We’re right at the beginning of a new school year here in Australia. That means most of you are busy setting up your classrooms, meeting new students and establishing relationships with them and their families. In today’s podcast special, we’ve spoken with several winners from last year’s Teacher Awards to ask them their most valuable tips, strategies and priorities for starting the school year off right. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Podcast supporter: MacKillop Seasons

Our first podcast episode of 2024 focuses on effective leadership communication. We catch up with Jacinda Euler Welsh, Principal of Brisbane Girls Grammar School, to talk about different tools to engage with different members of the school community, the importance of consistency and honesty, and nurturing a 2-way communication process. Host: Jo Earp Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Happy New Year from the team at Teacher magazine. In this bonus episode, we’re delighted to share with you a sneak preview into what podcasts you can expect from us this year. Host: Dominique Russell

It’s time for our annual podcast highlights episode for 2023! The editorial team at Teacher have selected some of our favourite episodes of the year, across a range of different series, and will be chatting about why we enjoyed them and why they resonated with our audience so much. Hosts: Jo Earp, Rebecca Vukovic, Dominique Russell Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Welcome to Episode 5 of the School Assembly podcast series. If you haven’t heard this one before, we explore what it takes to build a school from the ground up and in Series 2 we’re following Jo Camozzato and the team at Bemin Secondary College – that’s a dual campus site in Truganina, which is north of Melbourne in Victoria. The focus for this episode is the build itself. Now, the school is due to open first day of term next year, and the build is due for completion on December 20th. So, it’s a good time to catch up with Jo to find out how things are going, but also ask her about how much involvement she has in the build and the design, and everything from sort of landscaping to the internal features, the furniture choices, the colours, all that kind of thing. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Jo Camozzato Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

The PISA 2022 international results have just been announced. The Programme for International Student Assessment, to give it its full title, measures the knowledge and skills of 15-year-old students in reading, mathematical, and scientific literacy. Rather than how well they’ve learned a particular piece of content or part of the curriculum, it assesses their ability to apply their knowledge and skills to real-life problems and situations. Singapore once again topped the tables across the board, with its students performing significantly higher than their international counterparts across all 3 domains. PISA 2022, which was delayed by a year because of the pandemic, involved nearly 700,000 students from 81 OECD member and partner economies. Here in Australia, 13,347 students from 743 schools participated. Each cycle of PISA has a nominated major domain – the latest one being mathematics. In this special episode I’m joined by Professor Geoff Masters, CEO of the Australian Council for Educational Research, to talk about Australia’s performance, what we could learn from top performer Singapore, and some of the education reforms taking place in other parts of the world. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Geoff Masters Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Our annual reader survey just concluded for another year. This is now the ninth year we’ve asked you for your feedback in our survey, and it’s certainly a highlight for our team when we’re able to read through all your responses. This year, quite a few of you let us know you’d like more content on the topic of AI. You also let us know more about your concerns around the teacher shortage and managing your own workload, your wellbeing and the wellbeing of your students. So, in this episode, I’m going to highlight a range of stories we’ve published recently, that you might find useful, based on these areas of interest. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, I’ll be sharing some other highlights from content we’ve published during the month, and I’ll also be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Thinking about your own school, would you say your team of staff is diverse and representative of the students you teach? We know that diversity in any community is a strength, and when it comes to schools, diversity and a culture of inclusion has a positive impact on student outcomes. In today’s episode I’m joined by Associate Professor Suzanne Rice from the University of Melbourne, whose research interests centre around attracting and retaining teachers. She’s the lead author of a new report which looks at the current state of diversity in Australia’s schools and explores initiatives and strategies schools and policymakers can put in place to increase diversity. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Suzanne Rice Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Welcome to Episode 4 of the School Assembly podcast series. If you haven’t heard this series before it’s the podcast that explores what it’s like to build a school from the ground up and this year, Season 2, we’re following Jo Camozzato and her lovely team out there at Bemin Secondary College. The topic of today's episode will be putting together the school mission and vision and values. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Jo Camozzato Sponsor: Monash University

We know from the research that highly effective schools apply their resources – such as staff and school time, expertise, and facilities – in a targeted manner to maximise outcomes for students. For instance, resources are prioritised towards evidence-informed strategies aimed at improving student outcomes; leaders are making the best possible use of available expertise to meet student needs; and a flexible approach is taken with resource deployment. In this episode of School Improvement I’m joined by Belinda Norrie and Jacqueline Hampson. Belinda is the relieving Deputy Principal at Narrabeen North Public School, a primary school in north Narrabeen, which is a beachside suburb in northern Sydney. Jacqueline is Head Teacher Secondary Studies over at Narrabeen Sports High School. Both schools are members of the NEST collaboration, where NEST stands for Narrabeen Elanora Student and Teacher. NEST also includes two other local schools – Narrabeen Lakes Public School and Elanora Heights Public School. For the past few years, staff and students in the 3 primary and one secondary school have been sharing facilities to enhance learning opportunities and fostering relationships between staff. In this episode, Belinda and Jacqueline share how the collaboration began, why it extends across K-12, and their advice for other school communities looking to collaborate in a similar way in the future. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Belinda Norrie, Jacqueline Hampson Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Thanks for listening to this episode of Teacher Staffroom, where we catch you up on the latest evidence, insight, and action. How many scientists are mentioned in high school science curricula here in Australia? How many of those do you think are women? These 2 questions kicked off a brilliant podcast we published this month that explored the way that female scientists were overlooked in high school science. We also published an article that explores how one school is improving student outcomes by celebrating female figures in STEM, and share how 2 female science educators were named the latest winners of the Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Welcome to the School Assembly podcast. In this second series we’re following Jo Camozzato and the team at Bemin Secondary College, which is in Melbourne. If you’re new to School Assembly, it’s the podcast that explores what it’s like to build a school from the ground up. So, Bemin Secondary is a dual-campus college in Truganina, which is just to the north of Melbourne – that will open to students from the first day of the 2024 school year. And, as we head into October then, Jo has been busy building her team of teachers, of leaders and support staff as well. We know that things are tricky on the teacher recruitment front at the moment. We’ll be chatting about how things are going, maybe some of the strategies she’s been using to spread the word and promote the positions that’s she got available to those potential candidates. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Jo Camozzato Sponsor: Monash University

This particular episode is part of our series on Global Education, and we are venturing to New Zealand’s South Island, to Central Otago, to find out about a Year 11 program that’s keeping students in high school while setting them up for job success. So, when the Central Otago Youth Employment Program (or COYEP for short) first launched as an education ministry pilot there were 54 NEET students – that stands for Not in Education, Employment or Training – in the region. Today, that figure is zero. So, there’s obviously a lot that’s going right with this program, and on Episode 23 of the Global Education podcast we’ll find out more. We're joined by Sarah Hill, Deputy Principal at Cromwell College, to find out about COYEP and the impact it’s having on students, families, teachers and the local community. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Sarah Hill Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Have a guess at these 2 questions first of all: How many scientists are mentioned in high school science curricula here in Australia? How many of those do you think are women? After discovering that Marie Curie wasn’t even mentioned in the radioactivity section of one state Physics syllabus, astrophysicist Dr Kathryn Ross set out to explore if the contributions of other women were being overlooked. The fact that the research team found a gender bias probably won’t surprise you, but the extent of it will. Kat, who is an Associate Lecturer and Science Communicator at the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) at Curtin University, joins us to share the shocking findings and implications, and what can be done to improve the situation. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Dr Kathryn Ross Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

This month, we had the pleasure of announcing the winners of the inaugural Teacher Awards. We’ve begun sharing their stories with you in articles on our website and we’ll bring you up to speed on these in this episode. Reading through your award submissions, it’s clear that many educators are engaging in leadership practice as part of their day-to-day work. In this episode, we’re going to bring you a range of stories we’ve published recently on the topic of leadership. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be sharing some other highlights from content we’ve published during the month, and we’ll also be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: QT Academy

Welcome to Series 2, Episode 2 of the School Assembly podcast. Now, if you’re not familiar with this one, it’s the podcast that explores what it takes to build a school from the ground up, and in this series, we’re following Jo Camozzato and the lovely team out there at Bemin Secondary College, which is a dual-campus college (that’s 7-12) out in Truganina, which is just north of Melbourne. So, the focus for today’s episode is planning – we’ll be talking about short- and long-term planning, and also how Jo breaks down those difficult planning tasks in what’s an incredibly complex period, the startup of the new school. And, as I say, it’s a dual campus, so she’s actually got 2 schools really to think about. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Jo Camozzato Sponsor: Monash University

In 2022 and 2023, Children and Young People with Disability Australia – the national representative organisation for children and young people with disability – conducted 3 surveys of children and young people with disability, and their families and carers, about their experiences in early childhood education and school settings. The survey responses show that 29% of children in early childhood education and care settings and 70% of young people in school settings report being excluded from events and activities at school. As well as this, 28% in early childhood education and care settings and 65% in school settings reported experiencing bullying. To unpack this research in more detail, we’re joined by Dr Catherine Smith from the University of Melbourne, who worked in partnership with Children and Young People with Disability Australia (or CYDA – that’s C-Y-D-A, as you’ll hear Catherine say during our discussion). Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Dr Catherine Smith Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Our guest for today’s School Improvement episode is Ruth Rogers, Principal of Karonga School in New South Wales. Ruth joins us today to talk about her school’s immersive classroom, and how it allows students – all of whom have an intellectual disability – to access a world beyond the classroom and practice skills that they can take with them when they are out in the community. Guest: Ruth Rogers Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Thanks for listening to this episode of Teacher Staffroom, where we catch you up on the latest evidence, insight, and action. In today’s podcast we’re going to be talking about teacher planning, drawing on 3 articles written by educational leader Michael Rosenbrock. In the first article, he looked at how teachers can pro-actively plan to tackle student misconceptions in STEM. In the second instalment, he discusses evidence on the importance of deliberately planning to support students to build and use their vocabulary, and what this could look like in practice. And in the third piece, published just yesterday, he explores how teachers can best plan to make effective use of manipulatives and representations to help students build understanding. We’ll be taking a closer look at each of these articles in the episode, as well as some of the other highlights from Teacher this month. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Welcome to Series 2 of the School Assembly podcast from Teacher magazine. We're just about to set off for Truganina, which is just outside Melbourne, to meet with Jo Camozzato for the first time. She’s the principal of Bemin Secondary College, which is a new build school. It’s actually on 2 campuses – they’ve got a year 7-9 campus and a 10-12, so that will be an interesting episode when we find out a little bit more about the different transitions that go along with that structure. But in this first episode, we’ll be chatting about Jo’s experience as an educator, what led her to school leadership and also what’s happened so far in terms of the new secondary school. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Jo Camozzato Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

At the end of last month we brought you news of the release of UNESCO’s 2023 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report, Technology in Education: A tool on whose terms? This major international report draws on analysis of over 200 education systems, highlighting the benefits, opportunities and the challenges of technology in education. In this episode we're joined by GEM Report Director Manos Antoninis to discuss the 6 key messages delivered by the team, including what governments, systems and schools should be thinking about when planning to bring technology into the classroom. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Manos Antoninis Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Welcome to Episode 85 of The Research Files. We're delighted to say that our guest today is Professor Anne Castles, Australian Research Council Laureate Professor at the Australian Centre for the Advancement of Literacy at the Australian Catholic University. She’s a Keynote speaker at ACER’s Research Conference next month in Sydney. The conference theme is ‘Becoming lifelong learners’ and presenters will be examining research around how to improve continuity of learning in the first 12 years of a child’s life. The title of Professor Castles’ keynote is ‘Ensuring a safety net: Supporting low achievers in school contexts’. In our podcast chat we’ll be finding out more about her work, discussing some of the research on learning to read, and getting a taster of what delegates can expect from that Research Conference Keynote. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Professor Anne Castles Sponsor: MacKillop Seasons

Augmented Reality, or AR, is an immersive tool that allows students to engage in learning in new and exciting ways. But what are the specific educational benefits of this technology, and what is the teacher’s role? This month on Teacher, we shared a few stories on the topic of Augmented Reality and technology in education, which I’m going to share with you in this episode. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, I’ll be sharing some other highlights from content we’ve published during the month, and I’ll also be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: Bank First

We know that e-cigarette use among adolescents in Australia has quickly become a pressing issue for schools. In fact, data released last year showed that teachers are specifically worried about vaping addiction and the unknown effects of chemicals in e-cigarettes. But what do students themselves think about vaping, and what kind of support would they value and respond to? How can educators empower them to say no to vaping, and work towards the prevention of e-cigarette use among young people? In this episode of The Research Files we’re going to hear from the PERU team (which stands for Prevention Education and Research Unit). They sit within the Western Sydney Local Health District’s Research Education Network and have been looking into the issue of vaping through their ongoing research project, the Unpacking Vaping in Schools Project. Joining us today is Professor Smita Shah OAM, the Director of PERU; Kym Rizzo Liu, the Project Manager of PERU; and Catriona Lockett, Research Officer at PERU. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Smita Shah, Kym Rizzo Liu, Catriona Lockett

In this episode of The Research Files, we're joined by Jen Star and Emeline Gillingham from the Asia Education Foundation. The Foundation’s recently released report, School Partnerships in a Digital Age, outlines what works in digital school partnerships by delving into how schools involved in their Australia-China BRIDGE program were supported to adapt from a more traditional face-to-face partnership – which relied heavily on international travel to and from each school – to a virtual partnership during the pandemic, known as the Digital BRIDGE Program. As you’ll hear in the episode, the BRIDGE program, (where BRIDGE stands for Building Relationships through Intercultural Dialogue and Growing Engagement) has been in place for many years and in many countries. The report also looks at case studies from Digital BRIDGE Program partnerships, and the overall benefits of these partnerships for students, teachers and school communities, which we’ll unpack in greater detail during our conversation. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Jen Star, Emeline Gillingham

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. In Series 1 we’re following Principal Dr Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. Well, we’ve reached our series final. In this episode Ray and Rachael reflect on the events of the last 18 months – including achievements, anxieties and imposter syndrome – and look to the future for Team Dayton. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Dr Ray Boyd, Rachael Lehr Sponsor: QT Academy

What does it mean to be a Totally Inclusive School? The latest instalment of Teacher’s Bookshelf includes an extract from the book Becoming a Totally Inclusive School: A Guide for Teachers and School Leaders, written by Angeline Aow, Sadie Hollins and Stephen Whitehead. According to the authors, ‘a Totally Inclusive, equitable and just institution is where all learners have access to the curriculum in learning spaces that continually strive to eliminate oppression’. In today’s episode, we're going to be talking a bit more about this Teacher’s Bookshelf article, as well as a School Improvement podcast episode featuring Angeline and Sadie, which explores this topic of diversity, equity and inclusion in greater detail. Later on in the episode, we’ll also be sharing some of the outstanding contributions we’ve published this month, from both Teacher readers and academics working in education. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: The Victorian Government

In a Teacher’s Bookshelf article last month, we shared an exclusive extract from Becoming a Totally Inclusive School: A Guide for Teachers and School Leaders, written by Angeline Aow, Sadie Hollins and Stephen Whitehead. In this episode of School Improvement, we're joined by 2 of the authors, Angeline and Sadie, who are based in Germany and the UK. We’ll be talking about what we mean by Total Inclusivity, and taking a closer look at the Continuum on Becoming a Totally Inclusive School – that’s a framework to help schools and educators move from theory to practice. There are 6 stages of the continuum and we’ll be going through each, thinking about what that might look like in a school and what the next steps could be the move to the next stage. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Angeline Aow, Sadie Hollins Sponsor: Planet Ark

Any kind of change can be exciting and sometimes daunting, and moving from primary to secondary school is no different. So, what are the worries and challenges for students, and what would help to make the process easier? Guide to Thrive is a new evidence-based transition program from Life Ed that brings together teacher professional development mapped to the AITSL standards, practical classroom activities and supporting resources for parents and carers. In this episode of School Improvement, we’re joined by Murray Baker, a teacher of 20 years who’s now a Program Development Co-ordinator at Life Ed, and Dr Shani Sniedze, a Research Fellow at the Australian Council for Educational Research who’s been involved in the program. We’ll be discussing some of the findings from the research literature and student feedback forums, and how this student voice has informed the program and activities. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Murray Baker, Dr Shani Sniedze Sponsor: Teacher Awards

Today, nominations open for the inaugural Teacher Awards. In this special episode, Teacher Editor, Jo Earp, introduces the award categories, our Judging Panel, and information on how you can enter. Host: Jo Earp

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. In Series 1 we’re following Principal Dr Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. Building a great school and an expert team of leaders, teachers and support staff means nothing, of course, without the students. So, how do you start from scratch when it comes to getting new students? In this episode we’re discussing enrolments. Let’s get started. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Dr Ray Boyd, Rachael Lehr, Sponsor: Bank First

The latest results from PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) were released this month. The data sheds light on the literacy achievement of year 4 students in Australia, and in today’s podcast, we’ll take you through what you need to know. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: The Victorian Government

As an educator, finding the time to discuss matters you are finding challenging with colleagues, to seek advice and reflect on your practice, might seem impossible. In this episode, from LaTrobe University in Victoria, we're joined by Dr Anne Southall and Associate Professor Fiona Gardner. For the past few years, Anne and Fiona have been researching the impact of implementing the reflective circles education model they’ve developed for use in schools, to give educators the opportunity to reflect on challenging situations they’ve faced. In this episode, they’ll share the details of how the model works and what the research has shown about its positive impact. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Dr Anne Southall and Associate Professor Fiona Gardner

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. In Series 1 we’re following Principal Dr Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. It's been a big start to the month for the team with the official opening of the school. Congratulations to everyone involved on that massive milestone for the community. Our focus for this episode of School Assembly is educational research and reading, and how this evidence base is the foundation for everything that’s happening at the school, from classroom teaching to leadership. A heads-up on terminology – when talking about keeping up to date with research, Ray mentions WAPPA (that’s the Western Australian Primary Principals' Association) and ACEL (that’s the Australian Council for Educational Leaders). Host: Jo Earp Guests: Dr Ray Boyd, Rachael Lehr Sponsor: Bank First

It is widely acknowledged that teaching is a stressful job, and the global events of the past few years have added an enormous amount of pressure to those working in education. It is therefore crucial that the health and wellbeing of teachers and school leaders is prioritised. In today’s episode we're going to share with you some of the pieces we’ve published on the topic of teacher health and wellbeing, including a Q&A with high school teacher and author Sue Webb, who talks about her book Teachers Cry Too and shares her struggle with, and recovery from, mental illness. Later on in the episode we’ll also share some of the articles we’ve published on the topic of behaviour management, and some pieces from experts in education on a range of topics that may be of interest. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: The Victorian Government.

