Overthrowing Education

This is the first totally new episode in about 10 months. What could get me to put aside my other work to make sure this episode gets out? Only something as important as the death of critical thinking in our education system and how it has especially played out this school year of 2023-24 would make me drop everything to make sure to get this out.  

Please open your mind and heart while listening to this episode. 

I want to thank Distant Cousins, one of my favorite bands, for their incredible music that opens and closes my...

In this encore of the 4th episode in the series on AI in education, my guest, Matt Miller and I discuss the issues we need to consider as well as some very practical ideas for using ChatGPT and other really cool AI in our classes. Matt has been digging deep into this subject and brings so much wisdom and insight into our conversation.

Matt shares some great resources to explore in the links below. And he also plays a fun version of The 5-Minute Game Show called “ChatGPT, Google or Me?”

I’d like to thank...

This encore episode is a favorite of mine, but maybe I'm just partial. Here is the description from the original version:

Is it possible that Robots/AI will replace teachers someday? II first examined this question in an episode in early 2020. My guests said no, but my son, 14 at the time, predicted much of what we are seeing now with the explosion of growth in Artificial Intelligence. So, I brought my son, now almost 18,  back on the show to give his reflections on his past predictions and update us again. Is it inevitable that teachers will become o...

This encore episode is the second part of my early exploration of AI in education. Here is the description of this episode from January, 2023:

If you haven’t yet listened to the first in this AI in Education series, episode 89, you might want to do that first. It’s not essential but it does give some background that feeds this episode’s discussion. In that episode, I mention some excellent essays by super prolific author and culture writer Stephen Marche. And now Stephen is my special guest on the show today. He is a font of information and a...

This episode was orginally recorded in November of 2022, just as we were hearing about ChatGPT and AI in education. Many of us were wondering what will happen to the way we teach and the way students learn. This is the first part of my exploration about AI in Education. My views on it, my concerns, my hopes have all changed many times over the last year and 1/2. It's interesting to go back and see how far we've come.

Here is my original description of the episode:

There has been an explosion of handwringing among educators...

I've been taking a break from publishing new episodes since mid-August, and now I have a special announcement! 

My awesome guest on this encore episode is educator, author, and lovely, charming human being Lindsay Portnoy who joins me today to talk about why playing games, and playing in general are the best way to learn and how to incorporate games and play into any subject or grade. Lindsay has so many inspiring and wise approaches to education and we really geek out together on this favorite topic for both of us. As for the 5-Minute game show, Lindsay racks up lots of imaginary points as she slays it!

Thank you so much to Lyndsay Portnoy a...

What is a fauxmerical? It's a commercial parody with fake educational products we wish were real. They come towards the beginning of every episode.

What is an encore? It means I've played it before, in this case 12/22.

What is 12/22? A year I was relieved was almost over, until experiencing 12/23, that is. This last year was so awful that I'm nostalgic about 2022. Go figure. Anyway, now, I really need to laugh. I hope you enjoys these as much as we enjoyed making them.

Special thanks to all the voice artists who contributed to not...

Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!

On this episode, Zaynab Baalbaki joins me. She is a passionate educator who is truly working on and supporting others in overthrowing education and creating amazing and equitable learning spaces joins. She talks about an incredible public school, Escuela Verde, where she worked in and I also talk about Qualia: The School for Deeper Learning, another example of education at its best. We also discuss how more traditional schools and districts can start slowly to incorporate elements of both these and other transformative schools into t...

Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!

In this episode, veteran educator and podcast host Charles Williams and I have a great conversation about the work we need to do to create true equity in education and the importance of challenging our current narratives. We also talk about problematic intrinsic biases that we all have and how to change them. Even though the topics we discuss are serious and important, along with all the practical ideas, we do get very silly (and not just on The 5-Minute Game Show, although he slays h...

Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!

Long-time educator Jared Magee, from the very cool The Winchendon School, shares what Impact Learning is, why it’s important, and how to make it happen for all educators. Jared and I discuss ways to take what he has learned from his experiences there and mine working for another non-traditional school, Arete Preparatory Academy , and apply them to other, more traditional school situations.

Special thanks to guest Jared Magee, and also Yossie Frankel for joining me on today’s fauxmercial!

Check out a...

