No Such Thing: Education in the Digital Age

At the end of October, the New York Times ran a series of articles on kids, parents, and screentime. It looked at trends among parents, largely around the Silicon Valley in California. When I read Anya Kamenetz's response in the Columbia Journalism Review, titled What the Times Got Wrong About Kids and Phones, I had to reach out and see if she'd be willing to talk. I think her perspective on this issue is extremely important.Anya Kamenetz is NPR's lead education blogger. She joined NPR in 2014, working as part of a new initiative to coordinate on-air and online coverage of learning.Kamenetz is the author of several books. Her latest is The Art of Screen Time: How Your Family Can Balance Digital Media and Real Life (PublicAffairs, 2018).Her previous books were Generation Debt; DIY U: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education, and The Test.Kamenetz covered technology, innovation, sustainability, and social entrepreneurship for five years as a staff writer for Fast Company magazine. She's contributed to The New York Times, The Washington Post, New York Magazine, Slate, and O, the Oprah Magazine, and appeared in documentaries shown on PBS and CNN.It's worth noting that in addition to the rock stardom above, she's a parent, and someone who, admittedly, is dealing with the stuff in real time. If you take nothing else from this episode, if you don't read her book or the many links that I drop in the show notes for this episode (available on our facebook page facebook/nosuchthingpodcast) pretty please, use your instincts as a parent, consult educators and specialists who know technology on this topic, talk with doctors who really want to dig in about what's fears are real and which are not. Take the time to do your homework, and make plan that fits what you're looking to each achieve at home, in your classroom, or with the young people you serve, wherever that is. And talk to the young people in your life. Preaching tech abstinence comes from a good place - we want children safe and productive - but don't be suckered by the temptation to conflate all that's changing for us culturally, don't trust non-expert voices because they seem elite, and don't miss out on all that's there in the upside.Links from this episode:Columbia Journalism Review - What the Times got wrong about kids and phones: https://www.cjr.org/criticism/times-silicon-valley-kids.phpTHE ART OF SCREEN TIME: HOW YOUR FAMILY CAN BALANCE DIGITAL MEDIA AND REAL LIFE: http://www.anyakamenetz.net/NYTimes, A Dark Consensus Begins to Emerge About Kids and Phones in Silicon Valley: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/26/style/phones-children-silicon-valley.htmlSilicon Valley Nannies Are Phone Police for Kids: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/26/style/silicon-valley-nannies.html?module=inlineAnya's Newsletter: https://tinyletter.com/AnyaKamenetz/subscribeAnya on Twitter: https://twitter.com/anya1anya Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Buckle up for some real talk about solutions to our Math challenges that might sound simple in a lot of cases, but they certainly aren't obvious. If they were, we would've figured out a long time ago that, for example, "school math and real math" as Marvin puts it during this interview, should not and cannot be such very different things.In this episode, Marc interviews researchers from Education Development Center's Center for Children and Technology and Bank Street College of Education, who are collaborating on an effort funded by the National Science Foundation and the Institute of Education Sciences at the U.S. Dept. of Department of Education, to help better equip educators supporting the wide variety of learners who populate the classrooms of American schools. Their program, Math For All, is developing digital resources to show general and special education teachers how to provide high-quality, standards-based math education to all students, including those with disabilities.Links from this episode:Math For All: http://mathforall.cct.edc.org/Pew Research, U.S. students’ academic achievement still lags that of their peers in many other countries: http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/02/15/u-s-students-internationally-math-science/Marvin Cohen, Nesta Marshall, Babette Moeller: http://mathforall.cct.edc.org/about-math-for-all/STEM: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science,_technology,_engineering,_and_mathematics Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Del Lago Academy is one use case that shows the potential of alternative credentialing (or digital badges) for reforming assessment in the digital age. If you're a K12 professional, a funder, or a education technologist that's been following the conversation on Badges for Learning, you don't want to miss this conversation. Alec Barron is the lead behind Competency X, a project that's already engaged teachers, local industry, and higher ed in a serious conversation about how competency-based practices, along with strong software platforms, can change the efficiency and effectiveness of school-supported pathways for youth to meaningful, prosperous futures in San Diego County.Links from this episode:Del Lago Academy: https://www.dellagoacademy.org/Portfolium: https://portfolium.com/Competency X: https://www.competencyx.com/BIOCOM: https://www.biocom.org/s/Fleet Science Center: https://www.rhfleet.org/Digital Badge Summit: https://badgesummit.weebly.com/Palomar College: https://www2.palomar.edu/Miramar College: https://www.sdmiramar.edu/Pharmatec: http://www.pharmtech.com/Assessment for Learning Project: https://www.assessmentforlearningproject.org/Education Design Lab: https://eddesignlab.org/Nicole Pinkard: http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/profile/?p=1049&/NicholePinkard/Center for Collaborative Education: http://cce.org/Reimagining College Access: https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/project/reimagining-college-access Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode I'm