Having access to outdoor spaces at school is great for play at break and lunchtimes, but it also opens up a whole host of curriculum-linked learning possibilities that extend beyond PE lessons. A new study by researchers at the University of South Australia has found that primary schools may not be making the most of the outdoor areas they have when it comes to curriculum delivery. The study acknowledges that schools and teachers are juggling multiple priorities, with possible barriers including a crowded curriculum and a lack of teacher training or confidence in this area. Dr Nicole Miller, Online Course Facilitator at UniSA Online, joins us in today’s episode to discuss the research findings, which have just been published in the journal Children, Youth and Environments. We also chat about the different types of outdoor play and learning spaces, and the benefits for students and teachers. Host: Jo Earp: Guest: Dr Nicole Miller Sponsor: Teacher Jobs

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. In Series 1 we’re following Principal Dr Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. So far in this series we’ve covered setting short- and long-term goals, planning for the new school, connecting with the community, the physical build, what goes into creating a new school, building the foundation staff, and developing policies and processes. In Episode 8 we’ll be talking about the school ethos and culture, including the values and vision, and what those look like in practice. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Dr Ray Boyd, Rachael Lehr Sponsor: Teacher Jobs (jobs.teachermagazine.com)

New research from the University of Newcastle has found that early career teachers deliver the same quality of teaching as their more experienced colleagues. In fact, when the researchers in this study looked at lessons delivered by teachers with experience ranging from less than one year in the classroom to more than 24 years, they found no statistically significant differences in teaching quality. In today’s episode we’re joined by the lead researcher on this project and Director of the Teachers and Teaching Research Centre at the University of Newcastle, Laureate Professor Jenny Gore. You may remember that Jenny has been a guest on a previous podcast episode and has written several articles for Teacher. In today’s episode though, she joins me to talk all about this study on the relationship between years of experience and quality teaching, why they decided to do this research in the first place, and how the findings are both surprising and counterintuitive. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Professor Jenny Gore Sponsor: Teacher Jobs

At Teacher we love to recognise the work of teachers and school leaders who are improving practice and student outcomes and bring you the latest on research from experts in the field. We’ve highlighted the work and expertise of many in the past few weeks at the magazine, so in this episode, I’m going to bring you up to speed on these stories. Like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

We know that schools partnering with families, other education institutions, businesses and the wider school community can have a positive impact on student outcomes. In this episode, we’re taking you to Yipirinya School in Alice Springs. Year 3 and 4 students at the school were recently participants in a trial of Charles Darwin University’s Children’s University – a program which offers students the opportunity to undertake learning experiences by visiting local businesses and organisations. We’re going to hear from Gavin Morris, Principal at Yipirinya School, about the impact participating in this program has had, and from Mariann Reu, project officer at Charles Darwin University, about the program’s design. The Children’s University is a concept that began in the UK over 30 years ago and outside of recognising learning that is completed outside of school, it helps younger students to understand the post-school pathways available to them, and has also been shown to improve student attendance and achievement at school. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Gavin Morris, Mariann Reu

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. In Series 1 we’re following Principal Dr Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. We’re well into Term 1 and the staff at Dayton Primary School have been getting to know their students and helping them settle into the new surroundings. Last time out I spoke to Ray and Rachael about recruitment. In this episode we’ll be discussing how they’re developing school policies. One head’s up on terminology, we mention the DFES – that’s the WA Government Department of Fire and Emergency Services – and the ‘Good Standing Policy’ in WA is around student behaviour. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Ray Boyd, Rachael Lehr Sponsor: Teacher Jobs

Why is everyone talking about ChatGPT? In today’s podcast special, we speak with several education experts to hear their thoughts on the potential impact of ChatGPT on teaching and learning – from assessment, to equity in education, and policy decisions. ChatGPT will also be joining us as a guest. Hosts: Rebecca Vukovic, Dominique Russell Guests: Catherine McClellan, Pasi Sahlberg, George Siemons

According to new data from the annual Mission Australia Youth Survey, the environment is now the number one concern for young people. In fact, of the 18,800 young people aged 15 to 19 who took part in the latest survey, 51% identified the environment as one of the most important issues in Australia compared to 38% in 2021 and 30% in 2020. The results show that 26% of young people were ‘extremely’ or ‘very concerned’ about climate change. In today’s episode of Teacher Staffroom, we're going to run through some of the ways that schools are tackling issues of sustainability in their communities, both here in Australia and internationally. We’ll also highlight some contributions we featured on Teacher this month and bring you up to speed on what we’ve been working on here at the magazine. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

If you’re a long time-listener of our podcast, you’ll know that each year, 2 winners are announced for the annual Prime Minister’s Prizes for Excellence in Science Teaching – one winner working in primary schools and one winner working in secondary schools. The most recent winners were announced in late 2022 and they are George Pantazis from Marble Bar Primary School in remote Western Australia and Veena Nair, from Viewbank College in Melbourne. In January this year just before the school year started, we caught up with George and Veena to hear more about the work they’ve been recognised for nationally, and the impact they’re having on student outcomes in their own school settings. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: George Pantazis, Veena Nair Sponsor: QT Academy

Deakin University’s Economics + Maths = Financial Capability project set out to research what can be done differently to support secondary school teachers to prepare financially capable young people. In today’s episode, we're joined by Dr Carly Sawatzki, a teacher educator and educational researcher in Deakin University’s School of Education, and a lead researcher on this project. She shares insights into what the key aims of the project are, some of the key findings to be published in their research report (which was released late last year), and discusses the state of financial education in schools across Australia. Perhaps most importantly for teachers and school leaders though, Carly also shares how opportunities for teaching and learning about finance are framed within the current and new versions of the Australian Curriculum, and provides examples of other educators teaching financial education exceptionally well. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Carly Sawatzki

The most recent instalment of Mission Australia’s Youth Survey – which surveys tens of thousands of Australians aged 15 to 19 – shows that young people are becoming increasingly concerned about the environment. In your school, what initiatives do you have in place to engage students in learning about sustainability, and how their actions can have a positive impact on the environment? At one school in Victoria, sustainability is embedded across the school, and in this episode, their Sustainability Coordinator, Venkata Kalva, joins Dominique Russell to discuss their journey to prioritising sustainability in the school community, the function of the school’s Green Team, and advice for other schools across the country looking to prioritise sustainability in their school settings. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Venkata Kalva

School Assembly is the podcast that explores what it takes to build a new school from the ground up. In Series 1 we’re following Principal Dr Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey in Western Australia. It’s the start of the school year and Dayton Primary School is about to open its doors to the first students. Episode 6 is all about building the foundation staff. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Ray Boyd, Rachael Lehr Sponsor: Teacher Jobs

As many of you prepare to settle into another school year, we’ve been looking at the topic of leadership for our first week back of brand-new content. In this first podcast episode for 2023, we get you up to speed on these leadership stories, and also some highlights from content we’ve recently published. Host: Dominique Russell

Happy New Year from the team at Teacher magazine. In this bonus podcast episode, we’re delighted to share with you a sneak preview into what we have in the pipeline for Teacher podcasts in 2023. Host: Dominique Russell

Another year is coming to a close and it’s time to look back on some of our podcast highlights from the past 12 months. Join the Teacher team as we reflect on some of our favourite podcast interviews this year, and share our top 3 personal favourite episodes from 2022. Hosts: Rebecca Vukovic and Dominique Russell Sponsor: The Victorian Government

In this series, we follow Principal Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey of building a new school community from the ground up. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress as their new school, Dayton Primary School, is built in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. Last month, we spoke to Ray and Rachael about how they have connected with the community throughout the process of building up a new school. In this episode, we talk about the thought processes behind the physical build of the school, as well as the significance of the location itself. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis

Video games are a favourite pastime of both children and adults alike, and schools are therefore using them to engage students in their lessons. This month on Teacher, we published a reader submission that explored how digital gaming motivates Indigenous learners in primary school. In today’s episode, we share highlights from this piece and more. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: Bank First

Each year, in our Teacher survey, we ask readers and listeners what they’d like more information on in the coming 12 months. In the 2022 survey, lots of you said you’d like more support on the issue of bullying in schools, prevention and intervention strategies, and related school policies. In a recent 2-part Q&A with Dr Kristin Reimer, we unpacked the framework of Restorative Justice and looked at how it can operate in a school context. In this episode of our Behaviour Management podcast series, we're delighted that our guest is Professor Ken Rigby – Adjunct Professor at the University of South Australia and a leading international researcher in the area of bullying in schools. Over the course of the next 35 minutes we’ll be talking about changes over the last 20 years in the way schools have understood and dealt with bullying, what incidents may look like in different age groups, signs for teachers to be on the lookout for, and elements of a school anti-bullying policy. Professor Rigby will also be unpacking his latest piece of work – called the Comprehensive Bullying Model. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Ken Rigby

In this episode of our podcast series School Assembly, we speak with Principal Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr about how they have connected with their new school community, in the lead up to the opening of Dayton Primary School in Western Australia next year. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis

In this episode of The Research Files, we’re focusing on The Smith Family’s Pathways, Engagement and Transition Study. We’ll be unpacking some of the early findings and student feedback on how teachers and careers advisers can best support them in making informed decisions about possible jobs and pathways, connecting with employers, and applying for further study or training. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Anne Hampshire, Head of Research and Advocacy at The Smith Family

This month at Teacher, we’ve shared a range of content on teacher welfare – from how to access supports at your school, to coping with violence from students. In this episode of Teacher Staffroom, we bring you up to date on these stories and more highlights from October. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis

Student violence directed at school educators is a common issue. Sadly, for many of you listening, it will be something you’ve experienced in your career, and for some it may be a regular occurrence. Our guests for this episode of The Research Files are David Stevenson, a provisional psychologist and behaviour support practitioner, and Assistant Professor James Neill, from the Discipline of Psychology, School of Health Sciences and Faculty of Health at the University of Canberra. Along with Kayla Ball, Rebecca Smith and Melena Shores, they’ve just published a new the paper in the Australian Journal of Education, it’s called 'How do preschool to year 6 educators prevent and cope with occupational violence from students?' In the study, educators in the ACT (that’s the Australian Capital Territory for those listening internationally) were asked about the frequency and impact of occupational violence, and the prevention and coping strategies they used and found effective. Host: Jo Earp Guests: David Stevenson and James Neill

In this series, we follow Principal Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey of building a new school community from the ground up. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress as their new school, Dayton Primary School, is built in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. Last month, we spoke to Ray and Rachael about setting short- and long-term goals. In this episode, we speak with Ray and Rachael about all things ‘planning’, including how they plan to budgets, how they use visual planning techniques, as well as questions of collaboration and delegation. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guests: Ray Boyd and Rachael Lehr

If you work in a co-educational school, think about current student enrolments for STEM subjects and participation in STEM-related clubs and extracurricular activities. How do the post-school journeys of male and female students differ? Would you say there is a lower number of female students engaged in STEM in your school? We know that, overall, female participation in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics subjects is lower than that of males, and that schools can play an important part in encouraging girls to pursue education and careers in this area. In this episode, we're joined by Jessica Huynh, Ashanie Perera and Philip Callil. Jessica is the Managing Director of Go Girl, Go for IT, a free one-day technology conference for girls across Australia in Years 5 to 12. The conference aims to expose young girls to the world of IT and the many career options in the field. Ashanie and Phil are teachers at Yarra Valley Grammar, a co-educational school in Melbourne. As Head of Mathematics and Director of IT and Digital Learning, respectively, the conference certainly piqued their interest. This year, they were able to send over 150 girls to the conference, and will share in this episode the impact this has had on their students. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Jessica Huynh, Ashanie Perera and Philip Callil

How would you describe the culture at your school? There might be many words that come to mind and you might be thinking about your school’s shared goals, beliefs, values and priorities. Recently at Teacher, we’ve shared some stories that look at various elements of school culture – from building a culture of reading from pleasure, to ensuring an environment where staff can ask for help if they need it. In this episode we're going to get you up to speed on these stories, and also some more of my highlights from content we’ve recently published in case you might have missed it. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

Welcome to this special episode of The Research Files – which is becoming a bit of an annual tradition for us as our regular listeners will know – where we take a look back on last month’s Research Conference and share some of our highlights with you. The theme for the 2022 ACER Research Conference was ‘Reimagining assessment’ and, like last year, the sessions and masterclasses were fully online, which meant that outside the renowned experts in the field here in Australia, we were able to hear from leading researchers from the UK, the US and Indonesia. Teacher magazine's Zoe Kaskamanidis and Dominique Russell were there to take it all in across the 4 days of the conference, and we’ve selected some clips to share with you, which I’m sure will prompt some further thinking among yourselves and your colleagues. Hosts: Dominique Russell and Zoe Kaskamanidis Podcast supporter: Bank First (bankfirst.com.au)

In this new series, we follow Principal Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey of building a new school community from the ground up. Each month, we touch base for updates and reflections on their progress as their new school, Dayton Primary School, is built in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. Last month, we spoke to Ray about the first 6 months of his journey, and he gave us a great recap of the school’s progress so far. In this episode, we speak with both Rachael and Ray about setting short- and long-term goals, including how they’ve prioritised their goals, responded to unexpected hurdles and managed workload alongside ambition. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guests: Ray Boyd and Rachael Lehr

In this episode, we're joined by Trent Cowley, Principal at Kingston State School, a primary school in the Logan Region of Queensland, about 30 kilometres south of Brisbane. Trent is in his third year as Principal and has recently been named a 2022 Commonwealth Bank Teaching Fellow; being recognised for his contribution to his school community. In this episode, we learn more about what it means to Trent to be a visible leader, how he is working to build staff capacity, and the impact that his collaboration with other principals in the area has had on student outcomes, and the broader community. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Trent Cowley

Student welfare has come sharply into focus over the past few years as the pandemic poses unprecedented challenges for students and teachers alike. There’s a lot to explore around student welfare in the Teacher archives, and in the lead up to R U OK?Day this month, we’re bringing you some recent examples. In today’s episode we get you up to speed on these stories, and also some of our highlights from this month. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Podcast supporter: Academy for Enterprising Girls (enterprisinggirls.com.au)

As a teacher, if you’ve ever been interested in pursuing research alongside your teaching practice but haven’t known where to start, this episode’s for you. Today, we’re joined by Sarah Durack, a secondary Science and Mathematics teacher based in Sydney. Sarah has just finished her Honours thesis on the topic of school to university transition, which she completed part-time while working a full-time teaching job. As a teacher by day and researcher by night, Sarah tells us that while it wasn’t easy, it was certainly rewarding. In this episode, she shares what it was like to juggle this workload, takes us through some of her research findings, and offers some tips for educators who may be interested in pursuing research themselves. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Sarah Durack Podcast supporter: Bank First (www.bankfirst.com.au)

Schools are special spaces; where the affordances of physical design come together with values, purpose and culture, and where school staff work hard to set students up to lead fulfilling lives. But what do schools look like before the hustle and bustle of students and teachers on the grounds? And what is involved with building up a school community from scratch? In this brand new podcast series, we’ll follow Principal Ray Boyd and Associate Principal Rachael Lehr as they navigate the exciting and challenging journey of building a new school community from the ground up. We’ll be touching base each month for updates and reflections on their progress as their new school, under the planning name of West Swan (Dayton) Primary School, is built in the newly developing suburb of Dayton, located in the eastern metropolitan city of Swan in Perth, Western Australia. In this episode, we catch Ray on the road while he drives around sunny Dayton, getting us up to scratch on what’s happened over the past 7 months, since the journey began. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Ray Boyd

At Teacher, we’ve shared content on the impact of playful learning and game-based learning on student outcomes, and what this might look like in the classroom. But how can we extend these same principles to assessment, and why is important to think about assessment in this way? In this episode, I’m joined by two international guests from the United States: Louisa Rosenheck, Director of Pedagogy at the game-based learning platform, Kahoot!, and YJ Kim, Assistant Professor of Design, Creative, and Informal Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Louisa and YJ are presenting at ACER’s Research Conference this year. The online conference kicks off on the 22nd of August, and at the time of publishing this episode, you still have time to register, so I’ll leave a link to the conference on our website, teachermagazine.com, in case you’re interested in finding out more. In our conversation, you’ll get a taste of their conference presentation, and we’ll also discuss what playful assessment looks like, how educators can embed it in the classroom, and the impact of this type of assessment on student outcomes. Guests: Louisa Rosenheck and YJ Kim Host: Dominique Russell

At Teacher, we share useful evidence- and research-based resources to help you improve your skills and practice – whether it be research news or sharing the outstanding work that’s going on in schools. Recently, we’ve shared some stories on teachers seeking professional learning opportunities, teachers being inspired after attending a professional learning event, and what the research says about opportunities for future professional learning. In today’s episode we're going to get you up to speed on some of these stories, and also some more of our highlights from content we’ve recently published in case you might have missed it. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context.

