Teachers play a vital role in shaping the people we become. To celebrate World Teachers’ Day this year, we asked 5 educators to ‘tell us about a teacher that helped to shape the person you are today.’ 

As we start to turn our minds to the end of this school year, at Teacher, we take the time to invite you to share your feedback with us. Our annual reader survey launched this month and is open until 6 November 2026. In this episode, we take you through some early responses and other recent content highlights. 

In our annual reader survey, we ask: How did your own teachers have a positive impact on you as a student? How has their influence shaped who you are today? On this World Teachers’ Day, we shine a spotlight on the lasting impact of the profession by sharing some of your responses.

Thinking back to your own school years, it’s likely there were key friends you relied on for support. But it’s not just close friends who make a difference. New research from South Australia suggests that, when it comes to building resilience among adolescents, being part of larger peer groups is just as important.

As a teacher, what can you learn about your students from a good assessment? How can a good assessment support your understanding of individual students and help you plan for the next steps in teaching and learning? We’ve called on our ACER colleague, Dr Dara Ramalingam, Research Director of Assessment Development, to unpack these questions.

At Teacher, we love hearing from our audience about the positive impact their teaching is having on students in their settings. It’s not just teachers and school leaders that we hear from. Teacher reader and school parent Barbara Vieira contacted the editorial team to share the impact a teacher had on her daughter and her achievements in STEM.

Research involving over 110,000 children and young people in the UK has revealed that many listened to audiobooks in 2026, saying listening to audiobooks feels like reading and that they listen to audiobooks to give their eyes a break from screens. Here, we share the reasons why 8-18 year olds say they turn to this format to support their learning.

Flexible professional learning allows school educators to focus on the skills relevant to their work. Free, self-paced online modules make it easier to fit learning into busy teaching schedules. Funded by the Australian Government Department of Education and delivered by Adelaide University, the Micro-credentials for Classroom Confidence have been designed by experts in direct response to teacher needs, offering strategies that can be applied directly in the classroom. 

Careful planning and preparation lay the foundation for strong teaching and learning, positive school culture, and sustained improvement throughout the year. Anthony Hockey, Principal of St Mary's Catholic Primary School in Williamstown, Victoria, shares how his school prepares for a successful start to each new year. From welcoming new students, inducting staff and completing essential maintenance, to refining improvement priorities – the work begins well before the first bell rings.

Dr Kay Oddone and Kasey L Garrison published research in the Australian Journal of Education that examines when and how information literacy skills are introduced to students. In this article for Teacher, they draw on that paper and further highlight the need for teachers to have the support of qualified teacher librarians to introduce and build students’ capacity to use information critically and ethically.