The 2026 DATTA Queensland Conference brings together educators and industry experts who are helping shape the future of Design and Technologies education.

In this episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with three conference presenters about their upcoming sessions and the practical ideas they will be sharing with teachers.

Claire Rackley discusses how students can effectively communicate design thinking through stronger sketching, visual refinement and reduced reliance on written explanations. Her workshop focuses on helping teachers understand how students can demonstrate complex thinking within modern assessment constraints.

Luciano Mesiti highlights the opportunities available for teachers to incorporate food and fibre contexts into Design and Technologies programs. Through curriculum-aligned resources and sustainability-focused activities, Luciano demonstrates how these topics can become engaging and meaningful learning experiences for students.

Nathan Edwards explores how emerging technologies are reshaping trades and manufacturing careers. His session examines the changing relationship between humans and technology and what students need to know about the future workforce.

Whether your interest is visual communication, sustainability, food and fibre, engineering, manufacturing, or workforce pathways, this episode offers valuable insights and ideas to take back to your classroom.

In this special DATTA QLD Conference preview episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with three presenters exploring practical and research-informed approaches to Design and Technology education.

First, Leighann Ness Wilson shares insights from her PhD research into Design and Technologies education and discusses how teachers can more confidently enact the Australian Curriculum through practical pedagogical frameworks aligned to processes and production skills.

The conversation explores disciplinary capability, curriculum alignment, teacher confidence, and the importance of supporting both pre-service and practising teachers in the Design and Technologies space.

The second conversation features Sarah Pavy, who explores student engagement in trades and design classrooms. Drawing on extensive experience working with vocational education and classroom engagement, Sarah discusses the unique opportunities these learning environments provide for students seeking more hands-on, applied, and authentic educational experiences.

Finally, Dominique Falla from Griffith University discusses smarter curriculum design, AI-supported teaching workflows, and practical visual communication techniques for the design classroom.

Dominique shares practical strategies for improving student sketching and ideation while also demonstrating how AI tools can support educators in curriculum planning, assessment design, and presentation development.

This episode offers valuable ideas for teachers looking to strengthen engagement, improve classroom workflows, and support creativity and confidence in Design and Technology education.

In this special DATTA QLD Conference preview episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with two presenters exploring innovative uses of artificial intelligence in Design and Technology education.

First, Rashan Senanayake from Inspired Education Australia discusses the rapidly changing world of AI-assisted CAD and 3D modelling. The conversation explores how artificial intelligence is beginning to transform design workflows, prototyping, visualisation, and classroom practice.

Rashan explains how emerging tools are allowing users to generate and manipulate 3D models using natural language prompts, while also highlighting the important conversations schools need to have around privacy, software ecosystems, and responsible implementation.

The second conversation features Nicci Wheaton, who shares a fascinating AI-assisted game design project centred around bees and environmental sustainability.

Students research the challenges facing bee populations before using structured AI prompts to help generate educational games that communicate these issues to the wider community. The project combines coding, sustainability education, AI prompting, research, and game design in a highly engaging classroom experience.

This episode offers practical insights into the future of AI in education while also showcasing creative ways teachers are already using these technologies to support authentic and meaningful learning.

In this special DATTA QLD Conference preview episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with two presenters exploring innovative approaches to Design and Technology education.

First, Steph Piper from the University of Southern Queensland discusses gamified learning through the use of "skill trees" — visual templates inspired by video games that help learners map out and track their progress across a wide range of practical skills.

The conversation explores maker education, 3D printing, electronics, laser cutting, and how visualising skill development can encourage both students and teachers to identify gaps, build confidence, and continue learning.

The second conversation features Jacqui Niblett from UQ Ventures at the University of Queensland.

Jacqui shares how storytelling and entrepreneurial pitching frameworks can help students communicate ideas more effectively. The discussion explores human-centred design, empathy, entrepreneurial mindset education, and how students can structure presentations that engage audiences and inspire action.

This episode offers practical classroom ideas, creative approaches to learning, and valuable insights into the future of innovation-focused education.

In this special DATTA QLD Conference preview episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with two presenters who are exploring powerful and innovative approaches to Design and Technology education.

First, Nick Kelly from QUT discusses why design should be considered one of the most important subjects in school. The conversation explores creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and the growing importance of design capability in a future shaped by artificial intelligence and automation.

Nick argues that many of the so-called "21st century skills" schools aim to develop are fundamentally design skills, and that design education deserves a far more central place in modern schooling.

The second conversation features Richard Neville from Babinda P–12 School, who shares a collaborative game design project connecting primary and secondary students.

Students work together to design and build a multiplayer arcade-style game that requires players to cooperate in order to succeed. The project combines coding, systems thinking, collaborative problem solving, and iterative design while also encouraging students to work across year levels.