Today, we’re speaking with Dr Jason Zagami, senior lecturer in the School of Education and Professional Studies at Griffith University in the Gold Coast, in Queensland. Dr Zagami is the author of a recent paper published by the Australian Computer Society, titled 'Computer education in Australian schools 2020: Enabling the next generation of IT professionals'. Since 2014, the new Digital Technologies subject has slowly commenced across all Australian states and territories. Navigating a new curriculum can be challenging, but it can also provide an exciting chance to improve opportunities for students and teachers, and to focus on school improvement more widely. So, whether you’re interested in student engagement, professional development, recruitment, or clarity on the curriculum, we cover a lot of ground in this podcast. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Dr Jason Zagami Podcast supporter: Family Planning NSW (https://www.fpnsw.org.au/)

At Teacher, we are often asked for more resources and information on behaviour management. In the latest episode in our Behaviour Management series, we spoke with Senior Lecturer and Course Leader for the Master of Applied Behaviour Analysis at Monash University, Dr Erin Leif, and Russell Fox, Lecturer in Behaviour Analysis, also from Monash University. They join us again in this episode, but this time, it’s to answer your questions that you submitted. We asked for these questions in our weekly Teacher bulletin, which is a free subscription you can sign up for at our website, teachermagazine.com. In this episode, we’re going to delve into the link between positive behaviour support and academic learning; how positive behaviour support can be integrated with the principles of trauma-informed practice; and how we can upskill other members of the school community to help us in this area. Let’s jump in. Guests: Dr Erin Leif and Russell Fox Host: Dominique Russell

Equal education involves many things – equal representation, participation, access to resources, and more. There’s a lot to explore around equal education in the Teacher archives, and in this episode of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be sharing some recent examples with you. In today’s episode we're going to get you up to speed on these stories, and also some more of our highlights from this month. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues, and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Podcast sponsor: MEGAMIX Social (https://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/learn/schools-teachers/megamix-social)

It’s clear that books and resources have a big impact on student learning, so when schools are under-resourced, it can create extra barriers for students to engage with important content and can make it harder for teachers to teach. This problem is magnified even more when we’re talking about remote schools with limited access to resources, especially resources that connect schools with the important work and knowledge of First Scientists in Australia. We're joined in this episode by Corey Tutt OAM, founder and CEO of Deadly Science – an organisation that provides science resources to remote schools in Australia, to inspire and celebrate the next generation of Indigenous people in STEM. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Corey Tutt OAM Podcast sponsor: MEGAMIX Social (https://www.artscentremelbourne.com.au/learn/schools-teachers/megamix-social)

Each year at Teacher, we carry out a reader survey to give our readers and listeners an opportunity to tell us what kind of content you’d like to see from us. In our most recent survey responses, many of you told us you’d like more content on student absences. In this episode of The Research Files, we’ll be digging into the research on this topic with Kirsten Hancock, Honorary Research Associate from Telethon Kids Institute in Western Australia. So we know that students miss school for a whole range of different reasons, such as illness, suspension, or family holidays. And a missed day of school might just seem like a missed day at school, but research is showing that the effect on student achievement can vary considerably depending on the reason for absence. Today we’ll be taking a look at some of the concepts covered in Kirsten’s research on the reasons behind student absences, including how different types of absences affect student outcomes, and what families and schools can do to tailor their support to students who are missing school. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Kirsten Hancock Podcast supporter: QT Academy (QTAcademy.edu.au)

We know that helping students to develop their skills in the general capabilities is essential for preparing them to succeed in a modern society. There are many examples in the Teacher archive of schools giving students the opportunity to be critical and creative thinkers, and in this edition of Teacher Staffroom, we share some recent examples with you. In today’s episode we're going to get you up to speed on some of these examples, and also some more of my highlights. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

Our guest in this episode is Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy, Director of the ACER Institute and the Centre for School and System Improvement. It’s almost two years to the day since we caught up with Pauline for a podcast special where we talked about how schools had adapted to emergency remote teaching following the first COVID lockdown. As she travels across Australia working with educators and systems, we thought we’d check in with her again to see how things have changed for schools and what the priorities are now for teachers, principals and communities on the ground. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy Podcast supporter: Bank First (www.bankfirst.com.au)

How can we support reading aloud in the early years, at school and at home? And how does reading aloud affect our lives in the long term? In this episode of the research files, we're joined by Professor Emerita Rosemary Johnston AM from the University of Technology in Sydney. Today we’ll be unpacking some of the research on the benefits and joys of reading aloud, how it impacts our learning, and how we can continue to support reading aloud at school and at home. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Professor Emerita Rosemary Johnston AM Podcast supporter: QT Academy (https://qtacademy.edu.au/)

As a school leader, how do you apply research in education to your practice? How does it inform the goals and progress of your school? This month at Teacher, we’ve been digging into the research to bring you updates from Australia and abroad. This month at Teacher we’ve been digging into the research to bring you updates from Australia and abroad. In today’s episode I’m going to get you up to speed on these stories, and also some more of my highlights. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis

In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Dr Ilana Finefter-Rosenbluh, a Lecturer in the Faculty of Education at Monash University, who has recently published a paper sharing the findings of a study she conducted with her colleagues looking into the impact of student perception surveys on teachers’ practice. Are student perception surveys something you utilise in your school setting? If they are, how effectively are you using the feedback given to you by your students? Do you feel as though you are well-equipped as a teacher to act on this feedback? If your answer is no, and you’re instead left feeling overwhelmed and unsure how to approach acting on this feedback, you’re definitely not alone. This study found that students tend to see no significant change in teacher practice after completing student perception surveys, and that while teachers value the insights given by student perception surveys, they need more support to be able to act on the feedback in a productive way. In our discussion, Ilana will share some key details of the findings from this study and also share some practical strategies teachers can look to implement how in order to improve their practice in this area. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Dr Ilana Finefter-Rosenbluh Podcast supporter: Bank First (bankfirst.com.au)

What makes leadership impactful in regional, rural and remote schools? And how can schools start to establish a robust framework for creating positive impact in the long term? In this episode of the Research Files, we're joined by Scott Eacott, Professor of Education in the School of Education, and Deputy Director of the Gonski Institute for Education at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. Throughout his career, Scott has researched how education can be best organised to ensure equitable and inclusive education for all. Today, we’ll be unpacking some of the concepts covered in his recent research on leadership in regional, rural and remote schools. Host: Zoe Kaskamanidis Guest: Professor Scott Eacott Podcast sponsor: TruSens (https://www.trusens.com/en-au/)

As a school leader, recruiting new staff has likely always been a complex issue and pressing problem. Add the disruption and lifestyle changes brought on by COVID-19 to the mix, and you’ve got an even more complicated picture. We’ve been taking a look at this issue this month at Teacher. In today’s episode I’m going to get you up to speed on these stories, and also some more of my highlights. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, I’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell Podcast sponsor: Bank First

Our guest for this episode of School Improvement is Judith Weir, Principal of Our Lady of Mercy College (OLMC) Heidelberg. We caught up with her at the start of the school year here in Australia, to talk about leadership, strategic planning, how to balance competing priorities, the impact of COVID on student wellbeing and the importance of professional mentoring. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Judith Weir

As a teacher, how can you best manage when a student in your classroom makes an inappropriate comment in the middle of the lesson, catching you off-guard and disrupting other students too? What about when this behaviour happens in the playground? And, what if the comments that they’re making are offensive? In this episode of Behaviour Management, we unpack these questions in-depth with our two guests – Senior Lecturer and Course Leader for the Master of Applied Behaviour Analysis at Monash University, Erin Leif, and Russell Fox, Lecturer in Behaviour Analysis, also from Monash University. We also delve into how school leaders can best support their staff in this area in this episode. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Dr Erin Leif and Russell Fox

As we’ve seen demonstrated time and time again over the past two years, school communities have been innovative with their technology use to ensure a continuity of learning for students throughout the disruptions to school. In our first episode of Teacher Staffroom for 2022, we're sharing with you some recent pieces of content from us that demonstrate how technology is supporting schools in Australia and beyond. In today’s episode we're going to get you up to speed on all of these stories, and also some more of our highlights. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

Each year, two educators in Australia are named winners of the Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching – one primary school teacher, and one secondary school teacher. For 2021, the primary school teacher named winner was Megan Hayes from Mudgeeraba Creek State School in Queensland, and Scott Graham from Barker College in Sydney was the recipient for the secondary teacher award. We caught up with both Megan and Scott late last year to find out a little bit more about the work they’re doing in the classroom and in their wider school community. We’re bringing you these conversations in this episode. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Scott Graham and Megan Hayes

The high school years are an important steppingstone to future study and career opportunities, but it can also be a difficult time for some students. So, how can teachers and leaders support teenagers who are not engaged with their studies or who may be at risk of dropping out of school all together? Our guest on episode 72 of The Research Files is Professor Joseph Ciarrochi from Australian Catholic University’s Institute for Positive Psychology and Education. He’s the lead researcher for projectHOPE – a program that’s notched up success in re-engaging at-risk secondary students with their schooling. Through projectHOPE, students are connected to qualified mentors. Now, the particularly good news is that researchers found that just a 15-minute online mentoring session once a week made a big difference. In this episode we’ll find out more about the research team, how the program works, and the impact on students – including their wellbeing and engagement at school. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Professor Joseph Ciarrochi

In Australia, we’re at the start of another school year. That likely means new students and possibly a new learning space to set up. For those students who are moving up from preschool or primary or for those educators who switched jobs in the summer, it could mean getting to grips with completely different surroundings at a new school. In this special episode, we’ve gathered a panel of experienced teachers and leaders, who will be sharing their priorities, strategies and tips for those first few weeks and for a successful year. There’s some great advice on things like classroom displays, professional learning needs, authentic activities, positive behaviour management, keeping on top of your email inbox and there’s lots more – so, let’s jump in. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Rebecca West, Holly Millican, Nicole Wilson, David Webster, Lisa Seewraj, and Alex Wharton.

Happy New Year from the team at Teacher magazine. In this bonus podcast episode, we’re delighted to share with you a sneak preview into what we have in the pipeline for Teacher podcasts in 2022. Host: Dominique Russell

Here we are at the end of 2021 and it’s time to look back at all of our podcasts from the last 12 months. Join the Teacher team in this episode as we cast our mind back and share our personal favourite episodes from this year. Hosts: Jo Earp and Dominique Russell

In today’s episode, we're delighted to be joined by Rebecca West, Deputy Principal Instructional Leader at Bonnyrigg Public School in Bonnyrigg, about an hour west from Sydney in New South Wales. Rebecca was this year named a Top 10 finalist for the Global Teacher Prize. She was selected from over 8000 nominees from over 100 countries, and has been recognised for her work at her primary school in supporting students with additional needs and refining the school’s professional development program so teachers can work through identified areas more in-depth than ever before. The Global Teacher Prize is an annual prize presented by The Varkey Foundation which recognises one teacher for their outstanding contribution to the profession. The winner takes home US $1 million, and this year that winner was high school English teacher Keishia Thorpe from Maryland in the United States. We’ll be catching up with her in the new year, so be sure to subscribe to our free Teacher bulletin at our website, teachermagazine.com, so you never miss a story. In this episode, Rebecca shares more detail of her approach to ensuring all student needs are met, how collaboration between staff is key to improving student outcomes, and why their professional learning is conducted in three-week cycles. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Rebecca West

As a school leader, what’s your response to negative events or difficult situations? In the upcoming school year, what areas might you choose to work collectively with staff on improving? We’ve unpacked these questions recently at Teacher, so in this episode we’re looking at leadership. Host: Dominique Russell

Professor Amy Cutter-Mackenzie-Knowles, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Education at Southern Cross University, joins The Research Files this month to talk about the Childhood Nature Play study. We’ll be chatting about the different types of nature play, and the teaching and learning resources that have been co-designed as a result of the research project. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Amy Cutter-Mackenzie-Knowles

In this episode of Teaching Methods we’ll be looking at how PE teachers adapted to online learning during the pandemic. Our guest is Dr Vaughan Cruickshank and we’ll be discussing in this ‘emergency mode’ of teaching and learning, did PE happen at all? If it did, it more Physical Activity than Physical Education? And what lessons can we learn from this experience for the future? Guest: Dr Vaughan Cruickshank Host: Jo Earp

What is excellence in Indigenous education? This is a topic that’s been widely explored on Teacher this month and in today’s episode, we run you through some of the highlights. This includes a podcast on delivering Indigenous content in the curriculum, and a submission that explores how Indigenous peoples, school leaders and educators conceptualise what excellence in Indigenous education is or could be. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

In this episode of School Improvement, we’re taking you to Ireland, where research has recently been conducted looking at engaging students in the school self-evaluation process in a meaningful way. The research is outlined in the paper, Students as co-researchers in a school self-evaluation process, and the lead author, Shivaun O’Brien, joins us in this episode to unpack the impetus for the research and to talk us through some of the findings.

How effectively do you think you’re delivering Indigenous content in the curriculum? Would you say you have enough knowledge and confidence in this area? A program established by the University of New South Wales’ Matraville Education Partnership is looking to address these two areas of teacher practice. The Cultural Residents Project aims to support classroom teachers with improving their knowledge and confidence in teaching Indigenous content by giving them the opportunity to co-teach with a First Nations cultural educator. We're joined in this episode by Aunty Maxine Ryan, who is working across four different primary schools in Sydney’s eastern suburbs as a Cultural Resident, and Dr Rose Amazan, the lead research investigator working on the project. In this episode, Aunty Maxine and Rose share how the project works, and crucially, give some really helpful ideas on how teachers across the country can improve how they deliver Indigenous content in the curriculum, even when they’re not lucky enough to have access to a Cultural Resident.

You might be aware that our annual reader survey has just wrapped up for another year. It’s an opportunity for you to tell us what content you’d like to hear from us in the future, and this year, many of you told us you’d like more information and support on inclusive education. Inclusive education is something we’ve covered a lot this month at Teacher, so it’s a good opportunity to put that in the spotlight in this episode. In today’s podcast we are going to get you up to speed on these exciting stories at Teacher, and also some more of my highlights. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories might be relevant to your school context.

All three members of the editorial team are with you today for a special episode of The Research Files, to share some of the highlights from last month’s ACER Research Conference. The online event featured five days of keynotes, presentations, a research video showreel and a masterclass, all on the theme of ‘Excellent progress for every student: What will it take?’

