The Full English Podcast

Join the Pearson English Team as we invite a host of special guests to join us to discuss the important issues for English teachers in the UK.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the panel and guests on the show. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Pearson.

The Full English with host, Pam McLoughlin

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Latest episodes

Ep 14: Practical ideas to improve your students' feelings of belonging and an exploration of the future of GCSE English with Bennie Kara

Join Pam and Bennie Kara as they discuss a range of topics, including Bennie’s new book ‘The Diverse Curriculum,’ and the practicalities of enriching your curriculum to be more inclusive and diverse. Other aspects discussed include what the future of English GCSE could look like and how to foster a love of literature in the classroom.

Ep 13: Being resilient and having a positive mindset with Ashley Hickson-Lovence

Pam talks with Ashley Hickson-Lovence about his upbringing in Hackney and how he become a football referee and an English teacher. He’s now a published author with a PHD and lectures in creative writing.  This episode is inspiring for teachers and their students, as Ashley discusses a positive mindset and how overcoming shyness and being resilient helped him achieve his life goals. 

Ep 12: Helping students to connect with Shakespeare

Join Pam as she chats with Ange Gordon who is a Product Developer at Pearson Edexcel and recently worked on our new Accessible Shakespeare texts.

The conversation looks at these new texts and discusses some ideas to support teachers with increasing student engagement during their study of a Shakespearean play.

The accessible texts mentioned in this episode are available here.

Ep 11: Educational Research in the English classroom with Meera Chudasama 

In this episode Pam speaks with Meera Chudasama who is an English teacher with a passion for educational research. Find out how learners can become researchers in the English classroom and how this can be used in your own classroom practice.

Ep 10: The impact of diversifying your school's Literature texts with Diane Lee 

During this episode Pam talks with Diane who is an English teacher in Suffolk. Diane’s school is part of our Lit in Colour Pioneers programme, and she explains the positive impact that being a Lit in Colour Pioneer has had on the school community. We hear about how they diversified their literature curriculum and how starting a Lit in Colour book club can really open up conversations about different voices and experiences.

Ep 09: Closing the Writing Gap with Alex Quigley 

In this episode, Pam is joined by Alex Quigley who talks about his latest book ‘Closing the Writing Gap’. You’ll hear about the science of writing and how to further develop your students’ writing skills. Alex also shares some great ideas to use in the classroom as well as helping you to reflect on your own pedagogy, and how to support and empower your students to create effective writing. 

Ep 08: Reading for Pleasure with Emma Braithwaite

Join Pam for episode 8 with guest Emma Braithwaite. Emma is Head of Skills and Engagement at The Reading Agency and leads on a range of programmes including Chatterbooks, Reading Sparks and the annual Summer Reading Challenge. Pam and Emma discuss the ‘Winter Mini Challenge’ and other innovative programmes including ‘Reading Well’ which supports readers to understand and manage their health and wellbeing.

The Reading Agency is a national charity that tackles life's big challenges through the proven power of reading. In 2020-2021, The Reading Agency reached over 1.9 million people across the UK, including more than 800,000 children and over 1 million adults and young people.

Listen to more of the Full English podcast

With episodes covering topics such as diversity in literature, pedagogy, engaging readers and writers, mental health and wellbeing, why not listen to more of the Full English podcast?