How can we move away from pre-determining student potential and instead design "challenge-first" learning that is accessible to everyone?

Today, I’m joined by Rachel Ball, a Professional Development Specialist at Steplab and a former Assistant Principal for Teaching, Learning, and CPD. With 22 years of experience as a passionate History teacher and a Fellow of the Chartered College of Teachers, Rachel is an international speaker and a co-editor of What is History Teaching, Now? (2023). She is also the co-author of the recent release, The Scaffolding Effect (2025), part of the Teacher CPD Academy series.

This episode continues our special mini-series focused on the power of Adaptive Teaching. We’ll dive into the nuances of effective scaffolding, exploring how to move beyond rigid worksheets toward responsive strategies—like teacher modeling and strategic checks for understanding—that maintain high aspirations for every learner in the classroom.

Welcome to The Well-being Classroom.

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