Primal Learning

Steve Shaw – a teacher’s perspective after almost 50 years in the classroom.

In this episode of Primal Learning I am thrilled to interview Steve Shaw, a colleague who started his career in 1971. Steve is an enthusiastic, committed, professional teacher and I was fascinated to hear his views around our profession, about his own journey, the changes that he has witnessed in terms of how students learn, how teacher are perceived in society, and what continues to keep him excited about teaching and learning.

In this episode of Primal Learning Damien Interviews Jo Godmon, to explore the world of Teacher recruitment. Jo specialises in this area of recruitment, is based in   Brisbane, but services the entire country. Together we’ll provide some helpful tips for teachers who may be looking for a new role, or for University graduates who are trying to secure their first posting. We discuss the do’s and don’ts of cover letters, resumes, interviews and general presentation.

In this episode of Primal Learning Damien interviews Emma Langdon, an early career teacher. Listen to some wonderful insights into what she has learnt these past few years in the classroom, what she wishes she had learnt at University in preparation for the classroom, and what advice she would give to anyone about to embark on a career in the classroom.

In this episode join Damien Barry as he explores the benefits of unstructured outside play to the physical and emotional health of children. He also examines a thing called nature-deficit disorder and what we can do to address it.

In this episode of Primal Learning, Damien explores the pros and cons of homework. He poses the question as to the place of homework in modern day life. Listen to some useful strategies for creating a suitable homework environment and the best ways to avoid distractions and the optimum time per night/week that should be devoted to homework across the schooling time span.

In this episode of Primal Learning join Damien Barry as he interviews his own teenage son, Tasman and asks the tough questions to gain some insight into the hopes, dreams and fears of a typical teenage boy. Together they explore the key topics such as alcohol, drugs, friendships, school and teachers.

In this episode of Primal Learning, Damien interviews his son who is a typical Year 8 student, and 13 years of age.  Together they explore the positives and negatives of home based learning during the Covid-19 social restrictions. Interesting reflections from the perspective of a student are highlighted, and a few insights into what we can all take away from this experience are provided.

In this episode join Damien Barry as he explores the findings from a recently released piece of research from the Gonski institute called 'Growing up Digital'.  It provides some important statistics around the negative impact of digital technologies upon academic outcomes and mental wellbeing of students.

In this Episode Damien explores the causes and possible solutions to teacher stress. Mental health of teachers has been deteriorating in recent years but there are things we can do to address this trend. This includes looking at organisational change even more so than individual actions taken by teachers.

In this episode Damien explores the world of adolescence and how parents can better understand and connect with the adolescent in their life. Enjoy tip suggestions for engaging with your school, teachers and learning in general. Learn some great strategies as well as some shortcuts in this engaging educational podcast.