The Art of Teaching

Ep 254: Michelle Micheal: The story behind NSWEduChat and supporting one million learners through crisis and change.

Michelle Michael is an internationally recognised education leader specialising in digital innovation and artificial intelligence in education. With more than 30 years of experience across schools, government and global advisory contexts, she brings a rare blend of strategic insight and practical implementation. As a former Director in the NSW Department of Education, Michelle played a pivotal role in shaping the state’s response to generative AI. She led the development and launch of NSWEduChat, one of the largest system-wide AI initiatives in education, supporting teachers and leaders to engage with emerging technologies thoughtfully and responsibly. She also led major reforms including the Effective Use of Mobile Devices Strategy and served as Director of Learning from Home, supporting more than one million students and teachers during COVID. Michelle has advised governments internationally, presented to the OECD and shared the stage with global education leaders, including Sir Ken Robinson. Her leadership has been recognised with NSW Premier’s and Australian College of Educators awards. A Fellow of Women in AI and EdSafe AI Alliance in New York, Michelle now works across a portfolio of roles. She is a Beachhead Advisor to New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, a casual academic at Macquarie University, founder of her own education consultancy and a Non Executive Director with Young Change Agents. Michelle’s work sits at the intersection of innovation, ethics and impact, helping education systems navigate complexity with clarity and care.

Ep 253: Kerrie Quee: A 40-Year Commitment to Equity and Excellence in Public Education

Kerrie Quee is a nationally accredited Highly Accomplished teacher with over 40 years of classroom experience. Kerrie has a strong commitment to equity in education, inspiring the next generation of teachers and leading teacher professional growth. She works as an EAL/D Education Leader for the Department of Education, supporting schools to strengthen evidence-informed pedagogy and improve outcomes for multilingual learners.

Kerrie also works as an academic at Western Sydney University (WSU), contributing to the development of pre-service teachers through tutorials and as a senior advisor during professional experience.

In addition, Kerrie is a NESA HALT Assessor and a NSW HALT Association board member, working with Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher applicants across NSW. She is passionate about recognising and elevating exemplary practice, mentoring teachers through the accreditation process and strengthening professional standards across the system.

Ep: 252: Olli-Pekka Heinonen: From Finland’s Minister of Education to Director General of the International Baccalaureate

Today’s guest is Olli-Pekka Heinonen, one of the significant voices in global education and a leader who has spent decades shaping how the world thinks about learning.

Olli-Pekka is the Director General of the International Baccalaureate, guiding a worldwide community of schools committed to developing curious, capable and principled young people. Before stepping into this global role, he served as Finland’s Minister of Education and Culture and later as State Secretary, playing a key part in the evolution of Finland’s internationally respected education system.

He is also the author of Learning as if Life Depended on It, a powerful reflection on why education must help us see the world anew. Drawing on Finnish heritage, statesmanship and a deep understanding of global challenges, Olli-Pekka explores what it means to move beyond being overtrained and undereducated, and why learning is central to the future of humanity itself.

In this conversation, we explore leadership, identity, global responsibility, and what it truly means to educate for a world that is changing faster than any curriculum ever could.

It’s thoughtful, expansive, and quietly urgent. A conversation that reminds us why this work matters so much.

Ep 251: Heidi Horne:The One-Minute Reset and how do find calm in the chaos.

Heidi Horne is a Stress Strategist, keynote speaker, and Wiley author of The One-Minute Reset, available across Australia. For close to 20 years, she’s worked in high-pressure environments where burnout is common and attention is constantly pulled in a hundred directions.

Heidi believes that when stress hits, we don’t need more theory or another long program. We need something simple, practical, and backed by science. Her work focuses on powerful resets that take 60 seconds or less and can be used right in the moment, before stress hijacks focus, performance, or well-being.

Trusted by organisations including Bupa, Rydges, and Cisco, Heidi is also a regular voice across television, radio, and print media. She helps people and teams find calm and clarity when the pressure is real, not later, but right there in it.

Ep: 250: Natalie Towns: Being present, her favourite teacher and advice for new teachers.

Natalie is a passionate and enthusiastic teacher who shares her journey and key takeaways from a career in education spanning decades. Having taught across a wide range of year levels, she reflects on the insights, strategies and practical tools she has gathered along the way. In this conversation, we explore what experience really teaches you about the craft of teaching. Whether you’re early in your career or a seasoned educator, Natalie’s hope is that teachers feel supported, inspired and genuinely valued in the work they do every day.