Today is RUOK? Day, a national day of action here in Australia, dedicated to reminding everyone to check in on their loved ones and ask ‘Are you OK?’ For students, learning how to care for their own wellbeing and to support their peers to talk about how they feel is an important life lesson. In today’s episode, we're joined by Professor Fiona Brooks, a medical sociologist and a professor of child and family health at the University of Technology Sydney. The focus of today’s discussion is the relationship between mental health, wellbeing and student behaviour at school. But, we also explore the state of child and youth mental health in Australia, why it’s important to approach poor student behaviour with empathy and compassion, and why meaningful student-teacher relationships can make a significant difference in any child’s life. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Fiona Brooks Sponsor: Australian Volunteers

Our guest on today’s episode of School Improvement is Bernadette Hawker, Head of Department Teaching and Learning at Goondiwindi State High School in Queensland. We caught up with Bernie to talk about the school’s award-winning STEAM Program, which has been successful in improving student writing outcomes. You’ll also hear about the strong culture of sharing and collaboration among staff, including through Professional Learning Communities, that’s been key to the program’s continued growth and success. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Bernie Hawker

More than half of Australia’s population is under COVID-19 lockdowns, which means many of you are right in the thick of a long period of remote learning, maybe while trying to homeschool your own children at the same time. We’ve been separated from loved ones, we’ve missed important milestones and celebrations, and been restricted from doing some of the things we enjoy most. It’s no wonder our wellbeing has taken a hit. That’s why our fortnightly publication, Wellbeing by Teacher, may be just what you’re looking for. In today’s episode we run through some of the recent wellbeing pieces we’ve published, as well as some other highlights from a busy month here at Teacher. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: The Hatchery Schools Learning Community

Our guest today is Dr Gary Stager, one of the world’s leading experts and advocates for computer programming, robotics and learning-by-doing in classrooms. He’s also a journalist, teacher educator, consultant, professor, software developer, publisher, school administrator, and presenter at conferences around the world – but we’ll have Gary explain to you a little more about his extensive and impressive work early on in the episode. The reason for our interview today is to talk about his 30-year study into laptop use in schools. In fact, in 1990, Gary led the professional development in the world’s first laptop school. We ask him about the challenges they faced back then in the implementation of the program, how students engaged with the technology in the early days, but also what he’s learned about the way computers are used in schools today. Guest: Gary Stager Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: The Hatchery Schools Learning Community

In this episode of School Improvement, we’re taking you to a school in rural New South Wales where they’ve seen students in Years 5 to 9 read 12 books a year, and a 40 per cent increase in male students reading beyond their assigned texts. It’s all because of the reading culture they’ve developed and Head of Middle School and English teacher Alex Wharton has had a key role in this. He’s been named a Commonwealth Bank Teaching Fellow this year for his work, and he joins us in today’s episode to discuss what they’ve implemented at Carinya Christian School to see more students pick up novels to read in their spare time. Alex shares some fantastic insights in this episode, so let’s jump straight in and hear first a little bit about the school context. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Alex Wharton Sponsor: Australian Volunteers Program

With ACER’s Research Conference 2021 fast approaching, at Teacher magazine, we’ve been catching up with some of the keynote speakers that are on the line-up for the five-day online conference. The theme is: ‘Excellent progress for every student: What will it take?’ and, at the time of publishing this episode, you can still secure your registration. The conference kicks off on the 16th of August. In today’s episode we're going to get you up to speed on these exciting stories at Teacher, and also some more of my highlights. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context.

Teachers are thought of by many as an important role model in the community. And when it comes to drawing a line between a teacher’s professional and personal life, this can be challenging, particularly when it comes to their private use of social media. This idea has been explored by two researchers from the School of Law at Western Sydney University – Dr Sandy Noakes and Dr Sarah Hook. Their paper, which looks at the status of regulation of teacher behaviour on social media in Australia, found a huge variance in the social media policies that are in place for educators at schools across the country, and that there is room for teachers to be more aware of their rights in this area. The impetus for this research was a decision made by the High Court in Australia in 2019 on the Comcare and Banerji case, which you’ll hear Sarah and Sandy refer to throughout this episode. This case involved an employee of the Australian Human Rights Commission who used a private, anonymous Twitter account to criticise their employer’s policies. Their employment was terminated because of this behaviour and when they fought this decision in court, the decision of the employer was upheld. So, could something similar to this happen in the education field? What should school leaders keep in mind when creating or reviewing social media policies? And, what rights should teachers be aware of? Both Sandy and Sarah join me today to discuss these points and more. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Dr Sandy Noakes and Dr Sarah Hook Sponsor: Australian Volunteers

ACER’s Research Conference is back in 2021, after a COVID-19 pandemic pause last year. The fully online event kicks off in August, and runs from the 16th to the 20th. The 2021 theme is ‘Excellent progress for every student: What will it take?’ and will feature international researchers from a range of disciplines. One of the keynote speakers this year is Rich Lehrer, Professor Emeritus and Research Professor of Education at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. A former high school science teacher, Rich is a member of the National Academy of Education, a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association, and a recipient of the American Psychological Association’s Distinguished Contributions in Applications of Psychology to Education. Ahead of the event next month, we sat down with Rich to discuss his research that explores science and mathematics education for elementary school students in the US. He also gives listeners a taste of what he’ll be sharing at the conference and why he decided to name his keynote address ‘Accountable Assessment’. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Rich Lehrer Sponsor: Australian Volunteers

In today’s episode we're shining a spotlight on reading, as it’s been a topic covered quite a lot on Teacher recently. From encouraging students to find a love of reading, to ensuring they have access to a wide variety of texts, to the books children borrowed most frequently from libraries in 2020 – there is so much to squeeze into this Teacher Staffroom episode. We’ll be posing questions throughout, so as always, feel free to pause the audio and consider the questions either by yourself or perhaps with some colleagues. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

A literature review undertaken by Hannah Yared from Monash University has examined racism and racial bias in the Australian primary school context. In total, six studies were examined for this research which uncovered four main themes. The first is a lack of teacher confidence and competency regarding racial issues. This meant that in general, teachers tend not be have the confidence to engage fully with racially diverse students, and to discuss racial issues in a meaningful way. The second theme was white normativity, which is in reference to the fact educators tend to position whiteness as the norm for which everything is compared to. Third was colour-blindness which in this instance refers to the belief that minimising discussions about racial differences or racism is actually better than drawing attention to them, which Hannah’s research found many teachers tend to believe. And the final theme was silencing, which refers to the silencing of discussions about racial issues. Crucially though, Hannah’s research uncovered some important points on how school communities can best tackle this issue; the role of school leaders in supporting teachers address their behaviour; and how teachers themselves can address their own biases. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Hannah Yared

In this Teaching Methods episode, we speak to education consultant Michael Minas about a study he conducted to measure primary school students’ attitudes towards completing challenging problem solving tasks in maths. Michael shares details of the lesson structure he utilised, and why students responded to it so positively. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Michael Minas

Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Teacher Staffroom, where we catch you up on the latest evidence, insight, and action. In this episode, we’re looking into leadership. Many educators are engaging in leadership practice as part of their day-to-day work, no matter what position they hold in a school. So, whether you're a principal, a leading teacher or an aspiring leader, there's something for you in this episode. Like each edition of Teacher Staffroom, we'll take you through these topics, along with other noteworthy stories. I'll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

In this episode in our School Improvement series, we're joined by Vanessa Rauland, Portia Odell and Karen Murcia, who have recently published an examination of a two-year pilot study which encouraged schools to actively try to reduce their carbon emissions. Their study, and resulting report titled Schools: An Untapped Opportunity for a Carbon Neutral Future assessed which actions proved to be most effective, considering both the cost involved and the outcome achieved. The study came about after Vanessa Rauland and her colleagues conducted the two-year pilot program, the Low Carbon School’s Pilot Program, between 2015 and 2017. Fifteen schools were involved in this, and then PhD candidate Portia Odell, decided to investigate further as part of her PhD research. Thirteen of the original 15 schools jumped on board for this further examination, and it’s the examination of these schools which we’ll discuss today. Alongside Vanessa and Portia, we’re joined by Karen who was the supervisor for this research of Portia’s. As we’ll discuss in the episode, their report reveals that 60 per cent of the actions employed by schools involved no cost at all. Some of these actions included things like using less paper, improving recycling habits, obtaining quotes for solar panels and many other initiatives. The schools worked as a network throughout the pilot, meaning they could access each other’s energy consumption data, which proved to be particularly useful. All of this work led to the development of ClimateClever, Vanessa Rauland’s organisation, and specifically their app, which helps schools, businesses and homes reduce their carbon emissions. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Vanessa Rauland, Portia Odell, Karen Murcia Sponsor: Quality Teaching Academy

Casual relief teachers, or CRTs, are an integral part of the teacher workforce, but many often report feeling a lack of support and exclusion at schools they’re working in. We know this ourselves at Teacher magazine, with many of you getting in touch to share these same challenges you’ve faced as a CRT. Minami Uchida from Macquarie University has analysed the experiences of casual relief teachers working in primary schools in Australia. Her study involved surveying 104 teachers who were at various points in their career as casual teachers, and interviewing executive staff for their perspectives. Common challenges faced by casual teachers emerged, as well as useful supports that can be provided by executive school staff to mitigate these concerns. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Minami Uchida Sponsor: Bank First

The term ‘evidence-based practice’ is widely used in education. Schools are presented with strategies, programs and approaches that claim to be ‘research-based’ or ‘evidence-based’. But what is evidence-based practice? And, how do schools determine which of these programs and methods have solid foundations in research? These questions have been explored in several articles and podcasts on Teacher this month. Throughout this episode, I’ll be taking a deeper dive to explore some of the key messages to come from these pieces. I’ll also highlight some of the contributions we’ve published, as well as some of my favourites pieces to be featured on Teacher this month. I’d be keen to hear if these were some of yours as well, as well as any general feedback you may have, so please leave a comment on the transcript of this podcast on the Teacher magazine website, or rate and review us in your favourite podcast app. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

As a primary school teacher, how confident would you say you are at teaching music? Do you feel adequately prepared to teach music, or incorporate music into your lessons? What areas of music do you feel you need the most support in? A pilot professional development program on music teaching in primary schools has been assessed in a new report. The program involved five separate sessions on different areas in music, like composition, singing and instruments. The confidence of the teachers involved in the program were assessed before the program commenced, and after they’d completed all the sessions. The main contributor to their increase in confidence was the simple activities they were able to pick up, which we’ll share in this episode. We're joined in this episode by the report’s authors, Benjamin Thorn and Inga Brasche. Benjamin is a composer and a casual lecturer in Creative Arts education at the University of New England, and Inga Brasche is a former university lecturer and currently teaches at Presbyterian Ladies' College in Armidale, New South Wales, the same region where this study took place. Let’s jump in to hear more about their research. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Benjamin Thorn and Inga Brasche

You’ll be well aware that here at Teacher we are all about promoting quality teaching and leading and assisting school improvement at a grassroots level. We aim to support educators by sharing stories using evidence-based approaches which you can trust and adapt for use in your own school settings. We also ask you how you use Teacher content in your practice in our annual reader survey, and so many of you always tell us about how stories we’ve shared have motivated school change, or inspired discussion with colleagues. But on a broader scale, how are teachers and school leaders accessing and using research and evidence? What challenges do they face when doing so? And, what enables quality use of research and evidence? The research team for the Monash Q Project is looking at all of these questions in a report they have just released. The report shares data from a survey they conducted of teachers and school leaders on how they’re using research and evidence in their work. The Monash Q Project is a much larger project than this one report – it’s a five year partnership between Monash University and the Paul Ramsey Foundation with the broader aim of improving the use of research evidence in schools. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Jo Gleeson, Lucas Walsh Sponsor: Bank First

Thanks for listening to this episode of Teacher Staffroom, where we catch you up on the latest evidence, insight, and action. I'm Rebecca Vukovic. In 2015, Teacher columnist and ACER CEO Professor Geoff Masters penned a column for Teacher on the ‘big five’ education challenges facing Australian schools. This influential column remains the most popular article to ever be published on Teacher, collecting hundreds of thousands of page views over the past six years. This year, ACER decided to hold a five-part webinar series to revisit the big five challenges and ask what progress has been made on each, and what needs to happen next? To date, three of the webinars have already taken place, and in today’s podcast, we’ll be exploring each of them and providing details on how you can catch the next two, which will take place in May. By the way, if you’ve missed any of the earlier webinars, not to worry, they’ve all been recorded and I’ll provide links on how to watch them in the transcript of this episode. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

We’re taking you to Tasmania in today’s episode, where staff at Bowen Road Primary School have been working with a local electrical engineer for a few years now to teach students about coding. The partnership came about through the CSIRO’s STEM Professionals in Schools program, which invites STEM industry professionals from across the country to volunteer in schools to share their expertise and real-world perspectives with students. We're joined in this episode by the electrical engineer volunteering at Bowen Road Primary School, Robbie Bell, from Hydro Tasmania, which is Australia’s largest generator of renewable energy. Lynne Hanlon, the educator at Bowen Road Primary School who facilitated this partnership, also joins us to offer her perspective. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Robbie Bell, Lynne Hanlon

A study has followed primary school teachers through an entire school year to document how they taught mathematics to be inclusive of children with Down syndrome. Each teacher involved in the study had a student with Down syndrome in their classroom, and the researchers took note of examples of innovative mathematics teaching practice by observing lessons, looking at the maths work completed by children with Down syndrome, and one-on-one interviews with the teachers involved. As a result of this research, four different ways that teachers can include students with Down syndrome in their maths classrooms have emerged. Associate Professors Rhonda Faragher, from the University of Queensland, and Associate Professor Barbara Clarke, from Monash University, have published their findings in the Mathematics Education Research Journal. Dr Faragher joins us today to discuss the research. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Rhonda Faragher

As we settle in to the 2021 school year, teachers and school leaders are certainly grappling with the continued disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. But how can school communities begin to implement change from things already learned from previous periods of remote teaching and learning? For instance, how has remote teaching and learning changed the way school communities collaborate? How can schools work more effectively with tutors to support students who might have fallen behind last year? These are two topics we’ve covered at Teacher recently, and in today’s episode we’re going to take you through some of the most important points. And, like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll be posing some questions throughout the podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

How can teachers go about identifying the underlying causes of a student’s behaviour, and then approach responding to it in a respectful and effective way? To dissect these questions further, we’re joined today by Senior Lecturer at Monash University, Dr Erin Leif, and PhD student and former primary school teacher, Russell Fox. Erin joined Monash University in 2018 after working as a therapy assistant in a school for children with developmental disabilities in Massachusetts in the United States and completing her masters and doctoral degrees in behaviour sciences. Now, in her capacity at Monash University, Erin heads up a postgraduate course in applied behaviour analysis. Russell’s PhD research – which you’ll hear him speak about throughout the episode – focused on understanding what is required to support teachers to successfully and sustainably implement evidence-based behaviour support practices, specifically School-wide Positive Behavioural Interventions and Supports (or SWPBIS). Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Russell Fox, Erin Leif

What contributes to a teacher’s decision to leave the profession? And, at the same time, why do others thrive and find success and personal fulfillment at work? Hugh Gundlach is a researcher and pre-service teacher educator at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education at the University of Melbourne. He is completing a PhD on teacher wellbeing and retention, exploring the reasons why some teachers feel satisfied in their jobs, while others choose to leave the profession altogether. In today’s School Improvement episode, Hugh delves into his research and explains what attracts people to the teaching profession in the first place, some of the key reasons some people choose to leave, and shares some anecdotes from teachers who’ve found practical ways to manage the pressures of the job with success. He also shares insights into how school leaders can better support staff to feel successful in their roles. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Hugh Gundlach Sponsor: Bank First

Welcome back to a new school year. We know that for many of you, 2020 brought a whole host of unique challenges to the way you teach, collaborate with others, and undertake professional learning, amongst many other things. We hope you all enjoyed a well-deserved break and are ready to face whatever 2021 will bring. Over the past few weeks, here at Teacher we’ve been busy putting together content to help support you for the year ahead, and in today’s episode we're going to take you through some of the highlights. We’ll be discussing school leadership, gifted education, setting up your classroom and resources for planning. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

In October last year, the winners of the annual Prime Minister’s Prizes for Excellence in Science Teaching in primary and secondary schools were announced. Darren Hamley from Willetton Senior High School in Western Australia and Sarah Fletcher from Bonython Primary School in the ACT were awarded with the prizes, and they both join us in today’s episode. Darren Hamley, who is the coordinator of Willetton Senior High School’s gifted and talented program, was recognised for his efforts to use science to promote environmental issues, as well as his implementation of several extra-curricular programs. Sarah Fletcher is the STEM specialist at Bonython Primary School and has been recognised for her contributions to STEM teaching, both within her school, and in the wider community. Sarah is also motivated by her view that learning happens most effectively when students have an emotional attachment to the topic. We caught up with both Sarah and Darren at the end of last year to discuss the work they’re doing in these areas in their own school contexts to improve science learning. Guests: Darren Hamley, Sarah Fletcher Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: QUT's Faculty of Education

It’s no surprise that a teacher’s self-efficacy has a huge impact on their classroom teaching. But what aspects of work as a beginner teacher has an influence on how perceived self-efficacy develops? A research report has looked into this and we're joined in this episode of The Research Files by two of the paper’s co-authors, Professor Helen Watt from the University of Sydney and Professor Paul Richardson from Monash University. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Paul Richardson and Helen Watt

Well, we’re at the end of another year and what a year it’s been for everyone. It’s been a massive effort from teachers, school leaders, parents and students – everyone really pulling together to keep going through the pandemic lockdown and then the return to a different school life than before. From the Teacher podcast team then, we started the year at our recording studio in Melbourne and we’re ending it still working remotely from home. We’ve spoken to some amazing educators during 2020, and we’ve spoken to experts around the world to bring you the latest in education research. So, today we’re going to take a look back at some of our personal highlights. Let’s get started.

