Magnify Matters

Teaching a child to read is one of the most powerful things we can do.

In this episode of Magnify Matters, host Tim Edwards, Assistant Director: Learning and Teaching at Catholic Education Sandhurst, is joined by Robyn Wheldall and Iain Rothwell from MultiLit, to discuss their mission: making sure every child in every school has access to high-quality, evidence-based literacy instruction.

Now celebrating its 30th year, MultiLit is one of Australia’s most trusted names in reading instruction, grounded in the science of learning, shaped by research, and focused on outcomes that matter.

In this episode, we explore:

• The story behind MultiLit’s 30-year journey — from a university research project to 6,500+ schools
• Why early literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning
• How MultiLit’s tiered programs are reducing the number of struggling readers
• The importance of system-level change — and why whole-school implementation matters
• MultiLit’s work in Closing the Gap with 42 majority-Indigenous schools
• And what’s next in improving literacy in our country

Whether you're a classroom teacher, school leader, or parent invested in the future of learning, this episode offers powerful insight into the kind of instruction that transforms lives.

Now stay with us as we magnify what truly matters. 

Mentioned in this episode

• Magnify Sandhurst
• Catholic Education Sandhurst  
• MultiLit

MultiLit is a private company which was spun out of Macquarie University in 2006. MultiLit is a leading provider of effective literacy instruction in Australasia. Its programs are uniquely placed to be effective because they are all grounded in scientific evidence-based best practice. As a result of being a research initiative of Macquarie University, MultiLit’s publications, professional development and Literacy Centre are continually informed by an ongoing program of research. The research team is led by Emeritus Professor Kevin Wheldall AM. For three decades, MultiLit has provided assistance to thousands of students in a variety of settings, including schools, its own Literacy Centres and community-based literacy projects across Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

Catholic Education Sandhurst rolled out Magnify Sandhurst, an evidence-informed, science of learning school improvement initiative, to its 51 Catholic schools across the Sandhurst Diocese at the beginning of 2025. Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns, how literacy is effectively taught, uses a low variance, knowledge-rich curriculum and the creation of positive classrooms. Our practice is calm, predictable, and repeatable to maximise learning time in all classrooms. Magnify Sandhurst is deliberately bold and wide-ranging, generating whole-of-system improvement.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst is home to 56 Catholic schools across Central and North Eastern Victoria, educating 19,750 students. We partner with schools, students and families to provide innovation and excellence in education, inspired by the Catholic story. 

Visit www.ceosand.catholic.edu.au or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

Imagine if teachers were able to save time developing learning materials from scratch. Well, with the right tools and trusted content, every teacher can focus on what matters most: their students.

In this episode of Magnify Matters, we dive into curriculum design, teacher collaboration and the power of shared expertise with Caroline Reed and Dr Reid Smith, co-founders and co-CEOs of Ochre Education, a not-for-profit organisation supporting over 110,000 teachers across 90% of Australian schools.

Host Tim Edwards speaks with Caroline and Reid about how Ochre Education is working to close the disadvantage gap by providing free, high-quality, evidence-informed teaching resources, and why partnering with teachers is at the heart of it all.

In this episode, we explore:

• The origin story of Ochre Education and the values that drive its mission
• What we mean by knowledge-rich, low-variance curriculum
• How Ochre’s lesson creation process supports teachers as both experts and collaborators
• The concept of intellectual preparation, responsive teaching and supporting all learners
• Ochre’s growing partnership with Magnify Sandhurst, and the shared vision behind it.

Whether you’re a teacher, school leader or curious parent, this conversation offers deep insight into the future of curriculum and teacher development — one lesson at a time.

Now stay with us as we magnify what truly matters. 

Mentioned in this episode

• Magnify Sandhurst
• Catholic Education Sandhurst  
• Ochre Education

Ochre Education are a national not-for-profit committed to advancing student outcomes and closing the disadvantage gap by supporting teachers to teach and enabling all Australian students to access a high-quality curriculum, through our online library.

Ochre Education achieve this by working with a community of teachers to develop and support the use of an expertly-sequenced curriculum, alongside a comprehensive library that collects, curates and distributes free, evidence-based, quality-assured, and curriculum-linked teaching resources, to be adapted and used by any teacher anywhere. 

