Episode Overview
The 2026 DATTA Queensland Conference brings together educators and industry experts who are helping shape the future of Design and Technologies education.
In this episode, Stephen Anderson speaks with three conference presenters about their upcoming sessions and the practical ideas they will be sharing with teachers.
Claire Rackley discusses how students can effectively communicate design thinking through stronger sketching, visual refinement and reduced reliance on written explanations. Her workshop focuses on helping teachers understand how students can demonstrate complex thinking within modern assessment constraints.
Luciano Mesiti highlights the opportunities available for teachers to incorporate food and fibre contexts into Design and Technologies programs. Through curriculum-aligned resources and sustainability-focused activities, Luciano demonstrates how these topics can become engaging and meaningful learning experiences for students.
Nathan Edwards explores how emerging technologies are reshaping trades and manufacturing careers. His session examines the changing relationship between humans and technology and what students need to know about the future workforce.
Whether your interest is visual communication, sustainability, food and fibre, engineering, manufacturing, or workforce pathways, this episode offers valuable insights and ideas to take back to your classroom.
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About the Bridge Building Podcast
“This is the place where we dissect and then discover the many ways ITD teachers all over this country are using their passion to create passionate students. We talk of measuring and manipulating a multitude of materials of design and divergent thought, of creation with our minds and with our hands. And most of all, we talk of growing great young people because of course that is what we do.”
So what does that mean other than I like to show off my alliteration skills? Since coming back to teaching a few years ago the thing that strikes me most, and frankly scared me most is how lonely this job is. How little we know about what is happening in our subject area. The classroom next door, a class in the next school, let alone the next town are a mystery to me. I know there are teachers out there doing incredible things and this (the podcast) is a way for me to find out and be inspired. I would like to invite you along to listen and learn, to be inspired by some of the sensational teachers I speak to on the “Bridge Building Podcast – from technology to the trades”
About the Podcast Host
Stephen Anderson is a Design Technology, Trade Training and accidental Science teacher at a small high school 2 hours North West of Brisbane.
Over To You
If you know someone who is doing something spectacular or just great fun in design and tech or in trade training, I would love to know about them.
Contact me through my email osaerial@gmail.com
Music by:
Viola Pink