Welcome to Crescendo Chat — the podcast where we explore inspiring ideas, passionate people, and the power of music education.

Today, I’m absolutely delighted to welcome Bernie Heard. Bernie is the Director of the Music in Me Teacher Mentoring Program with the Australian Youth Orchestra, where she leads a national team and works closely with state education systems to ensure primary teachers have access to mentoring, professional learning, and the resources they need to deliver high-quality music education.

Bernie’s career spans an incredible range of leadership roles — she has served as Executive Director of Gondwana Choirs, CEO of Sydney Youth Orchestras, and Artist Development Manager and Education Coordinator at the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, where she worked alongside Richard Gill AO for ten years.

Earlier in her career, Bernie was a music specialist educator in NSW schools and has also consulted for organizations such as the Australian Haydn Ensemble and Music in the Regions. She’s a Churchill Fellow, an Australia Council Emerging Leader, and recently completed an MBA at the University of Sydney. Her experience in governance, philanthropy, strategic partnerships, and building creative communities is nothing short of inspiring.

In this episode, we’ll dive into the story behind the Music in Me Teacher Mentoring Program — exploring how it started, the powerful legacy of Richard Gill, and how mentoring is transforming classroom music education across Australia. Bernie will also share the impact she’s seeing in schools, what it looks like when teachers and mentors work side-by-side, and how educators or school leaders can get involved.

Whether you’re a classroom teacher, music educator, or simply passionate about the future of arts education, this conversation will leave you feeling inspired and full of ideas.

Let’s jump in and welcome Bernie Heard.

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

• AYO Music In Me website: https://musicinme.au/
• Join our program: https://musicinme.au/join-our-program/
• Our research: https://musicinme.au/our-impact/research/

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

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Welcome back to the podcast! Today we continue our powerful conversation with Louka Parry, education futurist, learning strategist, and CEO of The Learning Future.

In Part 1, Louka shared how music education connects to education transformation and helps students build essential human capabilities. If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, be sure to go back—it sets the stage beautifully.

In this Part 2, we go even deeper. We explore how music education strengthens social-emotional learning (SEL), why future-ready skills matter more than ever, and how innovative learning environments can empower both teachers and students. Louka also shares global perspectives on cultural understanding, practical strategies for music educators, and inspiring advice on how to advocate for the importance of the arts in education reform.

If you’re an educator looking for ways to innovate, or someone curious about how music and education transformation intersect, this episode will challenge your thinking and spark new ideas.

Let’s dive into Part 2 with Louka Parry.

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

 Books & Authors

• “Lifelong Kindergarten” – Mitchel Resnick (MIT Media Lab)
• “Everything I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” – Robert Fulghum
• “The Disengaged Teen” – Jenny Anderson & Rebecca Winthrop
• “Emotional Intelligence” – Daniel Goleman (1995)
• John Dewey – quote: “We don’t learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience.”
• Abraham Maslow – Hierarchy of Needs; late-life addition of self-transcendence

Organisations, Programs & Initiatives

• The Learning Future – Louka Parry’s organisation
• Karanga: The Global Alliance for Social Emotional Learning and Life Skills – co-led by Louka
• CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning) – Chicago-based SEL organisation
• Harvard EASEL Lab – Ecological Approaches to SEL
• Yale’s RULER Program – emotional regulation framework, Prof. Marc Brackett
• OECD – reference to “non-cognitive skills”
• UNICEF – reference to “transversal skills”

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

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Welcome back to the podcast! Today we’re joined by someone who is truly reshaping the way we think about learning and the future of education—Louka Parry.

Louka is an education futurist, learning strategist, and the CEO and Founder of The Learning Future. His mission? To transform educational systems so they can better equip learners with the essential human capabilities they need to thrive in the world ahead. His work has taken him around the globe, collaborating with organizations like the OECD, UNESCO, Microsoft, and Apple.

Appointed as a school principal at just 27 years old, Louka was named South Australian Inspirational Public Secondary Teacher of the Year in 2012. He holds two Master’s degrees in Instructional Leadership and Applied Linguistics, speaks five languages, and has studied at both Harvard and Stanford’s d.school. He also co-leads Karanga: The Global Alliance for Social Emotional Learning and Life Skills, connecting educators worldwide to champion the power of SEL.

