ACER’s Research Conference brings together leading education researchers from Australia and overseas. In today’s article, Professor Geoff Masters AO discusses the aims of the conference and this year’s theme – ‘Teaching practices that make a difference: Insights from research’.

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.

Building teacher expertise involves school leaders providing staff with opportunities to continuously improve their skills and practices. It also means leading by example. Principal Julie Perry is a firm believer in attending PD sessions alongside her staff.

Tara.Ed is an Australian NGO that aims to promote sustainable, quality education in rural and remote parts of India, Bangladesh and Afghanistan through teacher training and capacity building. Here, we talk to founder Jennifer Star about the organisation’s focus on empowering educators.

In this program, a group of experienced primary school teachers have become practitioner researchers, focusing on strengthening their practice and improving outcomes for students. Program facilitators Dr Hilary Emery and Dr Neil Saunders share their experience of working with these teachers.

Staff at a school in a bushfire-sensitive area have teamed up with their local fire service to deliver a project encouraging students to find new ways to prepare for a natural disaster. Here, we speak to the Assistant Principal about the success of the program.

Are you currently going through the process of achieving full teacher registration? Is it something you hope to do soon? In today’s Q&A we speak to a teacher who is partway through preparing for proficient certification status, and her principal about his mentoring tips for teachers.

Teachers are often encouraged to take up opportunities to mark external exams or tests. There is extra money to be earned, but they are also often told that it is good professional development. But what do people mean when they say that, and what parts of your professional practice does marking help to develop?

In his second article on introducing the concept of artificial intelligence to school students, Dr Joshua Ho – from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute and UNSW – gives a step-by-step guide to two classroom activities illustrating the concept of machine learning.

In today’s Q&A, we speak to Deanne Plaza (Science and Maths teacher at Craigslea State High School, Queensland) about a collaborative action research project to integrate ICT resources into senior biology classes.