Emma & Tom Talk Teaching

PGCE Research Bites 18 - Classroom Spaces for Reading with Christy Scott

For today's PGCE Research Bite, Tom is joined by Christy Scott from PGCE Primary. Christy has carried out some research for her school about how to create classroom spaces which motivate pupils to read. In this episode, Christy explains to Tom what she found out from her research, and the recommendations she made for her school. You can also watch this discussion on our youtube channel at youtube.com/@cardiffpartnership Thanks to Christy for sharing her work! You can download her infographic her...

Pedagogical Content Knowledge and Student Teachers with Emma

It's time to turn the tables on Emma and find out about her doctoral research in progress! Emma is investigating pedagogical content knowledge, a seminal concept in teaching, and specifically how we support student teachers to develop it. She's been working hard on her literature review, and Tom's here to ask all the questions about what it might mean for those who support new members of the profession. If you want to read Shulman's seminal 1986 paper, Those who understand, you can find it here ...

Tameidiau o Ymchwil TAR 8 - Chwarae Ar-Lein a Sgiliau Rhifedd gyda Nia Jefferies a Sioned Dafydd

Mae Tameidiau o Ymchwil TAR yn cyflwyno ymchwil gorau myfyrwyr ar gyrsiau Addysg Gychwynnol i Athrawon gyda Phartneriaeth Caerdydd. Yn y bennod hon mae Nia Jefferies yn trafod sut yr aeth ati i ddysgu mwy am sut mae gemau cyfrifiadurol yn gallu datblygu sgiliau rhif plant oed cynradd. Gallwch hefyd wrando ar Tameidiau o Ymchwil TAR ar ffurf glywedol drwy danysgrifio i bodlediadau Emma and Tom Talk Teaching, ar gael ar blatfformau cyffredin podlediadau.Gallwch wylio'r bennod hon ar YouTube - yout...

Beginning Teachers' Learning - a Book Review

It's been ages since we did a book review, and today we bring you the smallest book yet! Beginning Teachers' Learning is a slim volume but full of fascinating insights for anyone who works with novice teachers. We've got an in-depth review for you, and hopefully you'll be keen to get hold of your own copy once you've listened! You can find all the details here: https://www.criticalpublishing.com/beginning-teachers-learning ----------------------------------------------- Recorded in studio B2.16 ...

PGCE Research Bites 17 - Supporting participation of pupils with autism in PE with Meredith Bawks and Dr Sally Bethell

For our latest episode of PGCE Research Bites, Dr. Sally Bethell is joined by Meredith Bawks from our PGCE Secondary PE programme. Meredith's research was sparked by seeing a pupil with autism in her PE class who was distressed and unable to participate in the lesson. Meredith saw an opportunity to put her assignment to good use in looking for strategies to support her pupil, and today's presentation is the result. Meredith's recommendations are relevant to subjects across the curriculum, and it...

Easter Special 2023

It's the Easter break, and we've come to our beloved studio B2.16, plagued as it is with the noise of building work and passing students, with a pile of thought-provoking material from books, podcasts and the news. How can we reduce inequities for pupils in poverty? How do we effectively challenge deficit perspectives in student teachers? What's going on with pupil behaviour policies which insist on 'standard English'? Why did that man just give me a bunch of flowers and run away? All of these q...

PGCE Research Bites 16 - Creating an Accountable Anti-Racist Space in the Drama Classroom with Cara Whitfield

PGCE research bites is back! Our student teachers have completed the latest set of assignments in which they address an area of interest or need in their schools. Reviewing the literature and outlining arguments and recommendations, our student teachers have all presented a visual summary of their research to their schools. Over the next few weeks we're bringing some of the best work to a wider audience in podcast and video form. Today, Cara Whitfield from PGCE Secondary Drama discusses with Emm...

Live from ResearchED Cymru 2023

It's been a very long time since we did a live podcast recording - in fact it was just before Covid locked us all down and Tom's car became the podcast recording studio. And it's been almost exactly the same amount of time since the very first ResearchED Cymru conference was held at Cardiff High School. Now both of these things have made a triumphant return at the same time: we were delighted to be asked to present a live panel discussion for the podcast from the second ResearchED Cymru conferen...

Additional Learning Needs with Dr Anne Hodgson

Today we welcome our colleague Dr. Anne Hodgson, an expert in autism and additional learning needs more widely. We discuss the new ALN act in Wales and the implications for pupils and teachers. As well as that, we consider how the new curriculum in Wales might have an impact on provision for pupils with additional learning needs, and what mainstream settings (and the teachers in them) need to do in order to support pupils to access their education in a mainstream environment. Thanks to Anne for ...

