

No Such Thing: Education in the Digital Age
Marc Lesser
The show is about learning with technology, the realities and exciting potential.Enjoying the show? Please take a moment to rate us, and leave a review wherever you've accessed the podcast. Find our listener survey at facebook.com/nosuchthingpodcast drop a like on the page while you're there.The music in this podcast was produced by Leroy Tindy, a guest in episode zero. You can find him on SoundCloud at AirTindi Beats.The podcast is produced by Marc Lesser. Marc is a specialist in the fields of digital learning and youth development with broad experience designing programming and learning environments in local and national contexts. Marc recently served as Youth Studies Practitioner Fellow at City University of New York, and leads a team of researchers and technologists for NAF (National Academy Foundation).Marc is the co-founder of Emoti-Con NYC, New York's biggest youth digital media and technology festival, and in 2012 was named a National School Boards Association “20-to-Watch” among national leaders in education and technology. Connect with Marc on BlueSky @malesser, or LinkedIn.What's with the ice cream truck in the logo? In the 80's, Richard E. Clark at University of Southern California set off a pretty epic debate based on his statement that "media are mere vehicles that deliver instruction but do not influence student achievement any more than the truck that delivers our groceries causes changes in nutrition." * So, the ice cream truck, it's a nod to Richard Clark, who frequently rings in my ear when I'm tempted to take things at face value. "Is it the method, or the medium?" I wonder.The title, No Such Thing, has a few meanings. Mostly, it emphasizes the importance of hard questions as we develop and document the narrative of "education" in the US. For Richard E. Clark, the question is whether there's such a thing as learning from new technologies. For others, it might be whether there's a panacea for the challenges we face in this field. Whatever your question, I hope that it reminds you to keep asking--yourself, your learners, others--what's working and how so.* Clark, R. E. (1983) Reconsidering Research on Learning From Media. Review of Educational Research 53(4) 445-459. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 22, 2018 • 37min
Science Communication
This is part two of a couple of episodes on "Broadening Participation." Dr. Sunshine Menezes, has served as executive director of the Metcalf Institute at the University of Rhode Island since 2006. She became a Clinical Associate Professor of Environmental Communication in the URI Department of Natural Resources Science in 2017. She'd spent more than a decade before that as specialist in Science Communication and science policy. Menezes received a B.S. in zoology from Michigan State University, a Ph.D. in biological oceanography from the URI Graduate School of Oceanography, and was a Rhode Island Foundation Fellow from 2013-2014.Enjoy this second conversation from the 2018 convening of the Center for Advancement of Informal Science Learning's Task Force on BP through informal STEM learning.Links from this conversation:Dr. Sunshine MenezesMetcalf InstituteArpita ChoudheryThe Science of IllustrationArpita Choudhery's Etsy ShopCenter for Advancement of Informal Science website Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 15, 2018 • 1h 6min
Episode 32: "The Trajectory of Knowledge"
This episode is important groundwork for understanding some of the nuance of broadening participation. This interview is with experts like Jaime Bell, Cecilia Garabay, Christine Reich, and Dale McCreedy, and together we dive into the issue. I taped these interviews after a two-day convening of the task force in Washington DC. Every step of this experience has been an honor and a priviledge to be a part of, and I'm really grateful for the chance to contribute and, of course, learn a lot myself. If you're interested in learning more about the task force and it's work, I encourage you to check us out from the Center for Advancement of Informal Science website - I'll drop a link in the notes.This is the first of 2 parts. If you leave this conversation thinking, what on earth is Science Communication, have I got a treat. In the next episode I'll share a short chat I had with Sunshine Menezes and we tackle that topic and its relationship to all of this.Enjoy this first conversation from the 2018 convening of the Center for Advancement of Informal Science Learning's Task Force on BP through informal STEM learning:Links:The Franklin Institute is happy to announce the release of Cascading Influences: Long-Term Impacts of Informal STEM Experiences for Girls. This publication describes the results of a research study conducted by Dale McCreedy, Ph.D. (The Franklin Institute) and Lynn D. Dierking, Ph.D. (Oregon State University) to better understand the long-term significance of informal STEM programs for girls. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 7, 2018 • 1h 23min
Episode 31: "Break All The Rules"
Amil Cook is a teacher at Propel Andrew Street Charter School in Pittsburgh, and he sees educators as DJs for learning. Part of his mantra... "break all the rules"My conversation with Amil Cook highlights some opportunities that excited me when I first heard about them because they were totally novel instances where an educator was consciously pairing these specific technologies - crypto currency and 360 cameras - with learning experiences at the high school level. Amil and I, along with nearly graduated senior, Denver, take some exciting twists and turns.In this episode:Youth Leading Change Summit360 Camera360 Project Experience LinkTemple Lovelace - DuquesneShamik More: Dope, MovieYoutubers & Games:Myth, Daequan, NinjaFortnightPubG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 30, 2018 • 1h 15min
Episode 30: Manhattan Make-A-Thon
