Jo Earp

In this episode of Teaching Methods we’ll be looking at how PE teachers adapted to online learning during the pandemic. My 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?

‘How do you respond when leaders opt for optimism, in order to skim over dealing with the real issues that your school and community are cultivating, because it is easier to deny they exist?’ What happens when positivity gets out of hand, and how can we best respond to those who refuse to acknowledge the bad times?

As Australia marks World Teachers’ Day, a new survey report released to coincide with the celebrations shines a light on school educators’ passion for and dedication to the profession and lifelong learning. But it also reveals how the job is taking a toll on their wellbeing.

One of the most popular Teacher articles of all time includes a section on looking at things from a student perspective – for example, checking to see if they have an obstructed view of the board. As a teacher, you also need to be thinking about possible issues with students’ eyesight. Two recent studies from different parts of the world explore the topic of vision screening in schools.

A new issue of Snapshots, from the Australian Council for Education Research (ACER), looks at self-reported levels of effort students invested in the PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) 2018 test. Today’s infographic looks at the percentage of students in 20 participating countries and economies who indicated they would have invested more effort in the test if it counted towards their school marks.

Algorithms are a key component of computational thinking, and the foundations for developing these skills starts in the early years. What are some of the day-to-day ‘unplugged activities’ that offer teachers easy opportunities for emphasising and building these skills?

Around a quarter of a million students in Australia choose to undertake Vocational Education and Training (VET) in school each year as part of their senior secondary studies. New research, released this month, explores some of the reasons why they choose this pathway, and the factors that lead to effective VET in schools programs.

Getting students engaged and invested in their learning leads to improved outcomes. It also makes the lesson a more enjoyable experience for everyone, including the teacher. Enhanced lesson engagement was just one of the benefits of a small-scale study focusing on quality teaching in Physical Education.

A blob trying to break into the Underworld, a scientist jumping through size-altering portals, and a man who wakes up dazed and confused in a scrapyard – these are some of the protagonists from winning games in this year’s Australian STEM Video Game Challenge.

Australian students report greater levels of respect for people from other cultures and more positive attitudes towards immigrants than the OECD average, according to a new report from the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). Find out more in today’s article.