Margaret Paton

What success strategies do teachers themselves draw on when navigating their complex professional work? Professor Emeritus Patrick Danaher, University of Southern Queensland, and Associate ProfessorNick Kelly, Queensland University of Technology, are…

What if some of the teacher shortage isn’t showing up in the numbers? The OECD’s Education at a Glance 2026 takes a close look at teacher shortages — but it doesn’t measure out-of-field teaching. In this episode, I unpack what the report does tell us…

What mechanical watches made me think about AI I learnt a new word while waiting for my partner to finish looking at watches. The word was FOOM: shorthand for “fast takeoff”, the possibility that …

Dr Amber Hughes, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Newcastle (UON), talks about decolonising mathematics education in Australia. Her work asks whathappens when we look beyond access to the existing curriculum and think more deeply…

The Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) has begun its review of the professional teaching standards. Should dispositions be part of the new-look standards? Find out more about my responses (and argument), plus hear an…

A global snapshot of out-of-field teaching research ahead of the free OOFTAS symposium on 16–17 August. This episode highlights emerging themes across eight countries, including teacher identity, subject boundaries, professional learning, and…

Borrow, Don’t Buy: The Rise of Australia’s Libraries of Things Across Melbourne, people are borrowing drills, lawn mowers, pressure washers, camping gear, sewing machines, party kits, and even …

Katrina Davey, an experienced Humanities teacher, curriculumwriter and former faculty leader, cuts through the idea that teaching lower-secondary humanities only requires “general knowledge”. Drawing on her book Humming Along, she explains why…

Find out what's involved in a mid-candidature review as I review my exploration into out-of-field teaching over the past 2.5 years.

Numeracy may be a cross-curriculum priority in youreducation system — but what does that actually mean for teachers who don’t teach maths? Dr Kathy O’Sullivan from the University of Galway in Ireland argues that when schools expect every teacher to…

Out-of-field teaching is rarely one neat experience. One lesson, one junior class, one senior subject, one term or five years all place different demands on teachers. This 100th episode draws on teacher interviews, podcast conversations, PhD thinking…

Out-of-field teaching isn’t just about subjects — it’s about stepping into learning spaces where you don’t have all the answers yet. Career pathways mentor (and qualified teacher) Jack Pennoyer has spent more than a decadedoing exactly that, working…

If you’re new to this podcast — or just want an update on my PhD research into out-of-field teaching — this episode’s probably a good place to jump in. I share a profile piece I recently wrote for Deakin University’s Centre for Research for…

Dr David Bryan brings more than four decades of classroom, leadership and governance experience to a candid conversation about out-of-field teaching. A school founder and veteran educator, he argues that teaching is “messy and complex” — and that…

My original career was in journalism—and it’s still part of what I do today. In that world, you’re judged by what you produce; expertise follows the work. In teaching, recognition is more tightly tied to qualifications and formal roles, which creates…

Margaret Shepherd, the immediate-past president of the Australian Science Teachers’ Association unpacks what science teaching actually looks like in real classrooms. Drawing on decades of experience as a science teacher, school leader and national…

Out-of-field teaching in mathematics and science is the focus of my PhD, and this episode lifts the lid on how the data collection actually works. I take you inside the current phase of the project, systematically gathering Reddit discussions where…

Grammar sits inside every subject — yet many teachers quietly feel “out of field” when it comes to teaching it. In this episode, U.S. grammar specialist and author Patty McGee shares a radically practical approach to grammar thatreplaces worksheets…

A PhD progress update on my Reddit field site and methodological “rewilding”, followed by a deep dive into a new systematic review showing that while teacher distribution between schools may be improving, inequities inside schools remain stubborn —…

Dr Susan Caldis (Macquarie University) and Kathy Jones (Fieldwork Connections) unpack the launch of a new micro-credential designed specifically for out-of-field geography teachers in New South Wales, Australia.The microcred was developed from Dr…