Testing Testing Podcast

What does a 1897 women's college in Massachusetts have to do with Silicon Valley hiring algorithms, grade inflation, and the total breakdown of the high school transcript? In this episode of Testing Testing , host Kent Lui traces how administrative shorthand turned into a high-stakes currency—and why grades are failing both students and universities. Key Takeaways From This Episode: The Sorting Tr...

What does Isaac Newton sitting in a 1665 orchard have to do with Silicon Valley tech executives, screen-free parenting, and a classroom full of students who finished a test 15 minutes early? In this episode of Testing Testing , host Kent Lui traces the Great Plague to modern ed-tech to explore a lost cognitive superpower: the ability to be bored . Key Takeaways From This Episode: The Tech Pioneer...

What does an 1884 mechanical television invention have to do with assigning AI homework in 2026? In this episode of Testing Testing , host Kent Lui traces the early mechanical TV to the 2012 "flipped classroom" - exposing why supercharging home learning with AI creates a massive equity trap for vulnerable students. Key Takeaways From This Episode: The Flipped AI Fallacy: Why sending AI home as an...

What does a 1771 English cotton mill have to do with modern high school report card penalties, parent-excused debate trips, and post-pandemic absenteeism? In this episode of Testing Testing , host Kent Lui traces the birth of factory punch clocks to modern school policy - exposing why using grades as a behavioral whip backfires on vulnerable students. Key Takeaways From This Episode: The Industria...

When a student freezes or skips a question on a test, it isn't just a lack of preparation—it is a learned neural response to a culture that treats mistakes as penalties. In this episode of Testing Testing , host Kent Lui breaks down MRI brain-imaging research comparing traditional and Montessori, process-oriented students to reveal how grading practices physically shape a child's error-mon...

Technology promised to save students time, but on the ground, high schoolers are experiencing a hidden explosion in workload. In this episode of Testing Testing , host Kent Lui breaks down the phenomenon of "workload creep" in the age of AI and why panic-pivoting to high-stakes standardized testing harms student mental health. Key Takeaways From This Episode: The Tax of Innocence: How ho...

With a median teacher age of 41, half of today’s educators developed their study habits, cognitive strategies, and teaching models in an analog world. When district AI training consists of surface-level software tutorials or tips on catching plagiarists, it misses the real issue: our assessment models are still grading compliance in a world where AI is a master of compliance. In this episode of Te...

When AI usage rockets from 35% in Grade 8 to 70% in Grade 10, one-off digital literacy workshops won't protect your students. In this episode, host Kent Lui breaks down why siloing tech instruction into standalone classes fails, offering a concrete roadmap for district leaders to embed AI evaluation directly into cross-curricular literacy frameworks—from Math to Foods class. Key Takeaways From Thi...

When 73% of high school students use generative AI for schoolwork, changing your district's firewalls won't protect their learning - redesigning your report cards will. In this 14-minute briefing, classroom teacher and host Kent Lui reveals how traditional checklist rubrics are fueling a "cognitive offloading" crisis by grading compliance instead of actual human thinking. Listen now to get a concr...

In this episode of Testing Testing, we uncover a surprising truth: many students say they understand math, yet fail to meet grade-level expectations. Ontario’s latest standardized test results reveal a troubling gap - 68% of Grade 6 students believe they “get” the math, but only 51% actually perform at or above the provincial standard. That means in every classroom, about five students think they’...

In this episode of Testing Testing , we explore the science behind the perfect level of challenge for learning. Researchers have discovered that the ideal success rate for rapid growth is about 85% - not too easy, not too hard, just right. We break down what this might look like in classrooms, how teachers can apply it to differentiate instruction, and why managing emotions like frustration and em...

Dear Harvard, we need to talk. Grade inflation isn’t just a Harvard problem - it’s everywhere. In this episode, we dive into Harvard’s skyrocketing A grades, explore why traditional grading systems are failing, and share a bold solution: Pass/Fail grading. If you care about academic integrity, student motivation, and the future of higher education, this conversation is for you. And Harvard - if yo...

Teachers use AI to save time and spark ideas. Students use it to study smarter. So why is one celebrated and the other questioned? In this episode, we unpack the double standard, explore the real fears behind student use, and ask: Are we testing student thinking - or just what AI can do? Let’s rethink assessment for a world where creativity matters more than memorization.

In this episode of Testing, Testing , we explore two very different classrooms - one in Calgary, Canada, and one in Tampere, Finland. One student is prepping for a high-stakes exam. The other is designing a wellness program for their peers. What do these stories tell us about how we assess learning? We explore how Finland’s trust-based, student-centered approach compares to Canada’s structured, ex...