#137: How to Discuss War and Conflict with High School Students

As teachers, we're often drawn to the idea of incorporating group work and group projects into our lessons. After all, when done well, collaborative tasks can boost learning, enhance retention, and strengthen peer relationships. But here's the catch: group work only works when it's structured properly. In today's podcast episode, I reveal the cold, hard truth about what many teachers are getting wrong with group assignments, and how to fix it.Check out my blog for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/Check out my award-winning book, The Quick Guide to Classroom Management: 45 Secrets That All High School Teachers Need to Know, at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VCQPF2LEmail me for topic requests at [email protected]

As a teacher who’s worked with students across a range of schools and contexts, I often hear colleagues say, “The gender gap? Isn’t that old news?” At first glance, that might seem fair. After all, in many parts of the world, girls are now outperforming boys academically. But when you take a closer look, a much more complex picture emerges.Check out all four of my books for teachers at https://www.amazon.com/stores/Richard-James-Rogers/author/B017OVU06QThis podcast episode is accompanied by a blog post at https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/06/29/does-the-gender-gap-in-education-really-exist/Check out my blog for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/#gendergap #teaching #edchat #richardjamesrogers

In this episode, I share practical strategies for discussing war and conflict with high school students, especially in light of current global events such as the escalating situation involving Iran. Drawing on my experience as a teacher and author, I explore how to answer sensitive questions, maintain professional distance, and create a safe space for respectful dialogue. Whether you teach history, science, or any other subject, this episode offers clear guidance on how to support your students through difficult conversations. Read the full blog post at https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/06/21/teaching-in-troubled-times-how-to-discuss-war-and-conflict-with-high-school-students/My podcast page: https://richardjamesrogers.com/podcast/Check out my award-winning book, The Quick Guide to Classroom Management, here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VCQPF2L

Like many early-career educators, I believed that equality, which means giving all students the same tasks, the same resources, and the same deadlines, was the fairest way to teach. However, time and experience taught me that equity, not equality, is what truly transforms learning. It involves giving each student what they need to succeed. Sometimes that means providing different forms of support to different learners.This episode is accompanied by a blog post at https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/06/01/equity-vs-equality-in-education-what-ive-learned-from-the-front-lines/Book me to train your team at: https://richardjamesrogers.com/professional-development/Check out my books for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/books-for-teachers/

I’ll admit it: I was skeptical at first. When I first heard about teachers using AI like ChatGPT to help in the classroom, I imagined some robotic voice taking over my lessons while I stood awkwardly in the corner. But after giving it a try for a while, I can honestly say this: Generative AI has become one of my most useful classroom assistants, and I don’t even need to buy it coffee.This episode is accompanied by a blog post: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/05/25/using-generative-ai-as-a-teaching-assistant/Check out my blog for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/Interested in some teacher training? Book me to train your team at https://richardjamesrogers.com/professional-development/Check out my award-winning book, The Quick Guide to Classroom Management, at https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Guide-Classroom-Management-Pedagogical-ebook/dp/B016ZG1IX0

Success in high school is not just about hard work: it’s about working smart, using proven strategies that boost learning, memory, and motivation. In today's episode I describe 10 powerful tips, distilled from years of classroom experience and research-backed methods, to help students achieve their full potential.This episode is accompanied by a blog post at https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/04/27/10-tips-to-help-high-school-students-achieve-high-performance/Check out my books on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/stores/Richard-James-Rogers/author/B017OVU06QCheck out my blog for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/Check out my merchandise store at https://richardjamesrogers.com/

In today's podcast I dive deep into two recent viral trends: AI dolls (a.k.a. the 'Barbie Box' trend) and the Netflix mini-series, Adolescence. I describe what teachers can take from these issues, and how teachers can use AI to their advantage in 2025 and beyond. Blog post: AI Dolls and Digital Desks: High School Teaching in 2025Blog post: Adolescence: What Netflix’s Latest Drama Teaches Educators About the Manosphere, Misogyny and the Modern TeenMy books for teachers: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Richard-James-Rogers/author/B017OVU06Q