talking with Julia Bennett, Director of Learning Strategy at Planned Parenthood Federation of America, along with Dan Rice, Director of Training for an organization called, Answer out of Rutgers University in New Jersey, and Temitayo Fagbenle, Senior, City University of NY, Queens College and soon-to-begin "Fellow" at "Nancy," a production of WNYC Studios. You may remember her from previous episodes of this show on higher education and youth radio.If you've wondered about this intersection between technology and the sexual development of young learners, I'm with you. We tackle some big issues in this episode, and I hope also shed some light on the reality of where young people are learning sex ed, and what role adults in their lives can play.Links from this episode:Planned Parenthood Federation of America: https://www.plannedparenthood.org/Answer: http://answer.rutgers.edu/Temitayo Fagbenle on Instagram and Twitter @theeetemi: https://www.wnyc.org/people/temitayo-fagbenle/NYC Comptroller's Report on Sex Ed: https://comptroller.nyc.gov/newsroom/comptroller-stringer-report-high-number-of-middle-and-high-school-students-arent-taught-sex-ed/PrEP, HIV prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/risk/prep/index.htmlSex Etc: SexEtc.orgOnline Shaming, WNYC Radio Rookies: https://www.wnyc.org/story/261104-radio-rookies-sexual-cyberbullying/It's Complicated by dana boyd: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300166316/its-complicated Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is part 2 of an experiment. If you listen to both episodes, it’s two hours of gameplay, and talk about games in learning, play, popular titles, a takedown of the Fortnight franchise by young Game Reviewer, and Rudy Blanco's student, Kimari Rennis - I can’t wait for you to meet Kimari - we talk about diversity in games, we define some terms, sidetrack a bit into mythology, and so so much more. Here’s the bottom line, though. If you’ve never played video games with your students, you might be missing out on a tremendous learning opportunity. How often in your class does a student jump in an say, “I’m happy to control the ship?” This and so much more in the episode ahead. Enjoy.Links from this episode:NYC Video Game Critic’s Circle: https://nygamecritics.com/DreamYard Project: http://www.dreamyard.com/(Game 1) Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime: http://www.loversinadangerousspacetime.com/Until Dawn (game): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Until_DawnPlants Vs Zombies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plants_vs._ZombiesGeorge Fan, PVZ designer: http://plantsvszombies.wikia.com/wiki/George_FanDisney Quest (arcade): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisneyQuestFortnite (game): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FortniteSmite (game): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smite_(video_game)Pub G: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayerUnknown%27s_Battlegrounds(Game 2) Don’t Starve Together: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_StarveAssassin’s Creed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassin%27s_CreedPlaystation “Shareplay”: https://www.playstation.com/en-us/explore/ps4/share-play/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is another two-parter and it’s something of an experiment. If you listen to both episodes, it’s two hours of gameplay, and talk about games in learning, play, popular titles, a takedown of the Fortnight franchise by young Game Reviewer, and Rudy Blanco's student, Kimari Rennis - I can’t wait for you to meet Kimari - we talk about diversity in games, we define some terms, sidetrack a bit into mythology, and so so much more. Here’s the bottom line, though. If you’ve never played video games with your students, you might be missing out on a tremendous learning opportunity. How often in your class does a student jump in an say, “I’m happy to control the ship?” This and so much more in the episode ahead. Enjoy.Links from this episode:NYC Video Game Critic’s Circle: https://nygamecritics.com/DreamYard Project: http://www.dreamyard.com/(Game 1) Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime: http://www.loversinadangerousspacetime.com/Until Dawn (game): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Until_DawnPlants Vs Zombies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plants_vs._ZombiesGeorge Fan, PVZ designer: http://plantsvszombies.wikia.com/wiki/George_FanDisney Quest (arcade): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisneyQuestFortnite (game): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FortniteSmite (game): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smite_(video_game)Pub G: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayerUnknown%27s_Battlegrounds(Game 2) Don’t Starve Together: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_StarveAssassin’s Creed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassin%27s_CreedPlaystation “Shareplay”: https://www.playstation.com/en-us/explore/ps4/share-play/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The organization Games for Change is hard to describe as being just one thing: they throw a Festival that happens every year in NYC, and that's been the backbone of the organization, but around that has grown a really important community of artists and activists, educators, computer scientists, developers, funders, and game studios who believe deeply in the power of games for improving the human experience. Sometimes that's about empathy for other humans, sometimes it's about zooming in on something remarkable, sometimes it's about simply tapping the playfulness in all of us. When I think of Games for Change - some might call them Serious Games - I think of titles like Dys4ia, a flashgame by the legendary Anna Anthropy - quoting from Wikipedia, "to recount her experiences of gender dysphoria and hormone replacement therapy". There are hundreds of titles, and many would argue that the boundaries between "serious games" and others is really about your game