Andreas Schleicher – Director for Education and Skills at the OECD and long-time Teacher columnist – joins us from Paris for this episode to give his take on all things 2020, talk about the longer term impacts of the school shutdowns and share how different education systems have responded to the pandemic restrictions. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Andreas Schleicher

You might’ve noticed we’ve been placing a real emphasis on wellbeing at Teacher recently. We’ve looked at new research into student wellbeing, resilience, and launched a new publication dedicated to educator wellbeing outside of the classroom. Like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we'll take you through these topics, along with other noteworthy stories. We'll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: Charles Sturt University

We recently brought you news of an Australian study showing that having a qualified teacher librarian on staff is associated with improved student literacy outcomes. Those findings stem from a 2019 census commissioned by the School Library Association of South Australia and carried out by a team from the Australian Council for Educational Research. The wide-ranging survey collected data on school library staffing, facilities, funding, and support, and as you’ll hear, researchers also carried out a review of every school website. The findings have been published in the report School libraries in South Australia: 2019 Census. Lead author, ACER Senior Research Fellow Dr Katherine Dix, is our guest today. We’ll be discussing the importance of school libraries, some of the different models being used by schools, provision in primary and secondary, and in different locations, and the connection (or disconnection) between the value leaders place on their library and its representation on the school’s public-facing website.

We’re talking about blended learning. It’s an approach adopted by the School of Now – that’s a program launched in 2019 to broaden subject choice for students from two schools in the Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta, New South Wales, and connect them with expert teachers. It’s grown since then of course, and it’s fair to say it came into its own during the COVID-19 school shutdown. Our guest is Maura Manning, Director of Learning in the diocese. We’ll be talking about how the blended learning model operates at the School of Now, what it means for teachers and teaching, the focus on equity of access, and how students are supported – both online and at their home schools.

Changing school practices means everyone working together – leaders, teachers, support staff, students, parents and the wider community – toward the goal of improving outcomes for students, including their levels of achievement and wellbeing. At Teacher, we’ve heard plenty of inspiring school improvement stories, and in today’s episode we're going to take you through some recent highlights. Like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll take you through these topics, along with other noteworthy stories. We’ll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: Bank First

Teachers are asked to respond to new and uncertain situations all the time – from keeping abreast of curriculum and subject knowledge updates to making quick pivots when a lesson isn’t quite going according to plan. Our topic for this episode is teacher adaptability and our guest is Dr Rebecca Collie – a DECRA Fellow and Scientia Senior Lecturer in Educational Psychology in the School of Education at UNSW. Dr Collie and colleagues recently published a paper in the journal Teaching and Teacher Education, on their study into adaptability among science teachers in schools across eight countries. We’ll be talking about the study findings, and the research around teacher adaptability. We’ll also talk about the link between teacher adaptability and self-confidence, behaviour management and student self-efficacy. And, there’ll be some recommendations for school leaders in there around the importance of professional learning communities. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Rebecca Collie Sponsor: Bank First

In today’s episode we're joined by Principal Elizabeth Humphries and Assistant Principal Nicole Wilson from East Derwent Primary School in Tasmania. Since 2018, they’ve been on a journey of school improvement which has seen significant progress in student engagement and achievement, as well as staff retention and teacher welfare. We’ll discuss the steps they’ve taken which have resulted in suspensions at the school decreasing by 75 per cent and fewer staff members leaving the school. A big part of this journey has been the school’s involvement in a Tasmanian Department of Education initiative called Refocus Teaching and Learning, which will be explained in much more detail later on in the episode. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Elizabeth Humphries, Nicole Wilson Sponsor: Bank First

The content published on Teacher magazine this month has been packed full of contributions and insights from those working in the education community – from teachers and school leaders, to researchers, education consultants and university academics. We're always blown away by the wealth of knowledge and expertise that we’re able to share with you, our readers and listeners. In today’s episode, we're going to whip through the contributions we’ve published, giving you some snippets to come from the articles, videos and columns. We’ll also share some insights from the three podcasts we published this month – one on creativity, another on leadership coaching and one that explores co-creating bullying policies. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: EnhanceTV

What bullying policies and procedures are in place at your school? Do they focus on a particular age range? And, do you run a specific anti-bullying education program? Our guest today is Dr Lesley-anne Ey, a Senior Lecturer at the University of South Australia. Lesley-anne and her UniSA colleague Professor Barbara Spears have been working with early childhood teachers to identify problems with bullying in their own school context and co-design tailored education and prevention programs. In this episode we’ll be discussing early childhood intervention, the Participatory Design method, and the feedback from the teachers and schools involved. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Lesley-anne Ey

We’re going to be talking about leadership coaching today. Our guests are Karen Snibson, who is Principal of Phoenix P-12 Community College in Victoria, and Angela Mina, a leadership coach and executive consultant. They’ve been working together as part of a two year Menzies School Leader Fellowship Program. Now, the focus of the program is on increasing collective teacher efficacy and it uses an ‘incubator model’ where the leadership Fellows are encouraged to trial strategies and interventions within their own school context. We’ll find out a little bit more about the model and the program, but we’ll be delving deeper into the developmental leadership coaching that’s being used, and how it differs from an approach that existing school leaders may be used to. And, of course, we’ll be chatting about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected Karen and Angela’s plans and progress. Host: Jo Earp Guests: Angela Mina, Karen Snibson Sponsor: University of Newcastle, Australia

Which is more creative, the Arts or the sciences? My guest, Professor David Cropley from the University of South Australia, joins us today to discuss this question and to delve into his research into whether any specific differences exist between creativity in the Arts and creativity in STEM. David is an internationally recognised expert on creativity and innovation. He’s appeared on several television programs on the ABC, including Redesign My Brain and Life at 9. The study we’re focusing on today was co-authored by Kim van Broekhoven and Phillip Seegers from Maastricht University in the Netherlands. The study surveyed over 2000 German undergraduate students enrolled in STEM courses and in Arts courses, to explore how creativity differed across the disciplines. In this episode, David takes us through how they conducted the study, some of the key findings, and the practical implications of this research for educators working in the K-12 space. Guest: David Cropley Host: Rebecca Vukovic

A few reports have been released lately which point to how we’re tracking across the world when it comes to equality and equity in education. At Teacher, we’ve looked a report showing how the experiences of young people living with a disability and without a disability compare. We also highlighted some resources on Indigenous literacy, in the lead up to Indigenous Literacy Day, which aims to improve remote Indigenous children's educational outcomes. Like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll take you through these topics, along with other noteworthy stories in education. We’ll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

We're joined today by Chemistry teacher Chris Buswell from Mountain Creek State High School on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. Chris is passionate about integrating technology into science and leveraging opportunities for students in their local community. He’s worked hard for years towards both of these goals and student outcomes and their post-school destinations are really reflecting this. As you’ll hear in this episode, Chris has facilitated the use of virtual reality with senior secondary students to help them understand complex chemistry concepts through a partnership with their local university, the University of the Sunshine Coast. He’s also part of a network of schools who have partnered with schools in Papua New Guinea for a program which aims to empower future leaders in STEM. And, of course, he’s doing important work as well with younger students to build those important 21st Century skills. Guest: Chris Buswell Host: Dominique Russell

Our guest today is Lisa Seewraj, a teacher at Child Side Playgroup and School in Boyanup, Western Australia, about 200 kilometres south of Perth. Child Side School is an independent, co-educational school covering Kindergarten to Year 10. The school was founded in 2002, with a focus on relationships, engagement and connectivity. The school’s founders and co-principals Karron McDonald and Leonie O’Connell say they strongly believe that each person’s story matters to them and should matter to the students themselves; they help children value their own story and communicate and advocate it’s worth over and above any reports, grades, scores and other stats and data. Lisa Seewraj teaches a multi-age class of 23 students across Years 7-10. She does this with a co-teacher who teaches maths and science, and the two teachers are in the class for most of the week. Lisa also teaches these students for the four years they are in this year range. In today’s episode we discuss how she manages the classroom on a daily basis, the range of abilities that she caters for, and how she provides each student with the appropriate level of challenge to progress in their learning. Guest: Lisa Seewraj Host: Rebecca Vukovic

Mathematics education has been a clear focus of our editorial content this month, and in this episode of Teacher Staffroom, we’re going to share some of the highlights. At the same time, we’ll be sharing some pieces on curriculum reform and requirements, as well as some contributions written by teachers, school leaders and researchers. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

In today’s world, young people must be financially literate to perform common, day-to-day tasks, like using a debit card or choosing a mobile phone plan. But, how financially literate are teenagers in Australia? And, how do they compare to their international peers? The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (or PISA, as it’s commonly referred to) includes an optional assessment that examines 15-year-old students’ understanding of money matters and financial literacy. This week, the Australian Council for Educational Research released a report that analyses Australian students’ performance in the latest PISA Financial Literacy survey. It’s titled PISA 2018: Financial literacy in Australia. A total of 117 000 students from 20 countries and economies participated in the financial literacy survey, including over 9400 Australian students from 740 schools. In today’s episode, we're joined by one of the report’s co-authors, Lisa DeBortoli, a Senior Research Fellow at ACER. We discuss some of the key findings to come from the report and what students were required to do for this assessment. You’ll also hear Lisa share more about the proficiency levels, what they mean, and the kind of knowledge and skills that students are typically capable of displaying at each level, as well as some practical examples. Guest: Lisa DeBortoli Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: University of Newcastle

Year 10 gifted and talented students at St Matthews Catholic School in regional New South Wales collaborated with academics at the University of Sydney on a research project. In today’s episode we speak with Professor Patrick Brennan and Brooke Colley about how the collaborative nature of this project strengthened students’ STEM skills in areas like data analysis, experimentation and scientific writing. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Professor Patrick Brennan and Brooke Colley

At Teacher magazine, we love to share the research-based innovative classroom activities from educators across Australia, and the world. In today’s episode we're going to take you through some of the engaging learning activities educators have been using during this pandemic. We’ve heard from Arts educators, researchers in Science and teacher educators on pre-service teacher experiences. We’ll take you through all of their stories in today’s episode. We’ll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

My guests today are Allan Shaw, Principal and CEO of The Knox School in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, and Ben Righetti, The Knox School’s Character and Leadership Programs: Lead Consultant and WELS Founder and Director. They join us today to discuss the Character and Leadership Model implemented at The Knox School between 2017 and 2020. It represents the most significant change in how the school develops student character and leadership capabilities in the history of the school. One of the key aims of the project is to foster the development of young people of character who will be ethical citizens and community leaders. It also involved a major redesign of camps, excursions, outdoor education and community-based learning at each year level, from Year 6 to Year 11. The school has documented its journey, what they learned and the implications of their findings in a report titled 'Character and Leadership Model: Student Character and Leadership Development through Purpose-Designed, Experiential, Community-Based Learning and Projects'. In this episode we discuss the what motivated them to initiate the project, some of its features, and how they’ve had to adapt it this year in the midst of the COVID-19 lockdowns, when all camps, excursions and community activities have been either cancelled or postponed. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guests: Allan Shaw and Ben Righetti

A new series of research papers relating to science learning in the early years has been published by ACER (the Australian Council for Educational Research). The series aims to help educators of children in preschool to Year 2 to incorporate the latest research into science learning into their teaching. The authors discuss the significance of the particular subject, the relevant research, how it links to outcomes in the Early Years Learning Framework (or EYLF) as well as some aspects of the Australian Curriculum. They also describe a handful of activities that can be completed with children to help develop their science inquiry skills, like observing plants, and exploring light and shadows. These activities can also assist educators in monitoring the science learning of the children they’re teaching. They’re suitable for parents whose children are learning at home, as well. In this episode, we're joined by a co-author of the series, Gayl O’Connor, a Senior Research Fellow at ACER. You’ll pick up on the big emphasis on why integrating science learning in the early years is so beneficial for children and their teachers, and we also discuss identifying and managing common misconceptions children might have about science concepts; and managing a lack of confidence in science as an educator. Host: Dominique Russell Guest; Gayl O'Connor

Teacher content draws on the wealth of knowledge and expertise that exists within the education community. This month, we’ve had the opportunity to speak with several experts in education on a range of different topics, and in today’s podcast, we take you through some of the highlights. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: Bank First

With students returning to face-to-face classes here in Australia, we thought it might be a good time to take a breath and reflect on what’s certainly been an intense couple of months for everyone. Our guest in this episode is Professor Pauline Taylor-Guy, Director of the ACER Institute and the Centre for School and System Improvement. We’ll be talking about what’s happened and where to from here – continuity of teaching and learning during COVID-19, trying to understand and mitigate the impacts on student outcomes, how schools have adapted to ‘emergency remote teaching’, and how the experience could lead to future changes and innovations in practice. Host: Jo Earp Guest: Pauline Taylor-Guy Sponsor: EnhanceTV

Our guest today is Pasi Sahlberg, a Professor of Education Policy at the Gonski Institute for Education at UNSW Sydney. He joins Teacher to discuss the ongoing research project he’s been working on that explores how the widespread use of media and digital technologies is impacting the wellbeing, health and learning of Australian children. The findings have been published in the Growing Up Digital Australia: Phase 1 Technical Report, co-written with Dr Amy Graham, a Research Fellow at the Gonski Institute. To give you a bit of a snapshot, the first phase of the study asked teachers and school principals to compare what they are observing in their schools and classrooms regarding students’ use of media and digital technologies, to what was happening three to five years ago. A total of 1876 respondents completed the survey, three-quarters of them were female and, for the most part, respondents were experienced educators, with 48 per cent of the sample having more than 20 years’ teaching experience. Half of the respondents were classroom teachers, 30 per cent were principals and the remainder were involved in early childhood settings, school administration and temporary teaching positions. In our interview, we delve deep into the findings to come from the study and Pasi shares his insights into how digital technologies impact a child’s readiness to learn in the classroom. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Pasi Sahlberg Sponsor; EnhanceTV

With the COVID-19 pandemic comes a dramatic change to education and a lot of questions about the continuation of learning. At Teacher magazine, we’ve published a lot of content looking at navigating this challenge. In this podcast, we take you through some of the highlights. Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: Bank First

Each year, the Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute announce winners to a range of ChooseMaths awards. At the 2019 award ceremony 11 educators were acknowledged and among them was Louise Puslednik. She took home the $20 000 award for mentoring girls in maths and she joins us in today’s episode. She’s made a real impact on girls’ involvement in maths at her school, St Matthew’s Catholic School in Mudgee, New South Wales, which teaches around 900 students from K-12. Her work extends beyond the school, which is about three hours from Sydney, to the wider Mudgee area and Bathurst region. The Australian Mathematical Sciences Institute Schools Program Manager and ChooseMaths Project Director labelled her a champion for engagement of girls in maths, saying ‘Louise is a powerhouse mathematics mentor and educator whose innovation, passion, leadership and contributions to regional education have and will continue to transform engagement for the benefit of many’. Louise says forming relationships with students is paramount for her. In this episode, we’re going to find out a little bit more about the initiatives she’s implemented at her school in order to empower girls by highlighting the relevance of mathematics to the real world, and what careers they could have in maths or science once they leave school. Host: Dominique Russell Guest: Louise Puslednik Sponsor: Bank First

Our guest today is Ashley Stewart, a Mathematics teacher from Newton Moore Senior High School in Bunbury, Western Australia. Just recently, Ashley was named in the top 50 shortlist for the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize and, in fact, she was the only Australian educator to make the coveted list for 2020. In today’s episode we talk about how she focuses on dissolving the gender gap in STEM at her school by boosting girls’ uptake and engagement in these subjects. Ashley also shares details of some of the STEM programs she’s introduced, including a spatial training program and an international school partnership, which have improved academic achievement, but also student engagement and enjoyment in their lessons. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Ashley Stewart Sponsor: EnhanceTV

This month has been has been one characterised by a lot of fear and uncertainty as the world grapples with the challenge of containing the spread of the coronavirus. In this episode of Teacher Staffroom, we do a round-up of what we’ve published so far related to Covid-19, as well as other more general content that we thought would be of interest. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

St Helena Secondary College in Victoria embarked on a journey to improve the quality and accuracy of teacher judgements on their student reports, in order to better reflect student achievement. We’re joined by Kate Williams to hear about the process and where they’re at on their journey. Guest: Kate Williams Host: Rebecca Vukovic

Researchers have found that to improve behaviour in class, teachers should focus on praising students for their good behaviour, rather than telling them off for being disruptive. Professor Paul Caldarella joins Teacher to discuss his three-year project that looked at the relationship between the praise-to-reprimand ratios and the extent to which students focused on class activities. Guest: Professor Paul Caldarella Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: EnhanceTV

In this episode of Teacher Staffroom, we take a look at how schools have been kicking off the 2020 school year, and some new resources that have become available to assist with getting students the best start to school and processing the recent bushfire crisis. Host: Dominique Russell

The topic for this episode is something we’ve had a lot of requests for – trauma informed education practices. Studies show that exposure to trauma in childhood is widespread. Our guest today is Dr Emily Berger, an educational and developmental psychologist at Monash University here in Melbourne. We’ll be talking about some of the terminology, the benefits of trauma informed practice in schools (for all students), and different approaches to creating trauma informed classrooms. Guest: Dr Emily Berger Host: Jo Earp Sponsor: YSoft be3D eDee

As the name suggests, ‘foundation skills’ are crucial to future learning. The Association of Independent Schools New South Wales (AISNSW) has been working with 38 of its schools on a targeted early years program that aims to help students in Kindergarten to Year 2 master key literacy and numeracy skills. The initiative has been led by the association’s Head of Student Services, Lisa Ridings. She joins us now to share what’s been happening in the program and the impact it’s already having. Guest: Lisa Ridings Host: Rebecca Vukovic

Thanks for downloading this episode of Teacher Staffroom, where we catch you up on the latest evidence, insight and action. And just like that, we’re already into a new school year and already in the full swing of things here at Teacher magazine. Throughout this episode, we're going to be sharing some of the highlights of the past month and giving you a bit of an overview of what we’ve been working on. But remember, there’s links to all the stories we mention in the transcript of this podcast, so if you’d like to delve deeper into any of the topics, you’ll find everything you need at teachermagazine.com.au. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

Our guest for this episode of The Research Files is Dr John Munro, a Professor of Educational Psychology and Exceptional Learning at The Australian Catholic University. He is also a trained primary and secondary teacher and a registered psychologist. We sat down in Melbourne to talk about gifted learners – in particular, how to identify these learners, how to understand their learning needs and how to encourage them to reach their potential in the classroom and beyond. John offers some really interesting insights and practical strategies for teachers as well.

