We speak with Arlene Goldbard, writer, visual artist, speaker, social activist and consultant, whose most recent book is “In the Camp of Angels of Freedom: What does it mean to be educated?” An autodidact from a working-class background, Arlene challenges “the certainty that academic qualifications are the best measure of ability.” She interweaves the stories and portraits of her “angels,” her personal story, and a critique of standard narratives of education. We talk with her in particular about two of her “angels,” Paulo Freire and Paul Goodman.

Overview

00:00-00:38 Intros

00:38-02:41 What “In the Camp of Angels of Freedom: What It Means to be Educated” is about

02:41: 03:55 Definition of auto-didact

03:55-05:39 Project-based education/Action civics/"What Would YOU Do?”

05:39-07:12 Removing bachelor’s degree requirement from State jobs

07:12-09:03 Advice to high school students about options

09:03-10:34 When is a liberal arts education valuable beyond credentials?

10:34-20:42 Alternative ways to expand horizons beyond/in addition to college

20:42-25:28 K-12 education

25:28-27:31 Paulo Freire

27:31-31:18 Paul Goodman

31:18-32:50 Cultural citizenship

32:50- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode.

References

• Arlene Goldbard's website
• Book "In the Camp of Angels of Freedom: What Does It Mean to Be Educated?" by Arlene Goldbard

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

Visual artwork by Arlene Goldbard "We Burn" (2019)

We speak with Dr. David Penberg and Adhirath Sethi about Agastya, a unique educational ecosystem serving students and teachers in 22 Indian states. Agastya has a hub-and-spokes design, with an elaborate 172-acre campus outside Bangalore and a fleet of mobile vans and bicycles delivering science and art programming to poor and rural children in far-flung towns and villages.

Overview

00:00-00:43 Intros

00:43-03:26 Agastya’s programs

03:26-04:51 Arts and interdisciplinary learning environment

04:51-07:58 Teacher training

07:58-11:10 Young Instructional Leader program

11:10-11:52 Ages of girls who started the YIL program

11:52-13:33 Where the YIL do their work

13:33-17:02 Teachers learning in the ways that students learn

17:02-18:43 Alignment with Nell Noddings’s “ethic of care”

18:43:21:48 Relationships with animals other than human

21:48-24:09 Common elements with schools like Central Park East in different settings

24:09-26:14 Agastya relationships based on trust

26:14-27:27 Agastya as a source of inspiration

27:27-29:07 Agastya’s vision of reaching more children

29:07-30:33 Relevance to U.S.

30:33-35:49 Measuring success

35:49-38:19 Adhirath’s book about Agastya: The Moving of Mountains

38:19- Outro

Transcript

Click here to listen to the full transcription of this episode.

References

• Agastya International Foundation: agastya.org
• Book The Moving of Mountains: The Remarkable Story of the Agastya International Foundation by Adhirath Sethi (on Linkedin)

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

We speak with Dr. Tovah P. Klein, professor of psychology at Barnard College and the director of the Center for Toddler Development, about her book, “Raising Resilience: How to Help Our Children Thrive in Times of Uncertainty.” Dr. Klein describes how parents and teachers should build children's resilience BEFORE anything frightening or traumatic occurs. Most importantly, children and teens need to know they will never be alone, that their parents or trusted adults will always be there for them.

Overview

00:00-00:38 Intros

00:38-02:12 Building resilience proactively

02:12-04:22 Responding to traumatic situations at school

04:22-09:18 Five Pillars of Children’s Resilience

09:18-10:51 School environments that support resilience

10:51-12:48 How teachers can prepare to respond calmly to their own triggers

12:48-16:52 Responding to the temptations of screens

16:52-20:56 Secrets, including how to handle necessary secrets

20:56-24:20 Dealing with fears and threatening situations

24:20-27:36 What schools can do

27:36-30:50 Allowing kids to ask

30:50- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode.

References

• Book "Raising Resilience: How to Help Our Children Thrive in Times of Uncertainty" Dr. Tovah P. Klein
• Barnard Toddler Center

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

We speak with Dr. Elizabeth Birr Moje, dean and professor at the Marsal Family School of Education, University of Michigan. Dr. Moje discusses Detroit’s School at Marygrove, a university-school partnership serving children and families from before birth through grade 12. We talk about design-based research, Marygrove’s innovative teacher-residency program, and what being a model means to Marygrove.

Overview

00:00-00:46 Intros

00:46-03:16 How the school at Marygrove came to be

03:16-06:27 Teaching and learning in Detroit

06:27-11:05 Why this neighborhood and community for Marygrove

11:05-12:05 Demographics of the community and the school

12:05-15:20 What an ethical partnership between a university and a school looks like

15:20-18:24 Funding—current and for sustainability

18:24-20:08 Proof of concept, scale, “translatable modules”

20:08-24:17 A model for curriculum and pedagogy

24:17-29:51 Design-based research

29:51-38:36 Selecting teachers and providing professional development and support

38:36-42:13 Promoting social justice

42:13-48:29 Cell phones, distractions, AI

48:29-49:11 Centrality of inquiry

49:11-56:45 Replication

56:45- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode.

References

The School at Marygrove website

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

We talk with Sarah Stitzlein, author of "Teaching honesty in a populist era: Emphasizing truth in the education of citizens." Dr. Stitzlein, a professor of education and affiliate professor of philosophy at the University of Cincinnati, is concerned with how to teach in a political context where truth and honesty seem increasingly at risk. She contrasts the philosophical approaches of populism and the pragmatism of educational philosophers such as John Dewey.