Ep 249: Katharine Birbalsingh, Britain’s Strictest Headmistress on school culture and high expectations.

Today on The Art of Teaching, I’m joined by Katharine Birbalsingh, one of the most talked-about and uncompromising voices in education. As headteacher of Michaela Community School, Katharine has challenged long-held assumptions about behaviour, curriculum and equity, advocating for high expectations, explicit teaching and a knowledge-rich education for every child. In this conversation, we explore school culture, discipline, leadership and what it really takes to create classrooms where all students can thrive.

Ep 248: Jim Knight: The Impact Cycle, Instructional Coaching and how to have better conversations.

Today on the podcast, I’m joined by Jim Knight, one of the most influential voices in instructional coaching anywhere in the world.

Jim is the founder of the Instructional Coaching Group and the creator of the Impact Cycle, a practical, research-informed framework that has shaped how schools think about coaching, professional growth and instructional improvement. His work has supported thousands of teachers, coaches and school leaders to focus on what matters most, improving teaching in ways that genuinely lift student learning.

Jim has authored several landmark books, including Instructional Coaching, Better Conversations and The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching. What sets his work apart is its clarity, its respect for teachers, and its unwavering belief that professional learning works best when it is collaborative, focused and deeply human.

In this conversation, we explore what great coaching really looks like in practice, why relationships sit at the heart of improvement, and how leaders can create the conditions for meaningful growth rather than compliance. It’s a thoughtful, practical discussion that speaks directly to teachers, coaches and school leaders at every stage of their journey.

Let’s get into it.

Ep: 247: Tim Bullard Leading AITSL, setting the standard and why great teaching will always matter.

Today I'm joined by Tim Bullard, a leader whose career spans law, public policy and large-scale education reform. Tim began his professional life as a lawyer before moving into senior policy roles in Australia and the United Kingdom. Over more than a decade with the Department of Premier and Cabinet in Tasmania, he played a key role in major national reforms, including the development of Child and Family Learning Centres and the negotiations around the Gonski schools funding agreement. In 2016, Tim joined the Tasmanian Department of Education and later became Secretary of the Department for Education, Children and Young People, where he led the integration of education, child safety and youth justice into a single values-based system focused on ensuring every child and young person is known, safe, well and learning. Most recently, Tim has been appointed CEO of the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, @aitsleduau, commencing October 2024. It’s a thoughtful conversation about leadership at scale, the complexity of education systems, and what it takes to build structures that truly support teachers, schools and young people.

Ep: 246: Natalie Kradolfer: Why Arts education matters more than we think.

Natalie, co-founder of Amplify Music Education, sits at the meeting point of music, education and entrepreneurship. From being the kid who woke early every Saturday to watch Rage, collecting CDs, vinyl and ticket stubs, to helping build a national organisation championing high-quality music education, her story is shaped by curiosity, persistence and a deep conviction that music matters.

In this conversation, we explore what music offers young people beyond technique and theory, why school leaders need to rethink the place of the arts, and what it takes to build something meaningful from the ground up. Natalie brings a grounded honesty, quiet optimism and a practical, solutions-focused way of thinking that lingers long after the conversation ends.

If you care about creativity, leadership and creating schools where music is valued for the role it plays in students’ lives and communities, this is a conversation worth spending time with.

Ep: 245: Professor Viviane Robinson: The power of student-centred leadership.

I’m joined today by Professor Viviane Robinson, one of the most influential thinkers in educational leadership. This is the second time that I have the privilege of speaking with her.

Viviane is the author of Student-Centred Leadership, a book that has quietly but powerfully reshaped how school leaders around the world think about their work. At its heart is a deceptively simple question: What leaders do, day to day, that genuinely makes a difference to students.

In this upcoming conversation, we explore what student-centred leadership really demands in practice. Not the slogans or surface-level frameworks, but the hard choices, the relational work, and the moments where leaders have to keep learning at the centre, even when the pressure is on. We discuss trust, instructional leadership, goal setting, and why well-intentioned leaders can sometimes stray from the very students they aim to serve.

It’s a thoughtful, challenging, and deeply practical conversation for anyone leading in schools or considering a leadership role. One to sit with, reflect on, and return to as you think about impact and purpose in your own leadership work.