Building positive relationships is at the centre of the behaviour management strategies used by Dapto High School. The additional focus on boys’ wellbeing has seen the school volunteer for the Top Blokes mentoring program and create a new staff role – Boys’ Mentor. Our guests for this episode of Behaviour Management are Dapto High School’s Deputy Principal Daniel Inness and Boys’ Mentor Andrew Horsley. They’ll be taking us through the mentoring approach, how it works alongside some of the other behaviour management strategies at the school, and some of the savings it’s led to – in time and money. Interviewee: Daniel Inness, Andrew Horsley Host: Jo Earp Sponsor: Monash Education

In this special episode, we take a look back over our favourite moments from the podcasts we published throughout 2019. With dozens of episodes to choose from, this highlights reel takes you through some of our fascinating guests and thought-provoking conversations.

The team at Teacher have spoken to a lot of interesting educators this month, and some great practical pointers for the classroom have come out of these conversations. In this episode, we’ll be looking at some budget-friendly science experiments for both primary and secondary students; some engaging mathematics activities perfect to finish off the term; and some implications for classroom educators of some new research that’s been published. Host: Dominique Russell

In this special episode, we're delighted to be joined by the two recipients of this year’s Prime Minister’s Prizes for Excellence in Science teaching. Sarah Finney, a Grade 3 and 4 classroom teacher at Stirling East Primary School in South Australia was named winner for primary school teaching, and Dr Samantha Moyle from Brighton Secondary School, also in South Australia, was named winner for secondary teaching. Both educators are remarkably dedicated to harnessing curiosity about Science in their students, and providing them with authentic, real-world learning experiences. Interviewees: Samantha Moyle and Sarah Finney Host: Dominique Russell Sponsor: University of Melbourne's Graduate School of Education

It’s been another exciting month here at Teacher magazine and we're thrilled to share with you just some of what we’ve been working on here at the publication. Today, we're shining a spotlight on the podcasts we’ve published this month, because they’re packed with some really practical strategies that you could apply to your work in the classroom. In this episode, we’ll also be highlighting some of the interesting research that we covered, as well as sharing more about a new monthly series we launched here at the magazine. Presenter: Rebecca Vukovic

Scoresby Secondary College in Melbourne’s east is on a mission to improve instructional practice by embedding student voice in the school’s improvement cycle. To do this, they’re using the Scoresby Secondary College AMPLIFY model, which are seven interrelated steps which synthesise a range of student voice and agency literature, as well as research on reflective practice and leadership. The goals of the model are simple: to support teachers, students and leaders to work collaboratively with the full range of student perspectives; and, to clearly define what collaborating with students for improvement-related processes looks like. For today’s podcast, we headed out to the school to sit down with Murray Cronin, Head of Curriculum and Pedagogy. We discuss how the school has engaged students in decision making and improvement-related processes, and the impact that student voice has had on school culture. Murray also goes into quite a lot of detail about the AMPLIFY model and how they’re going to further develop it in 2020 and beyond. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Interviewee: Murray Cronin Podcast supporter: Bank First

How can we teach and assess general capabilities including critical thinking, creative thinking, collaboration, and problem solving skills? This is a challenge that teachers are faced with in 21st Century classrooms. A project, funded by the Centre for Assessment Reform and Innovation (CARI) at the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), is working to develop an assessment framework for measuring and monitoring these skills in the classroom. Through a combination of curriculum-oriented assessment tools, learning progressions, and professional development, the project aims to equip teachers with the skills to integrate teaching and assessing of general capabilities into their classrooms. Here to discuss this today is Dr Claire Scoular, a Research Fellow at ACER and the person charged with leading the project. In today’s episode, she shares more about the assessment tool that’s been developed, and we discuss some practical ways teachers can measure these skills, as well as some the challenges involved in doing so. Claire also shares some of her early analyses of data to come from the trials completed in schools across Australia. Interviewer: Rebecca Vukovic Guest: Dr Claire Scoular

Childhood and adolescent anxiety is something many classroom teachers will come face-to-face with, so it’s important to understand what a teacher’s role could be in identifying and managing anxiety. Are there behaviours a teacher could be observing in the classroom that might be typical of anxiety? How can a classroom educator help to reinforce the work of a student’s psychologist or therapist? And, what can teachers do to make their classroom more comfortable and accommodating for students experiencing anxiety? To discuss all of this, I’m joined in today’s episode by Dr Rowena Conroy, a clinical psychologist who works with children, adolescents and families at the Children’s Private Medical Group in Victoria. We sat down together at the National Education Summit in Melbourne after her presentation on student anxiety. Presenter: Dominique Russell Interviewee: Dr Rowena Conroy

As Global Teacher Prize finalist Sarah Mathews once said, ‘numeracy is everyone’s business.’ In this episode, we dive into the stories of educators around Australia who are being so innovative in the way they engage students in mathematics. We’ll take you to a mathematics-based action research project, an exciting new video series, and research indicating student thinking behind their subject selection in senior secondary school. All of that, as well as a quick wrap up of some of the other content you might have missed from us recently. We’ll be posing some questions throughout, so it’s a great opportunity to sit down with your colleagues to discuss how these stories could be relevant or helpful to your school context. That’s this episode of Teacher Staffroom.

Scotland has recently implemented a new approach to assessing children’s progress in its schools. It’s an online national assessment called the Scottish National Standardised Assessments, or SNSA for short, and it aims to support improvement in classroom practice by providing information to teachers to inform the next steps in learning. All of this is done while still overseeing what’s going on locally and nationally. It’s delivered to students in Primary 1, Primary 4, Primary 7 and Secondary 3 – which in Australia is equivalent in age to Prep, Grade 3, Grade 6 and Year 9. Now, the particularly unique aspect of this assessment is the fact that it places teacher professional judgement at the centre. It’s also been developed to be accessible for students with additional support needs. And, as well as this, the test is adaptive – so, students are presented with questions according to how well they’ve answered the questions previous. To find out more about how all of this was achieved, and how the assessment is assisting teachers on the ground, we're joined in this episode by David Leng. He’s a professional adviser to the Scottish Government Learning Directorate. And he’s played a huge part in the development, implementation and continuous improvement of the assessment. Interviewee: David Leng Host: Dominique Russell Podcast supporter: James Cook University

Welcome to the first ever Teacher Talks, a podcast event hosted by Teacher magazine, and proudly brought to you by our podcast supporter, the Melbourne Graduate School of Education. My name is Rebecca Vukovic, I’m Deputy Editor of Teacher magazine, and it is my pleasure to share with you the very special interview we recorded in Melbourne in front of a live audience of teachers and school leaders. Our guest, Dr Lyn Sharratt, is a highly accomplished practitioner, researcher, author and presenter. She holds a doctorate from the University of Toronto, and coordinates the doctoral internship program in the Leadership, Higher and Adult Education Department at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. In this episode, I sit down with Lyn to discuss one specific leadership approach, Learning Walks and Talks. We have a lot to cover in this episode, from building a culture of trust amongst staff for Learning Walks and Talks, to the nuts and bolts of how to do a Learning Walk and Talk effectively and confidently. What’s also really exciting about this episode is you’ll be hearing from several audience members who had the opportunity to ask Lyn their questions about Learning Walks and Talks, in a way that was specific to their school contexts.

What a month we’ve had here at Teacher magazine! It’s been busy but exciting – and safe to say it’s been packed full of interesting stories and content for our readers. From Research Conference, to Science Week, to our very first live event with Dr Lyn Sharratt – there’s so much we'd like to look back on and share with you. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

ACER’s Research Conference took place this month with the theme – ‘Preparing students for life in the 21st century: Identifying, developing and assessing what matters’. In this episode, we’ll take you to the closing session of the conference – the ‘In Conversation’ between ACER CEO Professor Geoff Masters AO and Neil Selwyn, a Professor in the Faculty of Education at Monash University. We’ll share highlights from their discussion about what schooling might look like in 10 years’ time. Now, this session began directly after Neil delivered the conference’s Karmel Oration, so, as you’re going to hear a few references to that talk, it’s important I give you an understanding of what he discussed. Neil’s Oration was titled ‘On with the 21st century! Preparing Australian education for the 2020s and beyond.’ So, it’s clear from that title that he took the conference theme to heart. In particular, Neil focused on what education might look like in 2029. He spoke about how there are often three different kinds of predictions when we speak about predicting certain things for the future – the probable, possible and preferable – and how it’s important we try to stick to speaking about probable futures, rather than a future that is possible or preferable. This led him to speak about the role of an educator during the times of climate change, the rise of online education and how we can best prepare students for careers of the future.

If you were to visit any preschool or kindergarten classroom, you’d surely find that shared book reading is a common activity used to facilitate discussions and support a young child’s language and literacy development. A new study, published in Early Childhood Research Quarterly, examined the extent to which preschool teachers use different types of questions during classroom-based shared book reading. Researchers from the Children’s Learning Institute at the University of Texas, Ohio State University, the American Institute for Research and Michigan State University all collaborated on this study. They found that only 24 per cent of what teachers said during the shared book reading were questions, and the kids answered the questions accurately 85 per cent of the time. In today’s episode, I’m joined by one of the study’s authors, Dr Tricia Zucker, who is an Associate Professor with the Children’s Learning Institute at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth in Houston. We chat about what the main findings were to come from the research, whether the questions teachers were asking were too simple for students, and how teachers could improve their questioning practices to ensure children are given the appropriate level of challenge. Guest: Dr Tricia Zucker Interviewer: Rebecca Vukovic Podcast supporter: Seven Steps to Writing Success

These past couple weeks at Teacher have been jam-packed. We welcomed a number of guests – from the eSafety commissioner to the ARIA Music Teacher of the Year – and we also featured a lot of content on the topic of literacy. Catch up on anything you might’ve missed in today’s podcast episode. Presenter: Dominique Russell

A supportive school reading culture is one where there is availability, opportunity, encouragement and support for reading. But how do schools actually go about building this kind of culture in their own contexts? To answer this question, Senior Lecturer at Edith Cowan University Dr Margaret Merga went straight to the source – teacher librarians – to gain their valuable insights into the factors that enable and constrain the development of a whole school reading culture. The results from this research were published in the Australian Journal of Education in a paper titled, Building a school reading culture: Teacher librarians’ perceptions of enabling and constraining factors. In today’s episode, I sit down with Margaret to talk more about her study and its findings, including the role that school leadership plays in the development and maintenance of a school reading culture. Guest: Dr Margaret Merga Interviewer: Rebecca Vukovic Supporter: QUT Podclass

Keeping kids safe online is a constant challenge for parents and teachers. And it can be easy to understand why it’s such a worry. Data show 99 per cent of Australian parents with children aged between two and 17 report having an internet connection in the home and one in five Australian children have been cyberbullied online between the ages of eight and 17. The statistics on this are clearly alarming, but the good news is there is help out there. My guest for today’s episode is Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, who was appointed to lead the eSafety Office in 2017, and charged with the role of promoting online safety for all Australians. Julie has an impressive resume that includes working for the US Congress, Twitter, Adobe and a 17-year stint at Microsoft. In today’s episode we talk about the common cyberbullying incidents that young people report to her office, how her team work to protect children online, and where teachers can find resources to help them to navigate cyberbullying challenges both in and outside their classrooms. Guest: Julie Inman Grant Interviewer: Rebecca Vukovic Supporter: QUT Podclass

Teacher Staffroom takes a look at some of the research we’ve covered on Teacher this month including the latest TALIS results on the state of the teaching profession. We also share some exciting updates about the publication. Presenter: Rebecca Vukovic Podcast supporter: QUT Podclass

There have been many research studies published that explore how adolescents perceive school discipline, but only a few papers have examined the perceptions of primary school students. Dr Lotem Perry Hazan is Head of the Educational Management Program in the Department of Leadership and Policy in Education at the University of Haifa in Israel. She’s also the Head of the Jewish Education Research Center. She joins us today to discuss her study of lower primary school students, aged seven to 10, and their perceptions of due process in schools’ disciplinary procedures. Published in the British Educational Research Journal, the study was based on semi-structured interviews and focus groups with children recruited from 19 public schools in Israel. In today’s discussion, we cover what her aims were for this study and what the main findings were. We also discuss student voice and the role of students in managing their own school discipline. And finally, Dr Perry Hazan shares some of her most recent work on surveillance cameras in schools and the impact they have on student behaviour and student-teacher relationships. Guest: Dr Lotem Perry Hazan Interviewer: Rebecca Vukovic Podcast supporter: QUT Podclass

How do children experience hope? And, what does it mean to be hopeful? These are some of the questions we discuss with our guest, Dr Avivit Cherrington, in today’s Global Education podcast episode. Dr Cherrington is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Faculty of Education at Nelson Mandela University in South Africa. She stopped by our Melbourne office for our interview today where we chat about some of her latest work with rural South African children and their conceptualisations of hope. We talk about what it means to be hopeful from an Afrocentric worldview; its emphasis on belonging, connectedness and community; and how children around the world experience hope in their own settings. To begin though, we ask Dr Cherrington to tell us about her professional background, and to give us some insight into the work she’s currently doing at Nelson Mandela University. Interviewer: Rebecca Vukovic

Thanks for downloading this episode of Teacher Staffroom – where we catch you up on the latest evidence, insight and action. I’m Dominique Russell. We’re going to be delving into a lot of recent research in today’s episode. That’s because a lot of interesting studies have been published recently, and quite a few point to the importance and impact of mental health in a school setting. And, don’t forget, I’ll be posing some questions about this content throughout the next 10 or so minutes, so if you’re listening along with colleagues, that’d be a great time to discuss your thoughts and ideas, because this a topic that affects each and every one of us. So let’s dive in.

In this episode of The Research Files, we’re looking at a project that was conducted in New Zealand, and it’s all about game-based learning practices. Our guest is Rachel Bolstad. She’s a Senior Researcher at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) and began this research with the aim to investigate how games of all kinds might deepen and enrich student engagement with learning across the curriculum. Students as young as Grade 3 and as old as Year 13 were involved, along with their teachers, and the results really do point to the potential game-based learning could have.

In today’s episode of our School Improvement series we're joined by Tasmanian educator Steve Harrison. Steve is Assistant Principal in Senior Secondary at Huonville High School, and he also coordinates the nationally accredited Aquaculture course at the Huon Valley Trade Training Centre – a vocational training centre which was established in 2012 for both student and adult learners. He joins us today to chat about the establishment of the centre, who was involved in the process and the courses available to students. Steve also shares more about the hands-on skills that students are learning in particular industries like Aquaculture, as well as the broader ‘soft skills’ that they could apply to any future employment opportunities. And importantly, Steve also shares more about the success of the program and how students are choosing to move into the Tasmanian Aquaculture industry once they leave school. We cover a lot in today’s episode, but to kick things off, I ask Steve to explain why there was a need in the community for the trade training centre in the first place.

