Emma & Tom Talk Teaching

Emma O'Dubhchair & Tom Breeze
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We’re Emma (PGCE Secondary Drama) and Tom (PGCE Secondary Music) from Cardiff Metropolitan University. Welcome to our podcast, in which we muse about the joys of working with student teachers, the expressive arts, research, and teaching in general. Expect deep discussions, topical debates, celebrations of great practice, and things to steal for your own lessons! Our primary audience is student teachers and early-career teachers, but we hope there's something here for everyone who's involved in the world of education, whether you're new or experienced. Most of our episodes involve a main discussion (often with one or more guests), and two regular slots: something interesting and something to try. And when we hit the holidays, we bring out some weird and wonderful talking points from the internet and just have a chat. Podcast artwork by Beth Blandford (@blandoodles on Facebook and Instagram) Music by Cameron Stewart

  1. 1D AGO

    All About Art with Daisy Wilson and Jack Siddall

    It’s time to take another dive into what makes a classroom subject tick, and this time around we’re going for art. In a slight twist to the usual format, we’ve paired a discussion with a subject specialist with an excellent example of how professional enquiry coupled with top-notch subject knowledge can lead to meaningful impact on pupils.  We’re joined by Daisy Wilson from our friends at Yr Athrofa, an ITE partnership at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, to discuss what art is all about as a subject, what it’s for, and where its red lines, myths and misconceptions lie. After that, Jack Siddall, who has just graduated from our own PGCE Secondary Art & Design programme, joins us to discuss what happened when he decided to spend some time to develop an art curriculum bringing his pupils into contact with artists whose lived experiences they could identify with. Jack’s ability to avoid heavy-handed tokenism while using his in-depth knowledge of the subject to engage pupils had profound impacts on the pupils he taught, as you’ll hear in this episode.  Thanks to Daisy and Jack for joining us, and we’ll be back in two weeks’ time.  —————————————— Recorded in studio D0.18 on 28th November 2024 (Daisy Wilson discussion) and in studio B2.15 on 20th June 2025 (Rest of episode) at Cardiff Metropolitan University’s Cyncoed Campus.

    57 min

  2. OCT 3

    Supporting Student Teachers in Planning and Evaluation

    Planning and evaluating lessons is at the core of what teachers do. Deciding what we want our pupils to know or be able to do, how we'll know whether they've managed it, and how we'll be able to tell is the key to selecting a sequence of activities that will get them there and allow us to judge how they're doing. But this is one of the hardest skills for a new teacher to grasp, as an experienced teacher looks like they're just stringing together activities and it's all just happening as if by magic. Breaking down those complex thought processes is hard, and supporting student teachers to think about the learning of their pupils is a vital part of the work of those who look after them in school (as well as us in university). We sat down with some colleagues from both school and university to make some materials that student teachers and their school mentors can watch or listen to to help get them thinking about the best ways to make it happen. Today, we're brining you a taste of those materials and discussing why planning and evaluating is such a vital part of the magic of teaching. Whether you work with us at the Cardiff Partnership or not, you're very welcome to take a look at all our resources to support mentors at https://studio.youtube.com/@cpmentors Thanks to James Wise from Cardiff High School, Kate Haynes from Danescourt Primary School and Dr Anne Hodgson from Cardiff Met for their sterling work in the studio. ----------------------------------------- Recorded in studio B2.15 at Cardiff Metropolitan University's Cyncoed Campus on 29th April 2025 (resources) and 18th June 2025 (main episode)

    37 min

  3. SEP 19

    What's Going On with Maths in Wales?

    Just as we were shutting up the podcast shop for the end of the academic year, Estyn (the school inspectorate in Wales) published a thematic report on the teaching of maths in Wales's schools. It concluded that there was too much variability in the quality of teaching, and not enough subject-specific support for those teaching maths. This reminded us in some ways of the ITV news story back in September 2024 which prompted us to turn around a rapid-reaction episode. In this case, we decided to hold on until the new year and release a 'normal' episode featuring some expert discussion of the report and its implications. We're joined in our temporary studio by Cameron Stewart (programme leader for PGCE Secondary Maths), Sian Wickersham (PGCE primary maths specialist) and Laurence Hooper (just graduated with a PGCE in secondary maths), and they have plenty to tell us! We chose to extend a bit beyond our normal one hour limit and hope you find this useful. You can find the Estyn report here: https://estyn.gov.wales/improvement-resources/unlocking-potential-insights-into-improving-teaching-and-leadership-in-mathematics-education/ ------------------------------------------ Recorded in studio D0.12 at Cardiff Metropolitan University's Cyncoed Campus on 24th July 2025.

    1h 6m

  4. SEP 5

    So: You Want to Become a Teacher...!

    Welcome to season 8 of the podcast! So…. You want to become a teacher? You’ve come to the right place. In the third iteration of this popular topic, we’re joined by our colleague Rhian Wyn Griffiths to talk about becoming a teacher. While we’re quite focused on how to come and be a teacher with us in Wales (after all, it’s what we know best), there’s plenty here that’s relevant to people elsewhere. So pour yourself a cuppa and settle down to hear us discuss why you’d want to do it, what the job is, what it ISN’T, how you can make sure you really know it’s what you want to do, and how you can prepare.  Rhian’s also got news of a brand-new programme here at Cardiff Met: The PGCE Secondary Route to QTS for School-Based Employees. Available to those currently employed in schools in Wales but without Qualified Teacher Status, this provides yet another route into one of the most exciting professions there is.  To find out more about our own programmes, you can look here.  The Educators Wales website is here.  Thanks to Rhian for joining us, and we’ll be back in a fortnight with more interesting things for your ears.  ——————————————————————————— Recorded in studio B2.15 at Cardiff Metropolitan University’s Cyncoed Campus on 7th May 2025

