Rethinking Learning Podcast

Jennifer Appel has been teaching for 21 years and is a teacher and coach at Enterprise Middle School in West Richland, Washington. She helped launch a blog about School Culture and helped roll out a student-led leadership podcast called the Award-Winning Culture. Jennifer as part of the coveted Teach Better Speakers Network presents at conferences, schools, and districts all over the country. Your...

I've been staying at home for over a month. I have experienced being alone and working from home for some time — actually years. I have been able to do this because I have the Internet. I'm privileged to have the resources and fortunate to have connections to family, friends, and people around the world. I'm finding the most important things in our lives are the relationships we have. I published...

What do you do if your child fails first grade? The system can label your child. That label then defines your child. That happened to Lois Letchford’s son, Nicholas, and Lois decided to change the label and his mindset to overcome the odds so he believed in himself. I asked Lois if she could share this story in my book. I was so moved that I asked Lois to have a conversation with me about her jour...

  Your school closed because of Covid-19. You found out that your students will be off for the next few weeks. You still have to teach them or provide resources so they continue to learn. You may not have taught any classes online. This could be all-new for you. If so, it can be scary and overwhelming. Instead of trying to redo your entire curriculum, this might be the time to look at how you can...

George Couros is an “Innovative Teaching, Learning, and Leadership Consultant”, speaker, as well as the author of “The Innovator’s Mindset” and “Innovate Inside the Box.”  Formerly, he was the Division Principal of Innovative Teaching and Learning with Parkland School Division, located in Stony Plain, Alberta, Canada, and has over 20 years of experience as an educator, in a myriad of roles from K-...

Carissa Duran is a Teacher, an ELD/Literacy/EdTech Instructional Coach, and Testing Coordinator at Del Lago Academy in the Escondido Union High School District in the San Diego, California area. I met Carissa at the Aurora Institute where she was awarded the 2019 Personalized Learning Teacher of the Year and invited her to share her story on my podcast. Your background  I am a Californian native,...

Andelee Espinosa is a special education teacher and has been supporting students in high school regular education classrooms for 20 years. She has a passion for personalized learning and teaching students to use their voice. She currently supports in Physics and Biology classrooms at Brookfield Central High School in Brookfield, WI. Your background  I have lived in Wisconsin my entire life. We can...

Patricia Gartland has been Superintendent of Schools for School District No. 43 (Coquitlam) since 2015, British Columbia's third-largest school district with over 32,000 students and 4,000 employees in over 70 schools and facilities. Patricia instituted what has become one of the most successful revenue-generating International Education Programs in B.C. Your background When I was young, I was ver...

Aidyn Grice is a 6th-grade doing 9th-grade math and is a student at Norris Academy in Mukwonago, Wisconsin. I met Aidyn and his mom, Nicole, at the Aurora Institute (past was iNACOL) conference in October 2019 in Palm Springs where Aidyn who was an amazing speaker on the student panel. After talking to Aidyn, his mom, and Johnna Noll, Executive Director of Norris Academy, we decided it was time fo...

Ramsey Musallam is a secondary science instructor at Sonoma Academy in Santa Rosa, California. He runs invention workshops for elementary and middle school students and delivers keynotes, webinars and facilitates workshops for teachers nationally and internationally with a focus on using technology as a strategic classroom partner in designing learning environments grounded in inquiry fueled by st...

Dr. Michael Salvatore is Superintendent of Long Branch Public Schools in New Jersey. Mike firmly believes affording children access to modern technology and high-quality content creates learning opportunities far beyond the school walls. In 2014, the Long Branch Public Schools were recognized as the first cohort of innovative schools by the New Jersey Office of Innovation. Mike was selected as New...

Evo Hannan is the MYP Design Teacher and Spark Tank Coordinator at Dwight School in Dubai. He is dedicated to promoting design and abstract thinking, innovation and the UN SDGs in education and beyond.  His passion for design and innovation is about enabling students to experience the benefits of collaborating with global enterprises. Evo is always innovating and is the creator of The Agency #Agen...

Stephen Hurley currently lives at the intersection of two passions. A life-long love of radio (since Grade 4) and a 30-year career in public education in Ontario, Canada. Stephen is the architect and chief catalyst behind voicEd Radio—a 24/7 radio station dedicated to deepening the way we talk about education in Canada and around the world. Enjoy! Your Background and as a Student I grew up in a su...

