Teaching Matters

Dr. Julia Olayanju is a research geneticist who has become a disruptor in the food industry. Her most recent project, FoodNiche-ED, is a platform that empowers teachers to make science education applicable to students, particularly in support of improved health. Dr. Olayanju discusses the FoodNiche-ED platform and various health issues facing students.

For our new season of Teaching Matters, we begin with a discussion of how data sciences can be used by school districts to promote teaching effectiveness and student success. LaToya Blackshear is Director of Planning and Evaluation for Jackson (MS) public schools and Dr. Joy Smithson is Director of the Data Science Research Group for SchoolStatus. They discuss how data science has been implemented in Jackson as well as insights on how the use of data science will progress in educational settings.

The Smithsonian Education program is the largest museum-based education program in the world. Providing students and faculty of all ages with access to content experts and primary source materials, the Smithsonian is a tremendous resource for learning in any content area. Dr. Monique Chism, Undersecretary for Education at the Smithsonian, discusses how the education program can be used to enrich lessons and promote critical thinking about history and other subjects. For more information on the Smithsonian Education program, visit their website : https://www.si.edu/education

As students prepare for state testing in math, finding ways to help students re-engage previously learned material is essential. In this episode we explore a pilot-project in New York where students created short TikTok videos explaining how they used distributive properties to solve problems. Our guest, Elly Blanco-Rowe, is an educational consultant for Teaching Matters, a New York non-profit focused on promoting equitable teaching and learning. Though we share a great name, the Teaching Matters organization is not directly affiliated with this podcast.

Student wellbeing is rapidly emerging as a critical area of concern for educators at all levels. Dr. James Mazza, Professor of Education at the University of Washington, and Anne Brown, President and CEO of the Cook Center for Human Connection, discuss the importance of student wellbeing and describe a new animated series called, “My Life is Worth Living.” The series uses storytelling, with lesson plans, to help educators, families, and community organizations address the crisis of wellbeing confronting many youth and young adults.

This is the second episode in a two-part series exploring how faculty at Excelsior College, based in Albany NY, are using gamified simulations to teach course concepts. Dr. Anna Zendell, who is the Senior Faculty Program Director in Health Sciences, discusses how she has created gamified simulations to teach students about health concepts related to every-day decisions like purchasing groceries.

Dr. Mary Berkery, Faculty Program Director in History and Cornerstones at Excelsior College in Albany, NY, has worked with colleagues to develop and implement three games/simulations to help students grapple with concepts related to historical narratives. Dr. Berkery discusses how the simulations were developed and then integrated into her general education course. Listeners can experience the simulations by following these links: The July Crisis—Be the Kasier : https://kaiser.muzzylane.com/sample/web/6d5faeda-2cd9-42bb-a15e-dbbe5c9749ae The True Cost of War—Be the General : https://kaiser.muzzylane.com/sample/web/874c5626-56ef-4747-b033-d7d656dfbe68 Making the World Safe for Democracy—Be President Wilson : https://kaiser.muzzylane.com/sample/web/774f603d-8d58-42cb-a143-b879b18c5f7b

Generational changes with students, coupled with a more dynamic career landscape, is forcing higher education institutions to shift approaches to advising and mentoring for students. Dr. Jennifer Murphy, Associate Vice Provost for the OHIO Guarantee + initiative, discusses how Ohio University is expanding and strengthening support for students as they enter college and begin preparation for career success and lifelong learning.

As we work through the pandemic, all of us are looking for ways to re-inspire learners. Carmello Piazza has focused his career on using scientific discovery to unlock students’ imagination and to help them ground learning in inquiry-based methods. Carmello is the Executive Director and Education Director at the Brooklyn Preschool of Science. To learn more, visit: https://brooklynpreschoolofscience.com/

Teachers aiming to integrate discussions of social issues like racism, power differentials, and other contemporary social issues are also confronted with the realities of the common core. How can classrooms become vibrant places of discussion while still meeting standards for learning outcomes? Elizabeth and Bill James discuss strategies for doing this in their book, “A Sea of Troubles: Pairing Literary and Informational Texts to Address Social Inequality.”

