10 Year Symposium: Learning is Learning

Designing MTSS That Endures: Practical Systems, Clear Decisions, Real Support

Schools everywhere are working hard to support students, yet many systems become complicated, reactive, or difficult to sustain. Dr Sarah Brown has spent her career helping schools design Multi-Tiered Systems of Support that actually work in practice.

Drawing on her experience as a school psychologist, Special Education Director, and system leader, Sarah brings practical insight grounded in implementation. She is co-author of Effective Universal Instruction and MTSS for Reading Improvement, two highly regarded resources for strengthening Tier 1 instruction and improving outcomes for all students.

In this session Sarah will unpack how strong systems help teachers succeed.

She will show how leaders can use data to:

• Make clearer decisions,
• Strengthen universal instruction,
• Ensure support reaches the students who need it most.

If your school is working to improve outcomes without overwhelming teachers, this session will provide practical guidance grounded in real implementation.

One Instructional Core, Many Classrooms: Why Effective Teaching Transfers Across Subjects

What actually makes learning stick?

Brendan Lee has spent years exploring how the science of learning can inform everyday teaching. A former teacher, he now works with schools helping educators translate research into practical classroom decisions.

Brendan often uses mathematics to illustrate his thinking, but the message travels much further. Whether teaching literacy, science, or maths, the underlying principles of learning remain the same. When teachers understand how knowledge is acquired, strengthened and applied, instruction becomes far more effective.

In this session Brendan will:

• Explore the stages of learning and what they mean for classroom practice.
• Demonstrate how choosing the right instructional tools at the right time can dramatically improve retention and understanding across subjects.
• Expect practical examples, clear explanations, and ideas you can apply immediately in your own classroom.

Building a High-Performing School: Leadership, Implementation, and Sustained Excellence

Instructional change rarely happens by accident. It requires leadership, clarity and a shared commitment to improving practice.

Rhys Coulson has been the Principal of Templestowe Heights Primary School (THPS) for the past decade, during which the school has grown significantly and earned a reputation as a leader in structured literacy, mathematics, and professional learning. Under his leadership, THPS has become internationally recognised for its evidence-based teaching and hosts hundreds of visiting schools each year to share its practice.

Rhys creates the conditions for a knowledge-rich curriculum and multi-tiered-systems of support to be effectively resourced and sustained across the school, while empowering teachers and leaders to deepen their expertise and take shared ownership of improvement.

In this session Rhys will share the leadership decisions that helped move his school from intention to implementation to sustainability. He will talk openly about the challenges, the lessons learned and the impact that comes when a whole staff is pulling in the same direction.

For school leaders and leadership teams, this session offers a grounded look at what it takes to:

• Move from good to great.
• Build a culture of continuous improvement.
• Ensure teachers feel confident, capable and supported to teach at their best.