Nicole Biscotti is proud to be an educator and believes that everyone should have access to a quality education that connects them with their purpose. She seeks to bridge understanding, spark conversations, and inspire through her writing. Nicole is writing a book with her 9-year-old son from the unique perspectives of a child and a mother who is also a teacher.  Your background – where you grew u...

Leigh Zeitz (Dr. Z) is an Associate Professor, Instructional Technology & Coordinator for the Instructional Technology division at the University of Northern Iowa College of Education, Iowa. He has had the opportunity to teach all grade levels from 1st through 12th in Public, Private, and Prison schools. Over Leigh’s 43 years of teaching, he has developed a vision of education which involves chall...

Dr. Lindsay Portnoy is a cognitive scientist, educator, associate professor, and author who is working to translate the science of learning into powerful and intentionally crafted experiences tailored to each unique learning community.  Lindsay writes and researches about learning science in articles in peer-review journals to widely read publications such as EdSurge and Getting Smart, to ASCD and...

Barbara Gruener loves the challenge of being an educator and staying current as things trend in and out of our field. She is a coach, mentor, consultant, speaker, and author of What’s Under Your Cape. Barbara especially enjoys working with people as they discover who they are, what they stand for, what motivates them, and what they want and need. Enjoy our conversation! Where you grew up Growing u...

Dan Jackson is an experienced reflective learner and strategic thinker with an ongoing track record of innovative, adaptive leadership in education and business management. Dan is a high school business and marketing instructor in North Carolina where his students experience entrepreneurial pathways. He professes that he develops thinkers and doers, not test-takers. After all, thinkers and doers d...

Dr. Sarah Thomas is a Regional Technology Coordinator in Prince Georges County, MD, and Affiliate Faculty at Loyola University. Sarah’s passion has also expanded to helping educators connect globally that led the EduMatch project that she founded in September 2014.  EduMatch has grown to include Voxer, guest blogging, a weekly Twitter chat/podcast, and a publishing arm. I’m so honored to know Sara...

Mandy Froehlich is a speaker, consultant, and author from Wisconsin. She is the Director of Author Success for EduMatch Publishing and a co-host of the podcast Teacher’s Aid on BAM Radio with Jon Harper.   Mandy is the author of two books, The Fire Within and Divergent EDU and is passionate about speaking, coaching, and supporting teachers. Mandy is also the Edumatch publishing: Director of Author...

Paul Emerich France teaches third grade and is a National Board Certified Teacher (#NBCT) who contributes to the education conversation regarding personalized learning and social justice education.  Paul helps debunk many of the myths of personalized learning and helps paint a picture of what personalized learning ideally looks like in the classroom. Paul shared about his new book “Reclaiming Pers...

Connie Hamilton Ed. S. is a curriculum director in Saranac, MI and educational consultant working with school districts across the United States. She is a certified trainer in effective classroom questioning, teacher evaluation tools, visible learning and supports teacher learning in the area of literacy. Connie is the co-author of Hacking Homework and is the author of her new book Hacking Questio...

Dr. Marialice B.F.X. Curran has served as an associate professor, middle school teacher, principal and library media specialist. She is a researcher, keynote, international speaker and TEDxYouth speaker. Marialice is a pioneer in digital citizenship and is Founder and Executive Director of the Digital Citizenship Institute. Marialice’s mission is to turn negatives into positives and help to transf...

Tara Linney is a Google Certified Innovator, Mentor, and Trainer, currently working as an EdTech Coach in Paris, France. Tara has a passion for advocacy and equity which is what led her to write the book “Code Equity: Keying Girls into Coding.” I was so fortunate to have met Tara at ISTE in 2018 in person. At that time, she was president of the Global Collaboration PLN where I participated in the...

Cary Harrod started as an elementary teacher, was a gifted specialist for 19 years and spent 10 years as the instructional technology specialist for Forest Hills School District, Ohio. In 2016, she decided to re-enter the classroom, where it all began and is celebrating her 30th year in education. I worked with Forest Hills School District with Cary Harrod as the lead around 2006 and knew right aw...