Reinventing Education

Mainstream schools support teacher growth through continuous training or "professional development". Today we look at how this professional development, with its transparent and achievable goals, lines up with the core mainstream value of "opportunity". Also... We all agree that we want “good teachers”, but it's tough to reach a consensus about just what constitutes a good teacher ,and even toughe...

This week, we look into the culture and beliefs of the staff in a mainstream school. We ask, what matters to teachers in mainstream schools in terms of their relationships? And how can we build strong, positive cultures that balance transparency, logic and support without being in constant flux or getting tied up in the cold data of bureaucracy? We also dive into the evolution of the staffing hier...

In today's episode, we talk about the pushes and pulls that shape the role of a principal or head teacher in a mainstream school, including; the challenges of managing a large and diverse staff, bearing ultimate responsibility for student growth and being the conduit between government agencies and the community. We also discuss how the job of principal grew from coordinating a few teachers in the...

Today we have a second chat with Dr Brad Kershner that builds on the strands from our first conversation back in episode 55. We dig deeper into the ways that we can create a developmentally minded school in both culture and practice. We also talk about the kinds of relationships that we want to nurture and ask how we can best embody our broad and complex human values in a world where education is...

In today's episode, we look at how evolving designs of school buildings have gone hand in hand with changes in education. We discuss why the traditional one room schoolhouse gave way to the mainstream cellular model and consider the extent that this better serves students and teachers. And, of course, we get to the thorny issue of whether schools are just designed to save money, even where educati...

Here at Reinventing Education, we have a theory that the three main aims of school are citizenship, workplace preparation and self development. But how does a mainstream school, with its core value of opportunity, carry out these three aims? And when push comes to shove, where does it devote its limited resources? Join us! And be sure to let us know your thoughts and experiences in this area at re...

Today we launch Season 5 in earnest with our first deep dive into the world of the "mainstream" school. This is the school just down the road. It's the one that populates our collective memory. It's a world of differentiation, standardised tests, sports teams, report cards, graduations and qualifications. The mainstream school is the water that we swim in, and it's very easy to see it as the only...

Season 5! Welcome back. We fire up the new season by interviewing Dr. Brad Kershner on issues relating to creating a school that has development at its core. The discussion includes; the fundamental importance of relationships, finding truths that cut across all values and how the codes we speak are not always in alignment with the cognition going on inside us. Brad Kershner is a school leader and...

I'm sure you are familiar with the old saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater." meaning that we don't want to lose the best aspects of an idea when we change things up.   Every kind of school, be it traditional, mainstream or progressive has some vital, healthy elements that we want to keep and expand on. We call these "babies". While at the same time there are things that are holdin...

This episode we are joined by Integral coach Lennie MacLeod, to discuss how schools can use the theories underpinning the Reinventing Education model to become the healthiest possible version of their core values. We talk on topics such as, how traditional schools allow for redemption, how an administrator can use values to best place staff and how we can consciously move in the direction that is...

Hi. Before you check out episode 52, it might be good to go back and listen to episode 50 for an explanation of all the bits and pieces that make up our attempt to lovingly reinvent education! Today, we take a casual tour thought the back roads of the Reinventing Education model. We dig deep into some of the pros and cons of the traditional, mainstream and progressive school systems to answer the...

Hot off the tightly scripted overview of our model in episode 50, we take a looser journey through the highways and byways of Reinventing Education. We dig into the the Integral theory that underpins many of these ideas before discussing how the three kinds of school; traditional, mainstream and progressive, are battling it out for the soul of education in the 21st century. Go check out episode 50...

How do we change education?  This episode is our best answer.   In short, we believe that educational change comes when we seek to identify and act on the core values as they manifest across 8 key aspects of school: the activities, resources, systems, environments, communities, cultures, beliefs & reactions.   In this special episode, we attempt to summarise our ideas from our first 49 episodes wi...

Today we wrap up our season long look at the traditional school! How does a traditional school communicate with parents? Are the kinds of parent teacher conferences that you find in these schools still meaningful and effective in 2020? Today we dig into the thorny topic of interaction with parents and discuss the strengths & weaknesses in the ways that Traditional schools go about it. We also talk...

The traditional school prides itself on having a beautiful range of facilities. From a well maintained grounds, spacious sports pitches and a dining hall that is clean as a whistle to a fully stocked library.  The benefits of having such a physical environment may be obvious. But in 2020 is it still possible and desirable to have this old school approach? Today we dig into the babies and bathwater...

Each type of school has its own conception of how young children should be educated. Today we look at how Traditional schools run their Kindergartens. One of the questions we ask is, "Why do schools that value self discipline an order allow the youngest children such freedom?" In the second part of the show we dig into how a security minded traditional school might run a student government. How do...

The Corona virus global pandemic has forced schools around the world into the largest experiment of virtual learning that has ever been undertaken. Traditional, mainstream and progressive schools have dealt with this unfolding crisis in very different ways. Today we look into the solutions that these three types of school systems have developed as they attempt to continue teaching and learning whi...

Break times, eh? We all love em! But what role do they play in a traditional education? And are there elements that no longer work well in 2020? Today we dig into the rules of the playground in our search for "babies & bathwater". We also discuss the idea of classroom jobs for students and look into the belief that they play an important role in building responsible people. In our opening ramble,...

Traditional school prides itself on being disciplined, but how does this type of education deal with those who hurt others and disrupt the flow of things? In the first part of this episode we dig into the idea of punitive discipline and its outcomes. We follow this with a discussion on the whys and hows of traditional school grading and assessing of student work.  Our reverse sponsorship today cel...

In the world of traditional education we would expect to see students completing homework on a regular basis. But does homework still have meaning in 2020? Alongside this, marking of this work was traditionally done in private by teachers and then returned with comments, including the dreaded "See me!". In today's episode, we discuss the strengths and weaknesses in the approach to homework and mar...

What do we mean when we say "a lesson"? It seems an obvious question, but to each type of school - traditional, mainstream & progressive, what you may see may be markedly different. Today, we question the pros and cons of the traditional "chalk & talk" style lesson and we also ask how such a model supports and differentiates for the wide range of students that we have in our classrooms. Join us fo...

Traditional approaches to education relied on a master and apprentice model. Modern education has largely abandoned this approach. In this episode we argue that it, and many other elements of a traditional education, given the right context, still have an important place today. Schools could learn a thing or two from how pro wrestlers are trained. We interview Tyson Dux, owner and head trainer at...

How should we be with each other? The traditional school might suggest that we should show respect and expect support....but what are the pros and cons of such a worldview? And is it really as straightforward as this? Today we dig into the ethos or culture that we might find in the traditional "security-minded" classroom. And then, in the second half of the show, we discuss how the learning spaces...

Today we tackle two age old questions. Is there a place in 2019 for the textbooks and school uniforms so beloved by traditional schools? Spoiler alert..the answer is no...and yes! Join us to get the ins and outs of this conundrum as we try to find out which elements of a traditional education benefit us today and which maybe do not.

Traditional school likes to say that it operates from a sense of duty, pride, common sense and self discipline. But what is its place in 2019? Today we dig into how parents interact with traditional schools and the levels of trust afforded to teachers. What can we learn from this system of education and what should we leave behind?