Our recently released 10 Principles for Schools of Modern Learning whitepaper provides a synthesis of the unique characteristics of schools from around the world that have taken on high-bar change initiatives responding to the new opportunities and challenges of learning in the modern age. Since its publication, the white paper has been downloaded by over
#57 – Announcing the Audit Read More »
Here’s my burning question for you in 2019: What are you going to do to change the experience that your students have in school to reflect more compellingly what you believe is the right thing to be doing for kids and learning? It’s a loaded question, I know. It suggests that as an educator,
2019 – Time to Choose Read More »
Given the opportunity to start a new community public school from scratch, what would you build? What process would you employ? And if you really wanted to create something really different, how would you convince parents that really different is not something their kids need but also something they should want? Those questions and more
#56 – Megan Power on Creating a New Experience of Learning Read More »
We often start the New Year with resolutions, some more ambitious than others, so when you hear Keith Richards is to give up the booze, you know the world is certainly changing! However nowadays it’s also become more common to end the year with titles such as Time’s Person of the Year, the Oxford
Modern Learners 2018 Provocation of the Year Read More »
Why do so many students leave high school without the ability to write in compelling and interesting ways? According to John Warner, author of a new book titled “Why They Can’t Write: Killing the Five Paragraph Essay and Other Necessities,” it’s because we’re teaching them to write to a test, not to real life audiences.
#55: Author John Warner on Rethinking Writing Instruction and Schools Read More »
Given how much I read, I wish I was more like my friend Rob who has the insane ability to remember just about everything he reads down to where it’s located on the paper or digital page he reads it on. Unfortunately for me, that’s not the case. It takes much longer for the patterns
The Most Important Skill for the Future: Being Human Read More »
How do you identify potential? Do you know what potential looks like, long before it is realized? Some examples are obvious. You know the sort of kid I am talking about. Almost from when he started to walk, he had a ball in his hand. When he threw it, he was a natural, and
Every Kid Can Do Amazing Things Read More »
Turns out, we who live in western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic societies are actually as WEIRD as the acronym for that group spells out. According to research by University of British Columbia professor Joe Henrich (now of Harvard,) “Members of WEIRD societies, including young children, are among the least representative populations one could
Designing for Learning Read More »
The compelling case for reimagining schools is not difficult to make. It’s a combination of common sense and a clear understanding of how the changes in the world are creating new challenges and opportunities for learners both in and out of school. In other words, the compelling case is built on a sense of urgency
#54 Old Urgencies, New Urgencies for Change Read More »
Will and Lyn talk with educator and library administrator Bud Hunt who asks us to consider when we stopped making schools a place of wonder? We discuss the connections between literacy and making (“making is a fundamental thing that people do”); a library’s purpose as a community space where people can engage in civil discourse;
#53: Why Don’t We Wonder in Schools Anymore? with Bud Hunt Read More »
Teacher-librarian and Senior Fellow for the Foundry Makerspace Heather Lister joins us for a conversation around this month’s Modern Learners Community theme: modern literacy. Heather provides valuable insights on the changing role of libraries as she works to fulfill her mission of “abolishing the stereotype of libraries and librarians.” In this podcast we discuss copyright
#52: Literacy, Libraries and Making with Heather Lister Read More »
Equity is a topic that takes center stage in many education conversations, and rightly so. It’s about every child being given a “fair go.” We often voice our concerns about the plight of the underserved in our communities, and as educators, we always strive to address their disadvantage within the resources we have available. At
The Unpleasant Truth About Equity Read More »
Change School alumni Mark Heintz joins Bruce and me in another episode of the Modern Learners Podcast. You can join is in Change School. All the details are on the site! Mark is a Teaching and Learning Facilitator at Elk Grove High School in Illinois. Tired of viewing success only by a score. he and
#51: From Old School to Change School Read More »
