Reinventing Education

EP101 Diagnostics for School Change.

Welcome to Episode 101 of our podcast! Over the past 100 episodes, we've been discussing the three types of school relationships: Expert, Coach, and Counselor. Today, we're excited to introduce a tool that we've built that can help you analyze your school's relationship type and determine the next steps to take.

The link here will take you to the tool (form).

Our tool considers various factors, including communication, trust, and collaboration, to provide an analysis of your school's relationship type. Whether your school has an Expert, Coach, or Counselor relationship, our tool will help you identify it and provide actionable insights to improve it.

In this episode, we'll take a closer look at our tool and explain how you can use it to being a journey that empowers you as an educator, student, or parent. If you leave your email in the form, We'll reach out to begin a conversation how you can enhance your school's relationship type and create a better learning environment for everyone.

Join us as we delve into the world of school relationships and discover how our tool can help you build stronger, more collaborative relationships in your school. This episode is a must-listen for anyone who's passionate about education and wants to make a positive impact in their school community.

EP100 How to develop your school in 2023

In our 100th episode, we summarize our first 99 episodes for you & update some of our terminology. 

In this episode we provide you with tools to serve your school's development:

-discern differences between the 3 types of school (expert, coach & counselor)

-uncover which you gravitate toward, which your school is now & which is the best fit for its context

-explore the 8 aspects of your school that reinforce the type of school and need to change to make sustainable change

(systems, environments, activities, resources, communities, cultures, reactions & beliefs) 

-we also make the case for a 4th type of school, an integrative approach that aims to integrate the babies and bathwaters of the others

 

EP99 Deschooling Society by Ivan Illich book review pt 1

In 1971 Ivan Illich wrote Deschooling Society, a text which was far ahead of its time. 

Illich laid out a thorough critique of what we've called traditional and mainstream approaches to education. He also articulated a concrete progressive vision for moving forward. 50 years later his critique still holds weight. 

In part 1 of our book review, we highlight the main components of his critique against schooling as it was in 1971 and still is in 2023.

In this episode, we highlight what he calls the 4 myths of school and the 3 kinds of teachers. 

EP98 What is progressive education?

In this episode, we identify how progressive education differs from traditional and mainstream approaches by defining the following aspects:

-sociocratic systems of organization

-adaptive physical and digital environments

-transdisciplinary practices

-sustainable & natural resources

-inclusive communities & cultures

-beliefs and reactions towards meaning

EP 97 School Circles -Every Voice Matters - review of sociocratic documentary

"School Circles is an independent documentary that explores the practice of democratic schools in the Netherlands. The film shows students, teachers and staff members coming together to dialogue, discuss proposals, mediate conflicts and make decisions about their school life.

These schools not only challenge the mainstream education, but also democracy as we know it. They put into practice Sociocracy, a method for collective organisation based on a systems perspective, in which the decisions are made by hearing all the voices and getting everyone's consent."

In this episode Brendan and Rob share their thoughts, questions and interest in circle schools and their progressive approach to school organization. 

We highly encourage you to watch the documentary. It can be found here:

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/schoolcircles

 

EP96 How Mainstream Schools Fail & Succeed To Engage With Their Communities

Why do mainstream, curriculum-centered schools tend to engage with the community surrounding their school less than traditional or progressive schools?

In this episode we focus on:

-how parent's roles in schools have changed from passionate volunteers to qualified professionals

-utilizing local businesses for job preparation

-field trips as an extension or chance to apply learning 

-creating communities that expand beyond your geographic location

 

 

EP95 Mainstream School Community - behind the scenes episode

We do our best to distill down the essence of the differences between traditional, mainstream, and progressive education.

The process to get there can be messy. 

Brendan and Rob working on a 2-week cycle to produce episodes. 

Week 1 - brainstorm, sort & organize ideas

Week 2 - record a condensed and hopefully concise episode

For something different, we're giving you a chance to be a fly on the wall to listen in on what we do during Week 1. Next week we'll release the final product of this episode. 

EP94 Make School Events More Effective In Mainstream Schools

What kinds of events do mainstream schools host & more importantly why?

We look at how the following events either serve the curriculum, help celebrate merit, or wow us with something unique:

-parent information evenings

-celebrations of learning

-holiday celebrations

-social gatherings and talent shows 

EP93 Roles For Parents In Mainstream Schools

How can parents best contribute to student learning and the functioning of the school and community? 

Well, the answer seems to be, to get out of the way in a mainstream school. 

In this episode, we look at how the role of a parent in a school has moved away from the passionate volunteer in the school to an informed coach at home. We examine the pros and cons of this new approach. 

EP92 Effective Parent Teacher Communication In Mainstream Schools

How do mainstream schools, that place importance on student success in relation to a curriculum, communicate effectively with parents?
We analyze best practices with:

- parent-teacher conferences

- ongoing weekly or monthly communication

- admissions & selling a school to parents