Long reads

What is involved in moving museum content online for educational purposes? What are the benefits? What are the challenges? In this Q&A, we speak with Melina Mallos, former Education Manager at the Museum of Chinese Australian History, about the process of digitising museum content.

‘Underpinning PAT is recognition that every student is at some point in their long-term progress and is capable of further progress given learning opportunities at an appropriate level of stretch challenge.’ In his latest Teacher column, Professor Geoff Masters AO explores what makes ACER’s progressive achievement (PAT) resources special.

Readers often get in touch with Teacher to share how their school is making a difference to student outcomes. New South Wales educator Mary Semaan contacted us recently to talk about how the teaching and leadership team at Al Sadiq College has been working to improve primary students’ writing skills.

‘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.

Financial technology developments such as cashless transactions and in-game purchases, and risks such as scam emails and texts warrant teaching about. Carly Sawatzki, Jill Brown and Peter Saffin ask: ‘In what ways are your students financially active, and how is your school preparing them for informed financial participation?’

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.

‘Considerable momentum is building around the belief that education will increasingly benefit from teachers becoming more ‘research-engaged”…’ Our latest reader submission discusses the phenomenon of Research-Invested Schools and shares examples of what’s happening in Australia.

Twenty Things to Do with a Computer Forward 50, edited by Dr Gary Stager, celebrates the vision of Cynthia Solomon and Seymour Papert in their seminal 1971 paper. In this exclusive extract, Martin Levins shares ‘Some Modern Things to Do with a Computer’, with examples from Australian schools.

In his first Teacher column of the year, OECD Director for Education and Skills Andreas Schleicher discusses the Trends Shaping Education report, which examines the major economic, political, social and technological trends affecting education.

In his second article on data-driven school improvement, Patrick Sanders from Brighton Grammar School shares examples of how staff have used data to influence decision-making and improve the teaching, learning and wellbeing of the school community.