In this episode, we’ll explore how Louka’s insights into education transformation intersect with music education—a subject that is inherently human-centered. We’ll discuss how music contributes to the development of essential capabilities in learners, how it aligns with social-emotional learning, and how it prepares students with the future skills they need to navigate a rapidly changing world.

So, whether you’re a music educator seeking new strategies or simply passionate about the role of the arts in shaping humanity’s future, this conversation is packed with insights and inspiration you won’t want to miss.

Let’s dive in.

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

Books & Authors

• “Lifelong Kindergarten” by Mitchel Resnick (MIT Media Lab)
• “Everything I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” by Robert Fulghum (referred to as “everything I learned about life I learned in kindergarten”)
• “The Disengaged Teen” research/book by Jenny Anderson & Rebecca Winthrop

 Websites / Organisations / References

• The Learning Future (Louka’s organisation – he is founder & CEO)
• Karanga – The Global Alliance for Social Emotional Learning and Life Skills (co-led by Louka)

Mentions of Thinkers / Influences

• Sir Ken Robinson (referenced in relation to diversity of human expression in education)
• Professor John Hattie (University of Melbourne; referenced about reducing curriculum volume for deep learning)

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

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Welcome back to the podcast! Today we continue our inspiring conversation with Dr. Rhoda Bernard, the Founding Managing Director of the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education and Assistant Chair of the Music Education Department at Berklee College of Music.

In Part 1, Dr. Bernard shared her incredible journey in music education, her vision for accessible arts education, and a behind-the-scenes look at her upcoming book. If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, we highly recommend starting there—it sets the stage for today’s discussion.

In this second part, we dive even deeper. Dr. Bernard opens up about her current projects, offers practical advice for music educators, and shares powerful insights on advocacy, accessibility, and unleashing creativity in every student. She also leaves us with some incredible takeaways that will inspire and challenge educators to think differently about their teaching.

We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Bernard back for Part 2 of this conversation—let’s jump right in!

Stay in Contact with Rhoda:

• Linked In
• Facebook

Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Youtube

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

• Temple Grandin

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show

Welcome back to the podcast! Today, we are thrilled to be joined by a very special guest, Dr. Rhoda Bernard.

Dr. Bernard is the Founding Managing Director of the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education and the Assistant Chair of the Music Education Department at Berklee College of Music. Her academic journey is extraordinary — she earned a Bachelor of Arts in government from Harvard University, a Bachelor of Music in jazz voice from New England Conservatory, and both her Master of Education and Doctor of Education degrees from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

As a thought leader and advocate, Dr. Bernard regularly presents at conferences across the U.S. and internationally, and she provides professional development for educators around the globe. Her upcoming book, Accessible Arts Education: Principles, Habits, and Strategies to Unleash Every Student's Creativity and Learning, will be published in September 2025 and promises to be a transformative resource for teachers.

Dr. Bernard’s contributions have been widely recognized — she has received multiple awards, including the Irene Buck Service to Arts Education Award from Arts|Learning, the Berklee Urban Service Award, and others celebrating her impact on community service and arts education.

Beyond her leadership and advocacy work, Dr. Bernard is also an accomplished musician — a vocalist and pianist specializing in jazz and Jewish music — who performs regularly with klezmer bands and has recorded two CDs with the band Klezamir.

We are so honored to have her here today to share her expertise, her story, and her vision for accessible arts education.

Stay in Contact with Rhoda:

• Linked In
• Facebook

Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Youtube

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

• Temple Grandin

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show

Welcome back to Thriving in Challenging Schools. In our last episode, we looked at practical strategies to help you survive the day-to-day chaos. Today, we’re shifting the focus to something even more powerful: building relationships in crisis.

Because here’s the thing—sometimes your toughest students are also the ones most desperate for connection. I’ll never forget the Year 6 boy who asked me to marry him, or the one who swore he’d stolen and eaten the teacher’s pythons. These moments might sound funny—or completely outrageous—but behind them is the bigger question: How do we build trust and connection with kids who seem determined to push every boundary?

In this episode, we’re going to unpack three strategies to help you do just that:

• How to strategically include your biggest troublemakers in ways that change the game.
• How to meet kids where they are—rather than where we wish they were.
• And why giving responsibility first can be the key to earning real respect.

So if you’re ready to turn some of your greatest challenges into surprising allies, let’s dive in.

