Pamela Snow

Teachers have clearly indicated their appetite for backfilling missing knowledge about the reading process & optimal instructional approaches. Feedback from ~1K on ⁦@latrobe⁩ online short courses reported here. #OpenAccess. Ping ⁦@BenCarrollMP⁩ tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.10…

A “cautionary tale of adopting practices at scale without rigorous evidence to support them”. Fantastic review of the history of Running Records. Let’s stick to the evidence from now on!

Well done @AnnieMaryUnger! This first publication from your @latrobe PhD is a deep dive into the history of #RunningRecords & their extraordinary uptake in spite of their evidence-void. This is a major contribution to the history books with many contemporary lessons. @ehanford

Remember Tasmania's "Angry Farmer", Marshall Roberts? He writes the type of student-centred, deeply intellectual pieces about reading instruction and support (at classroom and system-levels) that *should* be penned by education academics. merchantsofilliteracy.net/news/2025/07/w…

US research agencies supporting the work of schools have been axed/defunded in recent months. In Australia, ⁦@EdResearchAU⁩ is supported by federal, state, & territory govt’s but is not to all academics’ ideological liking. *Teachers* have your say! insightssurvey.kpmg.com.au/wix/p322525561…

I’d say we generally overestimate what students can do when introducing new material by not breaking it down enough, which penalizes struggling students. But we *underestimate* what students can do in terms of their behavior in class, which, again, penalizes struggling students.

Does Cognitive Load Theory matter to you; teaching explicitly and taking responsibility for students’ learning?

Reading a fascinating new article on the origins of Project‑Based Learning and how Kilpatrick was really a clever opportunist. Even Dewey thought he was wrong. tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.10…

New #openaccess piece by Sarah Duggan from @EducationHQ_AU on debate concerning the use of evidence in classrooms. @EdResearchAU is a tax-payer funded service to schools, to support teachers & students. Our US colleagues will be shaking their heads at us. educationhq.com/news/school-le…

Open plan classrooms are another example of education’s low bar for seeking & appraising evidence and of an unethical, uncontrolled experiment on children, who don’t get lost instructional time back. How many bad ideas need an outing to end the free-for-all? @EdResearchAU

"While open-plan designs were originally intended to foster collaboration, they have often created challenges for schools, particularly around noise and managing student behaviour.”

Those Kiwis are ahead of us Aussies again, this time on seeing off open-plan classrooms - not fit for purpose and actually counter-productive. 1news.co.nz/2025/07/16/no-…

I’m reminded of a good friend who was critical of those he called “ed reformers second” meaning they’re political partisans first. I got into education to serve kids interests, not a party’s.

This post speaks to a kind of collective maturity that is also unfortunately lacking in many respects in Australia. In particular it’s time to put “neoliberalism” to bed. It’s not an argument. It’s a rhetorical flourish.

Sitting in an airport lounge listening to a senior staff member support a newbie on how to carry out key tasks. What did I hear/see? Explicit steps, repeated; a demonstration, checking for understanding & even a non-example. Plenty of time for some PBL once the basics are nailed.

PaTTan just published thier 2025 virtual math conference sessions on YouTube. Lots of great information from fantastic math researchers including @MrZachG @pjr146 @rastokke @rscodding

I have been writing about problems with the multiple strategy approach for teaching math for > 10 years now. This is from a piece I wrote for the Globe & Mail 11 years ago. The headline writer titled it "Let 3 sticks represent 30 & other Neaderthal math methods" @mikesully97…

What a treat to spend 2 days with the fabulous team at #BradshawPrimary in #AliceSprings & meet two recent ⁦@latrobe⁩ Bendigo graduates Maddie & Zoe, providing high quality explicit teaching & thriving in this culture of low variance & strong support for grad teachers 🚀

Aussie Teachers: Please complete this short survey about @EdResearchAU It's really important that teachers' voices are heard in regards to the work that AERO is doing. insightssurvey.kpmg.com.au/wix/p322525561…

Those in Australian education who want to see off ⁦@EdResearchAU⁩ should be very careful what they wish for, as our US colleague ⁦@bmkruse3⁩ reminds us here 👇 megankruse.edublogs.org/2025/07/13/the…

Thanks for this thoughtful & generous reflection Megan. This especially resonated: “Although this is an Australian issue, it feels frighteningly familiar, does it not?  We certainly have our own educational issues and dissolution of educational funding right here in the US”.