Australia’s school principals are overwhelmed by the amount of work they’re doing; they’re having great difficulty sleeping; and they are experiencing high rates of offensive behaviour and physical attacks, according to 2018 data collected for the Principal Health and Wellbeing Survey. The survey monitors school principals', deputy or assistant principals’ health and wellbeing annually. Since it first began in 2011, data has been collected from about 50 per cent of Australia’s 10 000 principals. Associate Professor Philip Riley from Australian Catholic University’s Institute of Positive Psychology and Education is the survey’s chief investigator and he is our guest in this episode of The Research Files. In today’s chat we discuss some of the interesting points to come out of this data collection, and why principals receive interactive feedback after completing the survey. We also discuss the impact that long work hours are having on principals’ wellbeing, their family life and their ability to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

In today’s episode I’m going to share some of the interesting interviews and articles we’ve published on Teacher this month. There were plenty to choose from but I’ve gone ahead and selected the pieces that I think you’d find the most useful in your own school settings. After all, here at Teacher we’re always focusing on the practical ways that you can use the research in your own classrooms. Throughout the episode you’ll hear me posing lots of questions. They’re designed to get you talking with your colleagues – in staffrooms or team meetings perhaps – and to get you thinking critically about the content we’re sharing.

We’re taking you to the Northern Territory in this episode of Teaching Methods, where a primary school was purposefully built to house classrooms of students taught by co-teachers. The school, Rosebery Primary, is in its ninth year this year, and Principal Gail Smith joins us on the line today to discuss how co-teaching has improved outcomes for students, how trusting co-teacher relationships are maintained and some possible hurdles to adopting the process. We begin this episode with Gail providing some context of her school.

Teacher Staffroom is an opportunity to change the pace a little, and really take some time out with your colleagues to discuss what implications the content we’ve covered recently could have for your own school setting. You’ll hear me posing some questions throughout the episode, so you can chat about your thoughts with co-workers, and let us know where those conversations end up.

Imagine knowing you have a one in 10 chance of winning US $1 million. Well, that’s the reality for Rooty Hill High School teacher Yasodai Selvakumaran. Yasodai has been an educator for the past nine years and has won a slew of awards throughout her career. But this year, she has found herself amongst the top 10 finalists for the 2019 Global Teacher Prize, an award that recognises one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the teaching profession. Yasodai is a Humanities teacher and a Leader in Professional Practice at her western Sydney school. She’s passionate about her job and the students she works with. She joins us today to talk about her interest in social justice, how she connects with students from different backgrounds and how she uses her lessons to help students to understand the world around them and their place in it. We also discuss her approach to personalised learning plans and how to go about building confidence in students.

Our guest today is Dylan Wiliam – Emeritus Professor of Educational Assessment at University College London. He’s a former school teacher, over the last 15 years his academic career has been focused on the use of assessment to support learning, and he now works with teachers all over the world on developing formative assessment practice. We caught up with him in Melbourne to talk about effective questioning in the classroom. Over the next 20 minutes, he’ll be explaining what’s wrong with the traditional teacher approach of ‘I’ll ask a question and you put your hands up to answer’, sharing a classroom display technique called ‘the parking lot’, and describing how to plan your lesson around checkpoints that he calls ‘hinge questions’.

Welcome to the first episode of a new series. Our podcast subscribers have told us that they love the option to listen (and learn of course) during the daily commute, while they’re out for a walk, taking a break with a cuppa and even doing the household chores (apparently we make a particularly good soundtrack for cooking and hanging out the washing). So, with that in mind, we’ve decided to introduce another way for you to catch up with all things Teacher.

My guest today is someone I originally discovered on Twitter. Craig Heeley is an educator living in Newcastle upon Tyne in northeast England, and this year he landed his first ever Head Teacher role at Lemington Riverside Primary School. Over the past few months, he’s been sharing his experiences in the new Head Teacher role on Twitter, and he’s been mustering up lots of engagement and encouragement from educators around the world that are keen to follow his journey. I catch up with Craig in today’s podcast to talk more about the strategies he’s employed to get to know the staff, parents and students in his school community. We also chat about navigating challenges as a school leader, the role of mentoring and what he’s looking forward to most about the coming year. Before we launch into the discussion though, I ask Craig to give listeners a brief overview of his career as an educator and how he came to be Head Teacher at Lemington Riverside Primary School.

Our guest for this episode is Dr Joann Fildes, Head of Research and Evaluation at Mission Australia. The charity describes its Youth Survey as the nation’s “largest online annual ‘temperature check’ of teenagers aged between 15 and 19”. In 2018, 28 000 participants across the country shared their views on a range of topics - including school education, their personal wellbeing and who they turn to for help. As you’ll hear later in the episode, Mission Australia works closely with schools to get students involved, and data can be used to inform future planning. The latest data show stress, school or study problems, and mental health are the top three personal concerns for young people. When asked who they’d turn to for help, more than one third said a teacher or school counsellor. We’ll be discussing the role schools and educators can play in providing support and information for students, and creating an environment where they feel they can access that support. A reminder that for help and information you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14, Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 or visit beyondblue.org.au.

My guest today is Dr Jeff Thomas, a lecturer in the Master of Teaching and Graduate Certificate of Education at the University of Tasmania. Jeff’s research and teaching interests include the relationship between engagement and classroom behaviour, and reengagement approaches for disengaged students. With the start of the school year fast approaching here in Australia, many teachers will be busy preparing for those first, initial weeks in the classroom. And according to Jeff, the beginning of the year is an amazing opportunity to engage students, to build relationships and to establish explicit expectations around student behaviour. But, he says, it’s important to plan for positive behaviour. Our discussion today covers many different areas including how to plan for that positive behaviour in your classroom, which routines are critical to establish in the initial weeks of the year, and practical things to keep in mind when responding to particularly challenging behaviours as they arise in class.

A new study examines the gender differences in the friendships and conflicts of both girls and boys with autism, relative to their neurotypical peers. In today’s podcast two of the researchers, Dr Felicity Sedgewick and Dr Liz Pellicano, join us on the line from the UK.

Welcome to this special end of year edition, where we take a trip down memory lane and select some of our favourite podcast moments from 2018. We’ve actually published 26 episodes this year, including a special to mark our 100th, so it’s been a difficult choice.

Our guest for today’s episode of the Research Files is Dr Carol Newall, a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education at Macquarie University. She joins us today to talk about a study she led which investigates how a child’s gender impacts an adults’ perception of their ability and their enjoyment of Science. The 80 adult participants in this study were all Macquarie University students, 20 of whom were education students and 60 were studying psychology. These adults were given a fictional profile of an eight-year-old child with the task of teaching that child over Skype. Each child’s fictional profile was experimentally manipulated depending on whether they were boy or girl, and the stereotypes associated with that gender. For example, one child liked tea parties and the colour pink and another liked climbing trees and the colour blue. As Dr Newall will explain in today’s episode, the results from this study revealed that participants rated girls as less academically capable than boys in Physics, and they delivered less scientific information during their teaching module when they believed they were teaching a girl.

In this episode of School Improvement, we're joined on the line by Brett Crawford, the Lead Science teacher at Warrigal Road State School in Brisbane. With over 1300 students and 50 staff members in the primary school, a big task was ahead of Brett when he decided he would work towards improving Science education in every classroom. The impact has been clear – students from Warrigal Road are now entering high school more prepared than ever for Science education and teachers have hit the ground running with inquiry-based Science learning. Brett has just been recognised for his outstanding work this year, after receiving the award for the Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science teaching. Later in this episode, he’ll also be sharing details of a couple of his budget-friendly experiments that students really enjoy, but first, Brett explains a little bit about what Science education was like before he began mentoring teachers.

In this episode of Global Education, we're joined on the line by Dr Louise van Rhyn from Cape Town, South Africa. She’s the founder of a program named Partners for Possibility, which pairs business leaders with principals for a 12-month structured leadership development program. The program was recognised internationally after winning a WISE Award for innovative solutions to education challenges and their positive social impact.

What are some practical strategies teachers could use in the classroom to assist students with ADHD? That’s just one of the questions we ask Dr Emma Sciberras in this episode of The Research Files. Dr Sciberras is a Senior Lecturer and Clinical Psychologist from the School of Psychology at Deakin University. Since 2009, she’s been working on the Children’s Attention Project, a research study conducted by the Murdoch Children's Research Institute at The Royal Children's Hospital. The project explores the long-term effects that Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (or ADHD) has on children's behaviour, learning and day-to-day living, and also on their parents' wellbeing.

In this episode I’m joined by Alvian Sulungbudi, a senior student from Saint Angela High School in Bandung, Indonesia which is about two hours from Jakarta. Alvian, along with his Mathematics teacher and fellow students, visited Melbourne to attend an awards ceremony recognising their success in the 2018 International Mathematical Modeling Challenge.

In this episode of The Research Files, we're joined on the line by Professor Helen Christensen, The Director and Chief Scientist at Black Dog Institute. Black Dog Institute is an Australian organisation focussed on identifying, preventing and treating mental illness. They’re also pioneers in mental health research, and one research area is concerned with suicide prevention. This area is named CRESP, which stands for the Centre of Research Excellence in Suicide Prevention and brings together key researchers to focus on projects and trials with the aim of lowering suicide rates. Professor Christensen is currently leading a phase of CRESP research – which she labels CRESP 2 – that aims to deliver suicide prevention strategies across the country, taking a technology-based approach. Their work will include intervening at both primary and secondary school levels, with strategies centring on the use of different smartphone apps.

Moving to a new school is an important time in any child’s life. For students from a migrant or refugee background it often means learning a new language or joining outside of the normal transition period, at different points throughout the school year. In this podcast we're at Noble Park Primary School to speak to Principal David Rothstadt about how staff support new students and their families, and create a safe and secure learning environment.

The team’s on the road this week at the ACER Research Conference in Sydney, where the theme for 2018 is ‘Teaching practices that make a difference: Insights from research’. In this special episode, we share highlights from the ‘In Conversation’ session on evidence-based teaching practices between Laureate Professor John Hattie and ACER CEO Professor Geoff Masters AO. The facilitator was Tony Mackay AM, of the Centre for Strategic Education in Melbourne.

Can therapy dogs decrease anxiety and stress in students, and improve school attendance? These are just some of the questions Monash University academics are trying to answer as they push for more research in this area. In today’s podcast we're joined by Dr Linda Henderson and Dr Christine Grove from the Faculty of Education at Monash University. Both researchers have trained their own therapy dogs – Daymon the black Labrador and Bronson the Labradoodle, who you might hear moving around in the background of this episode. Dr Henderson is a Senior Lecturer and a former teacher, and she raised Daymon from a puppy. He initially worked as a guide dog before retiring and retraining as a therapy dog. Dr Grove is a Lecturer at Monash and also an educational and developmental psychologist. She has been using Bronson in both educational and clinical settings to help children to overcome their fears.

Teacher magazine celebrates its 100th podcast by taking a closer look at some of our audio highlights over the last four years. Stay tuned for more from John Fleming, Dr Bill Rogers, and more.

Our guests on this episode of School Improvement are Cobram Primary School Principal Matt Knight and teacher Cassie Ryan. Cassie is a PE teacher at the rural school, but it’s the role of Attendance Officer that has seen her develop and lead an initiative that has dramatically reduced the number of unexplained and chronic student absences.

In this episode of The Research Files we're joined by Helen Egeberg, the Master of Teaching coordinator at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia. Her recent report, 'What do students believe about effective classroom management? A mixed-methods investigation in Western Australian high schools' has produced some clear views students have about their favourite teachers.

Participants in a school-based mentoring program, along with the program coordinator, join Teacher for this podcast to explain why partnering students with an adult mentor can encourage a higher level of engagement in school.

Headteacher of Brimsdown Primary School in the UK, Dani Lang joins Teacher for this School Improvement podcast to talk about her school’s focus on staff wellbeing. Establishing the staff wellbeing team has been one of the factors in helping the school achieve a vast improvement in its Ofsted grade, and it has created a new harmony in the staffroom.

In this special episode Teacher is joined by Dr Alan Finkel, Australia’s Chief Scientist, to talk about his most recent final report, titled ‘Optimising STEM Industry–School Partnerships: Inspiring Australia’s Next Generation’. We speak about why partnerships with STEM industries can be beneficial for students, and how schools can work towards implementing such a program.

In this episode of Global Education, we’re joined by Andria Zafirakou from London, the winner of this year’s Global Teacher Prize. The Arts and Textiles teacher explains how she develops meaningful relationships with parents, the importance of professional development and why she thinks schools should stay open outside school hours.

Dr John Halsey joins Teacher for this episode of The Research Files. His final report on the Independent Review into Regional, Rural and Remote Education here in Australia explores the key issues, challenges and barriers affecting student learning outcomes and suggests four priority areas for action.

Our guest today is Associate Professor Lynn Barnett-Morris from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. For the last three years she’s been researching Kindergarten-aged children to determine how playfulness in the classroom is viewed by the children themselves, their classmates and their teachers. The result – a longitudinal study titled 'The education of playful boys: class clowns in the classroom'. She joins The Research Files today, on a bit of a scratchy line from the US, to discuss the key findings, but to kick things off, I ask Lynn to tell listeners why she decided to conduct this research in the first place.

Our guest today is Dr Danny Steele, Principal of Thompson Sixth Grade Center in Alabama in the United States. Danny has worked in public education for more than 25 years, he runs a hugely successful blog and Twitter account, and in 2016 he was named Alabama's Secondary Principal of the Year. He joins us for this School Improvement podcast to talk more about the role of a principal in building and maintaining a positive school culture. We cover a whole range of things including how to build positive relationships with students, the importance of genuinely listening to parents, and making difficult decisions as a school leader.

School leadership is an increasingly complex role and research suggests the demands certainly take their toll on the health and wellbeing of principals, assistant principals and deputy principals. Associate Professor Philip Riley joins The Research Files to discuss the latest findings of the Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety & Wellbeing Survey.

In this episode of The Research Files podcast series we speak to Adjunct Professor of Curriculum and Pedagogy at James Cook University, Brian Lewthwaite. We have him on the line from Canada, where he is currently based in the role of program coordinator at the Yukon Native Teacher Education Program. He’s been working on a four phase study centred on Indigenous perspectives of quality teaching in Australia, and joins us today to talk about phase one of this study. This included speaking to 30 teachers, 30 high school-aged students and 30 parents across approximately 12 schools, about what quality teacher practice is for them.

Dr David Armstrong from Flinders University is our guest in today’s Behaviour Management podcast. We explore how certain behaviour management models are simply ineffective, particularly for students with learning or mental health difficulties, and discuss his research in this area.

School leaders play a crucial role in improving outcomes for students and the success of a school community. But, what happens when they leave? In today’s episode of School Improvement we’re talking about succession planning.

In this episode we visit Western Port Secondary College – one of 21 government schools involved in the Australian initiative The Paradigm Shifters: Entrepreneurial learning in schools – to talk to assistant principal Hannah Lewis and student Harry Hainsworth.

Early career teacher attrition is seen as an issue of concern around the world. Here, scholarly articles and media reports regularly state that between 30 and 50 per cent of Australian teachers leave the profession within the first five years. But, where do those figures come from and how accurate are they? A study published in the Australian Journal of Education, suggests there is no robust Australian evidence and data. Author Dr Paul Weldon joins The Research Files to discuss his findings.

Associate Professor Linda Hobbs joins The Research Files to talk about a new Australian study exploring girls’ participation and engagement in STEM subjects.

It’s been a big year for Teacher magazine podcasts – we recently broke through the 100 000 listens milestone! To mark the end of another great 12 months, we have put together some clips from our favourite podcasts for 2017.

Results from the latest cycle of the PIRLS assessment (that’s the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) show the literacy achievement of Year 4 students in Australia has improved. However, there are significant achievement gaps by gender, Indigenous status, socioeconomic status and school location. The Australian Council for Educational Research has just published the details in PIRLS 2016: Reporting Australia’s results and lead author of that report, ACER Deputy CEO (Research) Dr Sue Thomson, joins us now.

In today’s podcast special we’re speaking with Neil Bramsen and Brett McKay – two educators who are changing the lives of the students in their schools by instilling a love of Science in them. Both teachers were named winners of the Prime Minister’s Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching – one for primary and one for secondary. Here, they share more about how they’ve formed innovative partnerships with scientists, the community and other schools.

In today’s Behaviour Management podcast we talk to Dr Anna Sullivan from the University of South Australia. She’s been working on the Behaviour at School study which explores the existing state of student behaviour and its management in South Australian schools. Here, she shares her insights into what it means to enact respectful, school-wide behaviour policies and the role of school leaders in doing so.

