‘To make a real difference to the way students learn science, we think it is important to link cognitive growth to learning progressions through formative assessment in everyday practice.’ In today’s article, academics from the SiMERR National Research Centre at the University of New England share how the Chemical Science learning progression they developed can be implemented in the classroom.

Getting ready to start teaching in the classroom, managing student behaviour and meeting with parents can be a daunting prospect for many pre-service teachers. Researchers at the University of Virginia have spent the last five years developing digitally mediated simulations to supplement traditional teacher training.

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.

In this special podcast episode, we’ve gathered a panel of experienced teachers and leaders, who will be sharing their priorities, strategies and tips for the first few weeks of term and for a successful year. Topics include classroom displays, professional learning and positive behaviour management.

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 top three personal favourite episodes from our Research Files, Behaviour Management, School Improvement and Teaching Methods series this year.

Back in 2018, we brought you the story of a new intervention program for disengaged male students at Cherrybrook Technology High School in New South Wales. Nearly four years later, in today’s article, we hear how the program has evolved over the years and the impact it’s had on student learning and wellbeing.

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.

Several states have banned financial institutions from delivering banking and branded education programs in schools, paving the way for school-led programs free from commercial interests. In today’s reader submission Carly Sawatzki, Jill Brown, and Peter Saffin outline some guiding criteria to help schools consider ways to strengthen their financial education programs.

In a recent Teacher article, Ben Sacco from the MacKillop Institute discussed three elements that can directly support schools to improve teaching, learning and wellbeing – safety, relational trust, and shared language. In this follow-up, Sacco, and St Pius X Deputy Principal Stacey Atkins and Principal Joe Ewing share how the Catholic primary school has been putting these elements into action.

How does walking benefit our physical and mental health? How many steps do we need to do to see benefits to our overall wellbeing? In this article, Postdoctoral Research Fellow Matthew Ahmadi shares the origin of the 10 000 steps per day goal, and how we can still see substantial benefits from fewer steps.