Rebecca Vukovic

‘I wanted to make a meaningful change in how our kids see themselves as mathematicians.’ Mathematics teacher Holly Wedd has been making a significant difference to the way students at her school succeed in maths by boosting their confidence and reducing mathematics anxiety. 

It is important that teachers feel confident to respectfully and effectively address religion and beliefs in diverse classrooms. In today's podcast, Professor Peter Sherlock discusses why it’s important for schools to engage with religion and belief systems, how to engage students in meaningful conversations about religion in a respectful way, and resources available to help teachers build their confidence in this space. 

Earlier this month, Australia’s results from the Teaching and Learning International Survey (or TALIS) were released. Here at Teacher, we covered the results in several different formats. In this episode I’ll run you through the highlights, including an overview article of key findings, a podcast episode with the report’s lead author, and an infographic that shares teacher views on the use of AI. 

From candles and soaps, to mugs and homemade baked goods – each year educators are swamped with heartfelt gestures of appreciation from families. In today’s article we hear about how one teacher started an organisation that redirects money that would otherwise be used for optional end-of-year educator gifts to charities aligned with their mission. 

Joy Russell, a teacher at Scotch Oakburn College in Tasmania, organised a professional learning event all about financial literacy earlier this year. In today’s Q&A, she explains how it helped participants to build a strong support network, share practical ideas through connections with local business leaders, and take valuable lessons back to their own classrooms.

‘While intergenerational trauma remains a reality, we are also seeing powerful examples of intergenerational success.’ Dr Jennet Hansen from Sevenoaks Senior College in Western Australia tells us about the Follow the Dream program, how she encourages students’ connections to their culture and Country, and the impact it has had on their learning, achievement and post-school pathways. 

Did you know that Teacher magazine publishes content in different formats? In today’s episode, I’m going to share some of the podcast highlights from this month on Teacher, and point you to some of the articles, infographics and reader submissions that you won’t want to miss.

What are the persistent teaching dilemmas you find yourself thinking about in your spare time and circling back to time and again? Professor Brianna Kennedy from the University of Glasgow joins the podcast to talk about a 2-stage process for cracking persistent challenges in the classroom, how teachers can use it in practice, and the impact it has on student learning and engagement. 

When you consider your curriculum planning for the term, or the year, linking learning goals and lesson activities to key events can be a great hook, and a chance to bring students and teachers from different year levels together. Today’s article looks at free curriculum-aligned resources for National Science Week, and a school example of planning in action for this annual celebration.

In today’s Global Education podcast we’re joined by Dr Pauline Martinot, the lead author of the groundbreaking French study that points to the first year of school as the time and place where a maths gender gap emerges in favour of boys. Dr Martinot shares how her colleagues went about conducting the study of over 2.6 million children, some key findings, and the impact of this research on schools and teachers around the world.