Slides appear to have become a common tool for teaching — but when are they genuinely useful, and when might a different resource be required?

In this episode, we take a closer look at slide decks. We explore the things slides can do particularly well: supporting fast-paced review, vocabulary instruction, visual representations and pre-planned checks for understanding.

But we also look at the risks. What happens when the slide deck becomes the curriculum — or the plan itself? Does giving every teacher the same deck really create consistency? And what gets lost when static slides replace live modelling, rich texts, concrete materials or interactions with students?

This episode’s One Good Woman is Ruth Ashbee, teacher, school leader and author of Curriculum: Theory, Culture and the Subject Specialisms.

We discuss Ruth’s work on curriculum, knowledge and subject disciplines — and particularly the importance of thinking carefully about how curriculum and its resources work differently across subject areas.

Ruth Ashbee — Curriculum: Theory, Culture and the Subject Specialisms

Does teaching with PowerPoint increase students’ learning?

Baker, J. P., Goodboy, A. K., Bowman, N. D., & Wright, A. A. (2018). Does teaching with PowerPoint increase students’ learning? A meta-analysis. Computers & Education, 126, 376–387.

Read the study

This meta-analysis brought together 48 studies conducted over 22 years. Overall, students taught with PowerPoint did not demonstrate greater cognitive learning than students taught using traditional approaches. The authors argue that the more useful question is not simply whether PowerPoint is used, but how it is integrated into teaching to support learning.

Next Steps in Responsive Teaching

27 January 2027 | 9.30am–1.30pm

Register here

Heavy is the English Head

There are new eps coming soon on Emina’s other podcast.

Heavy is the English Head

If you’re enjoying Jones & McLean, we’d love you to follow the podcast and leave us a rating or review. Get in touch at [email protected]

For our first episode, we’re starting with the people at the heart of education: teachers.

We unpack the complexity of teachers’ work — the relentless decision-making, trade-offs and problem-solving that happen every day in classrooms — and ask why this complexity is so often underestimated by people outside schools.

We also take on the idea that teachers are “resistant to change”. What if resistance is sometimes reasonable scepticism, professional judgement, or an important signal that leaders should pay attention to?

Along the way, we talk about the surprisingly solitary nature of teaching, why building deep professional knowledge matters more than searching for quick fixes, and why we need to better value the wisdom and experience of teachers who have been in the profession for decades.

Plus, we introduce our regular segment “One Good Woman”, celebrating a woman in education whose work we think you should know.

Tasmania's Lifting Literacy work

Effective teacher professional development — Sam Sims and colleagues

Victorian Education Excellence Awards

Heavy is the English Head

Realising Responsive Teaching — 12 February 2027

Have an observation, question or issue in education you'd like us to explore?

We'd love to hear from you at [email protected]