A Study of Classroom Music Teachers with Tom

It's time for another look at doctoral research in progress, and Tom's hoping his won't be in progress for much longer! Recorded the day after submitting his viva corrections, this episode looks at Tom's PhD thesis, A Study of Key Stage 3 Music Teachers' Pedagogic Beliefs in the Context of a New Curriculum for Wales. The study aimed to create a model of the beliefs of classroom music teachers about what the subject is for, what they are trying to achieve and what goes on in their classrooms, all...

Making Links Between Subjects with Dr. Mary Woolley

Today we welcome Dr. Mary Woolley from Canterbury Christ Church University. Mary joins us down the line from Folkestone to discuss her role in a research project focusing on encounters between science and religion in the classroom. Having met Mary and her colleague Professor Bob Bowie at the UCET conference, we immediately saw the potential for their work to support curriculum reform in Wales. Today's discussion outlines the work of the project, what the team have found out, and what resources a...

Poverty in Education with Professor David Egan

Today, we welcome Professor David Egan to our podcast studio for an extended discussion about poverty in education in Wales. David has had a long and distinguished career in education, starting as a history teacher in the Welsh valleys in 1976 and ending up as a professor, so he has plenty to tell us about the education landscape. In this episode, David tells us about the causes and consequences of child poverty in Wales, how education reform might have an impact, and how we can do the very best...

Mentoring Student Teachers with Dr Sally Bethell

Happy new year! Friend of the podcast Sally Bethell is back once again, with an upgrade to Doctor Sally after successfully achieving her EdD professional doctorate a few months ago. Having spoken to us several times in the past about her work on mentoring, Dr Sally is now in a position to outline how she's been working to support mentors in generating a self-reflection tool to help them reflect on the complexities of the role. If you'd like to get in touch with Sally with a view to making use of...

Christmas Special 2022

Well, here we are again - in the gap between Christmas and New Year, and it's time for our annual tradition of giving each other six Christmas presents consisting of interesting things we've begged, borrowed and stolen. This year, Emma's finally succumbed to Covid after a glorious three-year run of immunity, and is therefore forced to dial in down-the-line from home. Tom, meanwhile, is all alone in an apparently deserted university after teaching has finished on the last Friday of term. All in a...

A Culture of Enquiry with Dr James Snook

Today we welcome a friend of PGCE Research Bites to his first full podcast episode! Dr. James Snook heads up all things to do with research and professional learning here at the Cardiff Partnership, and is a strong advocate for classroom enquiry. We sat down with James to ask him about the benefits of classroom enquiry, how to embed a culture of enquiry in school, the place of universities, and more. Thanks to James for coming in, and we'll be back in a fortnight with something festive! --------...

Challenge for all pupils with James Wise

This week, we're delighted to welcome a school colleague to our podcast studio. James Wise is the ITE coordinator at Cardiff High School, and also the organising force behind ResearchED Cymru. We wanted to chat to James about how he works with new teachers to help them create a culture of challenge for all pupils in their classrooms. Thanks to James for taking part, and do check out the latest from ResearchED Cymru by checking out @Cymru_Ed on Twitter. -------------------------------------------...

Tameidiau o Ymchwil TAR 7 - Esponiadau Ychwanegol Gweledol mewn Mathemateg gyda Tomos Wood a Dr Gina Morgan

Dyma damaid arall o ymchwil TAR i chi ac mae’r myfyriwr TAR Uwchradd Mathemateg, Tomos Woods, yn siarad gyda Dr Gina Morgan am ei waith ymchwil. Mae’n trafod ei ail Aseiniad, sef ymyrraeth sydd yn ffocysu ar sut mae Esboniadau Ychwanegol Gweledol yn Cynyddu Dealltwriaeth Gysyniadol Disgyblion mewn Gwersi Mathemateg. Mae’r ystyried effaith gadarnhaol y defnydd o luniau, diagramau, siapiau a lliw ar sgiliau Mathemateg a Rhifedd ei ddysgwyr. Yn y sgwrs hon mae Tom yn esbonio beth wnaeth e ddarganfo...

Meddwl Mawr - The EWC's Book and Journal Club

Confession time: quite a long time ago we were asked to provide a recommendation of something interesting from the EBSCO database of education literature for the Education Workforce Council's Meddwl Mawr book and journal club. Teachers registered in Wales can access anything in EBSCO for free, helping to bring education literature goodies to classroom practitioners all over the country. Finally, we've got our act together and have a discussion for you about initial teacher education reform in Wa...

PGCE Research Bites 15 - An Intervention for Literacy in GCSE Music with Daniel Gurner

Today's Research Bite features Daniel Gurner, a PGCE Secondary Music student teacher who designed and delivered an intervention in his placement school to help pupils improve their literacy when answering GCSE music exam questions. In putting the intervention together, Daniel drew on various sources of literature as well as his understanding of the advantages of treating music as a holistic subject in which pupils develop their understanding of music through making it. You can also watch this ep...

