WomenEd Blogs

by Imogen Senior @MrsSeniorStBens1 When I offered to speak at the #WomenEdEastern unconference on 23rd September, 2021, I hoped that I had something to offer. I have been a headteacher of a secondary school of 900 students for over two years and have been teaching for 20 years. I have three children (now aged 13, 10 and 5). I worked part-time for 18 months after my third child, returned to work full-time after four months after my second child and applied for, interviewed for, and was appointed to my first senior leadership post whilst 36 weeks pregnant (also with my second).

by Caroline Verdant @cazyv Must you see the colour of my skin?Does it change the fact that I want to win!What is the goal? What is the prize?If the colour of my skin is my demise!

by Nicole Rodden @NicoleRodden1 At the #WomenEd global unconference this weekend the word ‘anger’ was repeated. ‘Anger and hope leads to change’ by Dr Jill Berry. Being falsely called aggressive and angry, a stereotype of black women in particular, as mentioned in Caroline Verdant’s session. The need for an Angry Girls Club being set up in schools for girls to vent, mentioned by Emily Rosaman. Similarly, words like ‘vent’, ‘rage’ and ‘shock’ were used to describe some of the injustices within people’s stories linked to instances of racism and sexism within the sector.

by Rachel Fenn @NoSchoolSexism End Sexism in Schools is a grassroots organization founded in 2020. We are united in our mission to see schools become places where all children can achieve their potential, without being limited by gender stereotypes. Our first campaign, to research the gender bias in the texts taught in English lessons at KS3, was born out of our frustration that none of us, nor our children, had been taught any novels or plays by female authors at school. We wanted to know if this gender bias against women’s writing was merely anecdotal, or a widespread phenomenon.

by Katrina Edmunds @KatrinaAEdmunds In my previous blog, we explored the importance of tackling SDG5, why gender equality matters in international schools, what it consists of and how to achieve it. Here we will consider the imperative for international schools to take action and showcase an ongoing project which links gender equality and global citizenship. This project bonds together students from a privileged context, where education is taken for granted, with students from the war-zone of Afghanistan, where girls are fighting for their basic right to go to school, once again.

by Katrina Edmunds  @KatrinaAEdmunds My work as an academic counsellor revolves around listening to young people, empowering them to design their future aspirations and to achieve them. From this, we often stray into understanding their identity and values, which has led me to be an ally and educator on issues of equity, especially related to gender.The first decade of my professional life in education was in international recruitment. I travelled to many places to promote UK Higher Education, from Paris to Peshawar, while grafting to reach management level, right before I was blessed with twins in 2011.

by Adeola Ohgee @ao1982_   As black women, we have a very close relationship with our hair. Our hair is more than just keratin, it’s a badge of pride and honour because of the history behind it. Let's celebrate World Afro Day on 15th September with the global The Big Hair Assembly.

by Vivienne Porritt @ViviennePorritt on behalf of #WomenEd We’re delighted to announce that 10% Braver: Inspiring Women to Lead Education, edited by Keziah Featherstone (@keziah70) and myself,  has made the top 10 of @Learning Ladder5 ‘Best Books for Educators Summer 2021’ awards. We were first included in a longlist of over 100 entries and invited to submit why we should be in the Top 40. Given the title of our book, we had to show we were #Being10% Braver so we shared our views on why 10% Braver: Inspiring Women to Lead Education should be considered.

by Katy Marsh-Davies @KatyAcademic I received the following email response from a colleague in professional services today: ‘Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, I only work part-time’. I’ve had this response from colleagues before, but this time it rankled. I already knew she worked part-time because I received her automatic email reply. I also knew because a senior colleague had told me, in hushed tones, that members of her team mainly work part-time, ‘so you might not always get the support you need in a timely manner’.

by Tanya Hall @TheRealTMH A recent Twitter post by @AdamMGrant got me thinking about the assumptions associated with women in education: are 'women who assert their ideas, make direct requests, and advocate for themselves liked less' and are they 'less likely to get hired?'  So, I go back to my first promotion to 2nd in faculty – an internal post – where I was interviewed by the HOD and Headteacher. After being successfully appointed I was told later – quite some time later – that the headteacher had referred to me as a ‘firecracker.’ What did he mean by that?