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show

Welcome back to Thriving in Challenging Schools. This is Episode 2 of our series, and today we’re diving into something every teacher in a tough environment needs: practical survival strategies.

Let me ask you this—what if I told you a coffee machine could actually save your sanity? Or that the secret to surviving a challenging school might already be sitting in the boot of your car? Sounds a bit crazy, right? But these are the kinds of real-world, low-cost, zero-permission-needed strategies that can make the difference between just scraping through the day and actually keeping your joy and creativity alive.

In this episode, we’ll talk about three practical tools you can start using right away:

• How to create your own little “islands of civility” during the school day.
• Why having a Plan B in your back pocket can be a lifesaver when chaos strikes.
• And how to simplify lessons when the wheels fall off, so you can focus on what really matters.

These aren’t theories or big policy changes—they’re strategies you can put into action today, without needing anyone’s approval. So grab your coffee (or your emergency stash of drumsticks!) and let’s explore some simple but powerful ways to not just survive, but thrive, in even the most challenging school settings.

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show

Are you finding that behaviour management is becoming more and more difficult? Every year, schools seem to include a greater number of children with special needs, often with little or no additional support. If you want to hear what I’m doing, the changes I’m making, and the mindset shifts that are helping me stay afloat after 40 years in education — then you’re in exactly the right place.

This episode is about how we can reset, reframe, and rebuild our confidence — not by chasing perfection, but by mastering our mindset. Over the next 12–15 minutes, I’ll share three practical shifts that are helping me navigate the toughest teaching environments yet:

• Reframing obstacles as opportunities to grow,
• Focusing on what I can control,
• And celebrating those small, but powerful, micro-wins that remind us why we keep showing up.

So grab a notebook, settle in, and let’s talk about what it really takes to keep going — with courage, with creativity, and with a mindset that works for us, not against us.

Resources Mentioned:

• Joy Jar FREE Download

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show

Welcome back to The Crescendo Music Education Podcast! If you tuned in to Part 1 of our conversation with Joel Copeland, you already know what a powerful and grounded voice he brings to the world of music education and leadership. And if you haven’t listened to that episode yet—press pause and go back! It’s packed with stories and insights that lay the foundation for what we’re diving into today.

In this second part, we go even deeper into Joel’s journey—especially his experience becoming a nationally certified Lead Teacher and how that process shifted his view of influence, impact, and leadership. You’ll hear his reflections on the true role of Highly Accomplished and Lead Teachers, why leadership is about connection rather than position, and how advocacy plays a vital role in sustaining music programs across the country.

He also shares some practical advice for music educators navigating the day-to-day—and a few “nuggets of fabulous” that might just reframe how you use your time and energy this week.

Whether you're a classroom teacher, a school leader, or somewhere in between, Joel’s voice is one we all need to hear.

Let’s jump back in. Here’s Part 2 of our chat with Joel Copeland.

Resources Mentioned:

• Dr. Anita Collins - Bigger Better Brains

Connect with Joel: 

• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-copeland/ 

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show

Hey friends, and welcome back to the Crescendo Music Education Podcast —the podcast where we explore the heart and craft of music education, one inspiring conversation at a time.

Today’s episode is a special one. I had the privilege of hearing our guest speak at the HALT Summit in Canberra, and his keynote left a lasting impression. There was something about the way he spoke—grounded, clear, and deeply human—that stayed with me. He reminded us that impact doesn’t end at the classroom walls… in fact, that’s often where it begins.

Joel Copeland is a distinguished music educator and leader, currently serving as the Principal of the ACT Instrumental Music Program. He’s led music programs across diverse educational settings, served as National President of Kodály Australia, and in 2021, he earned national certification as a Lead Teacher—a significant milestone that’s shaped his approach to leadership and influence.

Whether you’re a music teacher, a school leader, or just someone who believes in the quiet power of connection, this episode is filled with wisdom, encouragement, and a few “nuggets of fabulous” you won’t want to miss.

Let’s get into it. Here’s my conversation with Joel Copeland.

Resources Mentioned:

• Dr. Anita Collins - Bigger Better Brains

Connect with Joel: 

• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-copeland/ 

Where to find me: 

Crescendo Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/crescendocommunity
Official Crescendo Page: https://www.facebook.com/CrescendoMusicEd/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrescendoMusicEd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/crescendomusic
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-o-shea-62a3741b/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/CrescendoDeb

Support the show