    50 min

  5. AUG 22 · BONUS

    Looking Back, Looking Forward: Summer Bonus 2025

    One of our podcast traditions is to take a moment to reflect on the season that's just been (season 7) and get ready for the one that's about to land in your feeds (season 8)! After a hasty move across campus to avoid our power-tool wielding enemies, this episode was recorded in a temporary studio at the end of four straight days of recording. We've got plenty we're pleased with from the last year, and lots of interesting things lined up for your ears from 5th September onwards. Emma's not going to be around quite so much next year, and indeed, this was her last recording session for about a year, though listeners will hear her for a good while yet because of the way our recording and release schedule works. When she elegantly fades out in a few months' time, our colleague (and friend of the podcast) Sian Wickersham will be keeping her seat warm. Sian is a primary specialist, and was formerly in a senior role at the Ark Schools multi-academy trust in England, so has plenty of interesting perspectives to bring. Huge thanks to everyone who appeared on the podcast this year, our friends at Cardiff Met Sport Broadcast & Media who keep our regular studio ticking over, and to you for listening. We'll be back soon. ----------------------------------- Recorded in studio D0.12 at Cardiff Metropolitan University's Cyncoed Campus on 24th July 2025.

    10 min

  6. JUN 13

    The Nature of Physics with Richard West

    We’ve reached the end of another year of podcasting, and ready to give you all a summer break from our dulcet tones. To wrap up our seventh year in front of the microphones, we’re delighted to welcome back Richard West from Stanwell School. Richard’s here to contribute to our occasional series of episodes unpacking the nature of different subjects as they are experienced by pupils in the classroom. This time around, it’s the turn of physics: a subject with a fearsome reputation, a shortage of teachers and a whole host of myths that Richard’s keen to take on.  In the course of our in-depth discussion, Richard shares his passion for the subject, his pitch for why we should study it, a call for more physicists to consider teaching it, and plenty of interesting goodies to make us all think.  Thanks to Richard for giving up his Friday evening to record, and to you for sticking with us for another year of podcasting. We’ll be back (hopefully…) in September with version 3 of our So You Think You Want to be a Teacher episode. Join us then! —————————————————— Recorded in studio B2.15 at Cardiff Metropolitan University’s Cyncoed Campus on 9th May 2025

    59 min

  7. MAY 30

    Closing the Disadvantage Gap in Schools with Finola Wilson

    When we heard that Finola Wilson from our friends at Impact Wales had published a book, our first reaction (after congratulations!) was to realise how ridiculously long it’s been since we last spoke to our fellow Welsh education podcasters. Long-time listeners will know that we visited their HQ in Caerphilly (and Tom has particularly fond memories of hauling the sound equipment through an incredible downpour of rain) just before Covid to talk about the sterling work that they do in schools.  Now, Finola has made a trip in the opposite direction to visit our studio and talk about how we support disadvantaged pupils to achieve the best they can. As she explains, disadvantage covers so much more than poverty (though this is an important angle, as several of our past episodes cover) and the keys to mitigating disadvantage lie not only with those in charge of strategy and policy, but with individual teachers in their classrooms.  In this extended interview, Finola gives us some golden bits of information from the book, as well as a few controversial opinions. Enjoy it! Finola’s book is Closing the Disadvantage Gap in Schools: A Visual Workbook, and is out now, published by Routledge. You can find Finola and Jane on the web at impact.wales ——————————— Recorded in studio B2.15 at Cardiff Metropolitan University’s Cyncoed Campus on 21st May 2025

    1h 9m

  8. MAY 16

    Participatory Research with Student Teachers and their Mentors

    It's something of a tradition to haul Emma in for a doctoral progress check, and today she's digging into her chosen research approach: participatory research. If you listened to Emma's last episode, you'll remember that she examined her own research worldview and values, and concluded that she couldn't find out what she needs to know without making her participants into co-researchers, which makes for a complicated setup! Today she's telling us what her participants said about what and how she needs to go about discovering how new drama teachers learn to be teachers. If you're not a drama person, there's plenty in the discussion about how to involve the subjects of your research in shaping the project, and that's likely to be relevant for the increasing number of teachers doing their own research and enquiry, whether for an MA, doctorate or as part of improving their teaching. Thanks to Emma for the update! ------------------------------------------------------------- Recorded in studio D0.18 at Cardiff Metropolitan University's Cyncoed Campus on 25th November 2024

    59 min
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About

We’re Emma (PGCE Secondary Drama) and Tom (PGCE Secondary Music) from Cardiff Metropolitan University. Welcome to our podcast, in which we muse about the joys of working with student teachers, the expressive arts, research, and teaching in general. Expect deep discussions, topical debates, celebrations of great practice, and things to steal for your own lessons! Our primary audience is student teachers and early-career teachers, but we hope there's something here for everyone who's involved in the world of education, whether you're new or experienced. Most of our episodes involve a main discussion (often with one or more guests), and two regular slots: something interesting and something to try. And when we hit the holidays, we bring out some weird and wonderful talking points from the internet and just have a chat. Podcast artwork by Beth Blandford (@blandoodles on Facebook and Instagram) Music by Cameron Stewart

Information

  • Creator
    Emma O'Dubhchair & Tom Breeze
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2025
  • Episodes
    206
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 Emma & Tom Talk Teaching

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