Podclass
Conversations beyond the lesson plan. A weekly podcast for teachers and school leaders.
Co-hosted with Amanda Marshall and Skye Hughes from the Youth Engagement Project: Gen Z perspectives, leadership as a core skill, wellbeing, AI in schools, and what is actually happening in classrooms right now.
What Podclass is
Podclass is a weekly podcast for teachers and school leaders, co-hosted by Wil Massara, Amanda Marshall and Skye Hughes. Episodes run 20 to 40 minutes and come out every Wednesday. The show is produced by Youth Leadership Academy Australia and the Youth Engagement Project, two brands of The Youth Impact Foundation.
Each episode takes one thing that is happening in classrooms right now and works out what to do about it: why a student will not raise their hand (the amygdala, mostly), what Gen Z students actually want from a teacher, how to run a student leadership program that is more than a badge, and what schools should do about AI this term rather than next year.
Recent topics
- The amygdala in the classroom: why fear of embarrassment shapes how students learn and speak up
- Leadership literacy: teaching leadership the way schools teach reading
- Student voice without tokenism: co-design that survives the consultation
- AI in schools: what students are already doing, and what to teach instead of banning
- What 1,500 schools taught YLAA about who becomes a student leader
How to listen
Podclass is on Spotify and the usual podcast apps. Search "Podclass" and look for the YLAA artwork. Show notes and past episodes are on the YLAA Podclass page.
Who it is for
Teachers, heads of wellbeing, deputies and principals who want a straight read on what students are thinking, from people who work with tens of thousands of them.
What we cover
Student leadership, Gen Z and motivation, co-design and student voice, AI in schools, the brain science behind confidence, and the practical stuff nobody put in the lesson plan.
Guest requests
Educators, researchers and young leaders with a point of view. Email hello@wilmassara.com with the topic in the subject line.
Where the conversations come from