Even before the extreme challenges of pandemic teaching, my guest, Amber Harper of The Burned-In Teacher Podcast was a valuable resource for helping with the very real problem of teacher burn-out that affects most teachers even multiple times in a career. But now, with everything educators have been through trying to teach in 2020, Amber’s Burned-In Teacher approach is a true remedy where she gives solid tools and advice on what to do when you’re feeling burnt-out. And then Amber plays a fun The 5-Minute Game Show, where the clues are Haikus.

Thank you so much to m...

Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!

This episode explores why kids hate math and what we can do about it featuring a conversation with John Bianchette of Mathnasium from January 2020 with a recent additional talk to reflect the radical changes that have taken place since then.

In the Trenches, I trace my journey from hating math as a student and defining myself as “I’m not a math person” in adulthood to finally realizing that I actually enjoy math because of the math teachers at Areté Preparatory Academy...

Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!

Engaging educator, author and speaker Antero Garcia discusses how cell phones and games can be used effectively in a class, as well as other important issues surrounding cell use, games and technology. And then Antero nails The 5-Minute Game Show! The fauxmerical parody, “TAC vs. Worksheet” starts us off and we finish with students from St. Mary’s High School in Owen Sound, Ontario sharing the ideas they came up with after analyzing an “anti-cell phone for teens” article on the In the Trenches se...

Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!

Blended Learning expert, Catlin Tucker converses with me about the why’s and how’s of Blended Learning. Then we play The 5-Minute Game Show Flippin’ Fictional Schools. Our In The Trenches segment features some food for thought from Rabbi Doctor Reb Mimi Feigelson. Then we honor a few teachers in Teacher Shout Outs.

More special thanks to Catlin Tucker, Reb Mimi, our announcer, Yossie Frankel and Distant Cousins for our theme song.

Our Fauxmercial sponsor is “Blend It” - and speci...

  Jump into the Overthrowing Education archives with me in this encore episode!   We start with a conversation filled with practical tools about games and gamification with educator, author and expert Jon Cassie of Game Level Learn and Qulia: The School for Deeper Learning. Then play along as Jon is subjected to The Five Minute Game Show where he has to determine whether the unusual games describes are Fact or Fantasy.

Special Thanks to our guests Jon Cassie and Micaela Blie (and check out a great interview with her on our episode, “From Blah to Hazzah”).

Our Edu-Gamerama Fauxme...

This is kind of a bittersweet episode for me. I was blessed to get the job of my dreams, and I couldn’t be happier, but it means I’ll be wrapping things up for this podcast. After 4 amazing years, this will be my last new episode.  I’m going to give everyone a chance to catch up by rereleasing older episodes.

I’ve been thinking about what I would want to say in this last episode. What are some magical words of wisdom I can leave you with?  Then I decided that the best way to end this r...

In this episode, my guest, Crystal Frommert, and I have a great conversation about something that challenges new and veteran teachers alike: How to have better conversations with our students’ parents and/or guardians in order to make connections and ensure collaboration that will really enhance our work with their kids.

I love learning new things from my guests, and I certainly got some tips and ideas from Crystal that I wish I had known earlier. But it’s never too late!

And if you love Ted Lasso as much as Crystal and I do, you’l...

After a long, tough school year, I figured we could all use a good laugh. In this encore interview in Episode 45 from April of 2021, I interview the one and only Mr. D, Joe Dombrowski the educator and comedian who performs around the country and whose videos have gone viral. We talk about the importance of using humor when teaching, and how to do it, even if you don’t think you’re funny. I also share a taste of how I recently used humor to connect with students. This is the perfect summer episode: Learn a little something and laugh...

My guest today, passionate educator and prolific author Connie Hamilton, is returning for her 3rd time. Her first visit was in Episode 53: Asking and Getting Students to Ask Great Questions, one of the most episodes so far. Another popular visit was in Episode 53 when I had Connie and Starr Sackstein talking about hacking homework.

Today, however, I chatted with Connie about her new book Hacking Group Work. She shares wisdom and really practical ideas and tools for all teachers. I’m a veteran educator of over 25 years, and you can hear in the interview that I learned a...

What happens when a veteran teacher working as a professional learning consultant during the last 4 years returns to the classroom? What’s happening in the classroom now that was different than a few years ago? Spoiler Alert: A lot.

