PedPod by EX-PED-LAB

Two Voices from the Philippines The PedPod season finale brings us home to the Philippines through a two-episode special featuring two educators whose work, values, and lived experiences offer powerful insights into what pedagogical innovation can look like when it is deeply human, relational, and context-rooted. Finale Part 2:  Pedagogical Innovation as Being Human with Teacher Maricar Gustilo-de...

Two Voices from the Philippines The PedPod season finale brings us home to the Philippines through a two-episode special featuring two educators whose work, values, and lived experiences offer powerful insights into what pedagogical innovation can look like when it is deeply human, relational, and context-rooted. Finale Part 1 : Innovation, Protection, and Care in a Digital World with Teacher Lest...

Building Shared Understanding in Early Childhood Across Cultures In this episode, Bradford Wiles —Associate Professor and Extension Specialist at Kansas State University—joins us live from Bergen, Norway, where he’s been a guest researcher at HVL. With a background spanning Silicon Valley, academia, and community-based public health, Bradford’s work bridges early childhood development, outdoor pla...

Pedagogical Innovations Between Ethiopia and Sweden In this episode, Kassahun Weldemariam —senior lecturer at the University of Gothenburg and originally from Ethiopia—shares his cross-continental journey through education, from teaching in Ethiopia to researching sustainability in Sweden. His path across the Global South and North has given him a unique vantage point on what it means to reimagine...

Early Childhood Innovation Across Borders In this episode, Gloria Quiñones —Associate Professor at Monash University and originally from Monterrey, Mexico—takes us on a cross-cultural journey through early childhood education. Drawing from her experiences in both Mexico and Australia, she redefines pedagogical innovation as something deeply personal: “doing something new for you” —no grand gesture...

What if innovation in early childhood education isn’t about the new —but about returning to the wisdom of the past? In this powerful episode, Māori educator and researcher Ngaroma Williams invites us to rethink “pedagogical innovation” through an indigenous lens. With over 40 years of experience, she shares how land, language, and ancestral knowledge shape truly transformative education in Aotearo...

Join us for a powerful conversation with Adefunke Ekine , Professor and Deputy Director at Tai Solarin University of Education and President of OMEP Nigeria, as she shares insights into the heart of early childhood education in Nigeria. From tackling school-related gender-based violence to pioneering innovative, culturally rooted teaching methods, Adefunke brings over 25 years of wisdom and unwave...

Innovation is only an innnovation when applied. - Svein Gunnar Sjøtun Pedagogical Meets Responsible Innovation: Rethinking Early Childhood Teacher Education Episode recorded live during a hybrid webinar with HVL Media Lab and NORBARN, April 29, 2025 How can we create meaningful change in early childhood teacher education (ECTE)? In this special episode of PedPod, recorded live during a NORBARN web...

One of the people that I've learned a lot from in regard to pedagogical innovation is the founder of ICDI, Nico van Oudenhoven. And when you first invited me to take part in this interview today, I thought of something that Nico always says to the team. Find where the pain is, guys. This is what our work is about. Why are these children suffering? What's missing here? What's the lack? What's the p...

 "True pedagogical innovation is not just about finding new teaching methods. It is about shifting power structures, challenging inequalities, rethinking the purpose of education itself."  Welcome to another episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB ! Today, we are honored to have a conversation with Mercedes Mayol Lassalle, the World President of OMEP—the World Organization for Early Childhood Education. W...

Welcome to the 2nd season of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB podcast! This season, we will be exploring more perspectives through different formats. Apart from having guests from the continents of Asia, South America, and Africa, there will be episodes that feature global and local (GLOCAL) project initiatives from Banrkunne and EX-PED-LAB researchers. We kick off this season with a conversation with Dr. Vin...

 "For me, innovation doesn't always mean something new. It can mean rethinking or reshaping existing practices to make them better."  In this PedPod by EX-PED-LAB episode, Anthony Okely emphasizes that pedagogical innovations in early childhood education should prioritize rethinking and adapting existing practices to fit specific contexts rather than introducing entirely new methods. His work high...

Welcome to the 9th episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I had a dialogue with Jayne White, a full Professor in the University of Canterbury New Zealand, when she visited Barnkunne some months ago. Jayne specializes in dialogic philosophy, pedagogy and methodology, and she also is the Editor-in-Chief of the Video Journal of Education and Pedagogy. In this episode, Jayne emphasizes the...

Welcome to the 8th episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I had an online conversation with Marilyn Fleer, a Professor Emerita in early childhood education and development and leader of the Conceptual PlayLab at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia where she is also a Kathleen Fitzpatrick Australian Laureate Fellow. Her research interests lie in the areas of early childhood science...

Welcome to the 7th episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I had a conversation with Mathias Urban, the Desmond Chair of Early Childhood Education and Director of the Early Childhood Research Centre (ECRC) at Dublin City University, Ireland (DCU). His research interests lie in answering questions of policy related to diversity and equality, social justice, evaluation, and professionalism...

Welcome to the 6th episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I spoke with Hege Fimreite, an Associate Professor at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences and the leader of the EX-PED-LAB project. For her PhD, she worked on a project titled "Kollegarettleiing og endring av den kollektive kunnskapen i barnehagen" (peer guidance and changes in the collective knowledge in the kindergart...

What do we need to further develop sustainable pedagogical innovations? We need skilled teachers who know, for example, if you go back to sustainability, the teacher must know what is it. It's not only to go out to the nature. It's to how can we make biodiversity visible for children. How can we connect to the world outside the preschools? So, I mean, the teacher must have the skill, but not put i...

Welcome to the 4th episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I had a dialogue with Elin Eriksen Ødegaard, a professor at the University of Western Norway, KINDknow Centre's Research Director, and incidentally, was my PhD supervisor and still currently my mentor. Elin's role entails building capacity and creating opportunities for further research and development in the field of early child...

Welcome to the 3rd episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I spoke with Helle Marie Skovbjerg. Her ResearchGate profile says she is "Denmark´s first Professor in play and a part of Design School Kolding's overall focus on play, in close collaboration with the LEGO Foundation". Helle leads the Lab for Play and Design in the Design School Kolding where they work with play philosophy, playf...

Welcome to the 2nd episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I had an exciting conversation with Ana Marjanovic-Shane, an Independent Scholar and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of "Dialogic Pedagogy: An International Online Journal." In talking about pedagogical innovations, she asked me if I knew the etymology of "pedagogy/pedagogue," and posed many interesting points about innovations in educati...

Welcome to the 1st episode of PedPod by EX-PED-LAB. In this episode, I have had an interesting conversation with Prof. Dr Arjen Wals, who is a distinguished academic holding the position of Professor of Transformative Learning for Socio-Ecological Sustainability at Wageningen University, concurrently serving as the UNESCO Chair of Social Learning and Sustainable Development. Additionally, he holds...

Welcome to PedPod by EX-PED-LAB, an exploration of pedagogical innovations in early childhood education and care.  I am Eya Oropilla, a lifelong learner and a researcher in the Exploration and Pedagogical Innovation Laboratory project in the KINDknow Centre, and in this podcast, I invite you to join me as we embark on an exploration led by trailblazers in the field – leading researchers from diffe...