This episode is about Maker Education, but also about the high stakes of designing high quality professional experiences for educators. There are still too many professional experiences meant to hone craft, build skills, and excite that are way too dull.Manhattan Make-A-Thon is something different. And for that, it deserves a lot of credit. Earlier in the year, Lori Stahl Van-Brackle, Director of Instructional Technology for the Manhattan Field Support Center at the NYC DOE, challenged 20 schools in a special cohort to design maker-driven learning experiences that they would test with young people at school, and then lead experiential training at the make-a-thon: rooms upon rooms full of educators sewing, hammering, hot-glueing away while they discuss pedagogy alongside their peers. Many of them brought students, too. Which, where it worked, was an exciting glimpse at what it looks like when learning isn't something bestowed upon us, but is constructed through experience and interaction, and can most certainly be shared at the same time between teacher and student.My thanks to the talented team who made it possible. The following is a series of interviews with participants as the day unfolded.SPECIAL THANKS TO:Casey, Kenya, Carol, Mr. Deepak KapoorAmanda Solarsh, and Caitlyn from MS 104PS 191 in ManhattanAmy Sachs from Roberto Clemente, PS 15Jessica Wenke from Teqand David Wells from NYSCI Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 9, 2018 • 1h 19min
Episode 29: "Media Manipulation and the Online Far-Right"
Today's interview is a live taping of the show from the annual Facutly Symposium at Borough of Manhattan Community College. The daylong symposium was called Techno Cultures in the 21st Century.Marc and Becca Lewis from Data & Society, explore the report titled,"Media Manipulation and Disinformation Online" widening its scope to include her further research on the "Online Far-Right" as content creators. If you're someone who spends time advocating for a creative and collaborative culture on the internet, this episode will be sobering, but required listening. The good people at Data & Society are reporting out, for our benefit, on the societal phenomena that occur on the internet. As you can imagine, 2017 was an important year for them. This report is a critical investigation of all that emerged online around the 2016 election. If you're still trying to understand the difference between "fake news" and "media manipulation," or alt right and alt light, or how a little green frog took over momentarily as a symbol of hate across our media, stay tuned.Huge thanks to the faculty of the Department of Social Sciences, Human Services, and Criminal Justice at Borough of Manhattan Community College, who were amazing hosts for this event.If you like this episode, subscribe to No Such Thing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. If it's not available on your favorite player, let me know through our shownotes site, nosuchthingpodcast[dot]org. Already a subscriber? Please rate and review us, and tweet the showpage to your network with #nosuchthingpodcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 25, 2018 • 1h 23min
Episode 28: If Grades Were Hyperlinks
Marc talks with distinguished learning scientists Katie Davis from University of Washington, and Barry Fishman of University of Michigan about "badges," also known as digital, micro, and alternative credentials. The group discusses the potential for technology to reframe the experience for learners of demonstrating "achievement" throughout their education and development.If you like this episode, subscribe to No Such Thing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. If it's not available on your favorite player, let me know through our shownotes site, nosuchthingpodcast[dot]org. Already a subscriber? Please rate and review us, and tweet the showpage to your network with #nosuchthingpodcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 19, 2018 • 56min
Episode 27: Other Technologies, Part 2
This is Part 2 of a 2-Part Episode. Akbar Cooke is a vice principal at West Side High School in Newark NJ, he's one in nearly 1mm K12 administrators in the country, but at West Side he's a giant. Kids call him "coach" or "Cooke" and straighten up when they see him. Not out of fear, but respect - the kind that if you've ever worked with teens, you know only comes when things are reciprocal, mutual - it's clear that his heart is as intimidating, in a way, as his physical presence. Everyone should walk the halls with Akbar, if you don't ask yourself "do I have the courage to love this much - to work this hard for the people around me?" then you're not human.Matt Greenfield is an venture capitalist. If you ask anyone who invests in technology for education, they know his name, and his company Rethink Education. Proper disclosure, Matt is a board member at Mouse, and he's a writer - he's one of the only people I know who's worked as a publishing poet who now manages investments. His intellect is enormous, and among the things he shares with Akbar, is heart. When a national EdTech publication, EdSurge asked Matt to write an editorial about the exciting prospects for EdTech in 2018 from an Investors Perspective, Matt too the opportunity to write about other technologies. He wrote "I find myself without strong enthusiasm for the task of writing a conventional set of predictions about education technology in 2018. The most urgent needs of the most vulnerable children in this nation involve other technologies. M: This nation is failing its most fundamental duty to children."A lot is covered in these two episodes, but all of the topics revolve around one single truth: that the prospects for how tech innovation in the US illuminates a path to meaning, and success and wealth is not the same for everyone.Marc is also joined by Tywan Jones - a senior at West Side and one of the