The Broken Copier

As another first day of school approaches, Marcus puts Jim on the spot with a new game: Wise or Unwise. Marcus shares some common advice that we’ve all heard about starting a new school year, and Jim shares his hot takes about them. They circle back to the omnipresent jeans debate, and Jim talks a little bit about his penchant for conspiracy theories. Thanks to Courtney Milavec for graphic design,...

Jim is able to sit down with one of his old friends from the St. Lawrence University admissions office, Mx. Sam Gradess. Sam has worked in education all over the world, including Burkina Faso, Cameroon, and Afghanistan. Currently, they are a school leader at South Bronx Classical Charter School, serving students in grades K-8. Sam talks about how their experience abroad has shaped their work in Ne...

It seems like every summer, teachers have to go through the same song and dance routine around standardized testing, what the numbers actually mean, and whether they made any impact whatsoever that year. Fun, right? Marcus & Jim sit down and talk through how they process getting test scores back every year, and offer up what they hope are some healthy ways to process the scores without feeling lik...

Welcome to The Broken Copier, a conversation about teaching. Marcus and Jim are excited to get back into recording after taking some time to redesign a bunch of aspects about the podcast. We think we’ve got some good systems up and running, and we’re excited to learn and grow as the show evolves. In this episode, we took some time to discuss the new law in Arizona, which allows people to teach eve...

During teacher appreciation week, Jim published this essay called "Build the Compound." Marcus points out that compounds aren't exactly where young, idealistic, fresh new teachers want to spend their time, and for an essay in which the central thesis is that you should quit your job to be a classroom teacher, might not have been the smartest title choice. Jim agrees, and would like to take some ti...

Mr. P is back! After strenuous negotiation with our record label, Brandon was granted paternity leave from the pod to help care for his new baby girl! On behalf of the entire @realPDpod family, we'd like to say congratulations to the entire Piasecki family - especially to the newest big brother in our fanbase, Langston. In the midst of balancing teacher life with dad life, Jim and Brandon are fina...

Marcus & Jim sit down to talk about The Great Education Resignation. Teachers are quitting mid year, creating viral social media content about how to transition out of the classroom, and we're just getting the sense that after this school year is over, a lot of teachers are going to leave their jobs. We talk through how that's impacting our classrooms right now, what we think some of the cause...

After a short brush with viral Twitter fame, Jim heard from all kinds of different people. One of them was Joseph Maffey, who didn't email about the infamous bus tweet, but rather to let Jim know that not only had he listened to the podcast, but that he actually liked it! The two teachers are finally able to connect and talk about their classrooms, what's been going on in Joseph's district around...

As many state legislatures are drafting and passing legislation aimed at requiring teachers to be more transparent about their curriculum, especially out of fears of indoctrination and the idea that teachers are "teaching Critical Race Theory," Marcus & Jim dive head on into a conversation about how they approach politics in the classroom. Should teachers talk about politics with students? Whe...

Jim and Marcus sit down with Dr. Chris Jones to talk about his run for Governor of Arkansas. After a viral campaign launch video that took Twitter by storm (currently with 5.3 million views), Dr. Jones has been clear that education in Arkansas is a top priority in his campaign. He's got a tough road ahead of him: he's running against Sarah Huckabee Sanders, former White House Press Secretary for P...

Jim and Marcus debrief the recent report from The Teacher Salary Project, "Teacher Salaries and Teacher Shortages: The View from the Classroom." They walk through their reactions and experiences around compensation in both rural and urban contexts, and discuss the role they think salary plays in teacher retention from both a systemic and personal lens. Since they recorded the episode on Dr. Martin...

Marcus & Jimmy catch up after all the hustle & bustle of the holidays, and discuss how they're thinking about their jobs in the midst of some really serious questions emerging about the relationship we should have with work itself. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Jim interviews Matt Wright, the Superintendent of the Marked Tree School District. Matt was Jim's principal when he started teaching in 2011, and has been a significant mentor for him throughout his career. In this episode, Matt shares some insight into how he led his district through the transitions around shifts to remote learning during the pandemic, and how he approached some critical decision...

Jim talks with his former Master's thesis advisor, Dr. Patrick Comstock, about his own journey in education and some of his current research on mindfulness in the classroom. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Jim & Marcus return to the conversation about pivoting from remote instruction. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Jimmy, Brandon, and Marcus talk about their goals and mindsets as they go back in person into an uncertain school year. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Jim reconnects with his old college friend and track teammate, Whitney Koch, to talk about her journey in the classroom. Whitney dives into her own process of discovering her love of teaching a few years into her teaching career, some of the people who helped her along the way, and her current efforts teaching high schoolers about sexual health, identity, relationships, and wellness. They also dis...

Hosts Jimmy and Brandon dive deeper into their remote learning discussion (since there's a lot to talk about). This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Brandon and Jimmy reflect on their transition to remote learning, how that felt, and the ways in which they had to adapt during the pandemic. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Jimmy welcomes Marcus Luther as another host to the show. They talk about some of the big things on their mind as they look to the fall after a year of remote learning, how the current political climate around education is shaping their thinking, and geek out a little bit regarding best practices for English teachers. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribe...

Jim interviews one of the people who first inspired him to become a teacher, and somebody who has always encouraged his journey in the classroom: Mr. Bonfiglio, his high school English teacher. Joe walks Jim through his own journey into the classroom, what it was like to be a teacher making less than $6,000 a year, what educational practices he thinks have staying power over the years, and why the...

Jim, Brandon, and Marcus describe what the podcast is all about. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com

Hosts Brandon and Jimmy introduce themselves & discuss what they want for the podcast. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebrokencopier.substack.com