encourage some form of involvement, however small.

• Ditch the Cattle Market Parents’ Evening

For hard to reach parents, parents’ evening is a dreaded event. They may feel unable to speak to the class teacher on their level, causing deep embarrassment. Having to mix with lots of other parents could make them uncomfortable, particularly if the school intake has a wide socioeconomic range. And as is the common practise in many schools, having the pupils’ workbooks on display can have a negative effect on parents whose children have below average attainment. If possible, schedule private consultations on different days for these parents. If you remove many of the uncomfortable aspects, they are far more likely to attend.

• What Do They Want?

This may seem an obvious question but is often omitted. What does a parent want from the school and for their child? What areas are most important to them? It could be attaining excellent SATs scores or it might be developing better social skills and behaviour. You might find asking this question opens up a continuing, positive dialogue with hard to reach parents, simply because no one else has ever bothered to ask them.

We bet you love your new multi-function school website, with it’s attractive theme to match your branding and its ability to act as a VLE. (PS. If it’s not multi-function, it’s not School Jotter.) All the content has been installed and you’ve uploaded the data to comply with  statutory requirements. Have you forgotten something? Apart from the more obvious information to have on your site such as the school’s contact details and a link to your most recent OFSTED report, there are a few more obscure items that you shouldn’t forget.
Bats and Balls
If your school receives the PE and Sport Premium Funding, you must show how you have or intend to use the money, as well as stating how this has affected your pupils’ involvement and attainment. Providing a larger and more varied range of equipment can help inspire children to become more active, which is a plus point for your school.

Governors Laid Bare
Not literally of course but it’s important to include details of governors’ financial and business interests on the school website. If they get a kick out of being part of a governing body and are on multiple boards, this must also be declared.
Attention or Detention?
Whatever strategies you’ve implemented to deal with challenging and unruly behaviour, these need to be outlined in detail. Parents will want to know how the school approaches bullying and any form of bigotry, which is in the news on a daily basis. This of course should be in keeping with your school ethos.
Levelling the Playing Field
Pupil Premium Funding may seem inadequate but at least it goes some way to helping schools provide extra support for disadvantaged pupils, in the hope they can reach similar attainment to their peers. Details of how and why this is spent, together with evidence of how it has helped disadvantaged pupils’ attainment must be on your school
website.
Touchy Feely
While you might think it’s obvious to prospective parents what your school is all about, it may not be. In any case, it’s imperative that you spell it out on your website. What values do you promote? Do you place most emphasis on academic attainment or pastoral care? As parents and carers browse school sites, most seek out a school’s ethos and values first, rather than the latest SATs results. Don’t just tell them what they want to hear; make it personal and relevant to your school, and your way of doing things.
Regardless of whether you think anyone will ever read the statutory requirements, they’re not an option. To see exactly what should be included, visit the Government website.

As a retired primary teacher I find it unsurprising that numerous studies show a gender gap where girls are significantly outperforming boys in literacy. One of the latest studies, commissioned by Save the Children, has found that the female advantage is established even before they step foot in the classroom. Understanding the Gender Gap in Literacy and Language Development was undertaken by researchers from Bristol University’s Graduate School of Education. Apparently in the 2014/15 school year, one in four boys were behind in language at age five and started Reception without being able to follow simple instructions or speak a full sentence. The report also states that for those children who start school behind, few will catch up.