This episode offers practical insights, big-picture thinking, and inspiring examples of what Design and Technology education can look like when creativity, collaboration, and authentic problem solving are placed at the centre of learning.

What if you're already teaching design… but just don't realise it?

In this episode, Stephen Anderson is joined by Dominique Falla from Griffith University's Queensland College of Art and Design to explore a powerful reframe for Design and Technology education.

Dominique shares why design isn't about being "creative," but about structured problem solving—and why every teacher is already doing this every day in their classroom.

The conversation explores the importance of studio-based learning, the role of hands-on experimentation, and why students need opportunities to tinker, test, and fail in order to truly understand design.

A key takeaway is the shift from abstract design challenges to personally meaningful problems. Instead of asking students to solve generic tasks, Dominique encourages teachers to start with what genuinely frustrates students—because that's where real engagement and authentic design thinking begins.

This episode is particularly valuable for teachers who feel out of their depth teaching design, especially those coming from trade or technical backgrounds. It offers reassurance, practical strategies, and a clear pathway to embedding design thinking more intentionally in the classroom.

What if behaviour management isn't really about managing behaviour at all?

In Episode 90 of the Bridge Building Podcast, Stephen Anderson speaks with Caroline Blackley about a different way of understanding classroom behaviour — one grounded in human decision-making, cognitive load, and the relationships that shape learning spaces.

Caroline brings a wealth of experience from education, disability support, autism advisory work, prisons, youth detention, and years of professional learning with teachers. In this conversation, she explains her 4 Dimensions framework, which focuses on expectations, reinforcement, redirection, and follow-through.

The discussion is particularly relevant for teachers working in practical classrooms such as design and technology, manual arts, engineering, and food spaces, where students are not simply sitting still at desks but actively moving, making, using equipment, and interacting with others.

Stephen and Caroline explore:

• why practical subjects need behaviour conversations that reflect their reality

• how teacher cognitive load influences classroom responses

• the idea of an 80/20 balance between reinforcing and redirecting behaviour

• why student apathy can be harder to address than disruption

• how consistency and interaction can support both engagement and teacher wellbeing

This is an insightful episode for any teacher wanting practical ways to build stronger learning environments while reducing frustration and increasing clarity.

In this episode of the Bridge Building Podcast, Stephen chats with Emil Zankov, President of DATTA South Australia and a driving force behind the explosive growth of VEX Robotics competitions across the state.

Emil shares his journey from an early-career teacher discovering the power of robotics to leading a statewide movement that now involves more than 20 schools and over 100 teams. He discusses how robotics competitions provide belonging, motivation, and purpose for students who might otherwise disengage — often transforming attendance, confidence, and learning habits.

We also look at what makes VEX both accessible and scalable, why teachers shouldn't fear starting small, and how associations like DATTA SA help isolated tech teachers find their people.

Key Topics:

• The real value of competitive robotics

• How collaboration flourishes even in a competitive environment

• Strategies for getting school leadership on board

• Ways robotics connects students across schools, sectors, and backgrounds

• Advice for teachers considering starting a team

Links Mentioned:

• VEX Robotics: vex.com

• Robotics Education & Competition Foundation: Search "RECF Foundation"

In this episode, we explore a powerful idea emerging from Victoria: placing industrial design students into school workshops as paid technicians to support teachers, enrich student learning, and build a new pipeline of future Design & Technologies educators.

Stephen Anderson, QCHDF, speaks with Peter Murphy from RMIT about how the program works, why design students are so eager to participate, and what this model could mean for addressing the national teacher shortage. Peter also discusses his long-term vision for the learning area — including university partnerships, teacher training pathways, the need for more research in Design & Technologies, and what it will take to build a sustainable future workforce.

This episode is essential listening for school leaders, teachers, and anyone passionate about strengthening our subject.

Key topics:

• How university design students are supporting school workshops

• Speed-dating for schools: matching students with schools

• Why young designers are seeking stability and meaningful work

• The changing nature of the design profession

• Teacher shortages and long-term workforce solutions

• The role of Masters programs and PhD pathways

• Building intergenerational change within Design & Technologies

Listen now and explore how your school could start a similar partnership.

Join Stephen Anderson in conversation with Primrose Kombanie, an inspiring design educator at Glasshouse Christian College on the Sunshine Coast.

Primrose shares her remarkable story — from her upbringing in Zimbabwe and studies in textile sciences, to her transition into design teaching in New Zealand and Australia. She speaks passionately about changing classroom culture, connecting with industry partners, and helping students see design as a way of thinking, not just making.

It's a warm, engaging, and thought-provoking episode about education, creativity, and courage in teaching.

🎧 Listen now on your favourite podcast platform.