media & events

Australian Teacher Magazine, April 22, 2025, By Sarah Duggan

A new podcast that is aiming to blow apart the misconception that explicit teaching is robotic and inflexible is set to hand teachers a ‘front row seat’ to some of the best classrooms in the world.

Launched by prominent NSW school leader Rebecca Birch and LaTrobe University senior lecturer Dr Nathaniel Swain, ‘Chalk Dust‘ will zero in on footage taken from real classrooms to unpack the seemingly subtle but highly impactful ways in which teachers are applying the science of learning.

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Australian Teacher Magazine, March 22, 2022, By Sarah Duggan

Dr Nathaniel Swain has no qualms that his space might look ‘out of step’ with current layout and design trends.

He is well aware that to the casual observer his classroom might appear different. For starters, desks are arranged in neat, front-facing rows. There’s not a collaborative ‘cluster’ or ‘U’ shape formation in sight. For the teacher, instructional coach and researcher, it’s a simple set up that feeds perfectly into his instructional practice and the learning routines he wants to establish with his prep students.

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