iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 16/05/2025

Do you have a clip of your classroom practice for us to review on Chalk Dust? We're doing a special episode on classroom entry and start-work routines. DM me or Nathaniel for more info, and feel free to share with a stand-out colleague who excels in this area.

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 11/05/2025

I thought I was first to coin the phrase, “Traditional is the new progressive.” But I’m not. The great Paul Kirschner said it first. Why progressive education does not serve equity, despite good intentions.

kirschnered.nl

The Paradox of Progressivism in Education - kirschner-ED

One of the most toxic paradoxes in education is what I call the paradox of progressivism. In short, while progressive education (like all education) aims to reduce learning gaps and increase equity,…

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 01/05/2025

NEW POST: On the myths and truths about how girls learn. Knowledge is (girl) power! open.substack.com/pub/rebeccab...

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 30/04/2025

CRP, SEL, UDL. Big on good vibes. Low on outcomes. If our job is just to make students feel good, then great. If it’s to achieve real equity and life choices, then don’t pin your hopes on these acronyms. Teaching for equitable outcomes: The missing ingredient open.substack.com/pub/scienceo...

Teaching for more equitable outcomes: The missing ingredient

Why equity initiatives can fail and what teachers can do about it.

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 30/04/2025

Teaching for more equitable outcomes: The missing ingredient

Why equity initiatives can fail and what teachers can do about it.

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 30/04/2025

Dr Nathaniel Swain and I are so excited that Brendan Lee has opened his classroom to us in an upcoming episode of #ChalkDust Here's a sneak peek of his advice to Mathematics teachers. It applies to primary teachers and secondary! Be notified about the first episode here chalkdust.media

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 24/04/2025

Natalie Wexler makes a good case for being hyper aware of the claims of research and how they’re framed. Do Students Who Rely on ChatGPT "Benefit"?

Do Students Who Rely on ChatGPT "Benefit"?

AI has its uses, but it's not a substitute for writing--or learning.

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 24/04/2025

NEW POST: Are there links between explicit teaching, classroom management and productive class climates? Find out! (Short answer -- probably). open.substack.com/pub/rebeccab...

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 10/04/2025

This group is growing in strength and numbers. It's so great to have a support network of leaders in professional learning, and experts from UNSW like Tony Loughland, Paul Evans and Simon Breakspear to draw on for advice about applying research in schools.

unsw.edu.au

Centre for Research in Schools (CRiS) | UNSW Sydney

Centre for Research in Schools (CRiS) fosters professional learning cultures in K–12 settings, connecting research with practical strategies for impactful growth.

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 08/04/2025

Some very reasonable points about cold calling: “Why I can't use 'cold call' anymore”https://open.substack.com/pub/daviddidau/p/why-i-cant-use-cold-call-anymore?r=5d1ba&utm_medium=ios

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 03/04/2025

I'm presenting with my great mate Cassandra Pride at ICGS, hosted by Queenwood, on the myths and truths about how girls learn. Spoiler: girls' brains are no different to boys'. Grab a ticket to hear more nuance from us. girlsschools.org/28-april-202...

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 03/04/2025

NEW POST: On following the golden thread, w/ Professor Haili Hughes. A follow up to my analysis of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. Haili's experience in the development of the Early Career Framework is a great model for Australia to follow. Thank you for your generosity, Haili!

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 01/04/2025

I hear this anecdotal evidence about the links between explicit teaching and student behaviour all the time. This is why I have decided to focus on this area for my PhD study. www.amazon.com.au/Harnessing-S...

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 01/04/2025

🎙️ The Chalk Dust Podcast is coming! Step inside the world’s best classrooms 🎒🌏 Each episode, Dr Nathaniel Swain and I break down real classroom footage to reveal what makes great teaching great ✨🧑‍🏫 Sign up to be notified when the first episode drops! chalkdust.media/p/sneak-prev...

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 15/03/2025

What a rejuvenating day at researchED spending time with the best educators in the country. Not least these people!

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 09/03/2025

I've officially hit 4K subscribers from 83 countries! I started this Substack about three years ago as a new year's resolution to write every day. There's nothing like an unrealistic goal to kickstart a more modest habit! rebeccabirch.substack.com/p/on-buildin...

How progressive education defends it ivory tower

On building moats

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 01/02/2025

NEW POST: On the Sir Ken Fallacy. A meandering review of Johann Hari's 'Stolen Focus' and the trap that so many commentators fall into when they imagine a world of schooling-utopia (aka anarchy). rebeccabirch.substack.com/p/on-the-sir...

