The Broken Copier

Last month Tyler Rablin wrote a blog post with a quite-lengthy title: “The Bandaids and Backflips of Surface-level Equitable Grading Practices That Avoid Meaningfully Equitable Grading Reform”That thought-provoking and important post on grading led to this conversation: a discussion that ranges across numerous “grading topics” such as minimum grades, late penalties, and retakes—and considers grading philosophy more holistically, too, making it a great opportunity for teachers and educators to consider their own perspectives, too, as they listen along.In order to find more of Tyler’s work:* Tyler’s website* Tyler’s book: Hacking Student Motivation: 5 Assessment Strategies That Boost Learning Progression and Build Student ConfidenceThanks, as always, to:Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.Email us here with feedback or any other questions as well: thebrokencopier@substack.com.Thanks for listening (and tell your friends)! 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

With the help of several really thoughtful questions from listener and readers—including some from those about to go into the classroom for the first time this upcoming school year!—Adrian Neibauer and Marcus had a chance to reflect on their own perspective as teachers and offer advice on several different topics:* How to establish systems in the classroom, what to do if they aren’t working—and what to do if you feel like the systems in your school building don’t align with your own philosophy of what is best for your students?* Navigating “imposter syndrome,” particularly as an early-career teacher—but also, as Marcus and Adrian note, reckoning with the perpetual dilemma of not feeling as knowledgable as you want to about your content when standing in front of students.* The intersection of “imposter syndrome” and AI, and more broadly how that lens of novice v. expertise is a potentially-helpful way of unpacking different views on AI technology more broadly as far as its utility. * The age-old and always-important question of what to do when you feel overwhelmed by the behavior of students in your classroom.Thank you also Jared Fox, Stephen Fitzpatrick, Sara Love, and many others for tuning into this conversation! (Oh, and if you aren’t subscribed to Adrian’s Newsletter, I highly recommend you take care of that ASAP!) Finally, this is a new format, so feel free to leave feedback in the comments (or email us directly!) to let us know if this is something we should aim to do more often with The Broken Copier! 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

A lot of education conversations focus on what is happening in elementary schools and high schools, along with whatever is driving discourse in higher education at the given moment.What gets left out of the conversation too often? Middle school. Fortunately, today’s conversation is with award-winning middle school teacher Joe LaTorre and his vision of what middle school can be for students in the present moment as well as a foundation for what is ahead of them. Both with the work Joe does in his own classroom and school along with his leadership outside of it with the Bridges Program he co-founded, Joe leans into the values of joy and community—and this conversation is a reminder of why we all should continue to dream big about what is possible for our students. If you’re interested in following up with Joe after hearing about his work in this conversation, the best place is his website or email: josephlatorredirect@gmail.com—and you can also find him on most social media platforms, too!Thanks, as always, to:Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.Email us here with feedback or any other questions as well: thebrokencopier@substack.com.Thanks for listening (and tell your friends)! 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

Larry Ferlazzo has been a leading voice in education for quite some time. With a weekly advice column for Education Week, 13 different books on education (and a 14th in the works!) as well as his own blog on teaching, Larry has again and again offered guidance and shared his perspective with educators in myriad ways as an award-winning classroom teacher who always centers that classroom perspective in his work. However, this school year was Larry’s final school year in the public school classroom! Fortunately, in his first official week of retirement he was willing to hop on The Broken Copier to share more about his journey, what it is like to be at the classroom finish line, and his perspective on education in this current moment—include some wisdom for those of us still in the classroom.Thanks, as always, to:Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.Email us here with feedback or any other questions as well: thebrokencopier@substack.com.Thanks for listening (and tell your friends)! 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

There is a ton of conversation out there about AI in education right now—but too often, very little of that conversation centers the exploration and learnings of actual teachers from their own classrooms.That is why this conversation is built entirely around the work of Brett Vogelsinger, a current teacher with over two decades of experience in the classroom who just published his second book: Artful AI in Writing Instruction. In this episode, Brett shares what he has learned through his exploration in the classroom with AI as a tool for writing, including conversations and perspectives from his own students as well as other teachers. (Note: Marcus is one of those teachers interviewed for the book.)For those who are curious about Brett’s work who want to read and learn more:* Brett’s first book, Poetry Pauses, which is mentioned in the conversation* Brett’s website, where you can find almost all of his work* You can follow Brett on LinkedIn as well as several other social media platformsThanks, as always, to:Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.Email us here with feedback or any other questions as well: thebrokencopier@substack.com.Thanks for listening (and tell your friends)! 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

