Signature Leadership Podcast by Knowledgehook

S2E08 - w/ Juan Manuel Lopera: From Medellin to Entrepreneur: Math Teachers Make a Difference

As we head into 2022, I think we’re all looking for a little inspiration. Here’s a story that will remind all of us about the influence a teacher can have on students living in difficult, desperate conditions. Our next guest was one of those students.

In today’s episode, we meet Juan Manuel Lopera, the founder and CEO of TOMi. TOMI is a digital device that is providing millions of students and their teachers with off-line learning where internet is not available. The impact of Juan Manuel’s entrepreneurship alone makes this an incredible story. But from an educator’s perspective, what makes this story even more compelling is that Juan Manuel Lopera emerged from the violent streets of Medellin, Colombia in the 90s. And he says he owes it all to his middle school math teacher.

For more opportunities to learn from Juan Manuel and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S2E07 - w/ Danielle De La Fuente: Lessons Learned from Supporting Displaced and Disenfranchised Children

In today’s episode, we meet Danielle De La Fuente, the co-founder of the Amal Alliance. Danielle shares her background with us and what led her to create an NGO dedicated to supporting displaced and disenfranchised children. She walks us through the programs offered by the Amal Alliance, the lessons learned from working in these hard-to-serve areas, and what all of us think about when we’re supporting children wherever they may be learning.

 

For more opportunities to learn from Danielle and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S02E06 w/ Rui Marques - Promoting Social Emotional Skills and Well-being in Schools across Portugal – The Ubuntu Leadership Academy

In today’s episode, I am joined by Rui Marques of the Ubuntu Leadership Academy, an initiative focused on the development of social emotional learning in Portuguese schools. This project is one of 100 projects funded by the Gulbenkian Foundation over a three-year period within both formal and informal education settings across Portugal.

Recently, I had the privilege of visiting a number of schools in neighbourhoods with significant challenges, where the students, teachers and principals described the profound impact of participating in this immersive experience. While this is very much a human story, it is also a case study for implementation. Many innovations in education fail, not due to a lack or worth but rather because of flawed implementation. After 4 days of observations in Portugal, this is an implementation story worth telling. The Ubuntu Leadership Academy is changing lives and will continue to do so. This Academy, with support from the Gulbenkian Foundation and the Ministry of Education, appears to have discovered the secret sauce of sustainable change.

For more opportunities to learn from Rui and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S2E05 w/ Marjo Kyllönen: The OECD Survey of Social and Emotional Skills: Lessons from Helsinki, Finland

In this podcast, I welcome an exceptional leader in education, Dr. Marjo Kyllönen. Marjo is the Head of Education Development Services in Helsinki, Finland. In this role, she leads the provision of education for the full gamut of learners - from preschool to young adults. Scholars have been studying the Finnish system for the last couple of decades, since Finland emerged at the top of the PISA rankings.

In this episode, Marjo discusses Helsinki’s participation in the OECD Survey of Social and Emotional Skills, one of the first international forays into measuring non-cognitive skill development. We learn about some of the global findings across the 10 participating cities as described in Beyond Academic Learning: First Results from the Survey of Social and Emotional Skills (OECD, 2021). Marjo walks us through the findings for Helsinki, including a few surprises!

For more opportunities to learn from Marjo and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S2E04 w/ Cathy Williams: A Math Leader’s Journey to Youcubed and Beyond

In this episode we have the pleasure of hearing from Cathy Williams. Along with Jo Boaler, Cathy co-founded Youcubed, an organization within Stanford University that is dedicated to inspiring mathematics success for all students through growth mindsets and innovative teaching. I think of Cathy as being the silent partner to Jo, but trust me, she’s anything but silent! Cathy has a long history of excellence in mathematics - from high school math teacher to Director of K-12 Math at Vista Unified School District, to professor at Stanford University. 

Cathy walks us through her pathway as a math expert as well as the evolution she is seeing in teaching and learning in math. We learn about Youcubed - its origins and its future in supporting math instruction. She then dives into data science - a passion shared by both Cathy and Jo. Cathy describes how data science can inspire all students to be engaged in learning math to solve real world problems, not only in the math class but across subject areas and in an interdisciplinary approach to learning. We are inspired by the examples of best practices Cathy has observed in schools and districts.

