Which is more creative, the Arts or the sciences? My guest, Professor David Cropley from the University of South Australia, joins us today to discuss this question and to delve into his research into whether any specific differences exist between creativity in the Arts and creativity in STEM. David is an internationally recognised expert on creativity and innovation. He’s appeared on several television programs on the ABC, including Redesign My Brain and Life at 9. The study we’re focusing on today was co-authored by Kim van Broekhoven and Phillip Seegers from Maastricht University in the Netherlands. The study surveyed over 2000 German undergraduate students enrolled in STEM courses and in Arts courses, to explore how creativity differed across the disciplines. In this episode, David takes us through how they conducted the study, some of the key findings, and the practical implications of this research for educators working in the K-12 space. Guest: David Cropley Host: Rebecca Vukovic

A few reports have been released lately which point to how we’re tracking across the world when it comes to equality and equity in education. At Teacher, we’ve looked a report showing how the experiences of young people living with a disability and without a disability compare. We also highlighted some resources on Indigenous literacy, in the lead up to Indigenous Literacy Day, which aims to improve remote Indigenous children's educational outcomes. Like all episodes of Teacher Staffroom, we’ll take you through these topics, along with other noteworthy stories in education. We’ll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

We're joined today by Chemistry teacher Chris Buswell from Mountain Creek State High School on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. Chris is passionate about integrating technology into science and leveraging opportunities for students in their local community. He’s worked hard for years towards both of these goals and student outcomes and their post-school destinations are really reflecting this. As you’ll hear in this episode, Chris has facilitated the use of virtual reality with senior secondary students to help them understand complex chemistry concepts through a partnership with their local university, the University of the Sunshine Coast. He’s also part of a network of schools who have partnered with schools in Papua New Guinea for a program which aims to empower future leaders in STEM. And, of course, he’s doing important work as well with younger students to build those important 21st Century skills. Guest: Chris Buswell Host: Dominique Russell

Our guest today is Lisa Seewraj, a teacher at Child Side Playgroup and School in Boyanup, Western Australia, about 200 kilometres south of Perth. Child Side School is an independent, co-educational school covering Kindergarten to Year 10. The school was founded in 2002, with a focus on relationships, engagement and connectivity. The school’s founders and co-principals Karron McDonald and Leonie O’Connell say they strongly believe that each person’s story matters to them and should matter to the students themselves; they help children value their own story and communicate and advocate it’s worth over and above any reports, grades, scores and other stats and data. Lisa Seewraj teaches a multi-age class of 23 students across Years 7-10. She does this with a co-teacher who teaches maths and science, and the two teachers are in the class for most of the week. Lisa also teaches these students for the four years they are in this year range. In today’s episode we discuss how she manages the classroom on a daily basis, the range of abilities that she caters for, and how she provides each student with the appropriate level of challenge to progress in their learning. Guest: Lisa Seewraj Host: Rebecca Vukovic

Mathematics education has been a clear focus of our editorial content this month, and in this episode of Teacher Staffroom, we’re going to share some of the highlights. At the same time, we’ll be sharing some pieces on curriculum reform and requirements, as well as some contributions written by teachers, school leaders and researchers. Host: Rebecca Vukovic

In today’s world, young people must be financially literate to perform common, day-to-day tasks, like using a debit card or choosing a mobile phone plan. But, how financially literate are teenagers in Australia? And, how do they compare to their international peers? The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (or PISA, as it’s commonly referred to) includes an optional assessment that examines 15-year-old students’ understanding of money matters and financial literacy. This week, the Australian Council for Educational Research released a report that analyses Australian students’ performance in the latest PISA Financial Literacy survey. It’s titled PISA 2018: Financial literacy in Australia. A total of 117 000 students from 20 countries and economies participated in the financial literacy survey, including over 9400 Australian students from 740 schools. In today’s episode, we're joined by one of the report’s co-authors, Lisa DeBortoli, a Senior Research Fellow at ACER. We discuss some of the key findings to come from the report and what students were required to do for this assessment. You’ll also hear Lisa share more about the proficiency levels, what they mean, and the kind of knowledge and skills that students are typically capable of displaying at each level, as well as some practical examples. Guest: Lisa DeBortoli Host: Rebecca Vukovic Sponsor: University of Newcastle

Year 10 gifted and talented students at St Matthews Catholic School in regional New South Wales collaborated with academics at the University of Sydney on a research project. In today’s episode we speak with Professor Patrick Brennan and Brooke Colley about how the collaborative nature of this project strengthened students’ STEM skills in areas like data analysis, experimentation and scientific writing. Host: Dominique Russell Guests: Professor Patrick Brennan and Brooke Colley

At Teacher magazine, we love to share the research-based innovative classroom activities from educators across Australia, and the world. In today’s episode we're going to take you through some of the engaging learning activities educators have been using during this pandemic. We’ve heard from Arts educators, researchers in Science and teacher educators on pre-service teacher experiences. We’ll take you through all of their stories in today’s episode. We’ll also be posing some questions throughout this podcast, so feel free to pause the audio as you go, gather some colleagues and discuss together how these stories could be relevant to your school context. Host: Dominique Russell

My guests today are Allan Shaw, Principal and CEO of The Knox School in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, and Ben Righetti, The Knox School’s Character and Leadership Programs: Lead Consultant and WELS Founder and Director. They join us today to discuss the Character and Leadership Model implemented at The Knox School between 2017 and 2020. It represents the most significant change in how the school develops student character and leadership capabilities in the history of the school. One of the key aims of the project is to foster the development of young people of character who will be ethical citizens and community leaders. It also involved a major redesign of camps, excursions, outdoor education and community-based learning at each year level, from Year 6 to Year 11. The school has documented its journey, what they learned and the implications of their findings in a report titled 'Character and Leadership Model: Student Character and Leadership Development through Purpose-Designed, Experiential, Community-Based Learning and Projects'. In this episode we discuss the what motivated them to initiate the project, some of its features, and how they’ve had to adapt it this year in the midst of the COVID-19 lockdowns, when all camps, excursions and community activities have been either cancelled or postponed. Host: Rebecca Vukovic Guests: Allan Shaw and Ben Righetti

A new series of research papers relating to science learning in the early years has been published by ACER (the Australian Council for Educational Research). The series aims to help educators of children in preschool to Year 2 to incorporate the latest research into science learning into their teaching. The authors discuss the significance of the particular subject, the relevant research, how it links to outcomes in the Early Years Learning Framework (or EYLF) as well as some aspects of the Australian Curriculum. They also describe a handful of activities that can be completed with children to help develop their science inquiry skills, like observing plants, and exploring light and shadows. These activities can also assist educators in monitoring the science learning of the children they’re teaching. They’re suitable for parents whose children are learning at home, as well. In this episode, we're joined by a co-author of the series, Gayl O’Connor, a Senior Research Fellow at ACER. You’ll pick up on the big emphasis on why integrating science learning in the early years is so beneficial for children and their teachers, and we also discuss identifying and managing common misconceptions children might have about science concepts; and managing a lack of confidence in science as an educator. Host: Dominique Russell Guest; Gayl O'Connor