Catholic Education Sandhurst rolled out Magnify Sandhurst, an evidence-informed, science of learning school improvement initiative, to its 51 Catholic schools across the Sandhurst Diocese at the beginning of 2025. Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns, how literacy is effectively taught, uses a low variance, knowledge-rich curriculum and the creation of positive classrooms. Our practice is calm, predictable, and repeatable to maximise learning time in all classrooms. Magnify Sandhurst is deliberately bold and wide-ranging, generating whole-of-system improvement.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst is home to 56 Catholic schools across Central and North Eastern Victoria, educating 19,750 students. We partner with schools, students and families to provide innovation and excellence in education, inspired by the Catholic story. 

Visit www.ceosand.catholic.edu.au or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

What happens when we combine evidence-informed practice, high quality coaching and specific models for reference? You get transformation at scale. 

In this episode of Magnify Matters, host Tim Edwards sits down with educator, author and podcast host Ollie Lovell, now Director of StepLab Australia - a powerful platform helping teachers embed better practice, every day. 

StepLab is one of the key partners of Magnify Sandhurst, supporting over 120 teachers and leaders in our first wave of professional development. Together, Tim and Ollie explore how instructional coaching, aligned teaching techniques, and a deep understanding of how learning works can transform teacher development; not by doing more, but by doing what matters most. 

In this episode, we explore: 

• How Ollie turned his passion for education research into a globally recognised podcast 
• What makes StepLab different from typical professional development 
• Why instructional coaching leads to lasting, teacher-led change 
• The science behind StepLab’s model 
• How the partnership is helping to build sustainable, system-wide improvement in Catholic Education Sandhurst 
• What it really means to empower teachers - not just support them 

Whether you are in the classroom, leading a team, or shaping education strategy, this conversation offers practical insight into the future of professional learning — one deliberate step at a time. 

Now stay with us as we magnify what truly matters. 

Mentioned in this episode

• Magnify Sandhurst
• Catholic Education Sandhurst  
• ERRR Podcast
• Ollie Lovell
• StepLab
• The science behind Steplab: how it includes all 14 mechanisms of effective PD

Ollie Lovell is a Melbourne-based educator with over a decade of classroom and leadership experience. He’s the host of the Education Research Reading Room podcast (2M+ downloads), and the author of Cognitive Load Theory in Action, Tools for Teachers, and The Classroom Management Handbook. As Director of StepLab Australia, Ollie is helping school systems across the country translate evidence into practice — one teacher at a time.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst rolled out Magnify Sandhurst, an evidence-informed, science of learning school improvement initiative, to its 51 Catholic schools across the Sandhurst Diocese at the beginning of 2025. Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns, how literacy is effectively taught, uses a low variance, knowledge-rich curriculum and the creation of positive classrooms. Our practice is calm, predictable, and repeatable to maximise learning time in all classrooms. Magnify Sandhurst is deliberately bold and wide-ranging, generating whole-of-system improvement.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst is home to 56 Catholic schools across Central and North Eastern Victoria, educating 19,750 students. We partner with schools, students and families to provide innovation and excellence in education, inspired by the Catholic story. 

Visit www.ceosand.catholic.edu.au or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

Before we teach, we need to understand how people learn — and why it matters more than ever.  

In this episode of Magnify Matters, host Tim Edwards, Assistant Director: Learning and Teaching at Catholic Education Sandhurst, speaks with renowned cognitive neuroscientist and educator Dr Jared Cooney Horvath to explore how understanding the science of learning can empower teachers and transform classrooms. 

Jared’s work sits at the intersection of brain science and education - and his message is clear: the art of teaching is at its best when informed by the science of learning. 

In this episode, we explore: 

• Why relationships are not an “add-on”, they are education.
• What brain science reveals about learning, memory and classroom connection. 
• How teacher agency and curriculum design work hand in hand. 
• Why learning must come before creativity and critical thinking. 
• The cognitive cost of multitasking.  
• And the guiding principles from Jared’s bestselling book ‘Stop Talking, Start Influencing’. 

Whether you’re a classroom teacher, school leader or someone curious about the future of learning, this conversation will reframe how you see teaching, students and yourself.  

So with that, let’s dive in — and magnify what matters most. 