October Half Term Special 2022

Hello from our latest podcasting home - just across campus from our old podcasting home! And as is traditional at this time of year, we've got a feast of random stuff for one another, drawn from all four corners of the internet and beyond. If you'd like to see any of the items from this episode, check out the links below. We'll see you again soon! News is bad for you - Rolf Dobelli in the Guardian Tea - Hanan Issa Admin Assistant II - Ed Burmila BameEd Wales After Rembrandt and Grubby Grub - Mor...

PGCE Research Bites 14 - An intervention for Pupil Academic Self-Esteem with Phoebe Rees

In this episode, Phoebe Rees (who has just graduated from our PGCE primary programme) speaks to Tom Breeze about an intervention she created to tackle her concerns about low academic self-esteem in her pupils. Before embarking on the PGCE, Phoebe did a degree in psychology, and she brought her knowledge of research-informed approaches to bear on the practical issues she wanted to address in her classroom. ---------------------------- Recorded in studio B0.17 at Cardiff Metropolitan University's ...

Classroom Research in an Additional Learning Needs setting with Dr Kristina Kelly

For today's episode we welcome one of our newest colleagues, and one of the newest Doctors on the team - Dr Kristina Kelly joins us at Cardiff Met with a wealth of knowledge about additional learning needs (ALN), so we immediately put her in front of a microphone to tell us about her research. Kristina carried out classroom research into how Piagetian schema are applicable to pupils with autism, and came up with some intriguing conclusions about potentially new schema to add to those identified ...

Tameidiau o Ymchwil TAR 6 - Ymyrraeth i Ddatblygu Geirfa Gyfyngedig gyda Bethan Price a Sioned Dafydd

Curriculum for Wales and Working Class Pupils with Jess Dainham

We're on the road for a special podcast recording today, speaking to Jess Dainham about her work for her Master's degree. As part of her research, Jess has investigated how to make the Curriculum for Wales work for the working class pupils that she teaches. When we're carrying out education research, we don't tend to name schools or participants, so today's podcast comes from an unnamed school in south Wales. but Jess's pupils are predominantly working class, and Jess herself comes from a workin...

PGCE Research Bites 13 - Scaffolding Pupil Learning with Joseph Thomas & Dr James Snook

Welcome back to PGCE Research Bites! In this episode, PGCE Secondary Biology with Science student Joseph Thomas talks to Dr. James Snook about how he spent time in school trying to get a more in-depth understanding of scaffolding learning. While scaffolding is a well-known term, and many of the strategies Joseph came across during his investigation are familiar to all of us, he wanted to have a really good look at how it could work. Having done some reading, Joseph then tried out an intervention...

Research and Enquiry in Schools with Lauren Rees

It's always lovely to welcome a school colleague to the podcast! Today we say hello to Lauren Rees, who is currently the research champion at Stanwell School in Penarth, but has fulfilled every teacher-educator role in her time at the school. We're keen to hear the school perspective about how research and enquiry contributes to the development of new teachers, as well as what it does for the school as a whole. With the new curriculum upon us, is it even more important that schools engage with s...

PGCE Research Bites 12 - An Intervention for Engagement in Primary Welsh with Peter Russell

For the latest instalment in our PGCE Research Bites strand, Tom talks for PGCE primary student teacher Peter Russell about his intervention to increase pupil engagement in Welsh in his placement primary school. Located in Torfaen, Peter's school presented something of a challenge when it came to enthusing pupils about wanting to learn Welsh: not only is Torfaen one of the most socio-economically deprived parts of the country, it also has a very low proportion of Welsh speakers. As part of his f...

Religion Values and Ethics with Paula Webber

Welcome back to season 5 of the podcast! Today's episode features an extended interview with our colleague Paula Webber (Programme Leader for PGCE Secondary Religious Education) to talk about religion, values and ethics. Not in the abstract - it's a mandatory part of the new curriculum for Wales. Up to this point, religious education (RE) has been something that parents can opt their children out of, but the all-new RVE is compulsory for all. So it's time for an in-depth chat about what's covere...

Summer Bonus 2022

Happy holidays! We're checking in briefly before we go off for some R&R. We look back on an exciting season of episodes, and forward to series 5. We'll be back with our normal service on Friday 9th September. In the meantime, we hope you're all keeping well. Why not give us a rating or review?

The Curriculum for Wales Journey So Far with Gareth Evans

Here we are at the end of another series - four long years in front of the microphone! Meanwhile, in the wider world of education, Wales is heading for an important staging post on the curriculum reform journey: by the time we come back into your ears in September, the new Curriculum for Wales will be happening in schools all over the country. It seems a good opportunity to fire up the line to our friends in Yr Athrofa at the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David Carmarthen, and chew things o...