The Truth About ADHD Medication in Schools (From Someone Who Lived It) with Ben Somers | OpenEd

In 2025, we're still medicating boys at alarming rates just to make them fit a learning model designed for compliance, not curiosity. Ben Somers was put on 70mg of Concerta at age 11—not because he needed it, but because the system did. Now he's building the alternative.

Highlights:

- Why a quarter of boys in Ben's school were medicated to comply

- The shocking business insight: what actually makes kids want to learn (it's not curriculum)

- How kids labeled "unmotivated" transform instantly in the right environment

- The Montessori principle applied to digital spaces and modern homeschooling

- Why parents should think of themselves as education designers, not teachers

About Ben Somers:

Ben dropped out of high school and later worked at Synthesis School (the SpaceX school) before founding Recess, a platform where kids choose their own classes and make friends who share their interests. He's now building tools to turn screens from "bad" to "great" for families.

Resources:

- Learn more about Recess: ⁠http://recess.gg⁠

Timestamped Outline

- [00:01] Why Ben Got Into Education - Personal school struggles and medication experience

- [04:39] Working at Synthesis School - Learning from Josh and Crispin

- [08:15] The Two Core Insights - Friends and choice as retention drivers

- [13:25] The Roblox Connection - Why kids love choice-based platforms

- [14:40] How Recess Works Today - Kid-driven class selection and friend-making

-[19:15] Surprising Discoveries - Kids' motivation in the right circumstances

- [21:11] The Unschooling Debate - Balance between freedom and necessary skills

- [28:00] Screens and Digital Environments - Curating safe, productive digital spaces

- [34:23] Education as Design - Parents becoming education designers

- [42:33] High-Status Homeschooling - The shift in San Francisco

- [44:52] Ideal Future of Education - Flexible campuses with interactive learning

- [47:20] Top Education Books - Socratic dialogues and Seymour Papert

- [49:26] The Kansas Learning Lab - Coworking spaces for kids