The School Leadership Show

Jenn David-Lang of The Main Idea returns to the show, and we talk with Grant Lichtman about his new book Moving the Rock: Seven Levers WE Can Press to Transform Education. This is an amazingly thought-provoking conversation about where we ought to be heading in education. The best way to reach Grant is at his website: http://www.grantlichtman.com/. You can reach Jenn through her website for The Main Idea (www.themainidea.net). She's offered to send listeners of this episode a free summary of Moving the Rock if you send her an email at J.David-Lang@TheMainIdea.net. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

Jenn David-Lang of The Main Idea returns to the show and we nerd out on the book Becoming the Math Teacher You Wish You'd Had: Ideas and Strategies for Vibrant Classrooms by Tracy Johnston Zager. As two former math teachers this conversation is wide ranging and fun. Here's a link to the companion website to the book that has a ton of resources. You can reach Jenn through her website for The Main Idea (www.themainidea.net). She's offered to send listeners of this episode a free summary of Becoming the Math Teacher You Wish You'd Had if you send her an email at J.David-Lang@TheMainIdea.net. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

In this episode I sit down with Nicola Giardina, a museum educator, consultant, and founder of Inspiring Learners through Art. She has also recently published The More We Look, the Deeper it Gets: Transforming the Curriculum Through Art. Nicola and I talk about her approach to engaging students in higher level thinking through art using a framework that she developed called the Pyramid of Inquiry. You can learn more about Nicola and her work and find her book at her website: https://nicolagiardina.com/. Please enjoy this conversation with Nicola Giardina. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

In this episode I sit down with Mike Petrilli, the president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, and wildly prolific writer about education and education policy. We also talk about how policy can and and ought to policy into practice at the local level. I wanted to share a little more about Mike's background from the Thomas B. Fordam Institute's website because it is so impressive: [Mike is also a] research fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, executive editor of Education Next, and a Distinguished Senior Fellow for Education Commission of the States. An award-winning writer, he is the author of The Diverse Schools Dilemma, and editor of Education for Upward Mobility. Please enjoy this conversation with Mike Petrilli. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

This episode is a departure from our usual fare on the School Leadership Show. Today I sit down with Jack, a high school junior with an uncanny knowledge of film and pop culture. Jack is the co-host of The Everything Geek podcast (available in iTunes and @EveryGeekPod on Twitter), and he and I argue about the best movies where high school plays a central role in the story. Jack is one of the smartest and funniest humans I know. I hope you enjoy this back to school episode and that you have a great start to your school year. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com

I found Dan Rockwell's blog Leadership Freak (www.leadershipfreak.blog) through The Marshall Memo. And now I'm hooked. His short but powerful blog posts have become part of my daily routine. During this conversation, Dan and I talk about the origin of the blog and his ongoing work with leaders through workshops, seminars, and individual coaching sessions. Here are a couple of notes from his website just to reinforce what a big deal he is: Inc Magazine Top Fifty Leadership and Management Expert and Top 100 Great Leadership Speakers. American Management Association Top 30 Leader in Business of 2014. According to the Center for Management and Organization Effectiveness, the Leadership Freak blog is the most socially shared leadership blog on the Internet. We go deep on some big leadership concepts, and we get granular with very practical strategies for being a better leader. I loved this time with Dan, and I made him promise me a part 2. You can reach Dan through his blog (www.leadershipfreak.blog) or by Google searching "leadership freak." Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in itunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

In this episode sometimes co-host Dan White and I get into all things teams - how to build them, how to think about the larger context, and much more. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

In this episode occasional co-host Dan White and I interview, Noah, a recent high school graduate about his experiences in a typical Upstate New York High School. Noah's candid assessment of what works and what doesn't in our classrooms is refreshing and compelling. And it's certainly not all rainbows and unicorns. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

Dr. Barbara Oakley is an educator, writer, and engineer with one of the coolest backstories I've ever heard. She has become an expert on learning and her most recent book Learning How to Learn: A Guide for Kids and Teens is spectacular - so spectacular that my 16-year-old daughter was impressed. Barb and I have a wide-ranging conversation about her background, learning in general, a little bit about math instruction specifically, and her thoughts on how we can improve teaching and learning in our schools. I was really impressed with Barb, and I made her promise to do a part two. I hope you enjoy her story and insights as much as I did. Learning How to Learn: A Guide for Kids and Teens is available everywhere, and you can learn more about Barb and her work at www.barbaraoakley.com. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.

In this episode I interview former Phi Delta Kappan Editor-in-Chief Joan Richardson. Joan is now in charge of polling for PDK and she has written an article on the 50-year history of the annual Kappan poll of U.S. attitudes toward public schools (http://pdkpoll.org/history). There is also a cool timeline compiling key findings from the last five decades of results, along with noteworthy events in the nation each year (http://pdkpoll.org/timeline). I had no idea about the origins of this annual poll, and I hope you find it as fascinating as I did. Joan has promised to come back on the show when the results of the current year's poll are released in September. Send your comments, questions, and show ideas to mike@schoolleadershipshow.com. Consider rating the podcast in iTunes and leaving a comment. And please pass the show along to your colleagues. If you or someone you know would like to sponsor the show, send me an email at mike@schoolleadershipshow.com.