In this episode, we speak to Associate Professor Erica Southgate about the importance of teacher involvement in the design and implementation of AI in schools, and some potential benefits and risks of emerging technologies in classrooms.

Erica is a teacher-educator, researcher and Associate Professor of Emerging Technologies for Education at the University of Newcastle. Erica is the lead author of the recent Australian Government commissioned report: 'Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies in Schools' (2019) and a maker of award-winning computer games for literacy learning. To find out more about Erica's research please visit www.ericasouthgateonline.wordpress.com. If you are a teacher, school leader or policymaker who would like to be interviewed for Erica's research into the ethics of AI in education, Erica invites you to connect with her via email ([email protected]).

Transcript available at https://bit.ly/edspressosouthgate.

How can educators help prepare learners to thrive in world augmented by artificial intelligence? And should education be preparing to disrupt technology design rather than being disrupted by it? In this episode, now-retired department Deputy Secretary Leslie Loble speaks with Professor Genevieve Bell and Dr Amy McLennan from the 3A Institute (3Ai) at the Australian National University. Together, they discuss how education might help to shape technology design and how the education system can create and support the next generation of designers.

Genevieve Bell is the Director of 3Ai and a cultural anthropologist, technologist and futurist. Amy McLennan is a Research Fellow at 3Ai and brings knowledge of medical anthropology to work on the intersections of technology, society and wellbeing. Leslie Loble led strategy, reform and innovation in Australia's largest and most diverse education sector for nearly two decades, until her recent retirement as Deputy Secretary.

Transcript available at https://bit.ly/edspresso3Ai

How could teachers, from a variety of disciplines, develop students' computational thinking skills? In this episode Matt Bower spoke to us about a variety of ways to develop students computational thinking skills, beyond teaching students to code. Matt is an Associate Professor from the Department of Educational Studies at Macquarie University, and he is currently focused on effectively developing the computational thinking capabilities of children and teachers. Transcript available at http://bit.ly/edspressobower.

How could teaching philosophical inquiry to primary school students enable them to develop confidence and quality reasoning skills? In this episode we spoke to Kate Kennedy White who makes the case for using philosophical inquiry in the classroom, as early as possible, to teach reasoning skills and empower young learners with the confidence to speak out and say what they think, supporting their development into democratic citizens. Kate is a specialised philosophy teacher at Bondi Public School, and Director of Kinder Philosophy. Transcript available at http://bit.ly/edspressokennedywhite.

Which practices could best teach all students how to think and learn? In this episode we spoke to Professor Anat Zohar who shares her insights into how teachers in Israeli schools approach teaching critical thinking. Early in her career, Anat completed a teacher's certificate in biology and through her research she became an expert in the education system in Israel; she is the Director of the Center for Teachers' Learning and Development at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Transcript available at http://bit.ly/edspressozohar.

We bid a fond farewell to Leslie Loble as Deputy Secretary in the department in this special episode recorded before Leslie's retirement in July. In conversation with Kelly Stephens, Director of Strategic Education Reform and Policy, Leslie reflects on some highlights and key learnings from 20 years driving education policy reform in New South Wales. Leslie also reflects on some key lessons education could take from responses to COVID-19, and her hopes for the future of education in Australia. Transcript available at https://bit.ly/Edspresso_14.

Why is it so rare to hear people use the words 'love' and 'maths' in the same sentence? And why might teaching computational thinking be a key to reinvigorating students' love of maths? To find out we spoke to Professor Richard Buckland. Richard's research focuses on developing strong learning environments using non-mark based motivation, to support students to excel at school and university. Transcript available at: http://bit.ly/edspressobuckland.

How young is too young to develop metacognitive skills? And how can we foster environments in the classroom to enable metacognitive skill development? To find out, we asked Dr Shirley Larkin, a Senior Lecturer at the Graduate School of Education, University of Exeter. Shirley discusses her research in educational psychology, which focuses on how primary aged students develop metacognition to enable them to learn in their own way, for their own purposes throughout life. Transcript available at http://bit.ly/edspressolarkin

How could the magic of picture books be used to enable the development of critical thinking skills? Mary makes the case for using children's picture books to teach critical thinking skills to younger learners. Transcript available at: http://bit.ly/edspressoroche

This special episode features a conversation between Leslie Loble, Deputy Secretary, External Affairs and Regulation, and Simon Longstaff, Executive Director of the Ethics Centre. They discuss the importance of ethics in an age of rapid technological advancement and how education can help to develop strong ethical reasoning skills in young people. Transcript available at: http://bit.ly/edspressoep10