What if some of the teacher shortage isn’t showing up in the numbers? The OECD’s Education at a Glance 2026 takes a close look at teacher shortages — but it doesn’t measure out-of-field teaching. In this episode, I unpack what the report does tell us about subject shortages, teacherqualifications, retention, and Australia’s unusually high proportion of second-career teachers. And I ask a bigger question: if every classroom has a teacher, doesthat mean the shortage has been solved?

Links

OCED Education at a Glance 2026 report

https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/2026/09/education-at-a-glance-2026_3bce4131/full-report/teacher-shortages-and-the-attractiveness-of-the-teaching-profession_074961e4.html

My LinkedIn article https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/shortage-behind-what-oecds-education-glance-2026-us-03psc/

Dr Amber Hughes, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Newcastle (UON), talks about decolonising mathematics education in Australia. Her work asks whathappens when we look beyond access to the existing curriculum and think more deeply about whose knowledges are recognised, represented, and valued in mathematics. We discuss the limits of ‘Closing the Gap’ framings, the role ofAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledges, why listening and humility matter, and why teachers do not need to have all the answers before they begin.

For out-of-field maths teachers, this conversation opens up a different way of thinking about mathematics teaching: not as a rush to the ‘right’ method, but as relational, reflective, and open to students’ intuitive and creative ways of knowing. Amber is also part of the Teachers and Teaching Research Centre at the UON.

Links:

https://www.newcastle.edu.au/profile/amber-hughes

https://www.newcastle.edu.au/research/centre/teachers-and-teaching

The Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) has begun its review of the professional teaching standards. Should dispositions be part of the new-look standards? Find out more about my responses (and argument), plus hear an update about my mid-PhD-candidature review.

Links:

OOFTAS 2026 symposium links to recordings of sessions https://ooftas-collective.org/2026-symposium

AITSL webpage about the APTS review https://www.aitsl.edu.au/standards/review-of-the-teacher-standards

Skourdoumbis, A. (2019). Theorising teacher performance dispositions in an age of audit. British Educational Research Journal, 45(1), 5–20. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3492

Call, K. (2018). Professional teaching standards: A comparative analysis of their history, implementation, and efficacy. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 43(3), 93–108. https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2018v43n3.6

https://blog.aare.edu.au/what-should-an-australian-teacher-look-like-now-this-is-your-chance-to-help-decide/

https://www.education.gov.au/quality-initial-teacher-education-review/resources/strong-beginnings-report-teacher-education-expert-panel

More info about my PhD project and how to get involved https://blogs.deakin.edu.au/success-stories-ooft-maths-science/phd-research-project-a-netnographic-exploration-of-self-perceptions-of-success-of-out-of-field-teachers-of-mathematics-and-science/

A global snapshot of out-of-field teaching research ahead of the free OOFTAS symposium on 16–17 August. This episode highlights emerging themes across eight countries, including teacher identity, subject boundaries, professional learning, and workforce shortages. It also covers the review of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, a PhD milestone, and what’s coming in season 8.

Links:

PhD project about success among out-of-field teachers of maths and science in Australian secondary schools

https://blogs.deakin.edu.au/success-stories-ooft-maths-science/phd-research-project-a-netnographic-exploration-of-self-perceptions-of-success-of-out-of-field-teachers-of-mathematics-and-science/

https://www.aitsl.edu.au/standards/review-of-the-teacher-standards

https://ooftas-collective.org/2026-symposium

Katrina Davey, an experienced Humanities teacher, curriculumwriter and former faculty leader, cuts through the idea that teaching lower-secondary humanities only requires “general knowledge”. Drawing on her book Humming Along, she explains why humanities teachers are often asked to work as both specialists and generalists across history, geography,civics, economics, and more. A key thread is the “knowledge-rich” curriculum: Davey welcomes it, but argues that facts need concepts such as change, significance and sustainability to give them purpose. This is a sharp conversation about out-of-field teaching, disciplinary rigour and why humanities matters for how students understand the world and who they become.

Links:

www.katrinadavey.com

https://ambapress.com.au/products/humming-along

https://www.linkedin.com/in/katrina-davey/

Find out what's involved in a mid-candidature review as I review my exploration into out-of-field teaching over the past 2.5 years.

Numeracy may be a cross-curriculum priority in youreducation system — but what does that actually mean for teachers who don’t teach maths? Dr Kathy O’Sullivan from the University of Galway in Ireland argues that when schools expect every teacher to support numeracy, most teachers are effectively teaching it out of field. In this conversation, she explains why numeracy is often misunderstood as ‘basic maths’, why tick-box approaches fail, and how teachers can start recognising numeracy opportunities within their own subjects. This ep also explores what systems can do better — from sustained professional learning to stronger preparation in initial teacher education.

Links:

Dr Kathy O’Sullivan

· https://research.universityofgalway.ie/en/persons/kathy-osullivan/

· ORCID profile: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8078-3206

Numeracy research and frameworks

- The "N" Framework: A Teacher KnowledgeFramework for Numeracy across the Curriculum https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/numeracy/vol18/iss2/art2/- Numeracy in the 21st Century – model by MerrilynGoos and colleagues https://www.researchgate.net/figure/A-model-for-numeracy-in-the-21-st-century-Goos-Geiger-Dole-2014_fig1_317731661

- Numeracy across the Curriculum book byAustralian Teacher Educators https://www.routledge.com/Numeracy-Across-the-Curriculum-Research-based-strategies-for-enhancing-teaching-and-learning/Goos-Geiger-Dole-Forgasz-Bennison/p/book/9781760297886

Numeracy resources and teaching tools

· Gapminder data visualisation tools https://www.gapminder.org

· Nrich maths tasks https://nrich.maths.org

· Peter Liljedahl numeracy-rich tasks / thinking classrooms resources https://buildingthinkingclassrooms.com

Australian numeracy examples

· Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership https://www.academy.vic.gov.au

· Australian Department of Education numeracy resources (examples of numeracy across curriculum materials)

https://www.education.gov.au/australian-curriculum/support-literacy-and-numeracy

Out-of-field teaching is rarely one neat experience. One lesson, one junior class, one senior subject, one term or five years all place different demands on teachers. This 100th episode draws on teacher interviews, podcast conversations, PhD thinking and recent research to explore what may help when teachers are assigned to subjects they were never trained to teach — from finding the big ideas and learning the pedagogy, to borrowing strategically, using honestycarefully, and protecting professional identity when the assignment becomes more than a short-term fix.

For the links, please go to my Substack article of the same name. There's TOO many reference links to post in this Spotify field, alas.