OK, I'll say it: self indulgent control freakery.

No, it's just imaginary.

I got just about all of those Doctor Who books. Good times!

I have to passionately agree. Some people waffle on about “behaviour for learning” but this is nothing compared to *attitude* to learning. If they're interested in and value education then there's no stopping them. The hard bit, of course, is nurturing that attitude.

Many of these still have a place in my heart. I think the pedagogy is excellent if perhaps a little dated.

We get similar things in industry. They're described by us as “corporate horoscopes” because of the lack of any science behind them. It turns out that people and things are complex and trying to oversimplify how to handled things just adds insult to injury.

I once got asked if I was a drama teacher. I support maths teaching. I was working with a small group of students doing maths. What does this say about my style?

Also, being able to regurgitate is a very far cry from understanding and the ability to apply, especially when that application is out of the context of the original memorisation.

I think we're very much on the same wavelength here. It's often what *appears* to be the really small things, like how did their football go that weekend, that maker a difference. If it went badly then they're likely to be a little less happy and just acknowledging that is a great start.

I would say that it's a Good Thing if they trust you as a human being first. Respect is hard enough, trust is far harder. In my experience the first step is to be absolutely open and honest and as part of that what Paul Dix (I think) describes as “deliberate botheredness”.