‘Health and Physical Education (HPE) is fundamental for supporting young people to develop the skills and knowledge that will enable them to engage in lifelong health, movement and physical activity behaviours. Ensuring all young people have the opportunity to develop this knowledge is a crucial responsibility for all physical educators.’ Dr Laura Alfrey and Professor Ruth Jeanes share practical strategies for promoting inclusion in HPE.

Educators have been on the 'frontline' of the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting students and their families through this challenging time. For some, this will have taken a serious toll on their own wellbeing. Here, Professor Alison Calear from ANU discusses some of the mental health impacts of being in this caregiving role, and how we can do more to support teachers during this time.

In today’s article, Dr Erin Leif, Dr Laura Alfrey and Dr Christine Grove describe how teachers can integrate the Universal Design for Learning framework and High Impact Teaching Strategies in a complementary way in the classroom in order to teach more inclusively.

Bernie Hawker, Head of Department Teaching and Learning at Goondiwindi State High School in Queensland, joins us 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.

Dr Gary Stager joins Teacher to discuss his 30-year study into laptop use in schools. We discuss the challenges they faced in the early 1990s 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.

Findings from an action research project in three West Australian schools suggest the use of quality mentor texts when explicitly teaching how to write narratives can improve students’ storytelling ability. Ron Gorman and Dr Sandy Heldsinger share more details about the teaching and assessment strategies used, and samples of student writing.

Schools in West Australia participating in a pilot study managed to dramatically reduce their carbon emissions per student, with 60 per cent of the initiatives they implemented requiring no cost. Here, we speak to the researchers involved to see which initiatives proved to be most impactful, and how other schools can do the same.

The final webinar in a series tackling major challenges in school education in Australia will explore the ‘wicked problem’ of how to raise the status of the teaching profession. Topics up for discussion include how to attract and retain highly capable people, and changing attitudes towards teachers and teaching.

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, pre-service teacher educator and classroom teacher, and he joins us today to discuss his research on teacher attrition and retention.

Large scale research into school break times suggests relatively simple changes to daily routines could drastically reduce teachers’ exposure to UV radiation and risk of skin cancer. Ben Dexter tells Teacher more about the findings.