An essential book that explores difficult but essential education topics, empowering educators and policy makers to call for change.
Reviewed by Kat Cauchi
“This isn’t a book that claims to provide you with a checklist of answers. It aims to highlight the conversations we need to bring to the fore; share insights and opinions from others; and, in places, challenge the government to quit tinkering and empower sustained, system-led change.” 1
That is exactly what this book is – a spark. It highlights crucial conversations while equipping readers with the research and insights needed to drive change and push education systems to change too.
How does the book work?
The book (as the title suggests) covers ‘awkward questions’ in education. Specifically, it explores these nine questions:
- What makes a good school, and how do we measure that?
- The shifting need for skills versus current curriculum offers
- When it comes to system growth, is leadership always putting the children first?
- Does AI change the role of the teacher?
- Improving attendance in education – do we need more and different “spaces”?
- Is the future of education going to become hybrid or online?
- Recruitment and retention – do we undersell the profession?
- Why can’t we have a long-term plan for education?
- The barriers to growth in our education systems (are they within)?
Each chapter follows a similar structure: An introduction to the question, the state of the nation (painting a picture of relevant systems, requirements and policies) relevant research and further questions, summary of insights, feedback from the profession (quotes from educators and other education professionals), next steps/key elements and references.
With this in mind, a reader could easily dip in and read a specific chapter or work their way through, page by page. This is also a book I could see readers coming back to again and again as they explore particular challenges within their schools or to support them with tasks such as developing a school improvement plan.
Highlights of the book
It’s relatable
Part of what makes this book so relatable is the origin. Kingsley explains in the preface how the idea of the book came from the ‘current risk register’ at Hampton Academies Trust. He took the key conversations his trust were having and ran with that, exploring questions all educational settings are likely to be talking about at some level. While the context is more focused on UK schools, there is wider global research which means not only can the book be beneficial to an international audience but that educators, policymakers and other relevant stakeholders here in the UK can have their world opened up a little. Sometimes, education can happen in silos due to the individual pressures on different schools, local authorities and education systems, but actually global perspectives can drive innovation – sharing good practice and ways forward that perhaps we haven’t even thought of.
It’s evidence based
Speaking of global perspectives, the entire book is incredibly research driven, which is one its core strengths. A lot of time and care from Kingsley has gone into deep diving into each of the topics to gather evidence from a wide range of perspectives and viewpoints. Alongside this, he has gathered commentary from relevant experts and the wider public to get a more informed picture of ‘the state of the nation’ and beyond, to understand what challenges educators are facing and what change they want to see. This isn’t just Kingsley sharing his opinions on how to ‘set education right’, it’s an evidence-based guide of crucial conversations we should be having about education right now, why they matter and how we can work together to drive change.
It’s on the pulse
The topics weren’t just relatable but also very much ‘on the pulse’ of educators. For example, chapter 2 – ‘The shifting need for skills versus current curriculum offers,’ discussed similar challenges and next steps to what was covered in the recent ‘Curriculum and Assessment Review Interim Report’ (Although Kingsley’s book goes into far more depth than the interim report, of course 😉). This highlights how reflective the content is.
Another example is how Kingsley’s book comes in strong with its first topic, ‘What makes a good school, and how do we measure that?’ – something hotly debated for a long time in education. He’s encompassed loads of perspectives on this and captured just how difficult it is to define and measure the success of what is ‘good’ – and what that even means.
Summary
The Awkward Questions in Education is relatable, insightful and evidence based. Whilst the conversations chosen are intentionally awkward, they are also essential. I love how throughout the text, Kingsley throws in a few lines that break the fourth wall, which are said direct to reader with even a little emoji added in, as if he’s sitting in his armchair having a chat with you. It makes the book feel less confrontational and more about empowering the reader.
To summarise, The Awkward Questions in Education is a must-read for anyone working in education or who has any authority or involvement in the education system, as it sparks meaningful and necessary conversations for today and the future.
References
- Kingsley, A. (2025) The Awkward Questions in Education. London: Routledge.
