The Quill Guy
Teaching Powerful Knowledge
Hello and welcome to an established website of ten years that highlights my interest in all things beyond the remit of the classroom.
Having spent fourteen years reflecting on the teaching craft I have found this: the best classroom is one where you (the learners and the teachers) are curious in cultures beyond the one received at birth. It is only through knowing others that we can truly know ourselves. This powerful call for self-knowledge resounds throughout the ages:
This above all: to thine own
Know thyself – Socrates (himself)
It is for this reason that The Quill Guy has moved from evaluating the craft of teaching to the promotion of powerful knowledge and cultural capital. Success in external performance measures provides a passport to the next stage of academia; an enriched inner-perspective means any life you lead can be better appreciated and enjoyed. The kind of cultural capital enjoyed in the best classrooms is reflected here, as well as links to my books and MA writing.
Below you can find resources and guides for learning and
I hope you find this useful; please contact me above for any consultation or conversation. Thank you for reading.
Gregory Anderson 2018
Frankenstein
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching Frankenstein at KS3 and KS4.
Romeo and Juliet
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching Romeo and Juliet at KS3 and KS4.
An Inspector Calls
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching An Inspector Calls at KS3 and KS4.
Conflict Poetry
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching the Conflict Poetry Anthology at KS4.
Unseen Poetry
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching Unseen Poetry at KS3, KS4 and KS5.
Literary Context
Context for literature studies and beyond.
Literacy and Accuracy
Thoughts and Resources for becoming more literate and accurate in your writing.
Persuasive Writing
Argumentative and Persuasive Writing for School and for Living.
Creative and Descriptive Writing
Creative Writing for School and for Living.
Atonement
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching Atonement at KS5.
The Great Gatsby
Thoughts and Resources for Reading and Teaching The Great Gatsby at KS5.
Unseen Prose
Thoughts and Resources for responding to Unseen Prose at KS5 (and before).
Learning for School
Learning for Life
Improving Inference as an English Teacher
Teaching students how to read is not really the remit of the secondary classroom teacher. It is a tremendously difficult task that ideally requires several MA-level qualifications and one-to-one time with students. It is a SENCO-level role that is very rarely funded...
Being a Lifelong Learner – Thoughts about Teaching After 15 Years (and why most teachers don’t improve after 3-5 years)
An Easter of reading raises some old truisms: That most teachers do not 'improve' after 3-5 years. That most ineffective teachers 'catch up' to expert teachers after 10 years or so. That these statements are made in terms of impact on external performance measures....
Podcast Libraries – Educating Yourself beyond a Curriculum
Teaching students for fifteen years has allowed me to recognise some of the deficiencies of my early education. One choice every teenager needs to make in school is whether to follow a vocational or academic route. It is an impossible choice. I would define the...
The Vegetarian Book Review: Planting Desire and Rooting Order?
The Vegetarian is a dark book that has sat with me for a few weeks now. Conventionally about the descent of a Korean woman into self-harm and mental illness via her change to a vegetarian lifestyle, it defies easy definition. Instead, I think it seeks to challenge...
A Question on Frankenstein: Walton’s Change in Perspective
A student recently asked me a question in the run-up to our Xmas Mocks. I include the question as it is an example of what students should be like. He/she is an excellent student whom I have known for many years as a debating champion. Question: Hi Sir, Sorry to...
Book Review: The Good Terrorist: Life in an 80s Commune
The Good Terrorist is my first Doris Lessing and has been on my shelf for far too long. It kept my interest from start to end, evoking the banality of communism's reactive culture. Learning more about Lessing's history, especially her experience in communist groups...
Is there a moral element to teaching literature? Some thoughts over breakfast today.
A literature curriculum offers a strong moral element that students should not be denied. That moral experience, however, must be tempered by the school context and the teacher's professionalism. This post is in response to a recent conversation about the extent to...
One of my first games on Chess.com: Should Take the Queen Exchange
Book Review: The Wizard of Earthsea. A child’s fable revisited.
One of my more imaginative childhood reading experiences was enjoying The Wizard of Earthsea in 4E (or whatever unimaginative name labelled that class). Stylistically denser than the Game of Thrones world, it contains a gentler message: know thyself. Despite its...
An Introduction to Fiscal Education: Five Thoughts from an International Teacher
As part of my website redesign I have created sections on fiscal education. In it I plan to write about things I wish I knew about money when I was younger. My attitudes are fixed in my cultural experiences as a British man growing up first in the Midlands and then in...
How do other people see the world? How can more than one perspective be expressed?
How do you see the world? How can you express perspective and perception with language?
How do other people persuade and reason? How can you persuade other people and reason through conflicts?
How can you get better in school? Can you learn efficiently and effectively? Can you get better in life?