In this instalment of The Research Files we’ll be discussing student fitness and wellbeing, specifically, two simple exercise programs – the first is a new project aimed at improving adolescent health and wellbeing, and the second is being used by thousands of early years and primary students across the world. We’ll talk to the founder of The Daily Mile, retired Scottish head teacher Elaine Wyllie, later in this episode but our first guest is Dr Jordan Smith from the University of Newcastle, here in Australia. He’s one of the research team working on Burn2Learn, a four year project working with Year 11 students to improve their physical, cognitive and mental health.

For the last three years school leaders and staff at Jordan River Learning Federation Senior School have been focusing on evidence-based teaching and reflection. It’s included the development of a professional learning approach called CCRP – that’s Connect, Collect, Reflect and Progress. Assistant Principal Murray Cronin joined Teacher magazine on the line from Tasmania to talk about the evidence base for the model and what each of the four stages involves.

Are male teachers headed for extinction in Australia? Researchers who carried out the first ever study tracking the trajectory of male participation in the teaching profession say the short answer is ‘yes’. Dr Kevin McGrath joins Teacher to explain more.

Professor Simone Reinhold joins Teacher to discuss inquiry based learning in primary mathematics, including the benefits of students working on a common task with differentiated outcomes, and the role of the educator in finding a balance between explorative and informative learning.

Student participation rates in advanced maths and science subjects is declining. In today's podcast, Michael Jennings, an Associate Lecturer at the University of Queensland joins Teacher to discuss his research which explores factors influencing student selection of senior secondary maths subjects.

When we ask readers and listeners about the professional learning topics that interest them and what they’d like more support on, teacher wellbeing is always right up there. We're here today at the University of Queensland in Brisbane to find out about a teacher wellbeing study, looking at the impact of two stress interventions.

Our guest for the second episode in our Behaviour Management podcast series is Phil Beadle – a teacher, education consultant, public speaker, author and broadsheet columnist. Phil was once named Secondary Teacher of the Year in the UK and is considered an expert in the areas of literacy and behaviour management. In today’s podcast he joins us on the line from the UK to discuss behaviour management, but in particular the different de-escalation techniques that educators can use to manage challenging behaviours in their classrooms.

Three Deakin University academics – Dr Linda Hobbs, Associate Professor Coral Campbell and Associate Professor Colleen Vale – recently visited ACER to share their research on out-of-field teaching. In today’s School Improvement podcast, we share some highlights from their presentation.

Professor Jenny Gore joins The Research Files to discuss the findings of a new Australian study by academics from the University of Newcastle and Western Sydney University investigating the occupational and career aspirations of Indigenous school students.

Our guest on The Research Files today is Amanda Datnow, a Professor in the Department of Education Studies and Associate Dean of the Division of Social Sciences at the University of California, San Diego. Her current research explores best practice in relation to data-informed teaching and learning, including how to build educator capacity. In August, Professor Datnow will be in Melbourne for Research Conference 2017, hosted by the Australian Council for Educational Research, where she’ll deliver a keynote titled ‘Opening or closing doors for students? Equity and data-driven decision-making’.

Professor Nan Bahr delivered the closing keynote address at last month’s Excellence in Professional Practice Conference on the Gold Coast. Her keynote, titled ‘Personal attributes: Developing the hidden qualities in quality teaching’ examined the concept of quality in teaching and the personal attributes of teachers that are central to the teacher-learner relationship. In this special episode, we’ll be sharing the highlights from Nan’s keynote address at EPPC.

The practicum component of pre-service teacher education courses is an important part of preparing students for the profession. A recent Australian study shines a spotlight on the highs and lows of the practicum experience from the perspective of pre-service drama teachers. The findings have been published in the Australian Journal of Teacher Education and lead author Dr Christina Gray, from Edith Cowan University, is our guest in this episode of The Research Files.

A new study from academics at Queensland University of Technology has found there’s a gender gap when it comes to the behaviourial skills of children starting school. Professor Sue Walker joins me in this episode of The Research Files to discuss the study findings and the implications for educators and parents.

By building strong professional learning communities (PLCs) school leaders can improve not only the quality of teaching, but also student outcomes. So, what does an effective PLC look like and how do you go about building one? My guest is Dr Lawrence Ingvarson, a Principal Research Fellow at the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). He’s developed ACER’s Professional Learning Community Framework (PLCF). The framework covers five key domains: professional culture; leadership; a focus on student learning, wellbeing and engagement; a focus on improving professional knowledge and practice; and teachers who think systematically about their practice and learn from experience.

To whet the appetite for the 2017 Excellence in Professional Practice Conference, we speak to both keynote speakers – Professor Stephen Dinham and Professor Nan Bahr – and revisit the EPPC archive to share our favourite snippets from interviews with previous presenters.

Tiina-Maija Toivola joins us from Helsinki to talk about the award-winning Me & MyCity program that gives 6th Graders a chance to spend a day in their chosen profession and learn more about being a consumer and citizen.

In this month’s Research Files we discuss the findings of a three-year project in New Zealand that included analysis of pretend play – where students give voices to toys, objects and digital characters – and early literacy practices.

My guest today is Cath Apanah, Acting Assistant Principal and Head of senior school at Montrose Bay High in Hobart, Tasmania. She joins me today to discuss how her school has been using data to inform their strategic plan, the process they undertook to improve student writing and how they went about upskilling staff to use data effectively. By using data, the staff t Montrose have not only been able to track student strengths and weaknesses, but it has become a powerful tool for teachers to better understand their impact on student learning.

The Grattan Institute released a report that says as many as 40 per cent of school students are unproductive in a given year. Teacher magazine sat down with the report’s co-author Julie Sonnemann to discuss the four school level recommendations that came out of this research.

Videoconferencing technology has changed the face of distance education, but teaching to a camera rather than face-to-face requires additional skills. In this episode, Teacher magazine is joined by Nicky Rehn, Assistant Professor of Education at Ambrose University in Calgary, Canada. Rehn and colleagues Dorit Maor and Andrew McConney, from Murdoch University in Australia, have studied how educators delivering school lessons by videoconference can best build a classroom presence and rapport with their remote students.

What kind of leader are you, and is your leadership style truly effective? After looking the UK’s performance in the 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) study and comparing it to other countries, Dr Alex Hill and his research team decided to find an answer to the question: Why does the UK still lag behind its peers, despite investing more than them? In the process of this research, the team studied over 400 leaders from schools in the UK – the results of which have been published in the Harvard Business Review. In doing so, the team identified that there are five different types of leaders: surgeons, soldiers, accountants, philosophers and architects. Dr Alex Hill, Co-Founder and Director of The Centre for High Performance, joined me on the line from the UK, to discuss why there are five different types of leaders, but only one type that is truly effective.

Our guest for this first episode of our new series on Behaviour Management is teacher, education consultant and author Dr Bill Rogers. An Honorary Fellow of Melbourne University, he shares his expertise on behaviour management, effective teaching, stress management, colleague support and teacher welfare around the globe through lectures, seminars, professional development courses and, of course, with teachers in the classroom.

Many people believe that because young people are digital natives, they are also digital-savvy. But a new report from researchers at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education has found that young people do experience difficulties when it comes to evaluating information they find online. In fact, this research, which tested middle school, high school and college level students, found that 80 per cent of participants thought that sponsored articles were actual articles, and had a hard time distinguishing where this information actually came from. One of the co-authors of the report, Sarah McGrew from the Stanford History Education Group, joined me on the line from California to discuss her team’s findings.

To mark the end of another fantastic year, the Teacher editorial team have taken a walk down memory lane to share some snippets from their favourite podcasts for 2016.

The Programme for International Student Assessment, more popularly referred to as PISA, measures how well 15-year-olds are prepared to use their science, reading and mathematics skills in real-life situations. More than half a million students from 72 countries and partner economies took part in the 2015 test cycle and the results have just been released. The Australian report, PISA 2015: A first look at Australia’s results, from the Australian Council for Educational Research, doesn’t make for pleasant reading. Dr Sue Thomson, ACER Director of Educational Monitoring and Research and lead author of the report, joins me to discuss the results.

The results from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) were released earlier this week. Conducted every four years, this major international assessment compares the achievements of Years 4 and 8 students in mathematics and science. A report released by the Australian Council for Educational Research, shows that while many other countries have improved, Australian performances have largely stagnated. In fact, the Australian results have been labelled a ‘cause for grave concern’ after they indicated Years 4 and 8 student achievements have flatlined over the past 20 years. I sat down with Dr Sue Thomson, Director of Educational Monitoring and Research at ACER and the report’s lead author to discuss the results.

What sort of learning environments does your school have? Are you making the best use of your teaching space? Our guest on The Research Files this month is Wes Imms, Associate Professor in the Melbourne Graduate School of Education and Lead Chief Investigator of the Innovative Learning Environments and Teacher Change. Over the next four years the research team will be investigating how teachers are using these environments to improve student learning outcomes, and they’ll be sharing strategies and best practice.

The Research Schools Network in the UK is a joint project involving the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and the Institute for Effective Education. Each school, selected as a leader in bridging the gap between research and classroom practice, receives GBP200,000 – that’s around AUD320,000 – over three years. Teacher caught up with Dr Jonathan Sharples, Senior Researcher at EEF, to find out more.

The guest for this episode is Professor Brian Caldwell, Professor Emeritus at the University of Melbourne and Deputy Chair of ACARA. His new book The Autonomy Premium, published by ACER Press, explores the link between student achievement and autonomy in school management and professional practice and includes case studies of Australia government schools. We caught up with him in Melbourne to find out more.

Are teachers ever influenced by bias when it comes to grading student work? This is the focus of a new report from researchers at the University of New England, which looks at different types of potential bias in grading including gender, race and physical attractiveness. Associate Professor John Malouff joins me in this episode to discuss the findings from his research and what schools can do to minimise bias in the classroom.

Welcome to the second part of our Teaching Methods podcast on Engineering. In part one Lyn English, Professor in STEM Education at the Queensland University of Technology, talked about the importance of Engineering in the primary years and the resources available to teachers. Here, she chats to Editor Jo Earp about the Engineering Design Process learning framework, the steps involved in the process, and the role of the teacher in scaffolding learning.

A new study has found that positive teacher-student relationships at age 10 can significantly reduce problem classroom behaviours, and the effects last for up to four years. Teacher talks to lead author Dr Ingrid Obsuth.

Teacher magazine talks to Professor in STEM Education Lyn English about the importance of Engineering in the primary years and resources to support teachers in the classroom.

Three years ago, Nikki Urlich and her colleagues redesigned the teaching and learning of maths at their New Zealand school. The ‘Modern Maths’ program brings together 120 learners and a team of four teachers in an innovative learning environment.

Teacher talks to University of New England academics Dr Jennifer Charteris and Dr Sue Gregory about their research that looks at the impact of the messaging app Snapchat in education settings, and how schools are responding to issues such as cyber bullying and sexting.

Dr Kevin Anthony Perry talks to Teacher magazine about a collaborative research project exploring classroom wellbeing in Denmark.

Teacher magazine speaks to Peter Johnson about efforts to improve the recruitment and retention of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander educators in Australian schools.

Teacher speaks to New York educator Jaymes Dec about school FabLabs, pop-up makerspaces and the open-source Nerdy Derby.

In this special episode, Teacher talks to Computer Science education expert Professor Tim Bell, one of the keynote presenters at the ACER Research Conference 2016.

In honour of our second birthday, the Teacher team looks back on some of our favourite podcasts from the last year.

Teacher chats to Claire Warden about Nature Pedagogy – what it is and how it works in practice, including lesson planning and risk management.

Teacher speaks to Professor Rosemary Johnston about the findings of the inaugural Kids & Family Reading Report Australia and its implications for educators.

Professor Geoff Masters AO and Robert Marshall discuss school improvement, assessment and teaching.

Teacher speaks to Associate Professor Gerry Redmond about the Australian Child Wellbeing Project, capturing student voice and the importance of focusing on the middle years of schooling.

Teacher speaks to Dr Mary Kimani about school support for refugee students from Sub-Saharan Africa.

Teacher speaks to Professor David Lynch about a five year pilot study that explored the characteristics of an outstanding school.

Can peer assessment techniques help improve pass rates and student learning outcomes? According to one educator’s action research, the answer is yes.

We find out about Harvard University's Best Foot Forward project, which is exploring the effectiveness of videoing lessons as a feedback tool in teacher observations.

Five global education experts sat down with Teacher to give a snapshot of the developments and challenges in mathematics in their respective countries.

Dr Elisabeth Duursma discusses her research on the impact of fathers reading to their children, and why it has implications for educators in the classroom.

The lead architect behind one of the shortlisted school designs at the World Architecture Awards tells Teacher about designing a school that reflects local culture, history and landscape.

Dr Stephen Keast and Dr Bec Cooper share tips for those interested in adopting the team teaching approach and pitfalls to watch out for.

Jo Earp sits down with science teacher educators Dr Stephen Keast and Dr Bec Cooper, to explore team teaching and its potential benefits for students.

Andreas Schleicher joins Teacher from Paris to talk about the findings of a recent OECD report that explores the impact of technology on student learning outcomes.

Stealth assessment, interactive learning environments and assessing literacy and numeracy. In a special podcast, Teacher provides a snapshot of the keynote speeches from Research Conference 2015.

Teacher chats to John Burns in China about creating a school social media presence and showcasing teaching and learning via Twitter.

To mark National Science Week, Teacher hears from Professor Jim Pellegrino about shaping science learning for the future.

Teacher speaks to Dr Chris Harvey about a year-long study exploring whether starting the school day later has an impact on student achievement levels.

Teacher chats to Dr Peter Goss about a research paper highlighting schools and education systems that are starting to do targeted teaching in a more systematic way.

Teacher chats to a Californian educator about how teachers at her school are reaping the rewards from an in-house PD program that utilises a teachers teaching teachers delivery model.

Teacher chats to Professor John Hattie, who provides a snapshot of his groundbreaking work on visible learning and previews a new piece of research into learning strategies.

To celebrate our first birthday, the Teacher team looks back on some of our favourite podcast interviews from the last 12 months.

UK-based academic, Professor Peter Barrett, chats to Teacher about the results of a three year study into the link between physical classroom design in primary schools and academic achievement.

In this special episode of The Research Files, Dr Rukmini Banerji tells Teacher magazine about India’s Annual Status of Education Report study, which monitors schooling and learning across the country.

Teacher chats to Dr Paul Browning about the Futures Planning Project - a different approach to school strategic planning that considers what the world could be like in 2028.

Teacher talks to Kiri Mealings about a new study involving colleagues at Macquarie University and Australia's National Acoustics Laboratories, into noise levels in open plan classrooms.

Teacher speaks to education consultant, Kath Murdoch about inquiry based learning.

Teacher speaks to principal Jenny Dowsett, who shares strategies that are raising numeracy outcomes for students at her primary school.

In Episode 7 of our monthly podcast series The Research Files, Julian Fraillon discusses the results of the pioneering International Computer and Information Literacy Study, which took place for the first time in 2013.

Teacher speaks to Sandra Pattison and Tham Lu about an NCVER report that explores whether school characteristics influence student engagement of 15-year-olds.

Teacher speaks to Ray Boyd, Principal of West Beechboro Primary School in Perth. Since taking on his role, he has introduced a Professional Recognition Program to support staff learning and student learning outcomes have improved significantly.

In Episode 5 of Teacher's monthly podcast series The Research Files, Associate Professor John Buchanan discusses why early career teachers end up leaving the profession.

In the third episode of Teacher's podcast series on school improvement, we speak to Victorian Executive Principal Glenn Proctor about the changes that he is making at Hume Central Secondary College and the learning models that are proving to be effective in the school.

Teacher speaks to Mere Berryman, Associate Professor at the University of Waikato in Hamilton, about a program aimed at increasing engagement among Maori secondary school students in New Zealand and the implications for educators here in Australia.

This month Teacher speaks to Steve Zubrick - Senior Principal Research Fellow at the Telethon Kids Institute in Perth and a Winthrop Professor at the University of Western Australia. Dr Zubrick and his colleagues recently carried out research into student attendance and the link to educational outcomes.

Julia Gillard sits down with Professor Geoff Masters at the ACER Research Conference for 2014 to discuss quality and equity. Hear what they had to say in an exclusive Teacher podcast.

In Episode 2 of our Teaching Methods series, we speak to Australian educator Andrew Douch about the flipped learning model.

In the first episode of Teacher’s podcast series on school improvement, we speak to Karen Endicott, principal of Sarah Redfern High School in New South Wales, about her school improvement journey.

In episode 2 of The Research Files, Teacher speaks to Dr Michelle Anderson and Dr Emma Curtin, co-authors of the LLEAP (Leading Learning in Education and Philanthropy)Survey Report 2013.

In this month's episode of The Research Files, we find out how bringing everyday items like milk crates and hay bales into primary school playgrounds could boost student fitness.

Welcome to Episode 1 of our Teaching Methods series. Today we speak to John Fleming, a leading advocate for education reform and someone whose views are highly sought-after by education professionals throughout Australia, about the method known as explicit instruction.