Chris Passey

🎙️NEW EPISODE🎙️

From the Think Space

In this new series, we meet the inspiring people driving change in education.

From EduPulse, our first guest -
@hugheshaili.bsky.social - discusses recruitment and retention and what we can do in the future.

open.spotify.com/episode/242X...

I’m deeply honoured to be given the opportunity to continue the legacy of our success and I’m so excited to work alongside her and our amazing school team to keep reaching for the stars.

Thank you for your trust. We’ve got this.

I’m a Headteacher. The work begins!

I’m ridiculously proud to share that I’m starting a new position as Headteacher at @kimichischool.bsky.social!

The journey I have been on, under the expert guidance of Executive Head Sally Alexander has been an honour and the adventure of a lifetime.

Coaching tip: don't assume they'll just do it

Good intentions fade...

After rehearsal, help coachees make an *execution plan*: a highly specific plan to implement the step!

Behaviour change is devilishly difficult - make a plan to make it happen!

➡️https://bit.ly/4enfdGp

Level 7 apprenticeship funding to be axed from January 2026 DfE also announces 'priority' bootcamp funding for next year and confirms apprenticeship budget increase to over £3bn

This is incredibly short-sighted.

feweek.co.uk/level-7-appr...

Don’t assume your coachee sees what you see.

Before modelling a teaching practice:
👁️Share specific success criteria
🖇️Ask them to link those criteria to learning

Take less than 5 mins to learn about both coaching techniques:
➡️https://bit.ly/43x8MeH

You’re the best :)

When we understand why teachers act as they do, we can truly support professional growth.

- Check out Sarah and Adam’s work on Sarah’s substack: lnkd.in/eKsU4h5X

- Subscribe to our Coaching Unpacked podcast series from EduPulse: lnkd.in/ePTCubnn

- Surfacing mental models through structured reflection
- Using mental simulation to stretch thinking
- Varying practice to build situational sensitivity

We also emphasise the importance of vulnerability and agency in coaching conversations.

By surfacing and developing teachers’ mental models - the cognitive frameworks that drive decision-making - we can help them move from knowing, to deciding, to doing.

Instructional coaching is powerful, but its true potential lies beyond technique. In our latest article, we argue that coaching should aim to develop adaptive expertise in teachers: the ability to notice, interpret, and act appropriately in ever-changing classroom contexts.

Genuinely thrilled to have co-written an article for Issue 24 of Impact from @collegeofteaching.bsky.social alongside @scottinghatt.bsky.social and @mradamkohlbeck.bsky.social

COACHING THAT DEVELOPS MENTAL MODELS FOR ADAPTIVE PRACTICE

I have had the distinct pleasure of working with Sarah over the past year and I’m in awe of her ability to distill complex and foundational thinking into something digestible yet impactful.

This feels like the beginning of a unified theory with profound consequences for us all.

Here we go!

Have enjoyed the first bit of the NPQH from Best Practice Network - keep on learning!

#CPD #NPQH

This week on #TDaPE, I’m joined by Will Mcloughlin for a fascinating discussion on conceptual understanding, what it is, why it matters, and how we can help students develop it meaningfully.

Apple: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...

Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/4uRY...

May we continue to make music that builds bridges, uplifts souls and honours the legacy of those, like Saint Thyagaraja, who remind us that music is not just art — it is devotion.

Without devotion, is there any real knowledge of music?

धन्यवा

None more so than founder and headteacher, Sally Alexander Mbe, of my beloved @kimichischool.bsky.social in Acocks Green for taking a chance on me when others turned their backs.

It is important to take this opportunity thank the countless creative individuals and collaborators who have helped shape my journey and my eventual offerings to the world that are being humbly honoured today.

On that day, I was reminded that while our roots may differ, our aspirations through music and the arts are shared; a sentiment that surely cannot ignored on such a wonderful occasion here in our great city.

My journey as a music educator, author and composer has been driven by a simple belief: that music and the arts, indeed knowledge overall, belongs to all of us equity, with equity of access, and that through it, we can find a common humanity in an increasingly divided world.

It's an honour to have been recognised in this way and to spend the time enjoying some excellent Carnatic and Hindustani singing, dancing and instrumental performances with my family by my side.

With huge thanks to Chithra Ramakrishnan, the British Carnatic Choir, ShruthiUK5 and the Birmingham Thyagaraja Festival.

It was also a pleasure to see @MRSDPWAR, Paul Sabapathy and the new High Sheriff Mark Smith.

Last weekend, I was honoured to have been one of the recipients of the BCC Awards for Arts and Culture 2025 in recognition of my contribution through my work as an educator and author.

Modelling* is an important mechanism of effective professional development

In our pursuit of *techniques* coaches can use to coach better...

This week's Coaching Cut is about making your modelling *clean but close*!

Here's your 2 min clip -
▶️https://bit.ly/3RO8tH6

THE QUALIFICATION TRAP: Why Leadership Training Is Failing You + What To Do | LinkedIn Your leadership qualification didn't prepare you for this. High staff turnover. Constant initiative fatigue. Misaligned teams. In this eye-opening webinar, organisational coach and best-selling…

Did your leadership qualification prepare you for the REAL challenges of school leadership?

Shockingly, most leaders say NO.

Join my free webinar: "THE QUALIFICATION TRAP: Why Your Leadership Training Is Failing You"

Register here:

Coaching Cut #12 Zoom in, spotlight specifics and link to learning Coaching cuts: bite-sized tips for better coaching

*Coaching techniques* coaches can use flexibly to drive teacher learning...

We share these in our upcoming book "Coaching for Adaptive Expertise" @mradamkohlbeck.bsky.social @hugheshaili.bsky.social

In this week's Coaching Cut: 3 coaching techniques to kick-start the conversation: bit.ly/3Yf6BdZ

🥂Celebrating 1000 subscribers on the Cognitive Coaching Substack🥳

THANK YOU to subscribers for your support and feedback. It's incredible to hear it's being used in schools to develop teachers!

➡️ Latest post has just (2s ago) landed: bit.ly/4cx4yrr

📕 The fantastic @hugheshaili.bsky.social @mradamkohlbeck.bsky.social & I are writing a book: Coaching for Adaptive Expertise. Contact me if you'd like pre-publication snippets to read + review.

HUGE thanks to thought partners @olicav.bsky.social @chrispassey.bsky.social @neilgilbride.bsky.social

Incredibly proud to see our book "Change Starts Here" on Routledge's website! A year and a half of collaboration with @efraimlerner.bsky.social has culminated in something special.

Grateful to everyone who made this possible.

Check it out: buff.ly/rWmmg5k

Proud to be working with @shaneleaning.com and @edupulseco.bsky.social to help bring the FREE, global leadership community, educationleaders.community, to as many people as possible.

Come and join the conversation!