Expert guest perspectives on what actually works in teaching and learning.
Educators are no longer asking which tools they should add to their classrooms. Instead, they're asking: which tools and approaches actually help students learn, without compromising on instructional quality?
Welcome to Well-MeasurED, the interview series that explores exactly what is working, and what is not, in schools today. Hosted by Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure from Education Perfect. this series brings together leading researchers in education and learning science to discuss cognitive science, learning design, and the fundamental role of effective feedback.
Classroom tools should support great teaching, not replace it, or offer a 'quick fix'. That's why every conversation on Well-MeasurED is grounded in evidence and real impact.
Principals, heads of department, teachers, and government advisors all face the same challenge: you're faced with too much noise, and not enough evidence. This series cuts through the static with accessible, practical and actionable insights.
Join us as we explore what makes great teachers feel supported and seen, and what drives stronger, lasting outcomes for all students.
Brought to you by Education Perfect. Subscribe to never miss an episode.
Why an Evidence-First Approach Is More Urgent Than Ever | Shane Smith | Well-MeasurED
What does it actually take to build an evidence-first product, not just cite research that sounds impressive?
Shane Smith co-founded Education Perfect with his brother Craig in 2007, and in this episode, he joins Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure to unpack the gap between citing research and truly building on it. He offers a framework for the three stages EdTech companies typically move through in their relationship with evidence, and why the hardest stage to reach is the only one that's genuinely defensible.
The conversation also explores the tension between what feels engaging to students and what actually produces durable learning, and how that shapes decisions about AI-powered feedback tools designed to close the loop on open-ended student responses without doing students' thinking for them.
Key takeaways:
Building on learning science from the start produces a more defensible product over time.
Citing research isn't the same as implementing it. Only the hardest of three stages Shane describes effectively moves the dial for students.
What feels engaging to students isn't always what produces durable learning.
AI has real potential in the feedback loop, but the design choices behind it matter enormously.
Every minute spent with a tool carries an opportunity cost, a useful test for any EdTech decision.
Guest bio:
Shane Smith is co-founder of Education Perfect, which he founded with his brother Craig in 2007 as Language Perfect. He now guides EP's AI initiatives.
Hosts:
Dr Jill McGuire (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-mcguire/) and James Santure (https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-santure/) host Well-MeasurED, Education Perfect's interview series exploring what the evidence says about teaching, learning and the tools schools use.
Resource links:
Don't have time to listen to the full episode? Read the blog covering this episode's key takeaways: https://www.educationperfect.com/article/what-does-it-actually-take-to-build-an-evidence-first-digital-approach/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/article/what-does-it-actually-take-to-build-an-evidence-first-digital-approach/)
Find the other episodes in the Well-MeasurED interview series here: https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/)
23 Jul 2026
The Truth of AI in Education | Professor Rose Luckin | Well-MeasurED
Is AI making your school more effective, or just faster at the same mistakes?
Professor Rose Luckin has spent more than 30 years researching the intersection of AI and education, and her answer isn't a simple yes or no. In this episode, she joins Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure to unpack what her research, and the wider evidence base, shows about where AI is helping in schools, and where it's falling short.
Much of the conversation centres on cognitive offloading: the difference between AI that helps students think at a higher level, and AI that lets them skip the thinking altogether. Luckin's research suggests that difference comes down to what teachers ask students to do with it, not the technology itself.
She's also direct about where the promise of AI hasn't held up, including her own findings on AI and equity. For school leaders and educators under pressure to act fast, she offers a steadier path: learn fast, and act more slowly.
Key takeaways:
Whether AI helps or harms student thinking comes down to task design, not the technology itself.
AI detection tools are unreliable and risk damaging trust between students and schools.
AI already has a genuine track record in schools, particularly in scaling feedback and surfacing insights for teachers.
Access to AI does not guarantee equity. Research shows adoption is currently widening the gap between more and less advantaged school communities.
Learning fast and acting more slowly is a more defensible approach than rushing to adopt AI under pressure.
Guest bio:
Professor Rose Luckin is Professor Emerita of Learner-Centred Design at UCL's Knowledge Lab and founder of Educate Ventures Research, with more than 30 years of research at the intersection of AI and education.
Hosts:
Dr Jill McGuire (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-mcguire/) and James Santure (https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-santure/) host Well-MeasurED, Education Perfect's interview series exploring what the evidence says about teaching, learning and the tools schools use.
Resource links:
Don't have time to watch the full episode? Read the key takeaways blog (https://www.educationperfect.com/article/ai-in-education-successes-and-next-steps/)
Go deeper into the topic with:
🏛️ Educate Ventures Research, Professor Luckin's consultancy and research hub: https://www.educateventures.com/
(https://www.educateventures.com/)📊 Beyond the Hype and Artificial Disadvantage, her works on AI adoption and equity in schools: https://www.educateventures.com/resources
(https://www.educateventures.com/resources)📚 AI for School Teachers and Machine Learning and Human Intelligence, her books on AI in education: https://www.educateventures.com/resources
(https://www.educateventures.com/resources)🔗 Connect with Professor Luckin on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/rose-luckin-cbe-5245003/ (http://www.linkedin.com/in/rose-luckin-cbe-5245003/)
The Well-MeasurED interview series explores what we know works to improve student outcomes, and what doesn't hold up under a microscope. Find the other episodes here: https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/)
11 Jul 2026
Can Teacher Autonomy and Consistent Quality Coexist? | Prof Pamela Snow | Well-MeasurED
What does it take to give every student access to consistently high-quality instruction, no matter whose classroom they're in?