For our 20th (!!!) Kicking The Copier episode, the focus is very much singular: the importance of being transparent as a teacher, particularly in your classroom with your students. Not only because of the consequences of failing to be transparent, but more importantly because of the rewards that come with doing so. (Especially in the closing stretch of the year!)As always, thanks to: Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for contributing their music to The Broken Copier podcast—and also Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.* Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.* Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.* Email thoughts and feedback to thebrokencopier@substack.com, and if you want you can record your own thoughts at our Fanlist that might show up on a future episode! (Feel free to also just toss your response in the comments.)Thanks for listening! Share or leave a review if you’re willing, and take care of yourselves as educators as we finish out the 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

Teacher Appreciation Week 2025 is here! With that in mind, we wanted to have a conversation around what exactly it means to be a teacher in this moment.Joining that conversation? Chanea Bond, a teacher who has for some time now been an influential, important voice amongst teachers all over—advocating for what students need and deserve, and challenging educators to rise the occasion of our work.In today’s conversation, Chanea discusses her own path into the classroom, how she sees herself as a teacher at this point in her career, and what she believes is most important to consider when thinking about one’s place in the classroom.As always, thanks to: Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.* Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.* Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.* Email us at thebrokencopier@substack.com and let us know if you have ideas for future episodes! (And feel free to share this episode in your spaces and/or leave a review wherever you listen!)Thanks for listening and have an amazing Teacher Appreciation Week! 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

Recently, Adrian Neibauer wrote a reflective piece about his experience with standardized testing that began with these words: I’m a hypocrite.In today’s episode of The Broken Copier, he shares more about the conversation with his own children that resulted in these words—along with the myriad, contradictory feelings he has about testing in this current moment. Also: how do you feel as a teacher when it comes to standardized testing? Feel free to answer in the Substack comments or, if you’re inspired, to leave an audio message via Fanlist that we may respond to on a future episode.Finally, thanks, as always, to: Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.Email us here: thebrokencopier@substack.com.Thanks for listening (and tell your friends)! 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

After opening with a note of gratitude for our listeners and readers, today’s Kicking The Copier shares a simple, powerful strategy you can use at any time as a teacher: a classroom pulse check. Five minutes of classroom space, way more than five minutes of impact. As always, thanks to: Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for contributing their music to The Broken Copier podcast—and also Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.* Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.* Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.* Email thoughts and feedback to thebrokencopier@substack.com, and if you want you can record your own thoughts at our Fanlist that might show up on a future episode! (Feel free to also just toss your response in the comments.)Thanks for listening! Share or leave a review if you’re willing, and take care of yourselves as educators—now more than ever.Subscribe for free to join this community of teachers talking teaching! 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

In January 2021, Nick Covington was a social studies teacher in Iowa fully-immersed in his classroom and students. Successful, purposeful, and thriving. A year later, after being swept up into the culture war against educators and facing targeting and harassment for doing his job, he handed in his resignation later in February 2022.Once he finished out that school year, Nick moved into his position as a leader of the non-profit he cofounded, The Human Restoration Project—an organization doing the increasingly-important work of moving towards an education system that centers the humanity of all-involved, but most especially students.In today’s conversation, Nick shares about his experience in the classroom, his exit from it, and why he is more resolute than ever about the importance of and hope within the work he is doing now. (Seriously: if this is your first time hearing about it, go check it out!)Links to check out from the conversation:* HumanRestorationProject.org* Third Coast Learning Collaborative* “Current Events Do Not Belong in History Class” (the original Medium post detailing Nick’s experience leaving the classroom)Also: how do you feel as a teacher right now in this current moment? Feel free to answer in the comments or, if you’re inspired, to leave an audio message via Fanlist that we may respond to on a future episode?Finally, thanks, as always, to: Alberto Lugo, one of Jim’s former students, for writing and recording original intro music; Tom Csatari for allowing us to use his band’s recording of “Woodstock” from their 2020 album, Garden; and Courtney Milavec for graphic design.Find Tom’s work at uncivilizedtom.com, and on Instagram @banduncivilized.Find Alberto’s work at djsynchro.weebly.com, and on Instagram @djsynchro.Email us here: thebrokencopier@substack.com.Thanks for listening (and tell your friends)! 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