Prior to COVID, the U.S. Department of State initiated a program using comics to facilitate English Language instruction by partnering teachers from across the globe. Although COVID caused changes in how that program was executed, lessons learned from the pilot suggest that comics are a great tool for connecting with students. Our guest, Dan Ryder, is a learning Coordinator at Overman Academy, CRCS, in Skowhegan, Maine, and a key consultant on the State Department’s program. Dan explains how the program unfolded amidst the pandemic as well as success stories that were observed. To learn more about this program, or to access resources on using comics when teaching, visit the American English “Teaching with Graphic Novels” resource site at https://americanenglish.state.gov/resources/teaching-comics-and-graphic-novels

Discussions of STEM topics on this program and in other outlets typically focus on middle, primary, and higher education age-level. Dr. Stephanie Ryan is the author of a children’s book titled, Let’s Learn about Chemistry, which offers an interactive and engaging solution for helping children in primary grades develop understanding of everyday chemistry concepts. In our discussion, Stephanie explains her approach to teaching with the book and also discusses ways in which parents or educators can extend the chemistry concepts through other applications and activities. You can learn more about Stephanie and her book at her website, http://letslearnaboutscience.com.

Jennifer Degenhardt is a Spanish teacher and author of several student-oriented books that raise cultural awareness while also helping to teach second language skills. A core premise of her books is to use character-developed storytelling to raise empathy and cultural awareness within the context of language learning. Jen discusses these issues as well as her own transition from classroom teacher to author.

In the 2018, Episode 120 of Teaching Matters, we learned about Persistence Plus, a communication platform that uses text messages to give students behavioral nudges toward academic success. Now, 3-years later, we can dive into the successes of this platform and how it has been expanded to address a variety of student needs, including those surrounding the pandemic. We are joined by Dr. Ross O’Hara, Director of Behavioral Science and Education with Persistence Plus, and Marisa Vernon White, Vice President of Enrollment Management at Lorain County Community College, which has been an institutional leader in use of the Persistence Plus technology.

Educational trauma happens for nearly every student (and teacher) in every school. Dr. Lee-Anne Gray is a forensic and clinical psychologist and author of, Educational Trauma: Examples from Testing to the School-to-Prison Pipeline. In this episode she explains how even well-intentioned behaviors can result in trauma for students, teachers, and others in the educational setting. She is a proponent of democratic education principles, design thinking, and empathy to abate such trauma.

Conrad Wolfram is the co-founder and CEO of Wolfram Research Europe and author of The Math(s) Fix: An Educational Blueprint for the AI Age (2020, Wolfram Media, Inc.). Listeners may be familiar with the popular Wolfram Alpha app created by his company. Our discussion in this episode delves into a core problem in math education: We focus far too much on calculation rather than computation. Wolfram outlines ways in which computational thinking skills can be taught and why they are essential to our modern society.

Every 10 years, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts the census, which is then used for a variety of purposes including the nature of representation in Congress but also resources provided to schools. The Statistics in Schools program is an initiative to help teachers of all PK-12 (and Adult ESL) levels integrate lessons using census data into lessons ranging from U.S. History to English and, of course, math. Our guests in this program are Victoria Glasier, Director of the Statistics in Schools Program with the U. S. Census Bureau, and Lem Wheeles, a U.S. Government History Teacher at Diamond High School in Anchorage

A growing body of research has documented the problems associated with using conventional student course evaluations as a primary method for demonstrating teaching effectiveness for purposes of promotion and tenure, annual review, and other uses. A group of faculty and administrators at Ohio University have tackled this issue for the past year in order to make recommendations on how practices of documenting teaching effectiveness can be usefully broadened. Ohio University guests on this episode include Kamile Geist from the School of Music, Debora Marinski from the Southern Campus, Katie Hartman from the College of Business, and Mary Wurm-Schaar from the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine.

The KIPP Foundation is a network of over 240 public charter schools that emphasizes college preparedness for the 100,000+ students in its system. Richard Barth, CEO of the KIPP Foundation, discusses the KIPP foundation’s approach as well as information from a recently released foundation report titled, “The Promise of a Choice-Filled Life: Meeting Students’ College and Career Needs, from Classrooms to Congress.” The report carefully documents the opportunities and challenges facing students as they make the transition from college-prep to college. To learn more about the KIPP Foundation, visit their website: https://www.kipp.org/

Over the course of this season of Teaching Matters we have discussed a variety of topics and approaches to STEM education. Dr. John Ewing, President of Math for America (MfA), joins us in this episode to discuss how MfA creates a community for math and STEM educators to professionally develop and attain recognition for their efforts. As a veteran math educator and leader, Ewing also discusses his views on the future of math and STEM education.