Professor Pamela Snow's research points to a clear answer: structure and consistency in how we teach make the biggest difference. In this episode, she explores how schools can hold onto the flexibility teachers value while building the kind of consistent, evidence-based practice that helps every student thrive.
Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure talk with Snow, cognitive psychologist and co-director of La Trobe University's Science of Language and Reading Lab (SOLAR), about what the evidence shows works best for building strong foundational skills, and how schools are bringing research-backed practice to life in everyday classrooms.
Key takeaways:
Evidence-based instruction reflects how novice learners build knowledge and skills in sequence.
When foundational learning has gaps, those gaps compound over time. Snow calls this the "Swiss cheese" phenomenon, and addressing it early produces stronger outcomes than remediating later.
School leaders don't need to wait for system-wide reform. Visiting schools further along the change journey is one of the most effective starting points.
Selecting technology in response to a clearly defined learning problem, rather than the other way around, puts schools in a stronger position to see real impact.
Guest bio:
Professor Pamela Snow is a Distinguished Professor of Cognitive Psychology and co-director of SOLAR at La Trobe University, named one of Australia's five most powerful people in education (AFR).
Hosts:
Dr Jill McGuire (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-mcguire/) and James Santure (https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-santure/) host Well-MeasurED, Education Perfect's interview series exploring what the evidence says about teaching, learning and the tools schools use.
Resource links:
Don't have time to listen to the entire episode? Read the blog diving into this episode's key takeaways: https://www.educationperfect.com/article/what-the-research-says-about-evidence-based-instruction/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/article/what-the-research-says-about-evidence-based-instruction/)
Go deeper into the topic with:
✍️ Professor Snow's blog: https://pamelasnow.blogspot.com/ (https://pamelasnow.blogspot.com/)
🐦 Follow Professor Snow on X: https://x.com/pamelasnow2 (https://x.com/pamelasnow2)
🔗 Connect with Professor Snow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamela-snow-0a0323230/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/pamela-snow-0a0323230/)
🎓 Professor Snow's La Trobe University researcher profile: https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/pcsnow (https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/pcsnow)
🔬 The SOLAR Lab, which she co-directs: https://solar.blogs.latrobe.edu.au/ (https://solar.blogs.latrobe.edu.au/)
The Well-MeasurED interview series explores what we know works to improve student outcomes, and what doesn't hold up under a microscope. Find the other episodes here: https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/)
8 Jul 2026
Why Engagement Isn't Equity | Dr Nidhi Sachdeva | Well-MeasurED
Is your school measuring what looks good, or what actually works?
Dr Nidhi Sachdeva argues that's where most school leaders and educators go wrong, mistaking engagement for the outcome that actually matters: learning.
In this episode, hosts Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure sit down with Dr Sachdeva, a Science of Learning researcher at the University of Toronto, to unpack what large-scale studies show about closing the achievement gap. She walks through why explicit instruction, retrieval practice, and formative assessment benefit the students who need the most support, and why teacher quality remains the highest-impact lever for equitable outcomes.
Her definition of equity anchors the conversation: every student reaching the same outcomes, on time, with the support needed to get there.
Key takeaways:
True equity means every student reaching the same outcomes, on the same timeline, with high expectations held for all.
Early intervention beats later remediation.
Explicit instruction is one of the most powerful tools for advancing equity, and it's consistently underused.
'Personalised' EdTech isn't automatically equitable. The tool should follow the problem, not the other way around.
Guest bio:
Dr Nidhi Sachdeva is a Science of Learning researcher at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, and Chair of ResearchED Canada.
Hosts:
Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure host Well-MeasurED, Education Perfect's interview series exploring what the evidence says about teaching, learning and the tools schools use.
Resource links:
Don't have time to listen to the entire episode? Read the key takeaways blog: https://www.educationperfect.com/article/what-learning-science-tells-us-about-closing-equity-gaps/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/article/what-learning-science-tells-us-about-closing-equity-gaps/)
Go deeper into the topic with:
🎥 Dr Sachdeva's microlearning series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwTpQ2v1T7Wl-8dSowX-Ja7LH2wl34q1m (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwTpQ2v1T7Wl-8dSowX-Ja7LH2wl34q1m)
📚 How Learning Happens by Kirschner & Hendrick: https://www.routledge.com/How-Learning-Happens-Seminal-Works-in-Educational-Psychology-and-What-They-Mean-in-Practice/Kirschner-Hendrick/p/book/9781032498393 (https://www.routledge.com/How-Learning-Happens-Seminal-Works-in-Educational-Psychology-and-What-They-Mean-in-Practice/Kirschner-Hendrick/p/book/9781032498393)
✍️ The Science of Learning Substack (with Dr Jim Hewitt): https://scienceoflearning.substack.com/about (https://scienceoflearning.substack.com/about)
✍️ Dr Sachdeva's Substack: https://substack.com/@nsachdeva (https://substack.com/@nsachdeva)
🔗 Connect with Dr Sachdeva on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nidhi-sachdeva-toronto/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nidhi-sachdeva-toronto/)
The Well-MeasurED interview series explores what we know works to improve student outcomes, and what doesn't hold up under a microscope. Find the other episodes here: https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/ (https://www.educationperfect.com/well-measured/)
7 Jul 2026
Well-MeasurED | Trailer
What’s actually working in education, and how do we know?
Well-MeasurED is a video interview series from Education Perfect. Each episode explores what we know works to improve student outcomes, as well as strategies that don't hold up under scrutiny.
Join the hosts, Dr Jill McGuire and James Santure, as they sit down with experienced leaders in education and learning science, and discuss evidence-based teaching and learning, and how to genuinely move the needle for every learner.
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