In my twenty years of teaching, I’ve come across numerous pedagogical techniques designed to boost student learning, but few have been as transformative as interleaving. This technique, backed by cognitive science, has the power to enhance long-term retention and application of knowledge: yet it remains underutilised in many secondary school classrooms. Today, I want to explore generalisable rules for interleaving (a structured approach that any secondary school teacher can apply) and one that, to my knowledge, has never been formally outlined before. Accompanying blog post: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/03/09/how-interleaving-works-universal-strategies-for-secondary-school-classroom-practice/Check out my award-winning book for teachers, The Quick Guide to Classroom Management?: 45 Secrets That All High School Teachers Need to Know, here: https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Guide-Classroom-Management-Teachers-dp-B08VCQPF2L/dp/B08VCQPF2L/ref=dp_ob_title_bkBjork, E. L., & Bjork, R. A. (2011). Making things hard on yourself, but in a good way: Creating desirable difficulties to enhance learning. Psychology and the Real World: Essays Illustrating Fundamental Contributions to Society, 56-64.Pan, S. C., Tajran, J., Lovelett, J., Osuna, J., & Rickard, T. C. (2019). Does interleaved practice enhance foreign language learning? The effects of training schedule on vocabulary learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 111(8), 1172–1181.Rohrer, D., & Taylor, K. (2007). The shuffling of mathematics problems improves learning. Instructional Science, 35(6), 481-498.Keep, B. (2022) ‘The spaced practice effect: what it is and how to leverage it’, Benjamin Keep, 15 December. Available at: https://www.benjaminkeep.com/the-spaced-practice-effect-what-it-is-and-how-to-leverage-it/ (Accessed: 9 March 2025).Rogers, R. (2022) ‘Deep learning vs surface learning’, Richard James Rogers, 24 May. Available at: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2022/05/24/deep-learning-vs-surface-learning/ (Accessed: 9 March 2025).

When students unexpectedly bring up sensitive or controversial topics in class—such as questions about Bonnie Blue (a British adult content creator who recently became wildly infamous due to provocative activities and public notoriety), or other ignominious public figures, such as Andrew Tate—teachers may feel unprepared. How should we respond when children ask about such material?Check out my blog for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/This podcast episode is accompanied by a blog post: https://richardjamesrogers.com/2025/02/23/responding-thoughtfully-when-students-ask-about-controversial-topics-the-example-of-bonnie-blue/Bibliography and referencesCRLT (n.d.) Guidelines for Discussing Difficult or Controversial Topics. University of Michigan. Available at: https://crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tsd (Accessed: 23 February 2025).Harvard Graduate School of Education (2022) You Want to Teach What? Managing Controversial Topics in the Classroom. Harvard University. Available at: https://www.gse.harvard.edu/ideas/usable-knowledge/22/02/you-want-teach-what (Accessed: 23 February 2025).Teen Vogue (2021) Why Schools Should Teach Media Literacy to Combat Misinformation. Available at: https://www.teenvogue.com/story/media-literacy-schools-misinformation (Accessed: 23 February 2025).The Choices Program (n.d.) Teaching about Controversial Issues: A Resource Guide. Brown University. Available at: https://www.choices.edu/teaching-news-lesson/teaching-about-controversial-issues-a-resource-guide/ (Accessed: 23 February 2025).Yale Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning (n.d.) Teaching Controversial Topics. Yale University. Available at: https://poorvucenter.yale.edu/teaching/ideas-teaching/teaching-controversial-topics (Accessed: 23 February 2025).

Stepping into a senior leadership team (SLT) role for the first time can be both exhilarating and daunting. Recently, I was appointed as the Acting Head of Secondary at an international school in Thailand, and to gain deeper insights into the role, I reached out to SLT members in other schools for their best advice. Their responses provided me with invaluable lessons that I am now applying in my leadership journey. Check out my blog for teachers at https://richardjamesrogers.com/ Blog post: Starting Out as an SLT Member: What I Learned from the Experts Blog post: Working With Colleagues: The Gossip Mill Produces Toxic Flour Check out my award-winning book, The Quick Guide to Classroom Management: 45 Secrets That All High School Teachers Need to Know