wise-beyond-their-years and courageous teens who gives me hope for our future. We get into the failures of our current system, and the successes of a local leader, who along with an amazing team at West Side, is battling for every strategic position on the chess board. In episode two we get into the national walkout and gun violence, and whether kids in Newark NJ can safely "walk out" even if they chose to.A quick disclaimer, there are some disturbing images that come up in our conversation in these two episodes - so if there are sensitive ears nearby - you might save this one for your headphones.If you like this episode, subscribe to No Such Thing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. If it's not available on your favorite player, let me know through our shownotes site, nosuchthingpodcast[dot]org. Already a subscriber? Please rate and review us, and tweet the showpage to your network with #nosuchthingpodcast to enter to win a brand new 1st Gen Google Pixel phone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 12, 2018 • 60min
Episode 26: Other Technologies, Part 1
This is Part 1 of a 2-Part Episode. Akbar Cooke is a vice principal at West Side High School in Newark NJ, he's one in nearly 1mm K12 administrators in the country, but at West Side he's a giant. Kids call him "coach" or "Cooke" and straighten up when they see him. Not out of fear, but respect - the kind that if you've ever worked with teens, you know only comes when things are reciprocal, mutual - it's clear that his heart is as intimidating, in a way, as his physical presence. Everyone should walk the halls with Akbar, if you don't ask yourself "do I have the courage to love this much - to work this hard for the people around me?" then you're not human. Matt Greenfield is an venture capitalist. If you ask anyone who invests in technology for education, they know his name, and his company Rethink Education. Proper disclosure, Matt is a board member at Mouse, and he's a writer - he's one of the only people I know who's worked as a publishing poet who now manages investments. His intellect is enormous, and among the things he shares with Akbar, is heart. When a national EdTech publication, EdSurge asked Matt to write an editorial about the exciting prospects for EdTech in 2018 from an Investors Perspective, Matt too the opportunity to write about other technologies. He wrote "I find myself without strong enthusiasm for the task of writing a conventional set of predictions about education technology in 2018. The most urgent needs of the most vulnerable children in this nation involve other technologies. M: This nation is failing its most fundamental duty to children."A lot is covered in these two episodes, but all of the topics revolve around one single truth: that the prospects for how tech innovation in the US illuminates a path to meaning, and success and wealth is not the same for everyone. Marc is also joined by Tywan Jones - a senior at West Side and one of the wise-beyond-their-years and courageous teens who gives me hope for our future. We get into the failures of our current system, and the successes of a local leader, who along with an amazing team at West Side, is battling for every strategic position on the chess board. In episode two we get into the national walkout and gun violence, and whether kids in Newark NJ can safely "walk out" even if they chose to. A quick disclaimer, there are some disturbing images that come up in our conversation in these two episodes - so if there are sensitive ears nearby - you might save this one for your headphones. If you like this episode, subscribe to No Such Thing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. If it's not available on your favorite player, let me know through our shownotes site, nosuchthingpodcast[dot]org. Already a subscriber? Please rate and review us, and tweet the showpage to your network with #nosuchthingpodcast to enter to win a brand new 1st Gen Google Pixel phone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 4, 2018 • 51min
Episode 25: What If a High Tech High School Isn't an Option?
Dov is back, chatting with Marc about the process of "school choice" in NYC, and how he's dealing with the prospect of his non-high-tech options. Joining with her sage advice is Geneva Hayward, recently admitted to NYU's Game Center for a BFA, Geneva offers her ideas about how to blaze your own high tech path when school doesn't offer it. Both students are generally happy with their schooling, but weigh in on where to find ways to supplement the experience, and what's lacking about the process of high school enrollment. If you like this episode, subscribe to No Such Thing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. If it's not available on your favorite player, let me know through our shownotes site, nosuchthingpodcast[dot]org. Already a subscriber? Please rate and review us, and tweet the showpage to your network with #nosuchthingpodcast to enter to win a brand new 1st Gen Google Pixel phone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 28, 2018 • 1h 20min
Episode 24: Ten Years of Emoti-Con!
Three members of the Emoti-Con, NYC, Steering Committee join the show to talk about the event's anniversary. Amanda Perales, Christin Velasquez, and Meredith Summs talk about NYC's biggest showcase for young designers, makers, technologists, and tinkerers who believe in digital innovation as a tool for positive change in the world around them. 2018 will be Emoti-Con's 10th year! If you like this episode, subscribe to No Such Thing on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play. If it's not available on your favorite player, let me know through our shownotes site, nosuchthingpodcast[dot]org. Already a subscriber? Please rate and review us, and tweet the showpage--https://shows.pippa.io/nosuchthing--to your network with #nosuchthingpodcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.