Mentioned in this episode

• Magnify Sandhurst
• Catholic Education Sandhurst  
• LME Global
• Stop Talking, Start Influencing

Dr Jared Cooney Horvath is a cognitive neuroscientist and educator with expertise in human learning, memory, and brain stimulation. He is the co-founder of LME Global, a company dedicated to bringing the Science of Learning to schools and learning communities worldwide. Jared has published four books, including the bestseller 'Stop Talking, Start Influencing', and has been featured in The New York Times, WIRED, and The Economist. Jared is passionate about bridging the gap between laboratory research and classroom practice, helping teachers and students achieve better outcomes through applied brain science.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst rolled out Magnify Sandhurst, an evidence-informed, science of learning school improvement initiative, to its 51 Catholic schools across the Sandhurst Diocese at the beginning of 2025. Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns, how literacy is effectively taught, uses a low variance, knowledge-rich curriculum and the creation of positive classrooms. Our practice is calm, predictable, and repeatable to maximise learning time in all classrooms. Magnify Sandhurst is deliberately bold and wide-ranging, generating whole-of-system improvement.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst is home to 56 Catholic schools across Central and North Eastern Victoria, educating 19,750 students. We partner with schools, students and families to provide innovation and excellence in education, inspired by the Catholic story. 

Visit www.ceosand.catholic.edu.au or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

Every great story has a beginning, and this one started with a single question: how can we do better for every student, in every classroom, every day? 

In this very first episode of Magnify Matters, we take you behind the scenes of Magnify Sandhurst — a bold, system-wide intervention designed to strengthen teacher practice, improve learner growth and create more equitable outcomes for all students across Sandhurst Diocese. 

Catholic Education Sandhurst Executive Director Kate Fogarty and Assistant Director: Learning & Teaching Tim Edwards, join host Kimberley Furness to share how a simple conversation about literacy sparked a movement that now includes world-class partners, research-backed frameworks, and over 2,800 educators working together in solidarity. 

In this episode, we explore: 

• Why a trip to Cambridge led to bold thinking back home. 
• What happened when 60+ literacy programs were reduced to one aligned approach. 
• How the science of learning, structured literacy and behavioural clarity came together.
• Why equity, access and teacher agency were at the centre of every decision. 
• How Magnify Sandhurst is setting a new standard for rural and regional education.

Whether you’re an educator, a parent, or someone curious about what’s possible when schools work together with purpose, stay with us as we magnify what truly matters. 

Mentioned in this episode

• Magnify Sandhurst
• Catholic Education Sandhurst

Catholic Education Sandhurst rolled out Magnify Sandhurst, an evidence-informed, science of learning school improvement initiative, to its 51 Catholic schools across the Sandhurst Diocese at the beginning of 2025. Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns, how literacy is effectively taught, uses a low variance, knowledge-rich curriculum and the creation of positive classrooms. Our practice is calm, predictable, and repeatable to maximise learning time in all classrooms. Magnify Sandhurst is deliberately bold and wide-ranging, generating whole-of-system improvement.  

Catholic Education Sandhurst is home to 56 Catholic schools across Central and North Eastern Victoria, educating 19,750 students. We partner with schools, students and families to provide innovation and excellence in education, inspired by the Catholic story. 

Visit www.ceosand.catholic.edu.au or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. 

First episode drops Monday 28 April 2025.

Welcome to Magnify Matters, a podcast proudly produced by Catholic Education Sandhurst.

Magnify Sandhurst is a bold, evidence-informed initiative designed to bring system-wide improvement to teaching and learning across 51 Catholic schools in the Sandhurst Diocese.

Grounded in the science of learning, Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns best, how literacy is effectively taught, and how calm, predictable classrooms can maximise learning time for every student.

We’ll be sharing our story and speaking with educational leaders from our world class partners; organisations like StepLab, Ochre Education, MultiLit, the Knowledge Society and LME Global.

You’ll get a front row seat to hear from respected educators as they work with us to create lasting change for every student, every teacher, every school, every day in Sandhurst.

This won’t just be academic, you’ll hear from people involved at all points of the project - the joys, the trials and tribulations of those of us working together to ensure lasting learner growth across every school, for every teacher and every student, on every day.

Make sure to follow the show so you never miss an episode. And if you’ve enjoyed what you hear, let us know by leaving a review or connecting with us online @catholiceducationsandhurst

Now stay with us, as we magnify what truly matters.

Catholic Education Sandhurst rolled out Magnify Sandhurst, an evidence-informed, science of learning school improvement initiative, to its 51 Catholic schools across the Sandhurst Diocese at the beginning of 2025. Magnify Sandhurst focuses on how the brain learns, how literacy is effectively taught, uses a low variance, knowledge-rich curriculum and the creation of positive classrooms. Our practice is calm, predictable, and repeatable to maximise learning time in all classrooms. Magnify Sandhurst is deliberately bold and wide-ranging, generating whole-of-system improvement.

Catholic Education Sandhurst is home to 51 Catholic schools across regional Victoria, educating more than 15,000 students. We empower regional young people, their families, our staff and communities to have 'life to the full' (John 10:10).

Visit www.ceosand.catholic.edu.au or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.