During the podcast, two experienced colleagues discuss why this work is important and offer some key principles to building these relationships and connections.
We ask how we can begin building connections with a new class of students and how we can foster strong relationships even when we might see hundreds of students every week.
We talk about building a culture of trust and respect in our classrooms and the common traits that teachers might display in order to build these connections. We also consider quick wins, including shaking hands, seating plans, corridor conversations, positive calls home, how to remember key details about students, role-modelling, and apologising when necessary.
We discuss strategies for building connections with individual vulnerable students – perhaps those who face the greatest barriers to learning and who are at the greatest risk of disengaging.
And we look at engaging with families and some whole-school strategies that might help teachers to build connections with their students.
This episode is hosted by SecEd editor Pete Henshaw and our guests are:
- Clare Lomax is the assistant headteacher (behaviour, attendance and safeguarding) at Woodhey High School in Ramsbottom, part of the Shaw Education Trust. She is a teacher of RE.
- Jo McShane is freelance consultant, currently working as interim assistant headteacher for behaviour at Benfield School in Newcastle. She works primarily in the Behaviour Provision where she is designing interventions to develop relational practice. She is also director of jomcshaneequinetherapy.com which supports vulnerable learners via interactions with her Shetland pony herd.
To hear other SecEd podcasts, or to subscribe for free to new editions, search for 'The SecEd Podcast' in your podcast streaming application of choice. Or visit www.sec-ed.co.uk/podcasts
For details about The SecEd Podcast, or to suggest future topics, email editor Pete Henshaw at editor@sec-ed.co.uk