Factors
While the gap appears to exist for all socio-economic groups, it was wider for those children eligible for free school lunches. Whereas the overall ratio was 25% of boy starters unable to answer simple “how” and “why” questions compared to 14% of girls, this escalated to 35% and 23% for lower income families. Several of the schools where I taught had ‘breakfast clubs’ before school, run by volunteers. It was a sad fact that this club was bursting at the seams. Whether this was simply due to poor time management by parents or because of economic factors, cereal and toast were gobbled up greedily. Once the children’s blood sugar levels rose, behaviour improved and they stayed on task longer. But where gender difference is concerned, evidence from the Save the Children study couldn’t definitively point to biological, developmental or social causes. An earlier study in 2008 by the Institute of Education (part of the Millennium Cohort Study) found that for both sexes attainment was better for children with two working parents, particularly if they held qualifications. Pupils in stepfamilies or with one parent had lower achievement.
Department for Education
The DfE produced a report in 2009 entitled Gender and Education – Mythbusters Addressing Gender and Achievement: Myths and Realities where they tended to refute most of the gender gap findings, however the evidence spoke for itself when it came to girls attaining higher in English. At key stage two, the gap is considerably wider for writing than reading but this is hardly news to me, as I repeatedly felt like I was hitting my head against a brick wall trying to get boys to write. The DfE say that increased provision has been made for Early Years practitioners to try and redress the gender gap but is it too little, too late?
Solutions
I recall an old study that maintained girls were better communicators because female babies tended to be carried facing inwards, whereas boys faced outwards. Facing inwards allowed babies to see their parents’ faces and be spoken to directly. They would learn to read facial expressions and understand nuance more quickly than if carried outwards. Somewhat controversially, the Save the Children study advocates treating boys more like girls. Girls tend to be sung to and have nursery rhymes recited to them. The researchers want to boys to experience this in equal measures, as well as having storybooks read to them and being given rewards for good performance. More creative activities such as painting and drawing are also seen as a way to help with cognitive development. But is it fair to lay all the blame at parents’ feet for the gender gap in attainment? Schools need to build a trusting relationship with parents and carers, working with them to promote the importance of one-on-one activities at home. Pupils need to be taught the value of being self-reliant and independent learners, which will raise self-esteem.
Role Models
There are relatively few male Early Years practitioners in UK schools. It’s more typical for men to teach at secondary level, with a view to obtaining headships. With so many single parent families where dad is seldom seen, a positive male role model is vital. In my last primary school they had no less than four male teachers out of 12, one of whom was in Early Years. This state school had some of the best behaviour I’d experienced and the male teachers certainly contributed to that. They provided a different caring style and allowed children to see a more natural gender mix, representative of society. Surely the DfE should do more to recruit male teachers into primary and particularly Early Years.
Methods of Delivery
There is little doubt that even the youngest pupils relate to technology, as it can be exciting and varied. In my KS1 class, while girls would often grab a book and sit in the reading corner, the boys competed for the two computers where they could play games, albeit with an educational objective. More provision should be made at Foundation Stage for pupils to have access to a virtual learning environment. Lower achievers could work through specially designed modules to help them catch up with language skills. As many schools may not have the funds to provide sufficient portable devices to use, a BYOD (bring your own device) policy could be introduced, so that pupils could bring in a tablet or smartphone from home. If boys are more reluctant to read and write, interactive storyboards and gamification could provide the catalyst needed to spark their interest. The beauty of BOYD is that any elearning content can be easily accessed at home as well as at school, hopefully encouraging parents to get more invested in their children’s education.

Communication is key to the effective running of a school. Good communication fosters good relationships and in educational institutions, with so many stakeholders, relationships are incredibly important. With this in mind, the channels a school chooses to communicate through also become important in themselves, especially as social media now offers a chance to reach people in a way that is direct and immediate.
There are, of course, inherent risks, and there is often an understandable hesitancy from schools to utilise open platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. But if this is the case, the setting up of a school blog can act as a more manageable way to put your institution’s message out there.

A school blog attached to a website can present an insight to the daily goings on behind the gates and in the hands of a curator with an eye for detail, an ear to the ground and a little talent with the written word it can offer an extremely human voice of an institution that is often viewed as being closed-off to those who aren’t teaching or learning within it. One of the complaints that parents and carers often have is that there are only a number of communication points in a year and that sometimes it can be a mystery as to what is going on (given the uncommunicative nature of many adolescents and teenagers!). An effective school blog will not only disseminate important information throughout the year in an easy-to-digest format, it can concentrate on some of the minutiae that is often lost. There may be an exceptional piece of work that deserves a wider audience, a teacher explaining the finer points of how to help the kids with their study skills for an upcoming test, or photos, video and audio from a recent volunteering event. All these and more add colour and vibrancy that often goes unnoticed. Content that includes successes, news, input from teachers, children and management in a style that reflects the ethos of the school goes a long way to offering an insight into the work that goes on and can be presented in the most positive way possible. It can also give parents and carers a chance to respond to those events, bringing the school and the local community together. And unlike other platforms, there is always a chance to moderate.
A school blog acts as a window and allows the outside world in (to an extent of the school’s choosing) and enables schools to share the fantastic things that are happening and deserve to be shared.