Product reviews for The Thinking Teacher

When I think back over the last ten years or so and some of the excellent training I have had the privilege to have received in that time I realise that the people who had the biggest impact on my own practice were not those who imparted great chinks of knowledge but those who made me think about things in a different way. And thinking about things in a different way is a stimulating and motivating learning experience.

In a time when there is much debate (and indeed much heated debate!) about what makes an effective national curriculum and what makes an outstanding teacher Oliver Quinlan's book is a timely reminder that one of the most effective things we can do as a teacher is not only to develop the thinking skills of our pupils but develop and apply our own thinking skills. If you are looking for a book which gives you ready to use lesson plans and worksheets then this is not the book for you, as whilst those books have their place, they do not ask us to stop and reflect on what we do and why we do it. If however, you are looking for a book which is thought provoking and gently challenges you to re-evaluate your own practice then look no further.

Quinlan leads us through various aspects of the whole complex business of education. Why do we ask students the questions we do and do those questions make them things about things differently? How important is memory in the learning process? Why are you a teacher? What kind of a teacher are you? What are the ideologies that influence and inform your teaching? Are we using technology in a way which enhances learning or are we using it -˜just because it is there?' What do we mean by the term -˜best practice' and is one person's -˜best practice' the same as another's? How can the world of finance and business inform the world of teaching? And what is the purpose of education anyway?

If I was a headteacher I would ask all my teachers to read this book and then use a staff meeting or inset to debate some of the questions and points that Quinlan makes. It's only by doing that we are ever going to progress as educationalists and further enrich the learning experiences of our students. As Quinlan says -˜Thinking matters' and we all need to strive not just for -˜best practice' but -˜next practice'

Quinlan writes in a very easy to read style (I read a chapter a night and then reflected on what he had written and how it related to my practice as an educationalist) and coming in at less than 150 pages it is an easily digestible book. A small book but an important one. Go on, give it a go. You might just end up thinking about something in a different way. And that might cause you to do something in a different way. And who knows, maybe your students will start thinking about things differently too! Changing educational paradigms begin right here.