1. Well worth exploring when you have a little time, Alexandra Mihai’s last post on her Educationalist blog for 2021, on hybrid teaching this time. “There is no secret that I am no big fan of hybrid teaching”, she says, but she still serves up a great list of articles and podcasts on the topic https://educationalist.substack.com/p/wrapping-up-2021

plus a rather splendid bonus this time round, an anthology of guest posts on her blog during the year on faculty (staff) development. This one from Sanna Eronen, from the University of Vaasa in Finland, caught my attention, ‘From solo artists to jazz ensembles: Peer support as a tool for teacher development’ https://educationalist.eu/from-solo-artists-to-jazz-ensembles-peer-support-as-a-tool-for-teacher-development-78a05e18cdcc

2. More on hybrid, from McKinsey, ‘It’s time for leaders to get real about hybrid’. Not specifically about education, not least because most pupils and students don’t have the option of resigning and moving to another school or university, but I don’t think it’s completely irrelevant. Many organisations are keen to have their employees return to the office, simply, one suspects, because the office is empty and expensive:

“Employers are ready to get back to significant in-person presence. Employees aren’t. The disconnect is deeper than most employers believe, and a spike in attrition and disengagement may be imminent.” https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/people%20and%20organizational%20performance/our%20insights/its%20time%20for%20leaders%20to%20get%20real%20about%20hybrid/its-time-for-leaders-to-get-real-about-hybrid.pdf

More readable than most ‘management’ literature! PDF below.

3. If you get a bit of a break over Christmas and New Year, there’s still stacks of free courses on FutureLearn:

• English for the Workplace: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/workplace-english

• Exploring English: Language and Culture: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/explore-english-language-culture

• Exploring English: Food and Culture: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/exploring-english-food-and-culture

• Exploring English: Shakespeare: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/explore-english-shakespeare

• Teaching Young Learners Online: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/teaching-young-learners-online

• Teaching English: How to Plan a Great Lesson: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/teaching-english-great-lesson

• English in Early Childhood: Language Learning and Development: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/english-in-early-childhood

4. And, finally, something completely different https://carnegiemoscow.org/commentary/86013

I rather doubt that the Russia-Ukraine stand-off attracts as much attention around the world as it does in Europe, so apologies if this one’s not your cup of tea or you suffer from severe nucleomitophobia! (All sensible people should suffer from moderate nucleomitophobia, shouldn’t they?)