I share my journey back into classroom teaching, at a time when so many teachers can’t wait to get out (and who can blame them?). So, while I confess a bunch of stuff, I also rant (and who can blame me?).

Also, in today’s fauxmercial – A film noir detective parody – I actually play both roles. Che...

Welcome to the 100th episode of Overthrowing Education! 

On today’s episode, I have the awesome privilege of chatting with 5 inspiring high school students – Pauline, Drizzle, Ella, Fahmi, and Katie and their equally inspiring teacher, Stacie Oliver. We mostly talk undgrading. Obviously, this is a topic I am passionate about, and I noticed in the Edu Twittersphere a teacher, Stacie, who was posting about her journey with her students about ungrading. I was impressed not only by Stacie, but also with her students whose work and reflections she sometimes posted.

I realized that with all of my...

As I get ready for my 100th episode celebration, I thought it would be great to look back at my very first episode from August of 2019. I featured educator of excellence Jesse Stommel and we discussed Ungrading (of course!). 

My show was so different in the beginning, and I've streamlined it quite a bit since my earlier episodes. I originally had a feature called In the Trenches, and my guest on this episode was Leora Smith.  

I also had something I called Tirades, Tips and Tools. I don't think this 2-minute segment lasted more than 2-3...

It is the 99th episode of Overthrowing Education and today’s topic is one I’ve haven’t addressed on the show yet, so I’ve brought on Sharon Duncan, who works extensively with gifted students and their families. And I also bring back innovative educator Jim Hahn, the founder of Qualia: The School for Deeper Learning and Arete Preparatory Academy before that. Last time Jim joined me with the co-founder of Qualia, Jon Cassie on episode 77. And of course, Qualia is also the sponsor of this show. When a school sponsors a podcast called Overthrowing Education that tells you a lo...

My guest today is Lindsay Lyons. We talk about what a culturally responsive sustaining classroom is, as well as why and how to make it happen, especially through PBL. She shares a lot of practical ideas and resources. Then Lindsay knocks it out of the park playing a literature focused The 5-Minute Game Show.

I want to thank my guest today, Lindsay Lyons, and for help with the fauxmercial - Shane Lawrence, who is now on the podcast Unprofessional Development, and also Shane’s daughter.

Resources and links:

Lindsay's

 Webs...

My guest today is Adam Bellow the co-founder of the very cool Breakout EDU. We talk Game-based and play-based learning in general and a lot about the magic of escape rooms. It’s a fun episode with some practical ideas, as well.

Also, in this episode I give a sort of overview of a game for humanities classes call Battle of the Big Ideas. For more information see below.

It’s not too early to be thinking about end of the year gifts for your colleagues or yourself for making it through this schoo...

Is it possible that Robots/AI will replace teachers someday? II first examined this question in an episode in early 2020. My guests said no, but my son, 14 at the time, predicted much of what we are seeing now with the explosion of growth in Artificial Intelligence. So, I brought my son, now almost 18,  back on the show to give his reflections on his past predictions and update us again. Is it inevitable that teachers will become obsolete? What can we do to make sure that we, as real live educators, are irreplaceable? 

What do you thi...

In this episode, I speak with Barbara Smith, a long-time forward-thinking educator and prolific writer. We talk about her upcoming book, The Gatekeepers: Why School Systems Should Rethink Resisting Change. We discuss who the gatekeepers are that keep us from moving education forward and creating a better system. Of course, that includes the U.S. and other countries' obsession with standardized tests, ranking schools and students, and a whole more. This conversation got me riled up, in a good way, to continue the work so many educators like you are doing to overthrow education. And bonus: we talked about...

In the 4th episode in this series on AI in education, my guest, Matt Miller and I discuss the issues we need to consider as well as some very practical ideas for using ChatGPT and other cool AI in our classes. Matt has been digging deep into this subject and brings so much wisdom and insight into our conversation.

Matt shares some great resources to explore in the links below. And he also plays a fun version of The 5-Minute Game Show called “ChatGPT, Google or Me?”

I’d like to thank my awesome...

This episode is important for parents and educators to listen to. In it, my special guest – a teenage boy - and I dig deep into the ever increasing problem of teens and pre-teens being influenced by toxic people and dangerous messages online.

The most popular is Andrew Tate whose sexist and misogynistic views are couched between advice that many teen boys find empowering. How do we deal with his and other toxic influencers' bile as educators and/or parents?