Or a book review of Johann Hari's 'Stolen Focus'

On the Sir Ken Fallacy

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 20/01/2025

A comprehensive explainer into Desirable Difficulties. It’s not about making lessons challenging. It’s about making retrieval challenging. The content needs to have already been taught and we’re after learning, not performance. open.substack.com/pub/firth/p/welco……

A Deep Dive into Desirable Difficulties

Jonathan Firth's Memory & Metacognition Updates #99

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 19/01/2025

How long do you think it will be before boilerplate respectful behaviour responses are automatically added to replies to parent emails in schools? I quite like the wording of this one from Australia Post.

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 08/01/2025

NEW POST: On shadow education. What's the situation in your school community? rebeccabirch.substack.com/p/on-shadow-...

A recent article raises more questions than answers

On shadow education

Blake Harvard @blakeharvard.bsky.social · 05/01/2025

Reposted by Rebecca Birch

A quick read for those of us who begin a new semester with new students in the coming days: Classroom Seating and Student Achievement How does the classroom seating arrangement impact student behavior? theeffortfuleducator.com/2024/10/10/c... #edusky

theeffortfuleducator.com

Classroom Seating and Student Achievement - The Effortful Educator

How does the classroom seating arrangement impact student behavior?

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 05/01/2025

This might not fit with your idealised vision of what a classroom should look like, but if students are learning new material (which they should be a lot of the time) then rows are best. buff.ly/4hlE9yj

Classroom Seating and Student Achievement - The Effortful Educator

How does the classroom seating arrangement impact student behavior?

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 27/12/2024

Schooling is low on good information and high on compromise and conflicting goals. Well worth a read. 56 Theses About Education, for Fun and Debate buff.ly/4j8un4j

56 Theses About Education, for Fun and Debate

Fight! Fight! Fight!

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 23/12/2024

FINAL POSTS FOR 2024: On the best bits of this year. A reflection, and the most read post list. rebeccabirch.substack.com/p/on-the-bes...

A reflection on my third year of publishing

On the best bits of 2024

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 21/12/2024

I just discovered you can send iMessages later, like delay send on an email. Now I can text people at 6am without guilt! I’m an extreme morning person.

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 19/12/2024

Students aren’t avoiding challenge. They’re prioritising what they see as more useful. The fall of Eng Lit buff.ly/4iFuMuO

What is the cause, is it a problem - and if so, what can we do about it?

The fall of Eng Lit

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 18/12/2024

NEW POST: On moving in the right direction -is it time for a shift in the way we think about learning disabilities? open.substack.com/pub/rebeccab...

On moving in the right direction

A cultural shift in the way we think about learning disabilities

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 17/12/2024

If you’re sceptical about the AI hype, this is a good one for you. Overpromising and underdelivering on personalised learning. Five Interesting Moments From the Khanmigo Segment on 60 Minutes buff.ly/4gxhPRw

Five Interesting Moments From the Khanmigo Segment on 60 Minutes

Also: can someone help me understand what is going on with MagicSchool right now?

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 16/12/2024

“We need adults to care less about being liked and more about being respected. To abandon this adolescent way of thinking. We need adults who are willing to guard them against their worst impulses.” buff.ly/49zcKpR

Parents aren't protective enough

The Need For Adults

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 14/12/2024

Gen Z really does have a work ethic problem. More from the fascinating Jean Twenge. buff.ly/3OLp8cC

Gen Z really does have a work ethic problem

Or maybe we all do?

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 13/12/2024

A bit older but interesting. Raises questions about De Coursey and AAS testing in Australia. Can a teacher really impact student height? A cautionary tale on value-added models buff.ly/3ZkKpPc

Can a teacher really impact student height? A cautionary tale on value-added models

The good and the bad about VAMs in education.

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 12/12/2024

I wonder how many young teachers are still given phenomenally bad advice about how to manage behaviour, given the Strong Beginnings reforms are not yet in place. Hopefully this changes soon! buff.ly/3B5OX42

What's the worst advice you have been given about behaviour?

This is how teachers answered that question.

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 12/12/2024

How do we get students reading for pleasure? It’s different to analysis, which can kill pleasure. I can relate to this. I can’t read a novel now without analysing it! Nat Wexler explains. buff.ly/3OC1qzx

Becoming a Nation of Non-Readers

Students are reading fewer books than they used to, but there's a lot schools can do to reverse the trend.

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 10/12/2024

GREATEST HITS REEL: Some thoughts about how we might start to shift focus from accommodating disability to addressing it.

Do the Disability Standards for Education need an update?

On fences and ambulances

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Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 09/12/2024

GREATEST HITS REEL: A very nerdy post about democrratising the canon. From when I had about 100 readers so it was relatively popular at the time.

On democratising the canon

An interpretation of two contested ideas in English education

Rebecca Birch @rebeccabirch.au · 07/12/2024

I’m so glad things are going this way for students with a disability. Previous policies like differentiation (of content) must surely have been holding students back.