@TeacherToolkit
Ross Morrison McGill founded @TeacherToolkit in 2007, and today, he is one of the ‘most followed educators’on social media in the world. In 2015, he was nominated as one of the ‘500 Most Influential People in Britain’ by The Sunday Times as a result of…
Read more about @TeacherToolkit
If you visited lots of schools, what do you think you would learn?
From Belfast to Canterbury, one mile at a time.
Over the 2024–25 academic year, I’ve travelled across the UK – another 10,000+ miles – to support teachers, leaders, and schools. Every visit was a chance to learn something new—about pedagogy, pressure, and professional growth.
Mapping the Year in Schools
This year I’ve visited 64 schools and colleges, creating and uploading many resources, blog posts, and partnerships. Here’s a closer look at what they have taught me, plus a map that reflects my pedagogical footprint:
School highlights:
- Macclesfield College – Exploring curriculum coherence and working memory.
- Armagh Area Partnership – Translating research into the classroom.
- Joseph Cash Primary, Coventry – Revisiting a community where pedagogy runs deep.
- Coulsdon Sixth Form & Croydon College – Sixth form, FE and futures.
- Dean Trust Ardwick, Manchester – Six times visited to see ECTs thriving..
- Ampleforth College – A striking location for a reflective sessions with ECTs.
- Newham College – Rich discussions on inclusive teaching and classroom culture.
- Walton High, Milton Keynes – Strategic CPD with an eye on formative assessment impact.
- Lakes College, West Cumbria – Understanding working memory in an FE context.
The Numbers That Matter (2024–25)
- 64 physical school/college visits completed
- 90 blog posts published on TeacherToolkit
- 30+ teaching resources uploaded and shared
- 1 new book published – Guide To Feedback (McGill, 2024)
- 345,000 unique website users in the last 12 months
- 4.8 million total event interactions (Google Analytics)
- 1 min 07 sec average user engagement time
What Did I Learn?
Every school faces unique challenges, yet whether I’m in an independent prep or a multi-academy trust, the same themes resurface. Those usually are workload pressures that continue to stifle innovation; how schools are rethinking professional development – CPD as dialogue, not delivery – and how more schools are engaging with cognitive science, and why far fewer are resourcing it effectively. Interestingly, many schools still suffer under the weight of external accountability, particularly in the shadow of high-stakes Ofsted outcomes.
What’s Next?
My new book Guide to Feedback launched in September 2024 — centred on one of the most misunderstood parts of classroom pedagogy. And yes, I’m already planning next year’s travel schedule, and have two book contracts on my desk!
This map is just one layer of work. It doesn’t reflect any ECT tutoring, academic research, the business growth and challenges, or the hundreds of unseen conversations away from social media: the silent battles, bold decisions, emerging strategies, or the subtle nudges that help schools evolve.
As ever, what happens in classrooms every day is far more complex and courageous. Whether you’re pausing to reflect or just powering through to the finish line, I hope you get the rest you need, and deserve.
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