Special thanks to my very special guest, Tuvia, and my awesome fauxmercial voice actor, Jake Miller.

After 2 more philosophical looks at AI in education, I wanted to bring in some super practical ways to incorporate ChatGPT and other AI sites into your lessons and schools as a whole. My guest is Ben Talsma who you might remember from Episode 28 which is all about making meaningful PBL units. Recently I saw that Ben is sharing some very meaningful, practical weird and wonderful ways to incorporate AI into all kinds of lessons, including, but not limited to PBL units.

Did you ever wish you could talk to me about something you heard on the show...

If you haven’t yet listened to the first in this AI in Education series, episode 89, you might want to do that first. It’s not essential but it does give some background that feeds this episode’s discussion.   In that episode, I mention some excellent essays by super prolific author and columnist Stephen Marche. And now Stephen is my special guest on the show today. He is a font of information and a lot of fun to talk with. Among many other aspects, we discussed some great things we can do with AI in our lessons, along with other potenti...

I am so ready for some huge, great changes, to education. How about you? How are we going to make this happen? How can we provide a super high quality education for every student? My guest today, Dr. Lacrecia Terrance, has been working toward this goal for a long time. In our conversation she shares a lot of practical experience with how PBL and the concepts of unschooling can genuinely create a better and more equitable education experience. We do talk a little educational philosophy, but there are also practical ideas and tools, as well.

After our...

In September of 2022, Fauxsie awards were given out at a fake, but very fun awards ceremony honoring the talented people who have helped me create the commercial parodies - fauxmercials - that come at the beginning of each episode. As a little gift this holiday season, I present some of the award-winning performances that listeners voted on.

These are the commercials you won't mind sitting through. 

There has been an explosion of handwringing among educators and academics, and cheers from students about the strides and easy accessibility of Artificial Intelligence that will probably change the entire nature of how we educate. What can we expect? How do we adapt?  Can anything good come out of this? This is just the first in a series of examinations of this incredibly important topic that will certainly affect every aspect of education at least from middle school through higher education. On this episode it’s just me and AI. We even had fun playing The 5-Minute Game Show! Wel...

Today, I’m continuing a hot topic in education right now -homework. My guests in this episode are incredible educators Starr Sackstein and Connie Hamilton who co-authored the excellent book, Hacking Homework. We have a great conversation that explores homework issues including giving practical ideas for how to do it right, if you have to do it all. And we also have a lot of fun!

When I asked parents and teachers on Twitter, “How do you feel about homework?” I received almost 500 answers, along with a healthy discussion. And while people had a variety of passionate opinio...

My guests on this episode, Noah King and Peter Littig have podcast called The Math Club that I really love. I would never have guessed that I would enjoy a podcast about math, but I really love it. The show is a funny, clever and down to earth mode of explaining interesting math concepts . . . that I mostly understand.

Pete, Noah and I discuss how to make math approachable and fun to learn, and also fun to teach. We discuss a lot of really practical ideas and resources for that K-college math teachers as well as for other...

My guest on this episode is awesome educator and author Elizabeth Jorgensen who I initially met on a social media platform that rhymes with bitter (which is basically how many of us feel about it right now). We discuss Process Based Assessment, moving away from grades, and of course, why and how to make a homework-less teaching practice.

 Recently, I reached out to educators to get there take on homework and I got an incredible response- very diverse and passionate. Elizabeth reached out to me to share an essay she wrote (see link below) that I really l...

On this episode, I reflect on the past - sharing ideas, musings, anecdotes, subtle hints, honest confessions, and a look at how reflection moved education forward for all of us.

Special thanks to Barbara Heller and Yossie Frankel, my fauxmercial helpers.

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Lenses of Questioning Course

DISCOVER Assessments

Overthrowing Education merch

My guest today is longtime educator and author Jason Ablin. We talk about creating gender equality in education – what does it mean? What would it look like? And how to get it. Then Jason performs well with a music/literature mashup on The 5-Minute Game Show.

I did indeed pilfer today’s fauxmercial from an earlier episode on implicit bias and micro aggressions. But it could still apply here.

Speaking of fauxmercials, we held our first Fauxsie Awards Show honoring all the great talent that has helped me over the years with the comme...