Overview

00:00-00:41 Intros

00:41-02:10 Why the book and the title

02:10-03:15 Defining populism

03:15-04:24 Differences between left and right populism—book is mostly about right populism

O4:24-08:00 Contrasting populist and pragmatic notions of truth and honesty

08:00-09:55 Defining honesty, and what it looks like in a classroom context

09:55-11:59 Honesty as a habit, not just a virtue

11:59-13:13 Is there a difference between truth and reality?

13:13-15:36 A truth claim in an educational context

15:36-16:49 Doing honesty as a verb

16:49-21:15 Seeking truth versus seeking solutions

21:15-23:20 “Alternative facts”

23:20-24:22 Philosophy, ethics, and education

24:22-25:58 From honesty in the classroom to honesty in the wider world

25:58-27:41 Scalability

27:41-29:30 Ethical outlook on civics

29:3o-31:40 Connections between democracy and education

31:40-35:56 Impact of AI

35:56- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcript of this episode.

References

Book "Teaching Honesty in a Populist Era: Emphasizing Truth in the Education of Citizens" By Sarah Stitzlein

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

We speak with Dr. Linda F. Nathan and Jonathan Mendonca, two co-editors of the recently published book, "Building Democratic Schools and Learning Environments: A Global Perspective," an anthology of accounts of creating innovative schools around the world. We discuss autonomy vs large-scale uniformity, issues of scaling innovations, and defining success. The book, intentionally available free online, includes both existing schools and concepts of possible schools.

Overview

00:00-00:59 Intros

00:59-02:48 Building democratic schools and learning environments

02:48-07:02 How the book came to be written

07:02-08:00 “Many ways” that schools can prepare students for democracy

08:00-11:32 The four pillars of democratic education

11:32-14:12 The “common good”

14:12-16:13 Barefoot EDU (Unifly Collective) and Shikha Institute of Education

16:13-20:58 Jonathan Mendonca’s vision of scale and reactions to it

20:58-23:32 Resolution of whether to teach in English or mother tongue in school in Madhya Pradesh

23:32-28:10 Managing tensions between autonomy and large-scale administration in U.S. schools, and examples

28:10-29:15 Sharing innovations

29:15-33:34 Building ability to meet students’ needs into systems: equity vs equality

33:34-37:16 Catalyzing large scale professional development for pre-school teachers in Haryana State

37:16-39:08 Looking at success for the next generation

39:08-41:46 Teaching students to nurture the planet

41:46- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcript of this episode.

References

• Click here to download the free e-book created by Dr. Nathan and Jonathan Mendonca "Designing Democratic Schools and Learning Environments: A Global Perspective"
• Click here to listen to our first interview with Dr. Linda Nathan "Holistic education: Joy, wellness and rigor"

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

We speak with Cara E. Furman, Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education at Hunter College, about her book "Teaching from an Ethical Center: Practical Wisdom for Daily Instruction." Dr. Furman focuses on teachers ensuring that their practice corresponds with their ethical center. She emphasizes teachers’ knowledge of learning environments, local communities, and the children themselves. We discuss the ethical problems with "fidelity" as applied to teaching.

Overview

00:00-00:43 Intros

00:43-03:15 Crossroads of philosophy, teaching, teacher ed

03:15-04:47 Practical wisdom

04:47-07:02 “The way that teachers know”

07:02-11:33 “Fidelity” as applied to teaching

11:33-13:04 Are fidelity and ethics compatible for teachers?

13:04-16:50 Do philosophers and teachers have difficulty understanding the connections between the fields?

16:50-18:44 Teaching from a “philosophical center”

18:44-20:58 Teaching from an “ethical center”

20:58-26:23 Variations in ethical centers

26:23-27:51 Can a school have an ethical center?

27:51-31:52 When teachers find themselves in schools with highly restrictive practices

31:52-35:24 Lawsuits against Lucy Calkins and Fountas and Pinnell

35:24-36:32 Effects on teachers of demands for fidelity

36:32-38:41 Scripts

38:41-41:35 Podcasts and books—similarities and differences

41:35- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode.

Resources

Book Teaching from an Ethical Center: Practical Wisdom for Daily Instruction by Cara Furman

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear

We speak with  Ahenewa El-Amin, who teaches AP African American Studies in Kentucky, a state with a law restricting teaching about the legacy of slavery. Ms. El-Amin discusses the law as well as how she is able to teach the history of Kentucky, a state that is “north and south,” and open students’ minds to new perspectives.

Overview

00:00-00:55 Intros

00:55-02:45 Meaning of Kentucky law on teaching about race

02:45-03:37 Have any teachers been charged with violating the law?

03:37-04:52 Differential impact on long-term and newer teachers

04:52-06:27 Examples of content that might fall under the new law

06:27-08:03 Teaching “both ways” in Kentucky

08:03-10:03 Opening students’ minds to new perspectives

10:03-10:53 Biases re “cultural and racial upbringings”

10:53-15:20 Teaching and learning about Kentucky history; Margaret Garner and “Beloved”

15:20-18:27 West African influences on Southern food and culture

18:27-19:30 Impact of law on districts’ willingness to offer AP African American history

19:30-20:48 Controversy about content of AP course

20:48-24:12 Students’ responses to learning about Kentucky’s racial history

24:12- Outro

Transcript

Click here to see the full transcription of this episode.

Soundtrack by Poddington Bear