For more opportunities to learn from Cathy and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S2E3 w/ Christine Suurtamm: Supporting High-Quality Math Teaching in Uncertain Times

In this podcast, we hear from Dr. Christine Suurtamm, a renowned Canadian professor of mathematics at the University of Ottawa. Chris walks us through the recommendations from a report that she co-authored with Jo Boaler, Tanya LaMar and Jennifer Langer-Osuna, all from Stanford University in California. 

“We’re in this together: Supporting high-quality math teaching in uncertain times” provided recommendations for math teachers heading back to school in September 2020 after the 4-month disruption caused by the pandemic. None of us could have imagined that the world would be in a similar situation 12 months later. Yet here we are. This is an opportunity to hear Chris’ thinking on approaches to supporting our students and math teachers as they head back to in-class learning environments.

For more opportunities to learn from Christine and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S2E2 w/ Andy Hargreaves: Five Paths of Student Engagement: Blazing the Trail to Learning and Success

Today we have the opportunity to hear about Andy Hargreaves' new book Five Paths of Student Engagement: Blazing the Trail to Learning and Success (2021) that he co-wrote with colleague Dennis Shirley from Boston College. It turns out that Andy has been very prolific throughout the pandemic. He’s used this time to put thoughts into words, reflecting back on his research done in education systems around the world and synthesizing it into meaningful reflections on the topics most relevant in education today. 

Student engagement is one such topic. The pandemic has forced educators to think about how to engage all learners, not only in the classroom, but also when learning shifts to the home environment. Throughout their book and this discussion, Andy notes the shift from The Age of Achievement and Effort to The Age of Engagement, Well-Being and Identity. My question - is it a shift or an evolution?

For more opportunities to learn from Andy and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S2E1 w/ Pedro Noguera: Equity – The Greatest Challenge in Education

In this episode, I dive into a conversation with Pedro Noguera, one of the most influential educators in the US. He is currently the Dean of the Rossier School of Education and a Distinguished Professor of Education at the University of Southern California. Not many academics can say that they’ve served as a tenured professor at UCLA, NYU, Harvard, and Berkeley. Pedro Noguera can.

Pedro begins the conversation by describing the difference between equality (principles) and equity (actions). He shares his 30 years of experience as an academic, including his work on equity of outcomes for all students. Pedro doesn’t hesitate to describe the shortcomings of our education system, particularly with respect to those children most in need of our support. But he doesn’t stop at the shortcomings. Pedro leaves us with a sense of hope, describing best practices he has witnessed in California and around the world.

For more opportunities to learn from Pedro and other thought leaders in education and beyond, check out the Knowledgehook Signature Leadership Portal at www.knowledgehook.com/leadership.

S1E15 w/ Alyson Schafer: Wise Words from a Parenting Expert: How Educators can Support Student Well-Being

In this podcast, listeners have an opportunity to hear directly from a well-known parenting expert. Alyson Schafer is a certified family therapist who has penned 3 bestselling books , “Breaking the Good Mom Myth”, “Honey, I Wrecked the Kids”, and “Ain’t Misbehavin’”. She hosts her own Podcast series: Parenting the Adlerian Way. Alyson works directly with children and their families and has unique insights that are so very helpful to educators. 

In this episode, Alyson describes the impact of the pandemic on the well-being of children and provides us with approaches that can be used in our classrooms. Let’s give these a try!

S1E14 - w/ Dr. Jean Clinton: Love Builds Brains

In this Podcast, Dr. Jean Clinton introduces us to her new book “Love Builds Brains”. Jean is a world-renowned child psychiatrist who is helping to forge the link between well-being and learning. In the book, Jean shares her insights from the perspective of a parent and grandparent, as well as from her professional and academic perspective. That’s just who Jean is. All of us can relate to her stories and can learn from her advice on how to improve our classrooms, schools, and jurisdictions. The book has been released at a time when we can use a little love, particularly our students who are learning in unusual environments - either in altered classroom settings, at home, or a combination of the two.