design practice, more than genre. They can be blurry, when you put them up against Educational Games, or even virtual environments where the outcomes aren't purely a play for revenue.I've been really lucky to be a part of this organization's evolution as a participant at the festival, as a partner to their student game design challenge in my role at Mouse, and as a member of the community that gains so much from the vision they put forward 15 years ago. I feel like an Anniversary gift is in order, and while I didn't send chocolates to founders - Ben Stokes, Barry Joseph, Suzanne Seggerman - it felt like the next best thing to spend some time with G4C President, Susanna Pollack, and give you a chance to hear from two winners at this year's festival.3 Conversations, 15 years of Games for Change - enjoy.Notes from this episode:Games For Change: http://www.gamesforchange.org/Attentat 1942: http://attentat1942.com/Attentat 1942 Gameplay: https://youtu.be/kLct7kVW1sMCharles University: https://cuni.cz/About Assassins Creed, Origins for Education: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/arts/assassins-creed-origins-education.htmlSTEAM: https://store.steampowered.com/Technology Student Association: http://www.tsaweb.org/Play Garrett at Chameleon School: http://tsabms.bsd.k12.pa.us/VideoGameDesign/Team903/2018 G4C Student Challenge Winners: http://www.gamesforchange.org/studentchallenge/awards-2018-student-challenge/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr. Gretchen Givens Generett, is a researcher / educator on issues of teacher professional development, educational leadership, and cultural diversity. An associate professor in the School of Education at Duquesne University, Gretchen is the Director of the University Council for Educational Administration Center for Educational Leadership and Social Justice.   Her teaching and research are designed to enhance the skills and habits of mind necessary for educators to effectively teach students from diverse populations.  During our chat, Gretchen shares her own personal narrative, and talks about how each of us has a story that needs to be explored as preparation and proper framing for the work we endeavor to do. I learned so much from my chat with her, and I hope you do too.Dr. Generett has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes in the field of education. She is the co-editor of the book Black Women in the Field: Experiences Understanding Ourselves and Others through Qualitative Researchpublished by Hampton Press and has served as the guest editor for the journals Educational Foundations, Educational Studies, and Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership.  Notes from this episode:Dr. Francisco Guajardo: http://iel.org/francisco-guajardoLinda Treadway: http://iel.org/lynda-tredwayGretchen Generett’s Inspire Speaker Series story: https://youtu.be/d_fwIjZlaMwMalcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History (on school segregation): http://revisionisthistory.com/episodes/13-miss-buchanans-period-of-adjustmentChris Janson https://www.unf.edu/bio/N00607194/Matt Militello https://coeweb.ecu.edu/directory/name/matthew-militello/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you're getting to this episode without having given a listen to Episode 34 on MakerEd and Autism, hit pause and back up one episode. This one won't land without its predecessor. In fact, when I recorded this interview, it was intended as a segment that I would drop into 34, but the more I tried to make it work, the less I liked it. I didn't want to interrupt the previous conversation, and I didn't want to give short shrift to Dave Wells, who's a critical piece of the Maker Educator puzzle in NYC. So much so that i'm mashing up some of the conversation I have had with him previously on the show to fill in some context on NYSCI, the NY Hall of Science, where Dave works, and to round out the episode. The first part of the interview you're about to hear is from the Manhattan Make-A-Thon earlier this year where i had a chance to sit with Dave and talk about the work at NYSCI. If you prefer to skip forward to the details in the second half about how Dave and the NSF-funded research team from NYU and Education Development Center implemented the project - head to ~8:30.David Wells, Director of Maker Programming, is responsible for all programming and activities in NYSCI’s Maker Space. He oversees the design and implementation of maker-related programs which engage families, students, and visitors of all ages, he's a “maker of things” in his own right, and designs sight specific interactive art installations using discarded technology, audio experimentation, and digital media He received his B.F.A. from F.I.T. and a Masters in Museum Education from Bank Street.Links from this episode:Dave Wells, Bio https://nysci.org/people/david-wells/NYU's ASD Nest https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/asdnest/Education Development Center https://www.edc.org/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kristie Patten Koenig is an occupational therapist, with a PhD in Educational Psychology.From her bio: She examines the efficacy of interventions utilized in public schools for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders.She's the Department Chair for Occupational Therapy at New York University and a leading researcher on K12 interventions related to Autism Spectrum Disorder.Dr. Wendy Martin leads research that deepens understanding of how key components of educational programs influence effectiveness and participant experience with the prominent research group, Education Development Center.We're talking today about a project that they collaborate on: it's about maker education and Autism.Notes from the episode:ASD Nest @ NYU: https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/asdnest/Wendy Martin: http://cct.edc.org/people/martin-wendyKristie Koenig: https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/ot/faculty/Kristie_KoenigDiagnostic and Statistical Manual Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.