Reinventing Education

EP 61 : Staff Ethos & Structure in a Mainstream School

This week, we look into the culture and beliefs of the staff in a mainstream school.

We ask, what matters to teachers in mainstream schools in terms of their relationships? And how can we build strong, positive cultures that balance transparency, logic and support without being in constant flux or getting tied up in the cold data of bureaucracy?

We also dive into the evolution of the staffing hierarchy, from the single teacher in the one room school house to the mainstream mega-schools with its hundreds of specific roles.

And finally, we discuss how we can employ our limited budges to build a pastoral & teaching staff that best serves the wide needs of students.

Listen in and tell us you thoughts on twitter and at reinventingeducationpodcast@gmail.com

 

EP 60 : Leadership in a Mainstream School

In today's episode, we talk about the pushes and pulls that shape the role of a principal or head teacher in a mainstream school, including; the challenges of managing a large and diverse staff, bearing ultimate responsibility for student growth and being the conduit between government agencies and the community.

We also discuss how the job of principal grew from coordinating a few teachers in the one room schoolhouse to the complex managerial role that it is today.

We hope that you enjoy the conversation. Feel free to reach out to us on Twitter or at reinventingeducationpodcast@gmail.com

 

EP 59 : Dr Brad Kershner : The Importance of Relationships in Education

Today we have a second chat with Dr Brad Kershner that builds on the strands from our first conversation back in episode 55.

We dig deeper into the ways that we can create a developmentally minded school in both culture and practice. We also talk about the kinds of relationships that we want to nurture and ask how we can best embody our broad and complex human values in a world where education is often reduced to workplace preparation.

Brad is a school leader and educational theorist. He is currently the head of the Early School at Carolina Friends School in Durham North Carolina. He has an MA in the philosophy of religions and a PhD in education. 

Brad's book "Understanding Educational Complexity" is available for pre order now and will be published in December. You can pre-order here!

Before listening today, if you have not already checked out episode 50 of Reinventing Education, we suggest heading over there first to get an overview of many of the ideas that we talk about in today’s episode.

It might also be helpful to listen to that first discussion with Brad a few weeks back in episode 55.

We hope that what you hear is engaging, relevant and enjoyable. Feel free to contact us with questions and feedback at reinventingeducationpodcast@gmail.com or on Twitter.

EP 58 : Are Mainstream School Buildings Designed Only To Save Money?

In today's episode, we look at how evolving designs of school buildings have gone hand in hand with changes in education.

We discuss why the traditional one room schoolhouse gave way to the mainstream cellular model and consider the extent that this better serves students and teachers.

And, of course, we get to the thorny issue of whether schools are just designed to save money, even where education sufferers.

EP 57 : Are Mainstream Schools Entirely Devoted to Workplace Preparation?

Here at Reinventing Education, we have a theory that the three main aims of school are citizenship, workplace preparation and self development. But how does a mainstream school, with its core value of opportunity, carry out these three aims?

And when push comes to shove, where does it devote its limited resources?

Join us! And be sure to let us know your thoughts and experiences in this area at reinventingeducationpodcast@gmail.com and on Twitter.

In today's show we refer to this paper written by Shuayb & O'Donnell (UK National Foundation for Educational Research) which compares aims in schools across Europe since the 1960s.  

The website purposeofschool.org was also very helpful in clarifying school aims.

EP 56 : Mainstream School : What is it good for?

Today we launch Season 5 in earnest with our first deep dive into the world of the "mainstream" school. This is the school just down the road. It's the one that populates our collective memory. It's a world of differentiation, standardised tests, sports teams, report cards, graduations and qualifications.

The mainstream school is the water that we swim in, and it's very easy to see it as the only form of education. However in this season we will ask, "To what extent does mainstream education fit the global context of the 21st century, and what can it learn from the traditional and progressive systems?

EP 55 : Dr. Brad Kershner - The Developmentally Minded School

Season 5! Welcome back. We fire up the new season by interviewing Dr. Brad Kershner on issues relating to creating a school that has development at its core. The discussion includes; the fundamental importance of relationships, finding truths that cut across all values and how the codes we speak are not always in alignment with the cognition going on inside us.

Brad Kershner is a school leader and educational theorist. He is currently Head of the Early School at Carolina Friends School in Durham, NC. He earned a MA in Philosophy of Religions at the University of Chicago and a PhD in Education at Boston College. His recent writings and presentations have addressed topics such as: complex systems, mindfulness and meditation, human development, integral theory, racism, and the (mis)use of technology.

Check out one of his talks here - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjktqQ0SSSNwUCcjh-Av1vg

EP 54 : The Babies and Bathwaters of Traditional Education

I'm sure you are familiar with the old saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater." meaning that we don't want to lose the best aspects of an idea when we change things up.

 

Every kind of school, be it traditional, mainstream or progressive has some vital, healthy elements that we want to keep and expand on. We call these "babies". While at the same time there are things that are holding us back from really making educational cultures & systems that serve the entire community. These are our "bathwaters".

 

In today's episode, we take a look at the "babies" that the traditional paradigm brought to the table as it swept away the problems that the previous mindset was causing. And then we talk about how some of these same innovations became bathwater in the eyes of the emerging mainstream opportunity minded system over the course of the 20th century. 

 

Hope you enjoy. Thanks for all your support and feedback. We will see you back here after our Summer break for Season 5, as we deep dive into the "mainstream" opportunity minded school!

EP 53 : Shifting Stages with Integral Coach Lennie MacLeod

This episode we are joined by Integral coach Lennie MacLeod, to discuss how schools can use the theories underpinning the Reinventing Education model to become the healthiest possible version of their core values.

We talk on topics such as, how traditional schools allow for redemption, how an administrator can use values to best place staff and how we can consciously move in the direction that is best for the whole community.

For further details on Lennie's work as an integral Coach, or to contact him, please check out his website at https://www.lenniemacleod.com/

EP 52 : A Brief Tour of the Three Kinds of School

Hi. Before you check out episode 52, it might be good to go back and listen to episode 50 for an explanation of all the bits and pieces that make up our attempt to lovingly reinvent education!

Today, we take a casual tour thought the back roads of the Reinventing Education model. We dig deep into some of the pros and cons of the traditional, mainstream and progressive school systems to answer the question, "How we can best serve the huge range of needs within our educational communities?"